1996

ASM 417-420, TAC 240-241, SM 73-78, SSM 11-15, SMU 14, SMTU 5-6, Spider-Man/Gen13. The big thing here is Norman Osborn revealed to be alive, trying to kill basically everyone in the bottom left corner, killing Ben Reilly, and making Mary Jane have a miscarriage. So glad they made me draw MJ & Anna reacting to indescribable loss. That’s what we want in superhero comics! And so Peter Parker s restored as the real, one & only Spider-Man in a messy, stupid retcon no one wanted to even do, forced by editorial to resurrect Osborn and invalidate one of the most shocking moments in comics history. But also, one or the other (Or both) Spider-Mans team-up with Howard the Duck, Gambit, X-Man, Daredevil, new character SHOC, Hulk, The Aquarian, Shanna & Ka-Zar, Dr. Strange and Gen13 of Image Comics, while fighting Judas Traveller, Robotmaster, Delilah, The Rose, Scrier, Dracula, Trapster & Morbius. It’s weird that both times Spider-Man crossed paths with Dracula, Morbius showed up at almost the same time. Also in this block, as if bringing Norman back wasn’t dumb enough, Gwen Stacy’s long-forgotten uncle Arthur and newly created cousin Jill show up from London, randomly ready to hold Spider-Man accountable for the deaths of Gwen & George Stacy after all these years. Why? Who knows? Who cares? Top row trying to emulate the generally more cartoony look of the books in ’96, middle row in faux-Romita, Jr. mode, bottom row kinda on the fence, with a Spider-Man cobbled together from 3 Romita, Jr. drawings. This was the first of the “Spider-Man Vs. The Goblin” sub-series when it was originally done as drawing #27.