Off the rip, it seems like you’d want “Delilah” to fight Doc Samson. I guess we sorta did that already, but not really. Delilah’s main thing is abusing the hell out of the fact that comics are now lettered digitally, as seen immediately on page one:
Any good designer will tell you: too many fonts is never a good thing. For Delilah, it’s the only thing.
They managed to make a character who’s insufferable even if you know nothing about her. Things like Deadpool’s yellow word balloons are annoying to me, but this hurt my eyes, brain and heart. Delilah stabs up the rest of the goons and goes to join her mysterious employer who is not shown, but clearly The Rose, who hands her her next target: Devon from the coffee shop’s dad! Meanwhile, Doc Connors continues to investigate Peter Parker’s deteriorating condition while Ben and Mary Jane stand around helpless.
Ben’s hair is really out of control. As Spider-Man, he swings away to go to work, wishing he could do something to help Peter, when he hears a fracas below. The cops are discovering a local shopkeeper has been robbed by The Ringer. Have we seen The Ringer? We will if we haven’t. The cops mention he’s supposed to be dead, and Ben thinks a whole lot of old Spidey villains sure are popping back up lately. He arrives at work to find Shirley upset, and then when Desiree Winthrop blows in, as she tends to do, he immediately asks her if she’s heard anything about Jessica, because he’s a real suave dude.
Why are Devon and his dad having “meetings?” Why would she involve Ben? I dunno, but Spider-Man is on the case, watching as Garon and Devon meet in the park. Devon knows his dad is up to something, but then… a lady pushes a baby carriage with a bomb at them? Uh, ok. Lucky for them, Spider-Man’s on the scene to throw it in the air before it explodes. Devon’s dad tell hims to go home as he pulls a gun and runs after the lady who is obviously Delilah but not shown for some reason.
What’s happened to JJJ? I genuinely do not remember. Spidey catches up to Garon in the sewer just in time for Delilah to make her in-costume debut. Such… as it is…
Ugh. Save me from 90s “bad girls.” Spidey drags Garon to relative safety as Devon blunders down into the sewer after them, so, naturally, in no time at all…
I feel weird about this twist, but ok. I guess it’s ultimately better than him being a mob goon, but the bait & switch feels a little gross. Anyway, Ben has a new understanding of Devon, of how his crappy attitude is a shield for the turmoil he’s living with, and decides to do his best to be his friend. While wearing a t-shirt for the band Rusted Root, which is disgusting. And now, just in case you think Delilah saying she works for Hammerhead means I must feel foolish after saying her boss was obviously The Rose…
Mm hm. I’m not honestly sure if this is the original Rose or a new one. Feels like it should be a new one, but I do not recall! We’ll find out together, I’m sure. I’ve always had a soft spot for The Rose from reading his original appearances early in my comics collecting career, so it’s fun to see him, even if maybe it’s a different him. In the oft-referenced Comic Book Creators On Spider-Man, Mark Bagley says Delilah was a stab at trying to design a character like Jim Lee. I can see it. But while Jim Lee is rightfully a revered artist, history shows he is a terrible, terrible costume designer, so this was a mistake.