Cover seems like a spoiler. To start, it’s “one week ago,” and Harry is some some wintery mountain home, thinking about the end of Ultimate Six, when he’s interrupted by Nick Fury.
Nick seems puzzled that Harry doesn’t seem to remember anything that happened, to remember that his dad is the Green Goblin. Harry refuses to believe his dad killed his mom. But Nick says his grandfather is going to take him in, and he’s inherited his dad’s millions, so he’s got that going for him. Then we cut to 6 days ago, and Harry watching Peter & MJ talk to Johnny Storm, watching their body language together. Then it’s 5 days ago…
Four days ago, Harry and his grandfather are looking at the remains of the site where Norman and Doc Ock go their powers, Harry having a flash of his part of that story, and then flatly refusing to sell the land to Roxxon. Then, 3 days ago, Harry got a mysterious phone call while his grandfather was asleep, and went down to the street to be ushered into a car by Norman’s enforcer, Shaw, who tried to kill Peter back in USM 3, who says he wants to show him something. He wants to know where his dad is, but Shaw doesn’t know. He says he was just told to get Harry when SHIELD let him go. Harry says Shaw did Norman’s dirty work, that he heard all about it through an air vent in the old days.
In a really clever bit of business, Harry quickly remembers every so-blurry-you-can’t-see-it flashback panel in this issue, now crystal clear. Harry falls to his knees. Shaw reiterates that Norman was a genius, and opens the big doors in the ground, saying it’s a bunker his dad owned, and now it’s his.
It is such a classic Bendis move to hit you with the “Peter finds out Harry dated MJ” cliffhanger, then do this. He just delighted in leaving you on the hook, and in turn, it was impossible not to desperately want the next part. He so excelled at that part of the job, and at a time when comics were being written for the trade to an extent that many issues would just stop, no real ending, obviously just part whatever of 6, not at all satisfying as a single comic. Bendis made the fact that you only had part of a larger story into a feature of the monthly release schedule when it was often a bug.