We’re back with all the Sandmen, right where we left off.
When was Sandman a woman? All the other seems to be a recognizable Sandman look.
This is a weird one. Our hero convinces the kid to let him go so he can bring her abuela down here, promising he wont try to run off with her, but he’s lying, so it’s time for a wild Javier Pulido signature spread.
The guy just makes fun looking comics. Our guy punches through the wall and beigns to abscond with the hostage, as the castle begins turning into an army of pursuing Sandmen.
Maybe don’t mention the murder right in front of her, man, jeez.
Business Sandman has never looked more like Norman Osborn.
Talk about an identity crisis. It’s interesting how the Sandman dialogue gets a little confusing very much on purpose, there. A guy arguing with himself across multiple bodies probably ought to be hard to read. The various Sandmen unite into one giant Sandman, and Spider-Man begins to wonder how he’s gonna get out of here. There’s no boats, there’s no way off the island. But that’s even worse for a man made of sand. Then he spots a big building which Keemia helpfully yells is where Sandman gets their food and toys, and our man ducks in for lack of a better plan. He notes some big ventilation equipment I’m sure won’t be important later, and then it’s time for another crazy 2-pager.
Keemia falls through a shaft and almost to her death, but Spider-Man saves her, of course. He also realizes this whole structure is ventilation system for the Brooklyn/Battery Tunnel, and also how Sandman is getting off the island and back. So he can use it, too, and does.
Ouch. Gut punch end to that story. But not the comic, as Peter Parker meets Carlie Cooper at the Coffee Bean, where she says Keemia’s story lined up with the facts enough to clear her of wrongdoing. Peter’s happy for her, but can’t shake feeling terrible about what happened to Keemia. And what did happen to Keemia?
Hey, what just happened? This was pretty good for 2010s Spider-Man, but Sandman’s secret not-actually-his daughter is so left field. Me, I woulda made it one of the kids from the family he used to board with when he was a good guy. But continuity is a 4-letter word in this era, so I guess that’s not even an option. I was really thrown off by having this thing start with a Persian named Latino kid we don’t know. And only 2 issues? Sandy doesn’t rate 3 parts? Aaaaaaand what did this have to do with Sasha Kravinoff? “The Gauntlet” feels more like “the series of coincidences” so far.