Spectacular Spider-Man 1-3

How Can Spider-Man Have Problems Tackling A Guy With Pointy Shoes?

First of all , I want to note that issue 1 is a a collector's item. Unfortunately, issue 1 and the next two issues that make up the story arc presents us with a sorry tale.

We have three villains here: Tarantula, Kraven and the uber-powerful Lightmaster. I know it's the writers call, but these three villains are used in a very distorted way. First of all, Kraven as a hired thug. There is just no way this is going to happen short of an extortion attempt. Kraven is as egotistical as Doom, he'd never allow himself to be a henchman. Plus, he talks like an American here, not like the Russian royal he is. Suspension of disbelief just goes out the window with the way Kraven is treated here. Next is Tarantula. I mean shoe spikes? Spidey should be able to dispose of this blowhard circus hack in five minutes. Another way to put it is: Why does Tarantula get this much respect while Batroc doesn't? Lightmaster is the leader of the group. This guy reminds me of Green Lantern. That's right, Green Lantern level power and he hires a guy with shoe spikes and some guy who looks like Kraven (I refuse to acknowledge this guy as the Kraven we all know and respect). This storyline simply does not make sense.

The only thing keeping this story arc from being classifed as awful is Sal Buscema's art. Sal Buscema is as solid as usual, presenting us with dynamic action and the larger than life figures characteristic of the Marvel 'house' style.

Posted by Pete Albano - May 7, 2011

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