Spider-Man Creators: Writer- Saladin Ahmed, Art- Juan Ferreyra, Letterer- VC’s Joe Caramagna

Story:

Steve: After an action packed opening that sees Spider-Man put Spidercide on ice, Peter falls asleep only to wake into a nightmare. No one knows him: his landlord, Aunt Mae, and MJ. The Avengers and FF won’t take his call, and worst of all, he has no powers. What is going on? Mishap after mishap leads him to a nightmarish train following an anonymous phone message. In this issue, things don’t improve. The last page ends with Peter on the run from a ghoulish train conductor brandishing a sledge hammer.

Like the #0 issue, this one was excellent. The story is very compelling and creepy. I love that the story is revealed little by little. Yes, we know that each time he calls someone they won’t know him, but the pain is real. And, the meeting with MJ and her friends who are going to take care of “the creep” who is bothering her leads to more reveal- the loss of powers. Every bit is expertly revealed. These bits could be part of any Spidey story, but the train- that is something special to this one. The insanity on the train is akin to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland….only creepier. Can’t wait to see how Peter escapes this one.

Glenn: After a fight with Spidercide (who I never thought I’d see again and then he pops up in last years excellent Ben Reilly Flashback mini and here, go figure), Peter wakes up to a world where no one knows who he is. He’s also without his powers as he remembers what it’s like to be a normal person again.

Getting a mysterious text promising answers and his life back, Peter investigates and is confronted by some deeply disturbing stuff. The overall mystery is very good and brings to mind the spell MCU Peter cast where no one will remember him. My first guess as to what’s going on here is something to do with Nightmare but that would be very similar to the previous Spine-Tingling story. It’s either a very impressive Mysterio trick or something supernatural. The only supernatural entity that is really on Peter’s radar is Mephisto and I doubt its him but we’ll see.

Opening with action is a smart move as it gets people engaged before you start what looks to be a slow burn, atmospheric story.

Very simple but effective, an interesting and gripping start. The cover says it’s the scariest Marvel book ever which it isn’t, but Marvel pays the bills on hyperbole and always has. Overall I liked it a great deal.

Art:

Steve: Juan Ferreyra is quickly becoming one of my favorite artists. He can do it all- the big moments, the fights, while not avoiding the quieter moments, the everyday acting that take a delicate hand. Pages two and three are a double page spread depicting the fight with SpiderCide. It is amazing, using the entire space to move the reader through the fight. He does an excellent job posing Spidey in a “Ramos-like” way- very fluid. (small complaint- at the top of page two, Spider-Man appears to have three legs- Correction, it would appear that I incorrectly identified and arm as a leg– Ferreyra indeed rules!) From there, Juan expertly uses scale and layout. There is one panel in particular, page 11; it is 1/3 the width of the page and the full height. Peter looks incredulously at his apartment building after being evicted. He is looking up and looks so small in comparison to the building. The reader clearly feels his predicament. Ferreyra also uses close-ups effectively with a multitude of facial expressions from Peter as he starts to understand his predicament. Then, we get to the insanity of the train. It is very different in style, but fits perfectly for the insane conductor. It’s creepy and terrifying.

Glenn: Juan Ferreyra does a stellar job. He draws action, horror and gives tension that a story like this needs. He gives Spidey an extra leg in his fight with Spidercide which I didn’t notice until Steve pointed it out to me, so its not a big deal. There’s a lot of atmosphere in the pages and when Peter goes looking for answers, some of the imagery on display is legitimately disturbing and unsettling.

As I said for the previous story, Ferreyra’s Spidey puts me in mind of Ditko. The more quirky/slightly darker take on the character that was soon overshadowed by Romita’s pizazz, but has been brought back to great effect by many including here. The art almost has a storybook type aspect to it which adds to the creepiness of the whole affair a great deal.

Overall:

Steve: 4 Webshooters

Glenn: 4 Webshooters- An excellent start, looking forward to see what chills and twists this team has coming for us over the next few issues.

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