Tag Archives: Zodiac

The Amazing Spider-Man #10 Review

14 Thursday Apr 2016

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The Amazing Spider-Man #10

Review by Paul Bowler

Scorpio Rising continues in The Amazing Spider-Man #10 as our friendly-globe-trotting Spider-Man tackles the menace of Scorpio and Zodiac once more. In a startling turn of events, the 13th sign of the Zodiac has been revealed as The Spider! Now, after surviving re-entry from space, crash-landing in Paris and being attacked by Scorpio, Spider-Man’s fight for the future will span both sides of the English Channel, and when Parker Industries is also suddenly compromised Peter Parker’s life could be changed forever…

Following a mission into space with Nick Fury to regain control of the S.H.I.E.L.D satellites hacked by the terrorist organization Zodiac, Spider-Man used his emergency web-foam to make a daring free-fall from orbit to reach Paris and prevent Scorpio from gaining control of a mystical artefact – the Orrery. Following a ruthless attack by Scorpio, it looks like Spider-Man has lost his window of opportunity as Dan Slott propels the wall crawler’s cross-channel adventures to a whole new level, in Scorpio Rising Part 2: Power Play, as the stars align and Spider-Man’s battle with Scorpio spills over into the channel tunnel itself!

This issues kicks off with Scorpio on the cusp of victory after ambushing Spider-Man in Paris following Spidey’s fiery return to Earth. But writer Dan Slott skilfully proves, perhaps here more than ever, that even without all the fancy new Parker Industries gadgets and gizmos Spidey’s great power and responsibility wins out every time! Spider-Man even manages to find a major design flaw in Scorpio’s defences, but despite his efforts, the tide of the battle shifts when Scorpio exploit’s the wall-crawlers greatest weakness.

The Amazing Spider-Man #10 Cover

These opening scenes move along at a cracking pace as Spider-Man fights for his life, a fortuitous prediction however forces Scorpio’s hand, there’s also a scene where brave Parisians step in at a crucial moment that resonates powerfully, and we also have interludes featuring an ominous jail break back in New York…

Amazing Spider-Man #10 features some truly stunning artwork from Giuseppe Camuncoli. From the exciting opening scenes, Camuncoli keeps the action flowing seamlessly across numerous locales, with a fluid page layouts packed with breathtaking levels of detail across every panel. The moment where Anna and Brain the robot arrive to give Spider-Man a lift is another highlight, as Spidey thanks the civilians who helped him, before departing with a nod to David Tennant’s 10th Doctor’s catchphrase as they set off to take the fight back to Scorpio! Of course, as you may have guessed from this issue glorious Alex Ross cover, the main battle of this issue takes place in the channel tunnel – Mission Impossible style – atop the speeding Eurostar train. This electrifying face-off between Spider-Man and Scorpio showcases Giuseppe Camuncoli’s art like never before, and Camuncoli pulls out all the stops for this fabulous, nerve jangling confrontation!

Likewise, the inks by Cam Smith highlights the finer details of Camuncoli’s art, brining a real sense of speed and moment in the channel tunnel sequences, whilst inky shadows saturate the interludes during the New York jail break. The colors by Marte Gracia also shine in those aforementioned moments in Paris and the channel tunnel scenes, with vivid emerald hues crackling furiously from Scorpio’s energy attacks, to a sinister image lurking in the hazy glow of Brains robot eyes, and the opaque tones in a holographic conference call all collectively add up to make The Amazing Spider-Man #10 one hell of an impressive looking issue!

Even though Spider-Man won’t be able to prevent Scorpio reaching his next stop, Spider-Man, Anna, and Brain manage to uncover a vast hidden lair, one whose secrets could see Peter Parker lose everything that he’s worked so hard to accomplish… The Amazing Spider-Man #10 is another great issue in the new Scorpio Rising arc, with Dan Slott weaving in some stellar plot twists into the mix to keep us all on our toes, and brilliant artwork by Giuseppe Camuncoli, this Spider-Man series remains one of Marvel Comics finest!

Publisher: Marvel / Writer: Dan Slott /Art: Giuseppe Camuncoli

Inks: Cam Smith / Colorist: Marte Gracia

Lettering: VC’s Joe Caramagna / Cover Artist: Alex Ross

The Amazing Spider-Man #5 Review

23 Wednesday Dec 2015

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Amazing Spider-Man #5

Review by Paul Bowler

Its another day in the office of webspinning and high-flying business for Peter Parker in The Amazing Spider-Man #5, as our internationally friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man faces-off against the terrorist group ZODIAC who stole his new webware device. With his cutting edge technology Peter Parker’s work has provided S.H.I.E.L.D with equipment while his Uncle Ben Foundation delivers humanitarian aid all over the world. Parker Industries and Spider-Man have gone global, but so have the wall crawler’s enemies! Having dealt with a private army called the War Goblins in Africa instead of helping Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D track down ZODIAC, The Amazing Spider-Man #5 sees Spidey and Mockingbird regroup with their S.H.I.E.L.D allies at the London branch of Parker Industries, but will they be able to stop ZODIAC in time?

Yes, it’s another amazing issue from Dan Slott (& Christos Gage), as he brings the numerous plot threads that kicked off this new volume of Amazing Spider-Man together in “Set In Stone”, which finds Peter having to face up to his decision to go to Africa and stop the War Goblin’s and save Aunt May and her husband instead of helping S.H.I.E.L.D attack the ZODIAC bases – most of which incidentally turned out to be fake. But the repercussions of Peter’s choice must wait as they must stop ZODIAC first, and that means a trip to London for Spider-Man!

Amazing Spider-Man #5 Cover

There’s all out action from this point on, even the Human Torch is amazed to see Peter taking charge like this, but when ZODIAC attacks the British Museum, its time for Spider-Man, Torch, Mockingbird, Prowler, and S.H.I.E.L.D to swing into action. Giuseppe Camuncoli’s artwork is as striking detailed as ever, each page is packed with action and energy, and the story flows along at a break-neck pace that doesn’t let up for a moment – especially during the fight at the British Museum – where lots of fun dialogue is peppered throughout the dynamic page layouts. The inks by Cam Smith are also superb, brining added clarity and texture to every scene, and coloist Marte Gracia dazzles with a mix of bold tones and vivid hues to accentuate the action.

I’ve really enjoyed this new direction for The Amazing Spider-Man. Even though Peter is now in charge of a huge global company, his principles have remained the same; with great power and responsibility permeating every aspect of his company just as it does his everyday life and his adventuring as Spider-Man. His work with S.H.I.E.L.D has also been handled really well, it’s a move that has brought in a lot of extra characters too, and its made the title feel even more diverse than ever. Yes, I’m a big fan of Spider-Man, and you know what, I’m really enjoying reading Spider-Man again on a regular basis, after something of a lull story-wise at times with the last volume, the wall crawlers adventures seem fun and exciting again.

This issue brings the first arc of this new volume to a close in fine style as the fight with Scorpio reaches a surprise conclusion. Peter also faces a press conference over the unauthorized use of the Parker Nanotech to interface with the London CCTV systems, which leads to some interesting changes at Parker Industries London HQ, there’s also the menace of a major villain’s consciousness lurking like a ghost in the machine, and a final reveal in the ominous coda that will give us plenty to mull over… In short, The Amazing Spider-Man is another terrific issue, I mean, just look at that gorgeous Alex Ross cover! It’s quickly becoming one of my favourite Marvel titles again, and even though I love all the new high-tech gadgets and vehicles I was overjoyed to see Spider-Man using the greatest Spidey vehicle of all to travel across the London skyline!

Publisher: Marvel

Writers: Dan Slott & Christos Gage – Art: Giuseppe Camuncoli – Inks: Cam Smith – Colors: Marte Gracia

Cover Artist: Alex Ross

 

The Amazing Spider-Man #1 Reivew

15 Thursday Oct 2015

Posted by in All, Marvel Comics

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The Amazing Spider-Man #1

Review by Paul Bowler

Parker Industries and Spider-Man have gone global, with the All-New, All-Different relaunch in Marvel’s The Amazing Spider-Man #1, as Peter juggles the web-spinning adventures between his business headquarters in New-York, Shanghai, London, and San Francisco – with his personal “bodyguard” Spider-Man tagging along for the ride naturally! But Peter Parker’s newfound success has as caught the attention of the revamped Zodiac, who have also set their sights on global expansion, and its up to Spider-Man to stop them!

Amazing Spider-Man #1 continues with the assured creative team of writer Dan Slott and artist Giuseppe Camuncoli, as this all-new direction for our favourite wall crawling hero sets out a whole new status-quo for the series, and an exciting new era for Peter Parker as his life finally seems to be getting on track.

Dan Slott quickly brings us up to speed with the dramatic turn of events in Peter’s life. Peter Parker and his company are now house-hold names, famous around the world, he now develops new technology for S.H.I.E.L.D and the public market. The action begins with a high-speed Spider-Mobile chase in Shanghai as Spider-Man and Mockingbird pursue the Zodiac operatives who have stolen some webware servers from Parker Industries. These opening sequences with the Spider-Mobile are really exciting, action-packed, and full of Spidey’s trademark humour – the joke he makes about Kraven’s nipples is hilarious!

The Amazing Spider-Man #1

Its during Peter’s press conference where Slott really sets out everything this new direction for the series will entail for Parker Industries. It even pokes fun at Parker being a “poor man’s Tony Stark”, perhaps knowingly addressing concerns this series might be like that, but of course we needn’t have worried, Peter has a clear goal in mind and is determined to uses the great power of his company responsibly. Peter seems a lot more mature and confident now, he’s also intent on making amends for some of his past mistakes, particularly certain events that happened when Doc Ock took over his body and became the Superior Spider-Man, and he travels to a wedding in San Francisco to make sure he does just that.

The fantastic artwork by Giuseppe Camuncoli effortlessly draws you into the action. From the frenetic chase sequences with the Spider-Mobile in Shanghai, to the press conference, and finally the round-the-world trip to the wedding in San Francisco, the sheer level of detail on every page is stunning. Spidey has never looked better in my opinion, the gadgets – especially those multi-function web-shooters – are inspired. The new Spider-Mobile is without doubt one of the big highlights of Amazing Spider-Man #1, it is one seriously cool looking vehicle, and I’d hazard a guess it could give the Batmobile a run for its money! The inks by Cam Smith enhance the intricate detail of Camuncoli’s art perfectly, while colorist Marte Gracia’s vivid hues and tones gives every page an almost cinematic sheen, and the cover by Alex Ross is beautiful.

With its vast cast of character, the new threat posed by Zodiac to the world, and the perils of inviting Peter Parker to a wedding, all add up to make this issue a thrilling, and exciting read. There’s also one last surprise waiting at Parker Industries in London too, and I can’t wait to see how that develops! Yes, there’s a hefty price tag on this issue, but I guarantee its well worth it. This huge issue devotes even more pages than usual for the main storyline, there’s also several backup stories that offer previews of the other Spider-Titles and storylines: including Silk, Spidey, Spiderman 2099, Spider-Woman, Web Warriors, and lots more besides!

I’ve always been a big Spider-Man fan, while the previous volume didn’t quite live up to my expectations, I really enjoyed The Amazing Spider-Man #1, and I think we are in for something really special here with this new direction. With its great story by Dan Slott and art Giuseppe Camuncoli, The Amazing Spider-Man #1 is one Marvel All-New, All-Different, title that will be webbed into my pull-list from now on, a brilliant issue!

Publisher: Marvel

Writer: Dan Slott

Art: Giuseppe Camuncoli

Inks: Cam Smith

Colors: Marte Gracia

Letters: VC’s Joe Caramagna

Cover: Alex Ross