Review: Superior Spider-Man #6

Jester and Screwball make their hilarious, yet diabolical, debut this issue. Too bad Superior Spider-Man doesn’t throw out one-liners like the old Peter Parker, he prefers to throw his fists! Plus, Humberto Ramos is back in the saddle on art chores — Spidey has never looked better!

After the shocking events of the last issue I was surprised that this one should not really mention what had happened. True, there is a scene where a group of individuals discuss what should be done (Mr. Slott says NO SPOILERS — so I listen!) but it was such a fundamental break from the “norm” that I thought it would dominate the nature of this issue. Alas, Dan Slott has other plans in store for us and it’s quite a doozy if you ask me!

We are given two new “villains” in this issue, internet sensations that publicly humiliate high profile “marks” in order to boost their hits and make some cash on the side. To Dan Slott’s credit, they are quite enjoyable and bring some of that old tongue in cheek, pun laden fun back to the book since it has been removed with the introduction of Doc Ock living in Peter Parker’s body. Not to say that these characters will become fan favorites in any way but they are fun to read and hard to watch later as the book unfolds. 

I am truly enjoying the contrast Slott is making between the Doc Ock persona and the old Peter Parker one. Fans are upset that,”This isn’t their Peter Parker, he would never do these things,” and that is exactly right! This book, in my opinion, works because it ISN”T Peter Parker doing these things, it is a villain that has lived with years of emotional and physical scars and now he has the means to dole out justice as he sees fit. There are no qualms about what he does, as much as he is a genius, his actions are mostly derived from instinct and reaction which makes him very dangerous. The character, however, is also creating things Peter Parker would have never dreamed of, making his dual live as human and hero much more manageable than it ever was prior. It is the culmination of these smart, believable choices that Slott has made that makes this book such a great read.

So, swing on down to your local shop and snag a copy of the most controversial book Marvel is putting out today! I won’t even mention the other one, it’s not worth your time!