WEB OF SPIDER-MAN #106 - November 1993

Judgment Day

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Alex Saviuk (penciler), Stephen Baskerville (inker), Steve Dutro (letterer), Bob Sharen (colorist)

The Plot: Spider-Man joins the Goddess’ team and fights against the “unenlightened” heroes. When Jean Grey threatens to “mind-sear” the Thing, Spider-Man jumps in-between them, just as the sun goes nova. A “final rapture” purges the universe.

The Subplots: Betty leads Jonah to believe that she and Robbie are having an affair in order to cover their investigation into Project: Sandstorm.

*See _________ For Details: Thanos says that he and Silver Surfer (who’s turned against the Goddess) have a “diversion” planned for the Goddess’ team. A footnote points to Infinity Crusade #4. Following Infinity Crusade #5, Rogue owes Hercules for a “sucker punch,” and the Thing is recovering from Gamora’s nerve-blow. The conclusion to this story can be found in Infinity Crusade #6

Review: More mindless hero vs. hero fights, and a cliffhanger that isn’t even concluded in this title. I feel sorry for the hardcore Spidey and/or Infinity Crusade completists who were stuck buying this stuff. Is it really so hard to guess why sales of comics began to plummet after 1993?

Since the story is virtually nonexistent, I’m left to discuss the art. We’ve now entered the third phase of Alex Saviuk’s work on Web of Spider-Man. Saviuk originally drew this title as a loving Romita homage, then switched over to a McFarlane-esque Spidey when that became the standard look (although his actual drawing style never imitated McFarlane’s, just the basics of his costume revamp), and now we have…this. I’m sure Saviuk’s original pencils haven’t changed at all, but the addition of Stephen Baskerville as inker brings a conspicuous change to the title’s look. Basically, it seems as if Baskerville has been given the edict to “Liefeld it up,” and boy is it Liefeld-y…

Now, my major issues with Liefeld’s work have to do with his bizarre anatomy and weak storytelling (his inking certainly looks dated now, but I didn’t mind it so much as a kid), so there are worse ways the Extreme look could’ve been introduced into this book…but man, I miss the days of Keith Williams.

The Killing Ground

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Bill Wylie (penciler), Timothy Tuohy (inker), Steve Dutro (letterer), Bob Sharen (colorist)

The Plot: Nightwatch finds Deathgrin in the sewers and defeats him. He vows not to lose himself to the Nightwatch persona the same way Daniel Davis was consumed by Deathgrin.

The Subplots: None.

Review: Nightwatch beats up a guy wearing a goofy mask in the sewers and vows not to turn into him. Okay. What a waste of eighteen pages this turned out to be. If the goal was to entice readers into picking up Nightwatch’s solo book, that makes this effort even more embarrassing.

WEB OF SPIDER-MAN #105 - October 1993

Soul Gauntlet

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Alex Saviuk (breakdowns), Don Hudson (finishes), Steve Dutro (letterer), Bob Sharen (colorist)

The Plot: Inside his Soulscape, Spider-Man is transformed into a teenage Peter Parker and forced to face his deadliest enemies. Simultaneously, he fights the heroes gathered by the Goddess. Eventually, Spider-Man realizes that his life is an endless cycle of violence, one that threatens his loved ones. He decides to follow the Goddess’ plan.

The Subplots: Liz Osborn is spending time with MJ and Aunt May. Liz is discussing her plans for little Normie when she’s interrupted by Aunt May. Meanwhile, Robbie Robertson and Betty Brant sneak into Dr. Marla Madison’s ESU office.

Web of Continuity: Dr. Marla Madison is Jonah Jameson’s wife, which is why Robbie and Betty have kept their investigation a secret. They’re looking into a “hush-hush government experiment funded by Morelle Pharmaceuticals,” which is run by Marla.

*See _________ For Details: This story takes place in-between Infinity Crusade #s 2 and 3. Moon Knight #57 details why Moon Knight is so devoted to the Goddess’ cause.

Review: Allegedly a look into the psyche of Peter Parker, this is really an excuse for an extended fight scene with all of the issue’s guest stars. I do like the way Kavanagh handles the two levels of the fight scene, which has Spider-Man convinced that the heroes are actually members of his rogues gallery (when Madrox shows up, he sees a thousand Carnages instead), but the story offers no insights past “Peter Parker loves science!” and “Peter Parker wants to keep his family safe!” At least the subplots are advancing, so the Robbie and Betty story actually seems to be going somewhere. This issue finally confirms that the two aren’t having an affair, an idea that’s been teased for too long. The prospect of how the Bugle would handle a story involving Jonah’s wife is intriguing, but my memory is that the payoff to this subplot is pretty dismal.

Acid Test

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Bill Wylie (penciler), Timothy Tuohy (inker), Steve Dutro (letterer), Bob Sharen (colorist)

The Plot: Nightwatch rescues the museum’s security guards from Deathgrin, but the villain uses his acidic powers to escape into the sewers. Nightwatch vows to stop him.

The Subplots: None.

Review: I assumed Deathgrin was a throwaway enemy created to be Nightwatch’s punching bag for a few back-ups, but now I wonder if Kavanagh intends to make him Nighwatch’s main villain. I’m basing this on the “dark reflection” bit Kavanagh plays up, emphasizing that both are trapped by their costumes in some way -- Nightwatch hates his organic costume but feels compelled to wear it, while Deathgrin is ensnared by the ancient mask he chose to wear for no discernable reason. Clothing related drama, folks. This is classic stuff.

WEB OF SPIDER-MAN #104 - September 1993

Crisis of Conscience

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Alex Saviuk (breakdowns), Don Hudson (finishes), Steve Dutro (letterer), Bob Sharen (colorist)

The Plot: Spider-Man joins the Goddess in her quest to offer salvation to the universe. On Paradise Omega, other heroes are linked together to power a cosmic egg. The Goddess disappears into the egg as a part of her plan to awaken enlightened souls. Spider-Man begins to question why he hasn’t doubted the Goddess’ plan, which upsets Moondragon, her chosen representative. She attacks him, and their fight awakens the Goddess. She sends Spider-Man into a twisted version of his “soulscape.”

The Subplots: Jonah Jameson is furious that crime worldwide has appeared to stop, leaving him nothing to print. Robbie Robertson is sneaking away for another “secret rendezvous” with Betty Brant.

Web of Continuity: This is a tie-in to the Infinity Crusade crossover, which is famous for dividing heroes with “spiritual beliefs” against those without any. Spider-Man joins the Goddess on the believers’ side, along with characters like Captain America, Invisible Woman, and Thor. Rogue is accidentally shown as a member of both teams.

*See _________ For Details: Before he sees a vision of the Goddess, Spider-Man fights a street gang he previously faced in Spider-Man #36. A footnote refers to Infinity Crusade #1 for more information on Goddess’ plan for universal salvation. Goddess’ plan to “guide” her followers through Moondragon is “as seen in Infinity Crusade #2.”

Review: All right, after a three-month crossover break, it’s time for Web to get back to business. Oh, what’s this? Infinity Crusade? Well, if everyone has to play along…how long does this last? Another three months? Web’s going six straight months into crossover limbo while its ongoing storylines die on the vine? Okay, then. Whatever, it’s the ‘90s.

I was a pretty hardcore Marvel Zombie in the early ‘90s, yet I managed to avoid almost all of the assorted “Infinity” tie-ins. Since the X-books and most of the Spider-titles ignored all of this cosmic hoohar, it didn’t seem too important to me. Now, I’m faced with the Web of Spider-Man tie-in issues, and have no idea what to make of this stuff. I can see some solid ideas in here, which I have to assume came from Jim Starlin. A worldwide end to crime, a mystic being that’s serious about peace on Earth, and groups of heroes divided up based on their faith, or lack thereof. All of these ideas sound fine, although I feel compelled to be the one-millionth person to point out that any superhero atheist in the Marvel Universe has to be in hardcore denial. Kavanagh tries to fit a Spider-Man story into the event by focusing on his willingness to doubt everything, including science, which is why he doesn’t entirely dismiss spiritual beliefs. When Spider-Man doesn’t doubt the Goddess, he knows something’s wrong, which leads to him doubting his own resoluteness. That’s almost clever, but all it leads to is a pointless fight with Moondragon. Then again, there is a certain novelty in seeing the two disparate characters fight, so it’s not a total loss. I would be lying if I said I was looking forward to two more issues of this, though.

Deathmask

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Bill Wylie (pencils), Timothy Tuohy (inks), Steve Dutro (letterer), Bob Sharen (colorist)

The Plot: Nightwatch faces a group of museum thieves who have stolen a Macedonian “Deathmask.” When Daniel Davis, the ringleader, tries on the mask, he becomes the powerful Deathgrin.

The Subplots: None.

Review: Yes, what this crossover tie-in issue really needs is a six-page back-up starring an unrelated character. No filler here. Marvel must’ve had high hopes for Nightwatch, or at the very least were okay with Terry Kavanagh repeatedly selling his pet character, because he just won’t go away. I actually haven’t minded Nightwatch’s previous appearances so much, but now he’s just a generic hero fighting a lame villain with a laughable name. I guess I have two more issues of this one, also?