COMIC BOOK REVIEW – Superior Spider-Man Annual #1

Writer: Christos Gage
Artist: Javier Rodriguez, Alvaro Lopez
Cover: J.G. Jones, Laura Martin

Regular readers of my reviews – waitaminute, I have regular readers? – know that I enjoyed reviewing the Amazing Spider-Man issues that had Dan Slott and Christos Gage as co-writers/co-plotters (#695, 696, and 697). Gage also worked on a bunch of Superior Spider-Man issues; he wrote the Age of Ultron tie-in and scripted #11-13.

This story is different, however, for a number of reasons.

For starters, this is an “extra-large” yarn – 30 pages of story, all from Gage’s pen. While Gage has already been able to write the entirety of a Superior Spider-Man adventure in #6AU, this marks the first time Gage gets the chance to examine Otto-Parker’s relationship with the woman he almost married (but is now his doting aunt).

In this story, the Superior Spider-Man faces off against Ghost Rider nemesis Blackout, who looks like the result of a particularly nasty car crash involving Morbius, Morlun, and Tombstone. The limits of the Superior Spider-Man’s abilities (and patience) are put to the test, as he spends most of the story dealing with the crisscrossing consequences of his dual lives. It’s an interesting (though rather unremarkable) story that hints at major repercussions to come in the Superior Spider-books.

Gage devotes plenty of time to demonstrating Otto-Parker’s propensity for pontification – a trait of the not-so-good Doctor that he unfortunately brought with him for the mind-swap. His internal monologue and frequent assertions of superiority make him both slightly endearing and extremely punchable at the same time, and I guess it works well for a “hero” like the Superior Spider-Man.

On the art side of things, Javier Rodriguez does a decent job of balancing action scenes with emotion. His artwork is a nice departure from the scratchy, visually striking linework of Ryan Stegman and the blocky, gruff characters of Giuseppe Camuncoli, and it’s well-suited to the tone and feel of this particular story.

The Annual delivers a quick and brutal lesson – don’t mess with Peter Parker. If we’re in luck, the Superior Spider-Man himself may learn that lesson very soon.

VERDICT: 8/10

—————————————-
This review was sponsored by Druid’s Keep (third floor, Fort Strip Mall, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig). Join the group on Facebook (here) and pay the shop a visit – it’s an awesome place to hang out and play games.