Customer Reviews

Spider-Man: The Death of Gwen Stacy

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I had never owned any of the original issues in this collection (AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #96-98 and 121-122), but I knew the story of Gwen Stacy's death. Gwen was the girlfriend of Spider-Man's alter ego, Peter Parker and had been a staple of this series since the mid-60's.

When writer Gerry Conway determined that he would kill her off, his intent was to show that in the life of a costumed adventurer like Spider-Man, nothing was certain. He felt that the readers needed a shock to wake them up. Nasty things can happen when insane super-villains are about and who's more insane than Spider-Man's archnemesis, the Green Goblin?

The Stan Lee-written drug stories (#96-98) are hokey and it's obvious Stan didn't know the first thing about drugs, but the publication of these issues was a seminal moment for modern comics. Long under the bootheel of the Comics Code Authority, Lee had to publish these three issues WITHOUT the code logo on the cover because of the drug content. He felt it was necessary to speak out against drug use and was willing to take a fairly considerable risk to do it.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #96-98 also lays the groundwork for what was to come. Harry Osborn, son of Norman Osborn (a.k.a., the Green Goblin), is addicted to drugs and gets on a bad LSD trip. Later, in #121, we find that Harry continues to have substance abuse problems. His father is livid and blames Harry's friends, including Peter. His rage drives him back into the role of the Goblin and the fateful climax atop the Brooklyn Bridge which would leave one long-time and much-beloved character dead and another forever changed.

The wonderful art of comic industry icons Gil Kane and John Romita, Sr., make this story a visual treat. Kane's drafting and storytelling prowess shines in this story.

Don't miss out on this story, one of the most involving, dramatic and poignant comic book tales to see print.

How can you review perhaps one of the biggest feats in comic history. The most tragic event that shattered the belief of a hero and drew a new status quo unlike any other known in that character's history. With a title clearly telling you what will happen in the story and what events will transpire. What is it that you can say to recommend this book to anyone who has the plot written on the title?

What you might ask??? PLENTY...

. How Gwen Stacy fell to her death forever shattering the world of Peter Parker, Spider-Man. The five chaptered story can be divided in two parts. The first three chapters, written by Spidey co-creator, Stan Lee, paved the ground for the upcoming epic events and battle. In that part Lee ditches the long-established comics code (which is just what Marvel has done now), in order to bring out a great story about the effects of drugs and what people thought of them at the time. His take on that problem showed how comics could also be utilized for the benefit of the public, just like any other media form, which is a pioneering step in such a direction. Later themes dealt in other comics would come about AIDS and abortion.

The Green Goblin, Spidey's greatest foe, and the one he'll be facing in next summer's movie, knows Spidey's secret identity. With every move he taunts the webslinger and clearly provoked him on every move. Terrorizing him and his family. The deranged Goblin is not swayed until he confronts the addiction of his only son, Harry. Throughout, Peter is in dismay over the disappearance of his first love, Gwen, which has skipped town after the death of her police captain father, blaming Spidey as the cause of it all. The first part ends ith Gwen's coming back into Peter's arms and all is well.

Wrong...

Peter gets sent away on a NEWS mission for the newspaper he works in, this time, him leaving the love of his life behind. That hiatus is not expressed in the TPB and the reader is brought back to NY as Peter arrives. Nothing has changed. Harry is still a drug addict, finally diagnosed with full blown schizophrenia. Norman Osborn, Harry's father and the Green Goblin, is hellbent on seeking revenge on Spidey. He does that with the only way he thinks possible, by kidnapping the love of his life. That's when the story is set through and breaks out as being one of the greatest ever told. You know,s he'll die in the end, but the pages succeed in showing you how much she meant to Peter. The memories that flood in as images and words in his mind create such a collage of some of the beautifully written lines ever found in comics. This was a story of substance. A story from the heart. A story seldom portrayed in today's comics.

You feel Peter's pain and you truly feel the tragedy that befalls him. The ending of the story takes on the form of how Peter appreciates MJ, hwo later becomes his wife. It was during that moment of death and sorrow, that a stronger love was born. The epilogue in the end, drawn by legendary artist John Romita Sr., brings the past to the present, in a wonderful story that sums things and finds closure. The TPB as a whole may not necessary make you cry, but you will definitely feel the heart ache and anguish of, perhaps, one of the most enduring comic charcaters of all time. Peter Parker: Spider-Man.

Who wouldn't know about Gwen Stacy's death? Saddly enough a lot of people. New fans are all convinced Mary Jane was #1, but those who've been around or well educated on backstories remember a knockout blonde who went from out of range to the first love of Peter Parker's life. This book doesn't really show the greatness of their relationship but how it all came to an end. 5 issues dealing with the Green Goblin's 1st return are reprinted here, plus a story drawn by John Romita Sr. from the Webspinner's Tales called "The Kiss". And while the 5 Amazing Spider-Man issues are quite "amazing" it's "The Kiss" that sold me on the whole thing. Never have I seen so much emotion and so much insight in a superhero. It's quite exceptional in my book. Definatly get this book. It's essential.

The Death of Gwen Stacey is one of the greatest comic book stories...EVER! Having been written over 20 years ago, the sheer power of this story still resonates with readers and comic continuity today.

What can be said? We have a powerful villain in the Green Goblin (Norman Osborn). We have a strong side story in the drug addled battles of Peter Parker's best friend, Harry Osborn. And we have what is possbily the finest hero-villain battle ever between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin on top of the George Washington Bridge.

Sure the title tells us that there is "Death". But the way the death unfolds...very powerful story-telling.

Whenever I think of Spider-Man, the motto "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility" always comes to mind. Never more so than with this excellent storyline.

Since Spider-Man was such a gigantic hit at the box office, it seems everyone these days is a Spider-Man fan. Naturally anyone who never before knew anything about the Spider-Man universe or backstory is convinced Mary Jane was Spidey's number one love. Well, those same people should definitely consider checking this TPB out. Collecting Amazing Spider-Man #96-98 and #121-122 from the mid 1960's. Gwen Stacy was Peter Parker's first true love and was a staple of the series for years until this shocking (at the time) story was released. We begin with seeing Harry Osborn succombing to a drug addiction he can no longer control. This segment of the story was groundbreaking at the time considering Stan Lee wrote it without the approval of the Comic Code. Later on we see Harry's father Norman overcome with rage over his son's addictions, and he blames Harry's friends and wants revenge. Thus, the Green Goblin returns to seek his revenge on Peter Parker by taking what Pete holds most dear: Gwen. The story itself is very emotional and in its' day made a huge impact, even though the drug addiction theme may seem hokey today. The art by Gil Kane and John Romita, Sr. is among they're best (and they were and are still industry icons), and all in all this is one of the best stories in the Spider-Man universe and comics in general.

My recent return to Spider-man has been rewarded by a lot of money spent, but with a great return, but none more so than The Death of Gwen Stacy. Not only are this stories vital events in the life of Peter Parker, a.k.a. the Amazing Spider-Man, but the quality of writing and artwork is as high as you will find anywhere.

I admit that I am probably more easy to please than many others (a glance at my other reviews will confirm this) but a classic is a classic. And this is a classic.

Any Spidey fan who doesn't have this in their collection, withe the included postscript, "The Kiss", should do themselves a big favour and remedy the situation immediately.

Actually "The Death of Gwen Stacy" deals with more than the titular fatality and the end of the original Green Goblin in reprinting five classic comic books from Volume 1 of "The Amazing Spider-Man." You also get the previous three-story confrontation between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin that became infamous when the stories did not receive the Comic Book Code seal of approval because of a major sub-plot involving Peter Parker's roommate Harry Osborn being hooked on drugs: (1) "Amazing Spider-Man" #69, "And now, the Goblin," Story by Stan Lee, Art by Gil Kane and John Romita, Sr.; (2) "Amazing Spider-Man" #70, "In the Grip of the Goblin," Story by Stan Lee, Art by Gil Kane and Frank Giacoia; and (3) "Amazing Spider-Man" #71, "The Goblin's Last Gasp," Story by Stan Lee, Art by Gil Kane and Frank Giacoia. This was the first time when Norman Osborn remembered who he was along with Spider-Man's secret identity. Of course, the resolution of this crises leaves much to be desired since it is a tentative, at best, fix. The most memorable sequences in these stories is actually when Peter Parker and not Spider-Man takes down Harry's dealer. This trilogy sets up the other story, not just because it is the previous confrontation between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin, but because another subplot has Peter and Gwen resolving their current interpersonal conflict.

The key thing to remember when you get to the next pair of stories is that Stan Lee is no longer writing the book and therefore killing off Peter's girl friend was not his idea: (4) "Amazing Spider-Man" #112, "The Night Gwen Stacy Died," Story by Gerry Conway, Art by Gil Kane and John Romita, Sr.; and (5) "Amazing Spider-Man" #113 "The Goblin's Last Round," Story by Gerry Conway, Art by Gil Kane and John Romita, Sr. Of course, the title of that first issue does not appear until the final page, since it obviously gives the game away, but just as clearly that is not a problem for this trade paperback collection. I think Conway did away with Gwen because Peter was getting pretty close to actually being happy and Spider-Man needed to get back to the oppressive sense of guilt that drives him because of the death of a loved one. Now, in addition to Uncle Ben, there is Gwen (Spider-Man was much more responsible for Gwen's death than that of Captain Stacy). Little would we know that the end of this story, where Mary Jane Watson stays with Peter to comfort him after Gwen's death, that this would end up being the start of something special.

Contains the groundbreaking drug abuse stories and the most important turning point in the Spider-Man saga, the Death of Gwen Stacy. Some of the most powerful Spider-Man tales ever written and set the stage for decades of continuity to follow. It was never the same again after this. Buy this and see what the fuss was all about.

And truley it is. tiss' sad that gwen had to die and maybe she should not have. This book is the kudegras to the the good era of spiderman.

Off course everybody who starts reading this trade knows what will be the most important event in the book, even before they start reading. But I do feel the TPB is still very much worth the read. 'The event' is, although the best part, certainly not your ONLY reason for reading this book, the rest is also very enjoyfull for the fan of Spiderman continuity (especially the involvement of Harry Osborn). When the event itself finally takes place it makes you kind of sad (as far as a comic-book gets you there) which is also a result of the very skilled manner in which they portrayed it. Basically the trade is divided in three parts. The first part is the reprinting of Amazing Spiderman #96-98 a.k.a. as the famous 'free of comic-code' drug-issues (written by Stan Lee with art by Gil Kane). In it Peter decides to take the opportunity his room-mate, Harry Osborn, has created for him to take a job at his father's (Norman) company. Norman has a block in his mind and doesn't remember he was once the Green Goblin. Meanwhile Harry is having a hard time trying to cope with MJ, the girl he loves, giving him the cold shoulder and together with the pressure he constantly feels to keep his father happy Harry finally seeks shelter in taking drugs. The most relevance this story has for the trade is that it sets the stage perfectly for what's to come. Norman is shifting in and out Green Goblin-mode again for the first time since he got amnesia and Gwen Stacy returns to New York (after trying to get over her fathers death with her aunt and uncle in London). The second part of the trade is reprinting #121-122 (written by Gerry Conway with art by Gil Kane). When his son Harry is sick of a bad drug experience again (see the relevance ?) and receiving news of business going down the drain on top of it, it's too much for Norman Osborns fragile mind and he turns into Green Goblin once again. Blaming Spiderman/Peter (remember that Green Goblin is the only man who knows Peter is Spiderman !) for all his troubles he kidnaps Gwen Stacy. What happens next is something most of us already know but still when the moment is there it sends a little chill down our spines (mine at least). It's one of the most influential events in superhero-dom up till this very day and you'll be happy to agree with me in saying that once you've been through it. An important thing is that the path for the writers to start evolving Mary-Jane is now clear. The third and final part of the trade is a NEW (little) story by DeMatteis and Romita Sr called "The kiss". A tribute to the character Gwen Stacy about her and Pete's last ever date together. Also a very worthy story to be in the book because it's a very well-written piece about Peter and Gwen's feelings for each other and really adds to the mood. In conclussion I must honestly admit that maybe quality-wise it's not the best TPB ever to see print (certainly not a bad one though !), but for Spiderman fans (like me) that really doesn't matter and they'll remember it as one of the most impact-making TPB's ever. Good stuff.