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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Straczynski comes up with another monumental change for Spider-Man, December 3, 2007
I think that the decision to reveal to the world that Peter Parker is Spider-Man is a major mistake. In the wake of what happened in Marvel's seismic Civil War shakeup I expect there to be some interesting stories in the short run, but in the long term this is going to hurt the character, more so than the black costume and way more than all that nonsense with the clone. This move was an editorial decision rather than a creative decision, and it has been interesting in this brave new Marvel universe to see what J. Michael Straczynski has come up with in response to this turn of events. "The Sensational Spider-Man" #41 offers Part 3 (of 4) of his "One More Day" storyline, which began in "The Amazing Spider-Man" #544, continued in "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man" #24, and ends back in "The Amazing Spider-Man" #545. Straczynski is the scripter for just the main Spider-Man title, but "One More Day" is his attempt from a creative perspective to do something about this devastating turn of events, and he is scripting all four parts. This means that what happens at the end of "One More Day" is going to have a significant impact on the character of Peter Parker and his family, which means on Spider-Man as well.
Remember that Marvel's "Civil War" happened as things were gearing up for the release of "Spider-Man 3," which forced all of the Spider-Man titles to put our hero "Back in Black." Straczynski's initial reaction to Spider-Man revealing he was Peter Parker and then turning against Tony Stark's side in the Civil War was that this situation was going to get somebody killed. Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin, wanted Peter Parker to be the one who was killed, but in "The Amazing Spider-Man" #538 the bullet hit Aunt May instead. By the time we get to the start of "One More Day," Aunt May's condition is critical and she is dying in a charity ward. In Part 1, Peter confronts Tony Stark, who refuses to compromise his position and help, but feels guilty enough to have Jarvis take care of the financial problems concerning Aunt May. However, Aunt May is still dying. In Part 2, Peter turns to Doctor Strange and the mystic arts, but this backfires and Strange can only urge Peter to be by his aunt's side when she passes away. Then Spider-Man meets a strange little red-headed girl who says she has the answer.
In Part 3, the little red-headed girl, who strikes us as looking like a very young Mary Jane, leads Spider-Man to a computer nerd who looks like Roger Ebert with Peter Parker hair. Then there is a rich guy in a limo. As the cover says: "Who are they? What DEADLY SECRET do they share?" Well, they all lead to the mysterious lady in red and the revelation of the big, huge, monumental roll of the dice that Straczynski has come up with for our hero. We also find out the meaning of "One More Day"; if you thought that Spider-Man was living that particular time period in these stories, then you will be surprised to find that the day in question has not begun yet. That is saved for Part 4 and what happens next depends on the monumental decision Peter Parker has to make. I do not want to spoil it for anybody, but, WOW. This is a biggie and I think he has to do it: not so much because how can he not, but also because I think it gets the character and the comic books yet to come out of the corner they have been painted into by the Civil War. Plus what is happening here has pathos up the wazoo.
The cover proudly proclaims that this comic book is "Still only 399 cents," which is a clear sign that the price is about to go up, given what we have seen in the past. In addition to the main story there is a six-page profile on the revealed mystery character (the mysterious lady in red referred to on the cover), and a reprint of part (pages 8-20) of a relevant story from a totally different comic book written by Stan Lee and illustrated by John Buscema. If I mention the character that is profiled or the specific issue we get the partial reprint of, then that gives away too much of what happens in "The Sensational Spider-Man" #41. When the trade paperback collection comes out down the road we can deal with the revelation and the long-term implications of what Straczynski has come up with for the web-head. For now let us just anticipate the final part of the story and debate the "will he or won't he?" question in our own minds.
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1.0 out of 5 stars
Biggest. Insult. Ever., December 25, 2007
This four-part storyline is designed to erase 20 years of continuity and to erase the married existence of Peter Parker, as if he never existed. It is an insult to any long-term fan. The characters do not behave like themselves, they walk around like they're in a dream, and everything they do (here and for the last year's worth of stories) has been directed by Marvel's editor-in-chief Joe Quesada in order to fulfill his dream of erasing Peter Parker's marriage to Mary Jane. The whole storyline is an insult to any long-term fan who has been committed to the Spider-man continuity.
Don't blame Straczynski, though. He even posted online recently disavowing the way the storyline ends and wishing he could have dropped his name off the book. It's 100% Quesada. And it's offensive.
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