Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Being a super hero really screws up your social life., 19 Feb 2007
Another great batch of stories from the creative genius of Stan Lee, brought to life by John Romita, John Buscema and other great artists.
This selection sees Peter Parker's roller-coaster relationship with Gwen Stacy continue. He discovers the secret past of his parents and catches flu.
Starting with a great 2 part Mysterio tale we then launch into Spider-Man annual 5 with a trip to Algeria to uncover the past of Peter's parents with interference from the Red Skull.
There's a 3 part tale with the Kingpin, who is rather touchy about his family, and the first appearance of a mysterious ancient clay tablet. It also brings us The returns of the Shocker, Chameleon and Electro but this selection is memorable for its continuity lines. The Shocker tale has some memorable moments of JJJ letting rip in hospital, still with his cigars.
Man Mountain Marko is sent by Maggia chief Silvermane to get the clay tablet and kidnaps Dr. Curt Connors to discover its secret, that of eternal youth. Then, after Spidey sorts out Silverman and the Maggia...you guessed it, the Lizard returns, guesting the Human Torch.
The Prowler tale ties in with earlier tales of student unrest on campus and has an openly anti-racism slant which gives good historical witness to the underclasses in the era these tales were written in.
The new villain the Kangaroo is so-so, he gets better in later issues.
The Kingpin appears again as a newcomer The Schemer is trying to take over the city. There is a connection between the two crime lords which is hinted at early in the tale.
It ends with a cliff hanger as Dr. Octopus appears again and Spidey is thrown off the top of a building.....
We also get great story lines with Quicksilver and the Black Widow in her slinky new (at that time) outfit.
The background characters continue to be well rounded. Peter almost gives his Aunt May a heart attack. Norman Osborne remembers he is the Green Goblin but does not put in a proper appearance as his memory is still hazy. Harry gets a silly moustache and MJ as his girl. Flash has regular visits back from Viet-Nam. Joe Robertson the Bugle's city editor comes more to the front as the human face of journalism, but even JJJ has the odd moment of decency.
All in all a very well crafted selection of tales that are an enjoyable read almost 40 years on.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Spider-Man begins the Seventies in less than stellar form, 8 Dec 2002
By A Customer
"The Essential Spider-Man, Volume 4" presents black & white reprints of "The Amazing Spider-Man" #69-89 and Annuals #4-5, which covers the web-head from 1969-71. I was sort of surprised as I read through these issues again that really nothing significant happens. I mean, we have return visits from the Kingpin, the Lizard, the Chameleon, Mysterio and Doctor Octopus, but the new villains are pretty week: Man-Mountain Marko, the Prowler, the Kangaroo, and the Schemer. Make that incredibly weak villains, except for the Prowler, who is just a kid making stupid mistakes. At this point Stan Lee has his formula for Spider-Man, which is probably encapsulated best by what our hero says at the conclusion of issue #72: "So, I finally nailed the Shocker...Big deal! I'm in the doghouse with Gwen...the tablet is gone again...I just remembered something else...I forgot to take a single picture of the entire battle! So all I get out of it is some skinned knuckles! In other words, the wonderful Parker luck is still running true to form! Nuts!" The best story in this collection is probably "The Parents of Peter Parker!" from Annual #5, although the most memorable moment is when the Black Widow comes up with her sexy new threads of the Seventies. John Buscema takes over the penciling chores from John Romita (Sr.) at one point before Gil Kane makes his first appearance right at the end. Buscema did some nice work on "Conan," but Spider-Man does not play to his strengths; Kane, however, does manage to adapt his distinctive style to the comic. Fortunately, things improve considerably for Spider-Man as Stan Lee gets a feel for the Seventies. So you can just write off this collection as the quiet before the storm of Harry's drug addiction, the deaths of Captain and Gwen Stacy, and Spider-Man really becoming Spider-Man.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another fine collection in the amazing spiderman series, 6 April 2001
I find having all the stories in a nice compact book is great and saves shelf space. I am not a comic collector and these essential books, for me, are an excellent way to enjoy the spiderman stories.It is good to have them in order without having that vital episode missing!
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