Countdown: Top 10 Things That Made “Superior Spider-Man” a Superior Comic Book

When it was announced that “Amazing Spider-Man” was coming to an end and that Doc Ock would be taking over Peter Parker’s mind to become the “Superior Spider-Man,” you could feel a great disturbance on the Web, as if millions of fanboys suddenly cried out in horror, and then refused to be silenced.

And when it was announce that “Superior Spider-Man” was coming to an end and that Peter Parker would be returning to his role as the “Amazing Spider-Man,” you could once again feel a great disturbance on the Web, as if millions of fanboys suddenly cried out in horror, and then again refused to be silenced.

Because, as it turns out, Doc Ock as the Superior Spider-Man was more than just a tricky gimmick — it was a very compelling narrative. And, as many would find, the “Superior Spider-Man” was just that: a superior comic. Doc Ock’s misadventures as a tyrannical manifestation of what once used to be an icon for heroism resulted in an incredibly interesting and frequently exciting roller coast ride of a comic, and as much as we all miss Peter (because, let’s be real — we do), we also kind of don’t want the craziness of Doc Ock as Spider-Man to end.

So in honor of the soon to be completed era of Spider-Man’s already rather impressive (and a bit convoluted) history, we’re bringing back Countdown in order to look at the Top 10 things that made “Superior Spider-Man” a superior comic book.

10. The Controversial Killing of Massacre

A phrase you hear a lot in relation to “the Superior Spider-Man” is that X Event really set Otto apart from Peter, and they’re all pretty relevant. However, the first moment in the series that really showed a stark contrast between how Otto views his role as Spider-Man differently than Peter was when he murdered Massacre, crossing a line that heroes do not cross — but, more to the point, drawing a distinct line in the sand as to why.

See, that’s what makes the murder of Massacre so great: it’s not just Otto putting a(nother) villain down, he’s doing it to protect people. The entire sequence in issue #6 that deals with Massacre’s death is phenomenally written, full of pain and angst as Otto contemplates what he should do before giving in and putting a bullet in Massacre’s head. It is, in some ways, similar to the controversial finale of Man of Steel, but a bit more earnest and sympathetic, specifically because Spider-Man has already won; he’s not given a no-win scenario because he’s already won — he’s just not sure what to do next. And the way Dan Slott wrote the scene (particularly this moment) is arguably the most powerful in the entire series:

So what now?! Do I web you up? Leave you for the cops with a friendly little note? Wait till you break out and kill again? Capture you again? How many dead and dying here?! When is it enough?! WHAT SHOULD I DO?! TELL ME!

That’s some damn fine storytelling, and such a haunting moment.

Not to mention the consequences he would then immediately face against the Avengers.

9. Otto Owns the Sinister Six

When we think of “Spider-Man”, what villains do we think of? Green Goblin, first and foremost, right? Well, his time in “Superior” looks like it’s coming. Who else – Venom? Venom gets a little arc in “Superior”, though he’s not currently in the classic form he’s known for. The other major villains we think of an probably be easily lumped together as various iterations of the “Sinister Six.” Slott was definitely looking to pit Otto-as-Spidey against all of these before his time was through.

When Peter Parker took on the Sinister Six, it was usually a pretty big deal. There was often a big build-up and the fight was usually a knock-down, drag-out one that tested Spider-Man to his limits. In contrast, the very first issue of “Superior Spider-Man” pits Otto against the Sinister Six and he straight up humiliates them.

Slott doesn’t call too much attention to the fact that Otto himself was the originator of the Sinister Six, but that’s an important point to consider. Who better to get inside the heads of a villain, than a former villain himself? It’s another instance where Slott flips classic Spidey lore on its head. Otto has a pre-prepared plan for taking out each member (his master-planning is a character trait that will be heavily featured throughout the series) and does so with relative ease. In the end, he becomes frustrated at how incompetent they all are. He probably can’t believe he ever threw his chips in with those guys in the first place.

From its very first issue (which we will talk more about later), “Superior Spider-Man” established Otto as an immediately more successful hero than Peter. Obviously, that would logically deteriorate as the series went on, but it all started with a bang – against some of Spider-Man’s most iconic foes and Octavius’ most trusted allies.

8. That Time He Didn’t Sleep With the Black Cat

The tumultuous and sometimes saucy relationship between Spider-Man and the Black Cat has been an ongoing “thing” in this book for some time now, and it’s sort of run its course. They fight, they love, they fight and fight and love — fight, fight, fight; love, love, love. We sort of get it, right? And in some ways, Spider-Man became an enabler to the Black Cat and their dynamic just became rather off-putting, or at the very least complacent — and a touch dull.

But with Otto at the wheel, the issue where Slott finally dealt with their relationship was a rather exciting scene. Again, there are many parallels that the book established between Peter and Otto, but Ock’s line of “I’m Spider-Man. This is what I always do” is absolutely great in context. It’s the best of dramatic irony in the sense that we get to see the reaction of someone who truly doesn’t understand the situation she’s thrust into; at least the Avengers have scientific analysis they can run, and MJ and Carly somewhat have each other. Black Cat is alone, and her greeting to the Spider is met with an immediate punch in the face.

It’s a seed planted, for sure, but it’s going to be very interesting to see how this pays off in the long run.

7. Spidey Got His Swagger Back

Slott took a very specific approach to applying “villain” traits to a Peter Parker alter ego that is supposed to be a good and upstanding man. Deep down, we see that Otto’s motives are often self-serving, but on the outside, he did as many nice things for the people in his life as he did careless things. Because of this, Otto-as-Peter never really came off as a bad guy, rather more of a tremendous douche. Slott’s frat boy, junior executive douche take on Peter Parker was a hilariously specific angle to take that rode the thin line between annoying and humorously over-the-top. Just look at Peter wearing the bluetooth – so hate-able. Slott knew exactly what he’s doing, didn’t he?

On one instance, Peter is among his Horizon Labs peers, laughing at something on his laptop. Grady comments on Peter’s laugh and we realize that he can’t help himself from projecting a classic villainous “maniacal laugh.” Some things just can’t be repressed, I guess. It was little touches like this that made “Superior Spider-Man” fun, even if it was at the expense of Peter’s image. That swagger made its way into Otto’s Spider-Man, as well. Quick quips went straight to demonstrative insults and brutal beatings. Hell, the man added claws to the Spidey suit just so he could draw more blood.

6. The Superior Ryan Steg-Man

There have been quite a few artists to grace the page of this book since it began, but in terms of artists that have had the most room to grow and show off different sides of their talent, Ryan Stegman had the best.

Stegman has always been a rather vibrant and kinetic artist, and his work on the “Scarlet Spider” book recently proved that he was the perfect man to illustrate a webslinging wall crawler. The opening arc and Spider-Man 2099 arc proved this in spades; Stegman brought a certain level of energy and movement to the art that was unparalleled, some of the best of his career. Not only that, but Stegman also managed this delicate balance in the book of being incredibly dark and foreboding while also maintaining a certain element of light-heartedness and humor. It’s an eclectic mix, one that became a staple for defining how the book would look and continue from there — and even though Stegman has moved on to “Wolverine,” his presence in “Superior” is still felt.

5. Superior Spider-Man Partied Like It Was 2099

One of my favorite things about Slott’s writing is that nothing from “Spider-Man” lore is off the table for him. Nothing is too goofy, too outdated, or too sacred for him to pick up and play around with. Throughout “Superior Spider-Man”, Slott picks up tidbits from old Spider-Man stories and filters them through the mind of Ock-as-Spidey. The most surprising of these, and truly one of the most welcome instances of a weird concept revival I can remember, was the return of Miguel O’Hara a.k.a. Spider-Man 2099.

Peter David’s “Spider-Man 2099” was a pretty well-received concept. And actually, considering what the ’90s did to Peter Parker, “Spider-Man 2099” looks like it was a refuge from convoluted clone stories. Miguel O’Hara was a different sort of Spidey – an idea that got some play in a Peter David penned crossover in 1995. Crossing him over with Otto as Spider-Man gave us another opportunity to examine differences in character. Peter could be reserved in everyday life, while confident and quippy as Spider-Man. Miguel O’Hara was brash in all aspects of his life – and strictly business as Spider-Man. Otto dials the brashness up to 11, whether he’s in the guise or not. “Spider-Man 2099” and “Superior Spider-Man” actually seem to have a lot more in common than we would have thought.

As a personal anecdote, I thought “Superior Spider-Man” was running the risk of becoming stale around the same time that “Spider-Man 2099” was introduced as an upcoming arc. Somehow, some way, Slott always finds a way to re-invigorate the franchise. It’s the fact that he pulls off what could be overly gimmicky concepts like this so well that has me thinking that he can write Spider-Man as long as he wants to – it’ll be in good hands until he chooses to leave.

4. Peter Parker Finally Had Profound Scientific Successes

Sure, it may have been thanks to the technology that Otto Octavius himself had been developing all his life, but he finally got that doctorate degree. We all know that Peter deserves it. I think we also all know that he’s always destined to be pulled away from it. Otto’s indignant disbelief upon realizing that Peter Parker fell a credit short of his doctorate was one of the many ironic body swap moments in the series; one of the many times Slott played with the idea that Otto can’t believe Parker even made it as far as he did in life.

Out of the ashes of his work at Horizon Labs, he built “Spider Island II” – his own “bat cave” of sorts for doling out justice through spider-drones and lackeys. He appropriated the freaking Living Brain to be his robotic hand servant. From there, he built “Peter Parker Industries.” The success of that business probably won’t last into the “Amazing” relaunch, but it was all an impressive venture nonetheless, and certainly the logical conclusion for Otto Octavius’ domination of Peter’s work life. In the meantime, Otto has accomplished curing a young girl of her brain injury (and makes her a Spidey fan for life), gives Aunt May the ability to walk without a cane, and sucks the symbiote away from Flash Thompson in an effort to “save” him (whether he needed it or not). Otto covered a lot of ground in very little time. Makes you wonder what he could have accomplished had he applied himself to good works throughout his life. (Wait, do I smell a moral?)

3. That The First Issue Was Actually Really, Really Good

This probably sounds like a backhanded compliment, but lets all be honest for a minute: almost nobody expected “Superior” to be great, right? Not even good. The announcement of what would happen to Spider-Man was met with a chorus of fanboy rage, some of which crossed the line from “personal annoyment” to death threats and harassment. Dan Slott joked that he was going to hide in a hole and wait for it to all blow over, and he’s not wrong for saying so.

Not only that, but in another somewhat harsh truth that makes this all seem like a backhanded compliment, “Amazing Spider-Man” #700 wasn’t great either. A milestone, sure, but the parts that really needed to hit hard just sort of fell flat. It wasn’t the best exit for Peter.

Cue all of our collective surprise when, you know what? “Superior” was fantastic. It was a great first issue, an even better second issue and the momentum built from there. It’s at the point where we’re not even sure we want Peter back anymore, because Otto is doing such an interesting job with the task himself. So “Superior” was a gamble, a big one, but it paid off in a huge way — and that first issue being as good as it was shocked most fans across the comics community (because you know every person who said they’d never buy a copy would eventually cave and buy a copy — I did).

So well played, Slott and Marvel. Well fucking played.

2. Spidey Wooed a Little Person and It Was Handled Really Nicely

New romantic interest Anna Maria Marconi may or may not stick around after Peter Parker is back, but no matter what happens, she’s made a lasting impression. She’s highly intelligent, spunky, and a terrific cook with a real passion for the chemistry behind it. She’s also a little person. It’s a testament to the strength of the character that I can list her real personality traits and none of them are defined by her stature. Slott never reaches for a cheap joke at her expense. In fact, most characters treat it very matter-of-factly, or refrain from paying any notice to it at all.

When Slott does get down to Aunt May making a minor issue out of it, he handles it as respectfully as you would hope for. He shows the overly concerned side of Aunt May (which is very much part of her character, mind you) and then ultimately shows why Ms. Marconi should not be defined by her condition.

She also serves to open up Otto Octavius’ character beautifully. This is an area where there is no ulterior motive – he’s very fond of this woman. In some ways, she softens Otto and has us cheering for him. Otto is impressed by all aspects of her beauty, inner and outer (don’t take this the weird way, but she’s drawn as pretty fetching to begin with). Otto takes risks for her that he wouldn’t take for other characters. Were he had his life to do over in his old body you could see a younger Otto Octavius – hilarious bowl cut and all – choosing good over evil, falling for this girl, and being very happy. That’s not the way things go, so it’ll be very interesting to see how the fallout affects Ms. Marconi. I’m pretty worried for her.

1. It Ultimately Proves That Peter Parker is The Superior Spider-Man

I’m sure this idea will be expanded upon in the final issues running up to the relaunch of “Amazing Spider-Man” in April, but there’s already plenty of evidence that Dan Slott’s approach to Doc Ock as Spider-Man actually proves that Peter Parker is the only man who can endure as the “Amazing Spider-Man” we met over 50 years ago. Fans have argued otherwise, but the “Superior Spider-Man” actually proves Slott’s affection for Peter Parker – not anything resembling distaste. It’s just that he did it with a misdirection trick.

He made Doc Ock a successful Spider-Man for a while. There’s a few things on this list that would make you think that Otto trumped Peter as a hero, but what Otto actually did is ride a very tricky line between being a hero and actually betraying what Spider-Man is supposed to stand for. You might think I’m giving Slott too much credit here, but I can’t help but marvel at the way that Slott made Otto sympathetic and worth rooting for, even as he was doing things that the true Spider-Man would never do. Slott made a really good argument, at times, for the brand of justice that Otto envisioned. He also made it crystal clear that you have to look beyond the mere results that Otto certainly achieved as a hero and go a little deeper to see why he’s not actually superior.

For a while, he balanced Peter’s life pretty expertly. He dated, accomplished things at work and in school, kept Aunt May within arms reach, and stopped tons of crime. But in getting those results, he started to strain ties with loved ones, and in a more self-important, obsessive fashion than Peter Parker ever did. He constantly drew the ire of the Avengers – and basically all but lost a roster spot that Peter Parker has comfortably kept for years. He’s taken advantage of confidants in Mary Jane and Carlie Cooper. He’s compromised Horizon Labs for his own gain. He’s killed (see #10 above).

Peter Parker may have had a roller coaster of a life, and didn’t always balance things very well, but at the end of the day he did the right thing above all else. Remember that it was Doc Ock who declared himself the “Superior Spider-Man.” He’s superior by his own definition of a hero. Not by mine, probably not by yours, and not by Dan Slott’s. We’ve already seen Peter break free from the “mind avalanche” he was under in a glorious homage to a certain Doc Ock vs. Spidey scene from “Amazing Spider-Man” #33 (the single most defining image of Spider-Man, if you ask me). And come April, we’ll see Peter Parker prove himself out to be the superior one, because he’ll ultimately win the day, reclaiming his life and his comic book.

Let’s hope that once he’s “Amazing” again, Spider-Man still turns out a superior comic book.