Spidey has gone to the ends of the earth, and now the adventure ends. It’s been an arc filled with twists and turns, and a few tricks, but now we’re going to take a look at the final battle between Spider-Man and Doctor Octopus!
As a warning, there are some spoilers discussed!
Written by Dan Slott
Illustrated by Stefano Caselli
- The End of the Earth devastates in part 6 of this earth blistering epic!
- Plus: Doctor Octopus has a new Sinister Six–THE AVENGERS!
- Can Spider-Man sacrifice one life to save the entire planet?
The Ends of the Earth arc closed this week, with Dan Slott telling the biggest story in scope he’s told since he took over the book. It was even larger than Spider-Island, and that had man-spiders taking over half of New York (or rather, Manhattan)! No, Peter and company were headed all around the world to stop Doc Ock from achieving his greatest crime to date: the destruction of half of the planet.
You really can’t fault the guy for his ambition, Jesus.
Anyway, Dan Slott, the scribe for ASM since “Brand New Day” ended and “Big Time” started back in the end of 2010, closed his epic in style. Slott, who is probably the most unabashed Peter Parker fan this side of Aunt May, always knows how to have fun with the character, playing with the ability to make new, adventure specific costumes and pushing the limits of Peter’s genius. While this was a huge shift from the classic “Starving Photographer” Peter, it was a very important one that had real ramifications in Slott’s overall run since then. The kind of intelligence and depth in the book since Big Time started is the biggest selling point in the series. There are consequences to Peter’s seemingly innocuous actions, professionally and personally, that come to a head in every arc that may or may not have been presented in that. First instance, the fact Peter’s identity can be discovered again came from a seemingly unimportant moment, but when you realized what happened, it threw you for a loop. And even when you bring it to the “Ends of the Earth,” everything that Peter had been doing to assist his crime fighting and vigilantism came back to haunt him in a way you never see coming.
He also knows how to raise the stakes to desperate levels. In this issue, there was a new Sinister Six. You might know them better as “The Avengers.” Slott even managed to still find a way to insert Peter’s trademark humor into such a dire situation by turning the powerful Thor into a bit of a sight gag when Doc Ock took over his mind. It was one of my favorite moments in the issue and further proves why Dan Slott should not only be writing “Amazing Spider-Man” but is also a prime candidate to write one of the many “Avengers” books Bendis looks to be leaving at the end of the year. He captures large team dynamic very well, and has them interact in meaningful ways that give respect to both characters. When Silver Sable takes on Captain America, it’s a lovely scene that is actually pretty emotional on its own. Silver Sable and Captain America is something I’d like to see more of in the future, even if that’s unlikely thanks to some…disappointing storytelling.
It’s literally the only thing I didn’t like about the story. The fact that Silver Sable was given an off-screen death in a way that takes away her personhood as a character and simply makes her a plot device for Peter’s angst was a tad bit upsetting to say the least. Perhaps it’s because I’m a bit attached to the character from growing up in the 90’s, but someone as tough as her, who was giving Captain America a run for his money, deserves a little more than she got. Here’s hoping she manages to survive a pointless death.
But enough about the writing for a second; let’s talk about Stefano Caselli’s astounding artwork. His art is as lovely as it always is in this book. His gorgeously layered and intriractely designed characters along with the breat taking action scenes make him one of the best comic artists in the business right now, and it’s a wonder why he’s not more prominent than he is.
While there are certainly elements of the book I dislike, the story itself is one of the better Spider-Man stories out there. You should be reading this.
Final Verdict: 7.8/10 Buy
