The Amazing Spider-Man #77
Marvel Comics
Written by Kelly Thompson
Art by Sara Pichelli
Colors by Nolan Woodward
Letters by Joe Caramagna
The Rundown: Ben Reilly continues to get used to being a corporate superhero as Peter’s family looks for a way to help him.
Excited to be the official Spider-Man of New York, Ben Reilly finds himself in a training mission with Colleen and Misty Knight. In the aftermath, Maxine tells him that he needs to get outfitted with a new suit for his latest mission. At the same time, she reminds him of the investment they have made in him and how his actions reflect on the corporation. Things get tense in therapy when a memory he held on to suddenly vanishes.
At the hospital, Peter is in a coma with both May and Mary Jane sitting at his bedside. When it becomes clear that no one is going to help him the way he needs, May decides to go off on her own and make a couple of calls. Ben heads back into the field and finds a series of bodies with Morbius standing over them. After fighting Michael, Ben tries to check on the victims, but Morbius gets the drop on him.
The Story: Thompson does a great job of diving deeper into Ben’s life with the Beyond Corporation. The story has some fun elements, but the specter of what’s happening to Peter is still there and the tone of the story brilliantly reflects that. I like that there is still a lot of mystery with the Beyond Corporation as well and you can’t really tell what their true motives are. It adds some great tension to the story that I look forward to seeing explored.
The Art: Pichelli delivers some impressive and beautifully dramatic art to this issue. The dark tone of the story and some of its story moments are perfectly captured with Pichelli’s style.