The Amazing Spider-Man #700 Review
And now, the end is here. The Amazing Spider-Man sails off into the sunset with his monumental 700th issue. Read on for a SPOILER-filled review as we offer a eulogy for one of the greatest comic book series to ever exist. And more, much more than this, he did it his way.
The Amazing Spider-Man #700
The unthinkable has happened. Otto Octavius, who fancies himself as a master schemer, has finally bested his most hated foe, Spider-Man. From his deathbed at the Raft, the superhuman prison, he was able to use one of his octobot drones to place a seed in Spider-Man’s brain that eventually swapped their minds, leaving Peter Parker in the frail, and dying, body of Octavius, and Dr. Octopus himself in the body of the Amazing Spider-Man.
In this final issue, Peter Parker, acting on behalf of Octavius, has hired supervillains to break him out. Now, racing against the clock before Octavius’ body finally gives out, Peter must find a way to switch their minds back to their rightful places. In the meantime, Octavius, using Peter’s memories and abilities, realizes that Parker is not as helpless and hopeless as he believed. After treating Mary Jane like she’s a hapless groupie, he counters Parker’s attack by gathering all his friends and family at Avengers Tower. Here, the final showdown between Spider-Man and Dr. Octopus happens. Believe he has the upper hand against his longtime enemy, Peter is horrified to find that Octavius has protected himself from the same octobot drone that should have served to swap them back. A terrible blow from Spider-Man finally proves to be too much for the frail encasing for Peter’s mind. As he begins to pass away, Octavius is flooded by what it truly means to be Peter Parker, Spider-Man. Octavius realizes Peter’s pain and suffering is not at all what he bargained for and begs Peter to undo everything. Peter tells him that it’s too late and if Otto truly wants to be Spider-Man, he must take all the bad along with the good, for with great power must also come great responsibility. Finally, the Octavius body expires, and along with it Peter Parker, leaving Octavius more determined than ever to live up to the name of Spider-Man.
With that, the Superior Spider-Man is born.
Let the great debate begin. At the time of this post, Dan Slott has already taken insane heat of death threats from retailers who got to read the final issue of The Amazing Spider-Man a week before its street date. Am I terribly surprised that people are upset? Not at all. We’re talking about a pillar of the Marvel Universe meeting his apparent demise. Does anyone from Slott to artist Humberto Ramos to editor Steve Wacker deserve this kind of treatment? No freakin’ way. The seeds to this story had been planted for a long time. With Marvel NOW! coming along to shake things up, this was a great time to really punch it to this series and Peter Parker. This is what Marvel is best at – giving characters a real hard time and putting them through the worst of the worst of situations. Peter Parker was one of the very few heroes to not really go through death’s door. While it is certainly arguable that Marvel hasn’t always treated death properly (*ahem* Hawkeye), they have done it particularly well with characters like Bucky Barnes and Colossus. Even the “death” of Captain America worked out well as we then got two solid years with Bucky as the new Cap in some really great stories.
What’s more, Amazing Spider-Man #700 is a classic case of something else that Marvel does better than anyone else. Take away the death of Peter Parker (which will ultimately be the talking point of this issue for years to come), and what you have here is a pure celebration of the character himself. Marvel has always celebrated their characters. It doesn’t matter if it’s Spidey, or Hulk, or the Fantastic Four. If they could some how peel these characters out of the two-dimensional images of their books, they’d throw daily parades for them. I won’t hear of anyone saying they don’t dearly love their characters and celebrate them on a daily basis.
Amazing Spider-Man #700 is a pure reminder of how wonderful a character Peter Parker is. Mind you, I did not equate Spider-Man with that greatness. No, what makes this series work isn’t the man in the mask, however great he is, but the man under the mask. Peter Parker was truly the every man. When you think of the upper echelon of comic book icons, Peter was the one who dealt with the most real life issues. He wasn’t an omnipotent being from the stars standing up for the American way. He wasn’t a billionaire with the toys capable of taking down every single possible threat. He wasn’t a near warrior god(dess) with a pure sense of justice. Peter Parker was someone who, through a couple twists of fate, learned to temper his powers with being a truly good person only wanting to do what’s right by his friends, family, and anyone who was in trouble.
Because he was more relatable and realistic a character, we felt his highs and lows. We could almost feel every punch he took. We felt empowered when he stood up against insurmountable odds. We felt his loss when he was unable to save them. We found ourselves rooting for Peter Parker as often as, if not more than, Spider-Man. He was us and we were he. There may not be a single other comic book character that connects with his/her readers like Peter Parker did.
Getting back to my point, Amazing Spider-Man #700 is more a celebration of Peter Parker than it is of the series or Spider-Man as a hero. Spidey isn’t trying to stop a rampaging Juggernaut, or quipping to Dr. Doom in Latveria. It’s Peter Parker fighting to save his life and prevent his powers and his legacy from being marred by a truly undeserving and evil man. He’s not faced with a decision to stop this man and have a change of heart, or be injured beyond being able to be Spider-Man any longer, and retiring to his work station at Horizon Labs to live out his life happily or quietly. This is an honest fight for his very life. A fight he loses, but not before imparting a little bit of wisdom forcing Doc Ock to realize he’s not as victorious as he believed.
Amazing Spider-Man #700 is not a perfect book. Slott crafts a nice script for this finale. What makes the arc, as a whole, so fun was the utter suspension of disbelief. You had to watch carefully what happened previously, but when things take off, it feels like something that would have come straight from Stan Lee himself. It’s grandiose and kinda far out, but still a lot of fun. If you read the previous arcs for “The Ends of the Earth” or “No Turning Back”, it’s hard to imagine how we got from those more serious stories to this one, but while it isn’t the best of the very best of Spider-Man stories, it definitely works in a Silver Age kind of way that is hard to dislike. I admit that I’m also not the biggest fan of Ramos’ style, though I will also admit that I think he’s done well with Spider-Man. So the art is give and take depending on your personal tastes.
Where the issue does excel is in the spirit of the book. I said it before, and I’ll say it again… This is a celebration. It’s all about Peter Parker. It’s a race against time that, even though you may have pre-conceived notions or heard leaks about what might happen, you still find yourself thinking Peter is going to get himself out of this nightmare. The real celebration of Spider-Man, the hero, comes from J.M. DeMatteis in a touching back up story about an older gentleman retelling his life as “Spider-Man” to his grandson who is going through his jaded early teens. Will it be hard to look past the major event that happens in the final pages of this story? Probably, but this issue still stands as a testament to who Peter Parker is and what he means to us all and if he comes back in a couple years, we’ll welcome him back. If he never comes back, I can still believe that he’s deserved his much needed rest.
Rest in peace, Peter Parker. You did more than your Uncle Ben could have ever asked.
A COMIC BOOK BLOG RATING
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Exciting conclusion to Peter’s story. Great celebration of Peter Parker. Touching back up story. | Art’s not really my taste. Story is a bit of a stretch as a whole. |
| Rating |
15 Comments
IMHO
Good story telling begins with individual characterization, not by changing costumes, the title of the book, and making it more brutal, dark or whatever. It’s pure and simple laziness and a total disrespect for the character. What are they trying to prove? You cannot better what Stan Lee & Steve Ditko perfected.
They need to engage readers with substantial mature storytelling. Dan Slott’s creativity has stagnated and rather than pass the mantle on to a better writer, they’re succumbing to the incontinent urge of messing everything up for the sake of what – a short term increase in sales? Wow! that’s Marvel NOW the house of NO IDEA.
#700 completes my entire collection of ASM. I’ve been reading Marvel titles since 1975 and have enjoyed great story-arcs by many very talented writers and artists over the years but I actually hated what I was reading in this issue. I’m not buying into the Superior CRAP.
Dan Slott has become a sensationalist writer aligning himself with hype and controversy just for the sake of a cheap marketing gimmick.
Humberto Ramos has got to be one of the worst artists ever to work on a super hero book. His messy psuedo manga style scribblings have never suited ASM. His wayward perspective of anatomy is simply ugly and horrible to look at.
Steve Wacker is a wanker.
I agree with what you say except for Ramos, who is one of my favorite artists, but that’s all a matter of opinion. I will say that his artwork in ASM overall has been inconsistent, but most of it not as good as his artwork in comics that he did before ASM or more recently, like ‘Fairy Quest’, but that might be down to deadlines and Marvel trying to double and triple ship comics.
I generally agree with your comment. I’m also long time reader of marvel and see this as another jaded “event” that will mean nothing in the long run. “…if he never comes back”? Right! Of course he’ll come back. Back to the same convoluted continuity of clones, forgotten marriages, covered up secret identities, and whatnot. And when Spider-man does come back in another cheasy (I was going to say “cheap” but comics aren’t cheap anymore) event comic, I will care even less than I do now.
*Claps* Awesome review Geoff. I agree once the story took off mid way it was hard to put down. Like you I found myself hoping Peter would some how save himself even though I knew what was going to happen. I do disagree with you with something you said though at the end. The “Rest In Piece” part. I like to say “See you later” cause I have a strong feeling Peter will be back sooner then later! Great Job.
you said it pal
F@CK YOU MARVEL!!!!! TWICE!!!!!
This, to me, is the last slap in the face I’m going to take. Doc Oc as Spider-Man? Peter Parker dead? BULLSHIT!!!
I know Peter will be back and all this will go away in time, and if it doesn’t Marvel can go to hell and die!!
Spider Man is about the every man as a non omnipotent super hero. He’s not super strong or super smart. He is always outnumbered and outmatched. But he never gives in to the pressure and always fights until he can’t fight no more. He is a HERO in every sense of the word. Doc Oc is a VILLAIN. He has always been a villain. Just because he felt Spider Man’s pain, doesn’t mean he suddenly gets an epiphany and decides to be a good guy.
This entire concept is money grubbing ratings crap that should never have happened. As a reader of 25 years and a long time Spider Man fan and collector, I am personally insulted by this issue. You want to kill him? Fine. I accept it. You want to replace him? Never going to happen, but fine, I accept that too. But with Doc Oc? BULL F’N SHIT!!!
Good luck explaining how Wolverine or Tony Stark can’t figure out that this is not the real Spider Man. They are on 12 different teams together.
Marvel NOW!, the quest for random shock value with no regards to the long time fan and collector, continues to decimate my love for a once great historically filled medium. Great job making an ICON a F’n joke, Marvel. I give up making any sense of decisions based on greed. That’s all I can say here. I’m just too pissed for more.
i agree.they should have looked at it like a wrap up of the series.correcting previous mistakes..they should have atleast listened to the long term fans..i think most, if not all, would have been pleased if petey could do the switch and MJ wud have realised the phoney and supported peter in doing so..so many ppl wud have been happy to see them kissing each other as a final scene perhaps..but nooo.they had to make this last issue as a platform to promote superior spiderman..comon..this suicidal tendency shud stop.now spiderman has definitely bee polluted in every sense..i hope MJ and Carlie find out that hes a phoney.coz carlie had that conversation with doc oc sayn his peter and MJ is bound to findout eventually..
I generally agree with you Geoff. It was a celebration of the character at its core. People will bitch and moan about it being done for numbers and greed. But it is a big gamble to place someone else under the mask and I applaud Marvel for being bold enough to do it.
Of course there is shock value here to try and generate interest, but that has always been in the medium. Just these days it is heightened by the Internet and the knee jerk responses of fanboys.
I imagine the “life-long” fans will tangle themselves in rage (I’ve been reading Marvel for 23 years) and swear down they are done with Marvel. But it is an exciting time to be a fan.
And to address the good storytelling is addressed with characterisation comment. Slott has really nailed down Pete’s character here and to criticise a book that hasn’t been released for lack of character is a bit absurd. But this is what people do in this day and age.
To me this is an interesting direction for the book to go in. I personally can’t wait when the other characters begin interacting with Doc Ock as Spidey. Also I really am interested in the characters arc and how he may try and live up to the legacy left by Peter. This is a new Spider-man in my eyes and not a replacement.
But if your that angry or annoyed by it then vote with your wallet. I personally shall see how the narrative plays out before I judge the book on one decision. It may very well be a horrible read, but I can’t tell from here.
I have always found the righteous indignation of “long-term” fans hilarious to watch anyway, so I shall expect the forums to be as entertaining as the comics.
Here’s the thing though, Daniel. Doc Ock is not Spider Man. He is Doc Ock. It just insults the character of Peter Parker and everything he represents as well as insulting the fans and how they have perceived the character of Spider Man to have his 2nd greatest nemesis take his mantle. And then just expect all of the other heroes who have interacted with Spider Man for 50 years to just not notice. It paints us, the readers, especially the “life-long” ones as morons. That, to me, is what Marvel is calling us. Sheep that will follow wherever Marvel takes us. It just makes me feel dirty and betrayed.
I’m not quitting reading, but if I could slap the face of every single person who green lighted this decision, I would. So would Stan Lee. So would Steve Ditko. It just defies logic what the Trade Paperback writers of today are allowed to get away with.
Spider Man can die and be replaced. That I accept. Just not by Doc Ock.
I think you are leaping to conclusions that have yet to be fully explored. As Superior Spider-man has yet to be released, we have yet to see the true extent of the interactions between the character and the greater Marvel universe, he has after all the memories of Peter so who is to say that he can’t mimic the guy pretty well. Until I see this book I won’t judge the decision as a bad one, just because it upsets me on a personal level. I think it would be better to allow the story to unfold before forming a judgement call on being betrayed.
He is not Spider-man and he is not Peter Parker. That is clear already, your perceptions of Peter haven’t be tarnished by this story decision. In fact Slott is putting Peter on a pedestal for Doc Ock to look upon. If anything it celebrates the great heroic nature of Peter Parker. It is a great idea with a distinct level of emotional complexity attached to it. If anything Slott and Marvel has put us in the position of watching a man who was one of Spidey’s greatest foes attempt to live up to the legacy. We are not being treated as morons, we are being invited onto this journey.
We are being challenged as fans to usher in a new dawn for the book, Peter won’t be gone for too long. But this doesn’t mean that this new direction is a blasphemy. In fact the mind switch story is very Lee and Dikto esque in its overtly kitsch manner.
It saddens me that you call them “Trade paperback writers” as a lot of writers, Slott included, deliver well constructed narratives in a medium that is all about long form story telling. As the medium evolved in the late 90s to include decompressed (I hate that term) story telling and “widescreen” panel layouts it makes sense that writers have their arcs go over multiple issues. There is a greater emphasis on character and “show don’t tell” art.
You maybe carrying on reading Marvel, but perhaps a break is needed. Allow your indignation to actually force a change in your reading habits and therefore you may get less frustrated and angry at books for not following your specific tastes. After all the old stories you love haven’t vanished since this event happened.
I’m not leaping to conclusions Daniel . I’m stating facts. Doc Ock is a villain and has been for over 50 years. Just because he gets to see Peter’s life, doesn’t make him radically change into a hero after being what he is for 50 years. To accept this, I would have to suspend all logic, reason and common sense. If that is so simple for you to do, then god bless you. My ability to think rationally won’t allow me to do it. Would this concept work if Norman Osborn became Spider Man? Would it work if Dr. Doom became Spider Man? How about Magneto as Spider Man? It just sounds completely ridiculous. Because a hard core villain is a villain. No amount of happy thoughts and guilt will change that. If he has no problem wiping out all of Manhattan with his final solution, then seeing Peter’s pathetic life would do nothing to him. That’s the betrayal. Not Peter’s death, which I accept. It’s the complete and utter idiocy that Doc Ock will now be good and that we will just smile and say ok. And that he won’t be found out immediately. MJ is already suspicious because even though he has Peter’s memories, he’s still Doc Ock, an ass with a superiority complex, at heart. The complete opposite of Peter. That is what makes me angry and disgusted.
And unfortunately, they are “Trade paperback writers” If they weren’t, they would write more self contained stories that allow them to stand out from the crowd and not be lumped in with the rest of the zombies following orders from the Marvel greed conglomerate.
I don’t need a break. It’s my lack of a break that allows me to say what I say and compare the works of our industry since Marvel began. You see, I not only have been collecting for 25 years, but I actually have read every back issue since inception of FF, Hulk, Spider Man, X-Men, Avengers, TTA, TOS, JIM, and Daredevil. And you’re right. The old stories I love have not vanished. They have actually increased in greatness and validity as intellectual masterpieces compared to the complete shit that I have been subjected to reading for the past decade. The only book that actually stands out, to me, over the past decade as unique and original is The Walking Dead. And the resale market seems to agree with me as almost every books from the TPB era, as this age of comics will be known, is completely worthless.
I’m not continuing to justify my opinions any more after this. You can respond and get the last word if you want, but I personally just don’t care. And that is the biggest travesty of all. When the work of a single issue can make a true fan of a character and the medium just stop caring completely what happens to him and it.
I accept that that is your personal opinion on the matter and although you state “facts” I have yet to be convinced that Doc Ock will be completely good. But then people can change it has happened before, we shall just have to wait and see.
As for self contained stories, Marvel do do them. Not often granted but they have been popping up almost every year. It is a shame that you view the medium as product over art. But that is not an uncommon point of view. Marvel is a business and need to sell so they pull stunts, just like they always have. They haven’t changed really in that regard, it is more heightened these days as the internet allows the community to react instantly (for better or worse).
It is sad to think that TWD is the only original work you think has stood out in the last ten years. There are multiple greats out there in the last ten years. Fables, Ex Machina, Chew, Blacksad,100 Bullets, The Sixth Gun and the recent Saga are all titles that really push the medium hard. But TWD has cross platform appeal and therefore I can imagine the phenomenon will be worth a bit in the future.
Yes reading back issues may allow you to “say what you say” but it has obscured your perspective to the changing status quo of the medium as a storytelling form. But I’ve been over that already.
I’m glad that you have the old ones and hold them in such regard. A lot of them are fun pulpy reads and give a great insight into the social-political environment of their respective time periods. I have had a lot of fun researching the medium for the past six years myself.
It may seem like I am getting the last word in, but snarky comments aside. I believe it is a truly mind boggling fact that this one issue has made you stop caring for the character and lets face it Marvel (I wouldn’t say the medium, really). Throwing in comments on resale values has clearly defined how you look at the medium. But if you carry on buying books then good look with your future enjoyment and if not then you save some money I suppose.
I love Spiderman and I enjoyed this comic, I thought it was a good enough storyline and pretty good art, in those respects I am pleased but it is not the perfect ending to my favourite Marvel character, The thing that ruined this comic for me was that I was completely dissatisfied with the end I love spiderman much like the writer of this review because of Peter Parker and when I realised he was going to die I was annoyed because he’s Peter Parker but I accepted it because I have hundreds of previous issues to re read. What made me dissatisfied was the plausibility of this ending I don’t believe Doc Ock would have ‘turned’ simply because he experienced Peter’s life, I feel that it’s completely implausible and that it would never happen, It left me with a slightly sour taste in my mouth after what should have been a sad, but excellent ending to one of (in my opinion) the best super hero series ever written, it might be a money making ploy to continue Spiderman in this way but hey, who knows? and neither am I going to pre judge Superior Spiderman because of this comic but I am still not satisfied. This should have been an amazing climax and it had the potential to be but it just went out with a slightly implausible bang. If I had written this comic, I would have ended with Spiderman and Doc Ock jumping off Avengers tower to their death, I think this would have made a better ending and been an excellent metaphor for what Spiderman is all about, WITH GREAT POWER COMES GREAT RESPSONCIBLILTY, If Peter Parker had of sacrificed himself to ensure that Doc Ock could do no damage with his Spiderman form then I think that would have ended Spiderman well and dramatically, this would have summed up Spiderman, and so I’m going to finish this (extremely long) comment, the book was enjoyable but left a VERY sour taste in my mouth.
Doctor Octopus was a promising Doctor who could have accomplished much with his abilities but because of an accident became fused with powerful mechanical arms that gave him great power but he chose a life of crime and became a real villain. He is arrogant and self seeking and showed that in the new name he chose for himself the Superior Spider-Man. We are to believe because of the memories that Peter imparted to him in leaving that he is changed and perhaps he has but he is no Peter Parker and that is what people are upset about. The hero is gone and we are left with psychotic mess of brain waves and personalities. For those of us who liked Peter Parker it is a huge disappointment. Don’t know if I will read the Superior Spider-Man or not.
This story shits right in the faithful readers’ mouths. I read Spider-Man because Peter Parker is an exceptional person. The books chronicle his travails and experiences. We see the world from his perspective, empathizing with him as he takes his lumps and experiencing his joy when things go right. He always beats impossible odds and finds a way to be honorable and a hero.
Except now, in this latest story, we’re supposed to believe that somehow Peter failed miserably and was stupid enough to let it happen. Isn’t Spidey an Avenger? Didn’t he pal around with Tony freakin’ Stark? Wasn’t he in the Fantastic Four while Johnny was dead? He’s on a first-name basis with Reed Richards! This guy has direct access to at least two of the greatest minds in the Marvel universe, and he can’t make a goddamn phone call? Certainly there must be protocols in place to help heroes affected by mind swaps. (Sadly, it happens often enough.) Yet somehow, he thinks that busting out some super-villains is going to be more helpful than calling his genius friends.
Octavius is a murdering cad who never got anything right, but throughout this story arc, he was able to outwit our hero at every turn. Even Spider-Man’s new supporting cast is useless. His “thinktank” companions are kept in the dark and are pretty stupid anyway.
This was an ignoble death of a beloved character against a second-rate villain who was barely interesting to begin with. To add insult to injury, we’re supposed to accept this maniac with a God complex as the new Spider-man. I don’t want to root for this bizarre amalgam. I can’t. He murdered Peter Parker. Marvel just lost a faithful reader.
I feel cheated and abused. Dan Slott is the worst Spider-Man writer I’ve ever read.