The Amazing Tie-In
Writing
Team: Dan Slott & Christos Gage
Art
Team: Giuseppe Camuncoli, Cam Smith, Roberto Poggi, & Jason Keith
Cover
Price: $3.99
On
Sale Date: November 16, 2016
Publisher:
Marvel Comics
Review
by: Branden Murray
**NON
SPOILERS AND SCORE AT THE BOTTOM**
The
Amazing Spider-Man has
been relegated like a bad soccer team, while the Clone Conspiracy event moves forward to tie-in status. So far it seems the purpose of the title has
shifted from telling us Spider-Man
stories to filling us in on background information for characters we haven’t
seen in the pages of any Spidey title lately.
For example, last issue was a feature on Doctor Octavius getting back
into a body, while this issue centers on Kaine, a.k.a. the Scarlet Spider, a
former clone of Jackal who has sprung back to life recently. Since my brain was
left spinning from this character’s sudden re-introduction, in issue two of
Clone Conspiracy, I was eager to see what’s brewing here.
Our latest issue of Amazing kicks off by showing Kaine and his “last” known moments,
which are spent dying heroically during the previous Spider-Man publishing event, Spider-Verse. In that, Kaine took the form of a giant
spider called the Other, and although the creature was killed, its corpse served
as a cocoon protecting Kaine within. Kaine emerged shortly after Spider-Verse ended (from what I understand)
and since then has traveled through various dimensions, guided by Karn the
Master Weaver, to fight the bleak future we’re warned about at the end of Clone Conspiracy issue two.
The thing Kaine is mainly concerned about
is what he keeps referring to as Carrions. Carrions are basically a fancy word
for clones that are degenerating, therefore they begin acting like zombies and
infecting people. Since Kaine’s reemergence
from the Other he too is degenerating, and this provides an added incentive to solve
this multiversal problem that is only in the begging stages of hitting his own
home world.
Looking to secure a cure, or at least
continue to buy some precious time, Kaine runs into Spider-Gwen, and he
recruits her to his crusade as they aim to put an end to the clone zombies. For the remainder of the issue, Kaine and
Spider-Gwen gather leads, clues, and even Kaine’s body from a different
dimension to help their cause as “our Kaine” continues to get worse. It’s at this point that the Amazing Spider-Man title catches up with
the panels seen in Clone Conspiracy and
we discover how Kaine and Spider-Gwen are able to swap the Gwen Stacey clone
out of New U facilities.
The issue ends with Kaine, back on
Loomworld with Karn, resigning himself to the fact that there is no cure for
him in the entire multiverse and death is soon arriving at his front door. The
hero decides he needs to do one last thing before he passes asking the Master
Weaver to keep his secret for now.
This issue to helped fill in the blanks
for readers, especially regarding Kaine, his resurrection, and the actions he
has taken in the time since discovering he is degenerating. I am not a reader that traditionally flocks
towards multiverse-spanning stories or time-traveling tales, so I’m mildly
disappointed to get the sense that it’s where this Spidey event is headed
again, especially so soon after Spider-Verse
treaded similar territory. Despite my
reservations about the story’s content, the writing and art are both very
strong, yet I still feel a step below where the Amazing Spider-Man title usually falls.
Bits
and Pieces:
Overall, unless you’re severely invested
in what Kaine has been up to and why he’s back in the pages of Spider-Man again this really feels like
a book you can skip in regards to this event. The dialogue and art are fine,
but the story would have been better served as back-up material in an issue of Clone Conspiracy.
6.5/10
I always hated the dumb mythical shit from Spider-Verse. It was cool to find out how Kaine and Gwen got involved, but this issue just reminded me that I liked Spider-Verse but it all revolved around dumb shit.
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