Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews

Astonishing Spider-man & Wolverine #1 of 6
Marvel Comics
Aaron & Kubert

Just when you thought these two characters weren't in enough comic books on a monthly basis they pop up in their own team-up title. Marvel managed to put on some A-list creators to help build some interest in the title and help justify the $4 price tag, but is it any good? Well, the comic book is in fact a good start to a mini series. However, the story finds itself in a difficult spot because a) it could easily be an elseworld's-like story and b) it could appear anywhere in either character's continuity creating a label that could easily be "for the completists". I enjoyed the story but I am going to have a tough time selling the idea that this is for people that aren't either a fan of the creators or characters.

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Suspended Animation Review

Spiderman/Kingpin: To the Death, ?1997 Marvel Comics, priced at $5.99.

Spider-Man has gone berserk, preying on the criminals of New York City. The bullet-ridden corpses of both small-time crooks and "made men" are turning up, with witnesses screaming the same statement made by the evidence; Spiderman has turned killer! This is all news, however, to Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man, as he finds himself hunted by the law and superheroes alike. Only one member of the super-powered community believes Spidey is innocent, and it is the man who may know him best of all; Daredevil. Together, the two masked adventurers go into action to prove the innocence of ol' Webhead, and uncover a diabolical scheme involving a "mad" scientist, a strength-enhancing, but deadly serum called "Death's Arrow," and the ever-dangerous Kingpin of Crime.

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Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews

Dark Reign The List: Amazing Spider-Man #1
Marvel Comics
Slott, Kubert, Morales & White

Spider-Man against the Iron Patriot doesn't sound like an epic comic book at all. However, when it's Norman Osborn in the armor and a ton of baggage is dragged into the fight and you add Adam Kubert as your artist with some clever quips and you have a heck of a comic book one shot. If you have a passing interest in Spider-Man and the Green Goblin then this issue is a can't miss book.

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Suspended Animation Review

Spider-Man/Doctor Octopus: Year One, published by Marvel Comics, 120 pages, cover price $13.99.

It's always exciting when comics creators can broaden and more deeply define a classic character. And, as so many popular super heroes have even more interesting villains, this is all the more true with the bad guys. A great example of this is Spider-Man/Doctor Octopus: Year One, published by Marvel Comics in 2005.

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Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews

Amazing Spider-Man #601
Marvel Comics
Waid, Alberti, Mossa, Bendis & Quesada

Spider-Man 600 was good enough that I decided to see where the Mary Jane storyline was headed by picking up issue 601. What I got was a tease with regard to Mary Jane and a decent enough story wrapped around the main drama. It's an okay issue but it introduces a rather disturbing side of Peter Parker that I found to be a real head-scratcher. I'm not sure if I'll be picking up another issue or not at this point. I might but this issue didn't put me over the top by any means.

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Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews

Amazing Spider-Man #600
Marvel Comics
Slott, Romita Jr, Lee, Martin, Waid, Doran, Gale, Alberti, Guggenheim, Breitweiser, Wells, Donovan, Kelly and Fiumara

As Marvel continues to return their character's titles to classic numbering, this one needs no return as it achieves its 600th issue almost as straight forward as you can get. As a result, we get over one hundred pages of original material for $4.99. This is an incredible bargain in this day and age as I found myself having to break out a bookmark to read a comic for the first time ever. The issue has some elements to celebrate the character and even a few to mock the long history of Spider-Man as well as a nice, long in continuity story that is engaging and very new reader friendly. This comic is worth picking up even if you haven't dipped your toe in the Spidey world in a long time or even ever.

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Suspended Animation Review

Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's Amazing Spider-Man

Marvel Comics has begun reissuing their Marvel Masterworks series of collections of classic Silver Age stories. Consequently, this is a good time to review some of the best comics work ever done - Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s Amazing Spider-Man.

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Suspended Animation Review

Spider-Man Noir #1, published by Marvel Publishing, Inc., 32 pages, $3.99.

Marvel has offered readers another alternate rendition of Spider-Man, in Spider-Man Noir. I’ve always been a fan of the concept of “What If...?” stories, but is this one worth fans’ time and money? Following are observations of the first issue.

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