written by Dan Slott
drawn by Stuart Immonen (p) Wade Von Grawbadger (i)
colored by Marte Gracia
As Marvel's most renowned superhero comic book returns to its original numbering, Dan Slott marks the occasion with a return to the kind of storytelling that made Spider-Man one of the most relatable and endearing superheroes around.
While Peter Parker's decision to flush his entire company down the toilet during the events of Secret Empire was motivated by the honest belief that he was acting for the greater good, he now comes face-to-face with the fallout of that decision: thousands of his employees out of work, investors' money down the drain, and a great many people who now hate his guts. He tries confronting Joe Robertson at the Daily Bugle about a scathing editorial Robertson wrote about him, only to realize that every unflattering word is true. He can't bring himself to meet up with his friends, even as they try to reach out to him, because he is deeply ashamed of how badly he's messed things up. He spends the issue at Mockingbird's place, and it is through her that he finally finds something that he desperately needs: purpose.
It's gratifying to see Slott finally draw to a close what felt like a distinctly unnatural status quo for Peter Parker with the emphatic return of the infamous "Parker luck," with a nice "done in one" first issue, no less. Slott's clearly got a lot planned for this new/old direction in which he's taking the character, but rather than end the issue on a blatant cliffhanger he goes for something a little more subtle, setting the stage for what's coming up but at the same time giving this particular issue a reasonably satisfying conclusion.
I wrote in a previous review that I was quite happy with the whole high-school teacher status quo that J. Michael Straczynski had established for Peter Parker, which basically endured throughout his run and ended with the events of "One More Day." It seems to me that, after experimenting with a variety of situations for Peter which have included returning him to his old haunt, the Daily Bugle, giving him a dream job at Horizon Labs during the "Big Time" story line, and finally, having him run his own company, Dan Slott is looking at establishing a status quo a bit similar to what Straczynski set up for Peter in that, while it isn't exactly glamorous like his CEO position was, it at least feels like the sort of thing that a person with Peter's considerable intellect would do. Of course, I'm not sure what that is yet, but Slott drops some hints during Peter's brief visit to the Bugle.
After taking an issue off, the stellar art team of Immonen, Von Grawbadger and Gracia are back to hit this one right out of the park. Even though Slott's now hitting his stride, this art team still remains the highlight of the book for me, and this issue maintains the standard of quality they've established since they took over several months ago. It's somewhat amusing that Peter looks even more gangly and disheveled than usual as Immonen and crew play up the "Parker luck" look.
Slott and his team have gotten this new direction off into a fine start; here's hoping the keep the momentum going.
8.5/10
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