(w) Joe Kelly
(a) Ed McGuinness (pencils) Mark Morales (ink)
(c) Jason Keith
Having read the first three issues of one of Marvel's runaway best-selling titles, I can't help but constantly ask myself the same question: why on earth didn't they think of this sooner? Placing this book in the hands of Joe Kelly and Ed McGuinness, the creators arguably most commonly identified with the Merc with a Mouth after creators Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicieza, was really a stroke of creative and marketing genius, and now that the Deadpool film is a bona fide blockbuster, Marvel looks well-positioned to ride that particular gravy train all the way to the bank for quite a while.
In issue #2, Deadpool continues to stalk Spider-Man, but more importantly Peter Parker, who is supposed to be his next target, not knowing, of course, that they are one and the same. Peter's company is about to launch a very significant product, but things go awry when a whole horde of Goblins shows up, and it may take both Peter and new Spidey Miles Morales to take them down...or, it may all be the trickery of Mysterio, in which case Deadpool may yet be of some service to them.
In issue #3, Spider-Man has decided to "hang out" with Deadpool in view of his surprisingly altruistic actions during the Mysterio attack, in which Wade actually stopped Mysterio without killing him. As it turns out, this involves a trip to Bolivia, where the pair of them, accompanied by Deadpool's ragtag band of mercenaries, take on a couple of blasts from Spidey's past, supervillains Styx and Stone both of whom have gotten a bit of an upgrade since Spider-Man last saw them. Meanwhile, Deadpool continues to hatch his mysterious plot against Peter Parker's life.
Even more than the first issue, each of these issues is a complete, satisfying read which, at the same time, ties into a bigger narrative tapestry, with biting dialogue (as one would expect by putting two of the Marvel Universe's chattiest characters together), spot-on characterization for Spidey (and I presume Deadpool), remarkably well-staged action sequences, and some really stunning art by superstar McGuinness who, in my opinion, should get a shot an a Deadpool-free Spider-Man book sometime in the future. This is an artist who understands Spidey's body language in action, and he is fortunate to be paired with Kelly, who, as both a former collaborator and Spidey writer himself, understands that quite well.
Kelly's shown an outstanding knack for single-issue stories and the tales he has woven in these last two issues are an improvement over the first, but what's really got me intrigued is the ongoing thread involving Deadpool's contract on Peter Parker's life, something which will certainly come to a head soon. The question is, though: once that thread is resolved, how will Kelly justify having Deadpool spend so much time around Spider-Man? Well, if anyone can answer that question, Joe and Ed certainly can.
8.5/10
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