Book Review: Spider-Man: Brand New Day Vol. 2 by B. Gale et al.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day Volume 2 written by Bob Gale and Zeb Wells; art by Phil Jimenez, Chris Bachalo, and Barry Kitson

Spider-man's problems continue unabated. Even though J. Jonah Jameson is out of the Daily Bugle (his wife sold it while he was incapacitated by a heart attack), the new owner is even worse--he hates Spider-man, he makes up stories all the time, and he can't remember anybodies' names. The police are mixed about Spider-man's helpfulness, some like him, some don't. He barely has enough money to make ends meet. New villains keep showing up. The latest is a drug addict who accidentally winds up in the lab of Curt Conners (i.e. the Lizard). He assumes the needles there are full of drugs when they actually have animal stem cells. So the drug addict becomes Freak, an evolving and seemingly undying baddie. The Green Goblin-knockoff called Menace is after politicians. Finally, Wolverine shows up to "help out" with one of Spider-man's adventures. 

The stories are interesting enough though the new villains lack something. They do not come off as iconic or especially menacing. They are a big problem. Spidey has the usual comic quips and bad luck which is fun. They've gotten the essence of his character down. I'll keep reading.

Mildly recommended.

Book Review: Spider-Man: Brand New Day Vol. 1 by D. Slott et al.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day Volume 1 written by Dan Slott, Marc Guggenheim, Bob Gale, and Zeb Wells; art by Phil Jimenez, Steve McNiven, Salvador Larroca and others

In the aftermath of the highly controversial One More Day, where Aunt May is shot resulting in Peter and Mary Jane (who had been married for many, many years) making a deal with the demon Mephisto to save Aunt May. Mephisto demands to erase their marriage, which they agree to, resulting in a very unpopular reboot. The storyline was the end of J. Michael Straczynski's run on Spider-man, which had plenty of flaws besides this ending. 

Peter Parker is back to being a 25-year old loser in life because he can't get the balance between regular life and Spider-man superheroics. New York has required superheroes to register so they can do their thing, something Peter resists because he values his secret identity. He's been out of the hero-game for months but is drawn back in when a new villain, Mister Negative, shows up. His agenda is unclear but his thugs keep running across Peter's path, forcing Peter to suit up and deal with the situation. Complicating things is the female superhero Jackpot (who is registered), who seems an awful lot like Mary Jane Watson, who is supposed to be in California pursuing her acting career. Another complication is a mugger with a Spider-man mask working the alleyways, tarnishing the hero's reputation. Just what J. Jonah Jameson likes!

As a reboot, this gets back to basics. Peter has a down-and-out life (he's moved back in with Aunt May until he can afford an apartment) with no luck in girlfriends, even when his friend Harry Osborne sets him up. Some cops like Spider-man and some don't; the same goes for the general public in New York. Even with all the things lined up against him, Spider-man is still upbeat and full of quips and jokes, to the annoyance of allies (the cops and Jackpot) and enemies (too many to mention). The fun of classic Spider-man stories is captured while providing some good new things and some dubious new things.

Recommended, especially for Spider-man fans--I will read more!