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ponch22's review against another edition
4.0
My first paid month of Comixology Unlimited ends tomorrow so I figured I should read [b:Amazing Spider-Man: Vol 3|25338771|Marvel Masterworks The Amazing Spider-Man - Volume 3|Stan Lee|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1428734531s/25338771.jpg|740143] while I can before canceling (especially since Volumes 4 & 5 aren't included in the Unlimited packaged and if I want to read them, I'd have to buy them anyway). In case you haven't read my reviews for [b:Vol 1|35896249|Marvel Masterworks The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 1|Stan Lee|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1501623539s/35896249.jpg|740141] or [b:Vol 2|489552|Marvel Masterworks The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 2|Stan Lee|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1350629237s/489552.jpg|743162], I'm doing all of this thanks to a new-ish podcast, Screw It We're Just Gonna Talk about Spider-Man, wherein brothers Kevin & [a:Will Hines|3342295|Will Hines|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1468766402p2/3342295.jpg] have set out to discuss each of the original Spider-Man comics written by [a:Stan Lee|10303|Stan Lee|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1206594565p2/10303.jpg] & drawn by [a:Steve Ditko|10298|Steve Ditko|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1204665020p2/10298.jpg].
Volume 3 collects ASM #20–#30 and includes part of the Annual #2, all originally published from January through November 1965. I flew through these stories in under a week (thanks to that looming second month of Comixology) and I enjoyed them just as much as the first two volumes. I noticed these issues have started to include some African American extras, however, they are drawn so strangely—almost as if the people are in shadow or the inker didn't use the right color. The podcast episodes (issues #1 through #12 have been released so far) have mentioned how white-washed NYC appears in these early issues, but I'm not sure shoehorning in a few characters who look like this was the best thing for Marvel to do.
ASM #20 picks up where the cliffhanger of #19 left off—it seems it WAS J. Jonah Jameson who put a tail on Peter Parker, although he didn't suspect Pete was Spider-Man; he was just curious how Pete got such great photos. JJJ quickly forgets about his curiosity, however, when he comes up with an idea to destroy Spider-Man. He seeks out a scientist who specializes in artificial mutations. He has the doctor turn the private investigator into The Scorpion (since scorpions are natural predators of spiders) & it takes three battles for Spidey to finally defeat him.
ASM #21 brings a villain from Fantastic Four, The Beetle, into Spider-Man's world, and he gets some help from The Human Torch (but not until after Torch battles Spider-Man after Johnny Storm thinks he saw Spidey hitting on his girlfriend). ASM #22 brings back the Ringmaster and his circus gang, however, the gang kicks Ringmaster out The Clown leads the troupe to a big art heist. Jameson gets knocked into a small coma and Spider-Man defeats most of the gang, with Princess Python giving him a run for his money since he doesn't want to fight a woman (luckily the police show up and they don't mind arresting females).
ASM #23 brings back the Green Goblin as he attempts to take over the underworld with a plan to have Spider-Man & mob boss Lucky Lobo take each other out, but the police come and help arrest the entire gang, leaving no one for him to rule over. ASM #24 introduces Dr. Ludwig Rinehart, a psychiatrist who believes Spider-Man's split personality will lead to him eventually go crazy. Spider-Man starts seeing images of Doctor Octopus, Sandman, and The Vulture, but none of the villains are actually there. When he attempts to visit Dr. Rinehart, he starts to see upside-down rooms & believes he's losing it. Right before he reveals his secret identity on Rinehart's couch, JJJ & Pete's bully/Spidey's super-fan Flash Thompson rush in and it turns out the whole thing was a scheme dreamt up by ex-movie-stuntman, Mysterio, just disguised as Rinehart.
ASM #25 lets JJJ turn into a villain again (since he created the Scorpion in #20)—it seems an inventor named Smythe has created a robot that can sense anything spider-y, and JJJ can control it to capture Spider-Man. The machine almost captures Spidey, but he escapes just in time & leaves his outfit as a puppet to get a laugh on JJJ. This issue also finally features Mary Jane Watson, but her face is obscured—we're only told she looks like a movie star by Betty & Liz who spot her when they try to confront Peter at home.
ASM #26 & #27 form a two-parter where Green Goblin and the Crime-Master sort of work together/fight each other to take over every big crime organization all over the city. The two mysterious characters know each other's secret identities but we're kept out of the loop until the end of #27. Since Pete lost his costume in a joke last issue, he has to wear something he buys from a costume shop. Because of that, it doesn't fit very well and he uses his webbing to keep his boots & gloves & mask on. Luckily, that helps keep his secret identity after he gets captured by GG & CM. GG gets away but Spider-Man and the police capture CM, who was one of the mob bosses, Lucky Lewis.
ASM #28 features Molten Man—a villain who was covered with some strange metal alloy that makes his body as strong as metal—and Pete's graduation from high school. ASM Annual #2 features a story where Spider-Man and Doctor Strange team up to battle Xandu who is after the Wand of Watoomb—the greatest source of mystic power ever, even stronger than Doctor Strange! Spider-Man enters another dimension, but in the end, Xandu loses the wand and has his memory erased, hopefully making his evil schemes go away.
ASM #29 features the Scorpion again, who escapes from jail after the guards decide to give him his suit back *eye roll*. Scorpion is determined to destroy both Spider-Man and JJJ, and the three of them fight and destroy JJJ's office in the process. ASM #30 features the Cat Burglar who steals from JJJ who proceeds to set a $1,000 bounty on the Cat. Spider-Man tries to win the reward to stick it to ol' JJJ, but the police end up capturing him before Spider-Man can, so Pete is left just getting a few bucks for his exclusive pictures.
Over the last issues in this collection, Pete has a lot of girl trouble with both his girlfriend, Betty Brant, & schoolmate, Liz Allan (or as she's called in #28, Liz Hilton). After they saw Mary Jane, they grew jealous & gave him the cold shoulder. There also was some jealousy & confusion when Pete saw Betty getting letters from Ned (a guy she was kind of sort of seeing before he traveled to Europe). After Ned returns, he proposes to Betty, prompting Pete to begin telling her his secret identity, wanting to propose himself. However, Betty mentions she can never be with someone like Spider-Man. Pete decides to break it off so she can be happy in a stable home with boring Ned.
Collection ends with a few original sketches from Ditko and biographies of Lee & Ditko. Now that I'm about five months ahead of the podcast, I think I can put the Spider-Man collections on the back burner and read some other books on my To Read pile...
Volume 3 collects ASM #20–#30 and includes part of the Annual #2, all originally published from January through November 1965. I flew through these stories in under a week (thanks to that looming second month of Comixology) and I enjoyed them just as much as the first two volumes. I noticed these issues have started to include some African American extras, however, they are drawn so strangely—almost as if the people are in shadow or the inker didn't use the right color. The podcast episodes (issues #1 through #12 have been released so far) have mentioned how white-washed NYC appears in these early issues, but I'm not sure shoehorning in a few characters who look like this was the best thing for Marvel to do.
ASM #20 picks up where the cliffhanger of #19 left off—it seems it WAS J. Jonah Jameson who put a tail on Peter Parker, although he didn't suspect Pete was Spider-Man; he was just curious how Pete got such great photos. JJJ quickly forgets about his curiosity, however, when he comes up with an idea to destroy Spider-Man. He seeks out a scientist who specializes in artificial mutations. He has the doctor turn the private investigator into The Scorpion (since scorpions are natural predators of spiders) & it takes three battles for Spidey to finally defeat him.
ASM #21 brings a villain from Fantastic Four, The Beetle, into Spider-Man's world, and he gets some help from The Human Torch (but not until after Torch battles Spider-Man after Johnny Storm thinks he saw Spidey hitting on his girlfriend). ASM #22 brings back the Ringmaster and his circus gang, however, the gang kicks Ringmaster out The Clown leads the troupe to a big art heist. Jameson gets knocked into a small coma and Spider-Man defeats most of the gang, with Princess Python giving him a run for his money since he doesn't want to fight a woman (luckily the police show up and they don't mind arresting females).
ASM #23 brings back the Green Goblin as he attempts to take over the underworld with a plan to have Spider-Man & mob boss Lucky Lobo take each other out, but the police come and help arrest the entire gang, leaving no one for him to rule over. ASM #24 introduces Dr. Ludwig Rinehart, a psychiatrist who believes Spider-Man's split personality will lead to him eventually go crazy. Spider-Man starts seeing images of Doctor Octopus, Sandman, and The Vulture, but none of the villains are actually there. When he attempts to visit Dr. Rinehart, he starts to see upside-down rooms & believes he's losing it. Right before he reveals his secret identity on Rinehart's couch, JJJ & Pete's bully/Spidey's super-fan Flash Thompson rush in and it turns out the whole thing was a scheme dreamt up by ex-movie-stuntman, Mysterio, just disguised as Rinehart.
ASM #25 lets JJJ turn into a villain again (since he created the Scorpion in #20)—it seems an inventor named Smythe has created a robot that can sense anything spider-y, and JJJ can control it to capture Spider-Man. The machine almost captures Spidey, but he escapes just in time & leaves his outfit as a puppet to get a laugh on JJJ. This issue also finally features Mary Jane Watson, but her face is obscured—we're only told she looks like a movie star by Betty & Liz who spot her when they try to confront Peter at home.
ASM #26 & #27 form a two-parter where Green Goblin and the Crime-Master sort of work together/fight each other to take over every big crime organization all over the city. The two mysterious characters know each other's secret identities but we're kept out of the loop until the end of #27. Since Pete lost his costume in a joke last issue, he has to wear something he buys from a costume shop. Because of that, it doesn't fit very well and he uses his webbing to keep his boots & gloves & mask on. Luckily, that helps keep his secret identity after he gets captured by GG & CM. GG gets away but Spider-Man and the police capture CM, who was one of the mob bosses, Lucky Lewis.
ASM #28 features Molten Man—a villain who was covered with some strange metal alloy that makes his body as strong as metal—and Pete's graduation from high school. ASM Annual #2 features a story where Spider-Man and Doctor Strange team up to battle Xandu who is after the Wand of Watoomb—the greatest source of mystic power ever, even stronger than Doctor Strange! Spider-Man enters another dimension, but in the end, Xandu loses the wand and has his memory erased, hopefully making his evil schemes go away.
ASM #29 features the Scorpion again, who escapes from jail after the guards decide to give him his suit back *eye roll*. Scorpion is determined to destroy both Spider-Man and JJJ, and the three of them fight and destroy JJJ's office in the process. ASM #30 features the Cat Burglar who steals from JJJ who proceeds to set a $1,000 bounty on the Cat. Spider-Man tries to win the reward to stick it to ol' JJJ, but the police end up capturing him before Spider-Man can, so Pete is left just getting a few bucks for his exclusive pictures.
Over the last issues in this collection, Pete has a lot of girl trouble with both his girlfriend, Betty Brant, & schoolmate, Liz Allan (or as she's called in #28, Liz Hilton). After they saw Mary Jane, they grew jealous & gave him the cold shoulder. There also was some jealousy & confusion when Pete saw Betty getting letters from Ned (a guy she was kind of sort of seeing before he traveled to Europe). After Ned returns, he proposes to Betty, prompting Pete to begin telling her his secret identity, wanting to propose himself. However, Betty mentions she can never be with someone like Spider-Man. Pete decides to break it off so she can be happy in a stable home with boring Ned.
Collection ends with a few original sketches from Ditko and biographies of Lee & Ditko. Now that I'm about five months ahead of the podcast, I think I can put the Spider-Man collections on the back burner and read some other books on my To Read pile...
bedknobsandbookmarks's review
3.0
Not as good as the first two, especially since the annual was just a compilation of old issues. Still enjoyable though.
jayspa65's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
If you're looking for the definition of a good comic book, these Marvel Masterworks are the ones to get. Spidey's adventures are clean and full of action and fun, and it's always good to see young nervous Peter Parker mature along the way. This is Spider-Man without any complication; no clones, symbiotes or android parents.
Some unknown villains in most chapters, but in this one the Green Goblin starts his rise to becoming one of Spider Man's greatest enemies.
Some unknown villains in most chapters, but in this one the Green Goblin starts his rise to becoming one of Spider Man's greatest enemies.
mrsprongs's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
rayofhope's review
5.0
I never knew how interesting Betty Brant was! True, it's in a 60's-female-comic-book-character way, but she has so much action and trauma and stuff in her life! I would love to see more of her.
It's so much fun to see more of Spidey's origins! I didn't expect him to graduate already but I'm excited to see what else happens to him in college.
It's so much fun to see more of Spidey's origins! I didn't expect him to graduate already but I'm excited to see what else happens to him in college.
jbleyle63's review against another edition
4.0
I continue to be surprised by how much I am enjoying the Marvel Masterworks series, especially these early stories of Spider-Man under the direction of Steve Ditko and Stan Lee. This third volume features reprints of The Amazing Spider-Man #20-#30 and Annual #2. The latter reprint was particularly entertaining featuring another Steve Ditko Marvel character creation in Doctor Strange. Other landmark events in this collection include Peter Parker's graduation from Midtown High School, J. Jonah Jameson's complicity in the creation of The Scorpion, and Betty Brant's engagement to Ned Leeds leaving Peter Parker heartbroken. Another fun thing to see in these early days of Spider-Man is how Lee and Ditko kept teasing readers with the character of Mary Jane Watson. Aunt May is always trying to set up a meeting between her nephew Peter Parker and her neighbor's niece MJ that never quite materialize. We come oh so close to seeing MJ in this volume, but clever visuals keep her appearance a mystery to the reader. Lee and Ditko seem to have had a long game plan for MJ. Bring on volume 4!
rayaan54's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
hperks18's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
acehinter's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0