Review: The Superior Spider-Man #15
I’ve been enjoying Superior Spider-Man, significantly because of the contrasting approach Dan Slott takes when writing good ol’ web head, Peter Parker, and Otto Octavious. The biggest difference is obviously the methods they both use to handle any given situation. Peter is full of emotion and leads with his heart. Otto guides himself through his cold, calculated, critical-thinking.
So far it seems like Otto’s routine looks like the way to go, but Slott reveals there is no easy way to be Spider-Man.
The story is split from two perspectives. The Hobgoblin and Spidey. Hobgoblin’s in a tight squeeze and his wrath
is unleashed upon the banks of New York, surprisingly without much consequence. On the other side of the fence–Otto’s trying to figure out how the hell he keeps slipping his sight. His technological grip on the city might not be as tight as he thinks.
Otto’s newfound frustration exposes how much of a villain he really is through his comparative practices with Hobgoblin. He might suit up like a hero but he still can’t think like one.
Among Otto’s heroic failings, Slott tries handling a lot of different problems in the non-superhero part of Peter’s life. That’s when the issue gets a little crowded. It’s nice to check into the world around Spider-Man but some glances just seem unneeded and could be put to use elsewhere.
Humberto Ramos’s extravagant style accentuates the light-heartedness Spider-Man deserves. There’s one two-page spread that’s divided in half horizontally through the center of the book casting the happenings of Spidey and Hobgoblin that really shows how much detail and effort he really puts into his pages.
This new Spider-Man is moving pretty fast. I know everyone wants Peter back, these bumps in the road only suggest his return is on the horizon. But since we’re here we might as well enjoy this new perspective for what it’s worth. It only raises the magnitude of the values we saw in Peter as the “amazing” hero he was.
J.R. Johnson
I’m really split still in my opinion about SSM and I’m not one of those crazies who was furious that Slott killed Peter. I’ve actually liked the spider-bots and the henchmen, and the way Otto goes about his day as Spiderman. It’s really interesting and pretty unique.
That being said, Slott’s insistence on jamming as many characters as humanely possible into the book is starting to grate me a little bit. He’s got Spiderman fighting multiple battles against multiple enemies on multiple fronts. He’s got goblins in the sewers, SSM pursuing his degree and a new girlfriend, Carly doing her police bit to figure out Peter’s not actually Peter, the Spoiler (huh?) doing whatever she does, Spider-Island 2, his feud with Jameson, and more. And that doesn’t even include the fact that the promos for the next few issues involve Spiderman 2099. It just makes for a really choppy story.