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The Amazing Spider-Man is, without question, one of the most iconic figures of the 20th Century.
His distinctive blue and red costume is known across the world, and with recent cinema-outings it doesn't look like that's going to be stopping any time soon.
The Webbed Wonder hasn't always enjoyed a steady rise to meteoric fame though... in fact, there were times where it looked downright pessimistic. We'll see these moments, his highs and lows, in minute detail. Some might say 'excruciating' detail... to which I say, 'well, no one is making you read this'.
Throughout the comics, Spidey has enjoyed a variety of different artists each with their own distinctive style. This is something that's going to be talked about a lot in each comic review. Well separate your Ditkos from your Romitas, and your Ross' from your other Romitas. Yeah, Romita Senior and Junior were both prolific Spider-Man artists. Learn to tell the difference because we're going to be seeing a lot of them.
Art by John Romita Senior
He could be me. He could be you. He could be black, he could be white, he could be Asian; he could be a martian. He's whatever you want him to be.
We'll also be discussing the benefits and hindrances of each collected volume of the MARVEL Epic Collection 'The Amazing Spider-Man' books. So far they're proving to be a real work of art, and each new one is set to prove a real treat.
I think one of the real reasons the character still endures today is, as has been said before, the audiences' ability to project themselves into the suit.
He could be black, or white; Asian or Hispanic. Could be a mutant frog man from Mars. If you're a kid leafing through a Spidey comic then you can imagine him however you like. This is something that can't be said of the half-masked Batman or the all American Superman. In fact, at the time of Spider-Man's appearance he was the only full-masked hero in MARVEL's line-up. I'm not so knowledgeable about DC so I can't speak to what they were doing; but in MARVEL Spidey was a real first.
Beyond this superficial detail though, we get engaging stories about a young man desperate to pay his bills, keep his sickly aunt in good health, and get to school on time; and, if he's lucky, maybe, just maybe, make it to the restaurant where his readheaded girl is waiting for him... but she won't wait forever...
Stan Lee explains why Spider-Man is just a regular guy, 1977
We'll quickly see that the pop culture understanding of Spidey is skewed. Presumably as a consequence of the various movie reboots, the casual audience seems convinced that Peter is a perpetual school boy. He's not. Sure, he's 15 when he's bitten by the spider - but he very quickly moves onto college, we see him struggling to find a job and dealing with issues of young adulthood rather than school yard tribulations.
He's also categorically not bad with girls.
He just isn't.
So many people complain that Andrew Garfield's Peter was too confident and that Tobey Macguire's Peter was perfect. I'm sorry, but you're wrong. In the comics we'll quickly see that Peter's confidence sky-rockets after he becomes Spider-Man, and this weak and feeble wallflower disappears almost as soon as Uncle Ben does.
Sure, he's never the most popular guy in town (neither as Peter or Spidey) but he's never short of a date or two, and his friendship circles comes to rival that of any other fictional character.
Perhaps the key thing to remember about Spider-Man is this: he's not Peter 'out of costume' and Spider-Man 'in costume'. He is ALWAYS Peter. Always. When he puts on his Spider-Man costume he is still just Peter in a mask. He's more man than spider, as various issues will explore. This is something that must always be kept in mind, particularly as the comics start to mature in the '70s and '80s.
So with that ramble concluded, let's jump into some issues, shall we?
Art by Alex Ross
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