Дивовижна Людина-Павук: Останнє Бажання

The Amazing Spider-Man (1999) (Collected Editions) #50

by Dan Slott, Richard Elson (Illustrator), Анастасія Логвіненко (Translator)

ОСТАННЄ БАЖАННЯ: ПОМСТА!
Доктору Восьминогу залишилося жити один рік, його тіло і мозок занепали від постійних побоїв, нанесених його заклятим ворогом, Людиною-Павуком. Однак геніальний злодій використав відведений йому час так, як і слід було очікувати. Спочатку він мобілізував армію октоботів, щоб захопити Мангеттен. Після чого зібрав зловісну шістку, щоб викрасти сина Нормана Осборна. А потім взагалі переслідував Людину-Павука по всьому світу, погрожуючи спалити планету вщент. І щоразу його амбітні плани закінчувалися провалом. Чи ні? Ці поразки були черговим доказом його божевілля чи його геніальності? Тепер, коли Доктору Восьминогу залишилося жити всього кілька годин, Людина-Павук отримає відповідь. Один з його найстаріших ворогів переверне його життя і озвучить своє останнє бажання, яке принесе загибель Пітеру Паркеру та всім, кого він любить!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Spider Man, Marvel, Superheroes, Comic Book, Graphic Novels Comics

136 pages, Hardcover

First published February 20, 2013

About the author

Dan Slott is an American comic book writer, the current writer on Marvel Comics' The Amazing Spider-Man, and is best known for his work on books such as Arkham Asylum: Living Hell, She-Hulk, Silver Surfer, The Superior Spider-Man, and Ren & Stimpy.

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Superior stars



THIS is the prequel to Superior Spider-man. I've been wanting to find out how the hell Doc Ock managed to shove his mind into Peter Parker's body for a long time, and if there's anyone else out there like me, you might kind of confused as to what you need to read.
Ta-da!



So, Jeff read this a few days ago, and lurved it.
Hulk happy...



Immediately, he tells me, Read it now!!! <--Direct quote, btw.
And, of course, I pretty much dropped everything, because I'm such a good friend, & reading a comic book (Now! Now! Now!) is important. I erased selections off of my Marvel Unlimited read offline thing, put down the library book that was due the next day, and told the kids that they would be walking home from school, because it wasn't raining that hard for Christ's sake!
Get steppin'! I ain't raisin' no pussies!
My point? I read it right away, because Jeff said it would punch me in my feels.
Do you feel it, Anne?!
Yes, I feel it! Lawdy, lawdy! I feel it!



Boy, as much as I loved having Otto take over fill in for Pete, this brought out a big old jumble of emotions!



I've never made any secret of the fact that I adore Peter Parker, or that Spider-man is hands-down my favorite comic book character.
Well, favorite Marvel character.
*lights candle on Aquaman shrine*
And even though Slott's Superior run will go down as the Must-Read Spidey title, it was hard to see this all go down.



I was kind of expecting to...I don't know...maybe not be shocked by anything that happened in this, but there were a few times Slott sorta snuck one in on me. I actually did the GASP! thing, then got surprised that I was surprised...if that makes any sense?!



So, yeah. This was definitely worth reading, even though I already knew how everything was going to turn out.



There were things I didn't know, and moments that I'm glad I didn't miss.
And for fuck's sake...THE FEELS!
Uncle Ben? Is that you?



You would think that there would be, at this point, no way to shoehorn the With Great Power... speech into a Spider-man comic without making readers like me flare their nostrils with disgust. Amirite?
Think again.
You're not getting me with that lame line, Slott!
*shakes fist*
You're not gett...*voice breaks*



*wipes tear, blows nose*
Go on, read it.

Get this review and more at:

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am Spider-Man!

Okay, I was never bitten by a radioactive spider. I don’t have cool spider abilities. I wasn’t raised by my 100 year old Aunt and Uncle. I’ve never eaten a wheat cake. I’ve never been married to a hot red-head and had that marriage mind wiped by the devil. To the best of my recollection, I’ve never been cloned. I don’t have a Spider-mobile. I don’t have a rogue’s gallery of villains (Does Mitchell count?) I’m not a whiz at science. I’ve never been a member of a superhero group.



Okay, I’m not Spider-Man. But I’ve always wanted to be him. Why?

Spider-Man has mostly struggled with life – he was bullied, couldn’t pay his bills, struggled to hold down a job, but he kept it positive and handled obstacles with humor and aplomb and class, something a lot of us aspire to do.

Plus, the cool Spider-powers.



I read this after I read the Superior Spider-Man run. Don’t be an idiot (like me)! Read this first. You won’t have that lingering question of “How the hell did this all happen?” chasing you through six plus volumes of Superior Web-Head continuity.

Slott really outdoes himself as Peter Parker, trapped in Doctor Octopus’s dying body, races against time to reverse the transformation.



And the ending - it was far more emotionally wrought than I could have possibly imagined. *sob*

Bottom line: One of the best Spider-Man stories ever and a great intro to one of the all-time greatest Spidey story arcs. Also, Happy Birthday to Spider-Man!! Issue #700 and a complete microscopic cover gallery are contained in this volume.

[Nicolo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read as original floppies and digital edition on Comixology.

Amazing Spider-Man comes to an end on the last Wednesday of 2012, with the new year seeing a brand new Superior Spider-Man title. The 700th issue of the title launched by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko seems to be the last Amazing edition for the foreseeable future.

I managed to get my copy almost a week early, which is an unexpected Christmas treat from my local online retailer. This time I wouldn't be at the mercy of accidental Internet spoilers. But the question seems to be if this book would be a worthy capstone to fifty years of web-slinging adventures. One thing for sure, one has to give props for Dan Slott and Marvel for going with a potentially polarizing final issue. Now it can never be said that Marvel doesn't risk a billion dollar property with a story that could bring a lot of hate for the writer or character.

The final arc is appropriately titled Dying Wish, as Dr. Octopus, with mere hours to live, makes one last stab at revenge against his greatest nemesis. It starts with issue 698 which I believe is the best issue of this three-parter. It is a book should be read at least twice with the second reading a much more complete experience after the reveal at the end. It is Octopus's greatest gambit, switching his mind with the young and virile body of Spider-Man and trapping Peter Parker in his own battered and diseased shell.

Issue 699 reveals the how the switch happened. It was a true hail mary attempt, there was no assurance of success, but in true comic book fashion, the infamous Parker luck reared its head for what could be the last time for Peter. The seed for this story was planted in issue 600. A big payoff indeed was in the works.

A lot of furor was directed at a series of panels that had Peter accessing Octopus's memories. The sequence involved Aunt May and her aborted wedding. It was pretty ambiguous but a lot of filthy minds or otherwise cried foul for the scene ruining their childhoods. It could mean a lot of things and to each his own interpretation, but it could be an uncomfortable experience for the reader.

Now issue 700 is the concluding chapter and it comes quadruple sized. More than enough pages to conclude it and Slott does not disappoint, since it is as action packed as comics come. It has Peter facing impossible odds to regain his body. In the end, the reader is reminded what it means to be Spider-Man. Always the responsibility before the power and thus are all Spider-Men defined, whether Peter Parker, Miles Morales or this new Superior version.

So this is a new era for Spider-Man. I'm under no illusion of this new status quo lasting as long as the entire run of Amazing, but it'll probably be at least a year of Superior stories before the inevitable reboot kicks in. It got me intrigued enough that this new title suddenly bulls itself into my monthly list of must read comics.

Originally reviewed on The Raving Asgardian, my personal blog on comics and its myriad forms.

[Terence · Rating 5 out of 5]

Doctor Octopus is dying. He doesn't have weeks or months to live...he has days. Doc Ock also has a plan. He's learned Spider-Man's true identity and his cruelest plan is about to unfold...to steal Peter Parker's body.



It's unbelievable that this happened. It's an amazing storyline. Doctor Octopus steals Peter Parker's life and memories leaving him in the dying husk of his body. I'm speechless and I already heard this was going to happen. I love seeing such creativity played out in a medium that's known for playing things safe. I can't say enough good things about it.

4.5 out of 5 stars

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

So all the Big Time leads to this. Does it pay off? I fucking THINK SO!

Okay this doesn't forgive the weakness Big Time had but this my friends is how you wrap up a run and get excited for the next.

The opening issue has Peter really happy and upbeat. He even tells MJ they need to get back together. Then he gets a notice from the Avengers that Otto is asking for him. So he goes to visit him at prison and you find out...PETER AND OTTO MIND IS SWITCHED!!! So you expect the cliche Peter figuring out a way to get back into his own body but nope...as you know superior spider-man is all about otto becoming spider-man but with a twist...he has all the feelings, emotions, and memories of Peter Parker!

Good: Villains are Dan's strengths and damn it, Otto is scary here. Smart as Peter, they go head to head on planning and trying to outsmart each other. The ending is both touching, emotional, and heartbreaking yet gets you hyped for what's next. The art is very solid as well with some great action moments. The stakes feel high at all times and it's a exciting 3 issues (last one being 90+ pages)

Bad: MJ not thinking something is wrong is odd...also the villains helping Otto was kind of out of nowhere. I mean I know why, but it's like those guys broke Otto (well Peter in Otto body) should have been stopped by Avengers right away. Just way to odd.

Overall this was a great volume. Really just non-stop action and a nice farewell to a character we've known years. Now I can finally jump into superior and I'm so f'ing ready!

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

nse, tense, tense. Could cut my own piano wire tension with a diamond drill. Could beat my worry down with a thundering rhino. Could waste my concerns on the wrong guy. Know what I'm saying? If you've read this prelude to Superior you do! (Or if you've recently suffered a blow to the head.)

Lots of fancy twists and turns to this book, all of it painful to watch considering the stark inevitability of it all. Great big action and maneuvers, and yet it all careens to a great big finish that can't be stopped.

And then out of nowhere, Slott packs a wallop of emotional heaviness that ties this all up in a neat bow, and resonates with all the best Spidey moments of his 50 years of life. This is what Slott does - panders to fun, then digs deep and hits us with a note-perfect embodiment of the spirit of comics. Sometimes I feel a little resentful and played, but here I can't do anything but sit back and try take it all in. Good job sir, good job.

Good art, solid work. Hard to keep commenting on the prowess of the rotating stable of great Spidey art people. When is enough enough?

So I could blather on about this book, pay tribute to hundreds of issues I've read, and get all nostalgic about what we're leaving behind. But let's focus: as a book on its own, this is solid, one of the best Slott's done (even with that .1 Morbius tangent) with some great art. I don't know that it's perfect, but it's a helluva surprising way to tie up the Doc Ock Is Dying subplot and give us a *very* different - but completely earned - new way to tell some Spidey stories. Bravo.

[RG · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great conclusion to this story!!

[Roman Zarichnyi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Не сказав, що багато читаю супергероїку, але прочитав вже достатню кількість. Та ще точно не дійшов до того моменту, коли знаю всі її культові історії й можу безпомилково сказати: «О, це той самий випуск, де сталося це». І саме тому подекуди мої враження — мов удар молотом від самого Тора: неочікувані й потужні. Саме так сталося з «Дивовижна Людина-Павук: Останнє Бажання», історією, яку я відкривав просто як чергову арку про Людину-Павука. Але вже за кілька сторінок я зрозумів — це не просто ще одна пригода Пітера Паркера. Тому давайте розбирати, про що ж вона.

Сюжет розгортається навколо Доктора Восьминога — Отто Октавіуса, який доживає останні години у в’язниці, фізично розбитий, але інтелектуально, як завжди, на висоті. І от він видає свій фінальний трюк. За допомогою октоботів переносить свою свідомість у тіло Пітера Паркера, а Пітера — у своє вмираюче тіло. Далі починається гра на виживання, в якій старий ворог використовує не кулаки, а геніальний розум. І хоча це може звучати як дешева історія, Ден Слотт подає її з такою драматургією, що тіло вкривається сиротами. Пітер у чужому тілі намагається врятувати себе і всіх, кого любить, а Отто… готується жити чужим життям. Жити краще. Бути кращим. Бути «Неперевершеним Людиною-Павуком».

Що вразило найбільше — це постійне відчуття фатальності. Кожна сторінка ніби натякає: «Це кінець. Але ти ще не готовий». Оповідь розгортається з шаленою швидкістю, емоційний градус не падає ні на мить, а фінальний #700 випуск — це вибуховий коктейль з епічної битви, душевної подорожі Пітера у спогадах і останнього, неймовірно пронизливого моменту, де навіть Доктор Восьминіг, переглянувши життя Пітера, розуміє — бути Людиною-Павуком означає не просто носити маску, а нести тягар. І він погоджується. Щиро. І це ще більше ламає. Бо ти хочеш вірити, що він справді змінився. Але ж це Отто… Але Людиною-Павуком завжди був Пітер Паркер… Не можу собі уявити відчуття тих читачів, які читали ці випуски в момент їхнього виходу. Це щось!

Те, як Слотт прописує Отто-Пітера й Пітера-Отто, заслуговує великої похвали. Спостерігати, як Пітер бореться у чужому тілі, без суперсил, але з невгамовною рішучістю — надихає і надає віру в краще. А Отто у тілі Пітера — це просто жах. Він має доступ до всього, включно з друзями, коханою, репутацією, але вже не хоче руйнувати — хоче перевершити. Найстрашніше те, що йому це може вдатися.

До видання також увійшли дві бонусні історії. Перша — «Павучі сни» Дж. М. ДеМаттейса та Джузеппе Камунколі — глибока емоційна історія, де Пітер розказує своєму правнуку історію свого супергеройського життя. Це гарне доповнення до основної історії, яке ще сильніше підкреслює ціну бути Людиною-Павуком. А от «Нічне побачення» Джен Ван Метер — легка, навіть надто проста історія, така собі романтична бійка із негідником. Не псує враження, але й не додає глибини.

«Останнє Бажання» — це історія про смерть, нове життя, відповідальність і трансформацію. Її можна читати окремо, навіть не знаючи всього бекґраунду — і вона залишить відчутний слід. Особисто я б хотів прочитати попередні випуски, щоб побачити, як усе до цього йшло. І ще більше наступні, щоб дізнатися, що зробить з цією відповідальністю Отто. Чи справді він буде вищим за своє нутро? Хто знає. Але я дуже надіюся, що колись та й прочитаю.

[Malum · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had every opportunity to be really bad. Spider-Man isn't really Spider-Man, Doc Ock isn't really Doc Ock, the book has very little action, and that ending...

But, somehow, it works. It is a heartfelt, engaging story that perfectly sets the stage for Superior Spider-Man.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I've apparently missed a lot of issues leading up to the ones collected here in Dying Wish. But from what I can gather, in an arc before this one, Doc Ock and Spidey had yet another epic battle with Spidey narrowly defeating Ock.

Now, Ock is dying and his last wish is to somehow switch bodies with Peter Parker aka Spider-Man. Using some kind of mind-swapping technology (it's a comic book, so you'll just have to go with it), Ock does just that. Trapped in Ock's dying body, Peter must escape prison and try to find a way to reverse things before time runs out.

Reading this collected set of issues from The Amazing Spider-Man, I found myself wondering how the experience would be different if I'd read the story month to month instead of all in one sitting. I can't really say, but these are the things that cross my mind while reading collected comic book runs these days. It's probably less of an issue these days when there seems to be less recapping taking place within the action of the comic itself. As opposed to the old days when the first couple of pages of a comic were designed to bring new and old readers up to speed on what was happening in the life of our hero.

I also have to wonder while reading this just how long these new changes to Spider-Man will last. The Marvel universe has effectively eliminated Peter Parker in not only the main line but also the Ultimate line. Or at least Peter Parker as we knew him, since (SPOILER ALERT!) Doc Ock gets away with his plan to eliminate Parker, but there's a twist. Turns out Peter is still in there and Ock has not only his memories but also Peter's.

I fully expect that at some point in the narrative, the Peter half will fight for and assume control of his body again. The cynical part of me says that will probably happen sometime around when The Amazing Spider-Man 2 hits theaters.

[Shaun · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Spider-Man, but I could barely stomach the end of Amazing Spider-Man as written by Slott. Doctor Octopus is a great villain, but I completely disagree with the character changes Slott did between him and Peter Parker. Peter is a great hero that everyone can relate to and I feel that #700 did not do him justice.

[Peter Derk · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great example of comic book plotting.

The impossible happens. Something that I DON'T want to happen happens. And the story works. It's great. Tension, action. It's all there.

And at the same time, it plays with comic book tropes in a big way. The whole time, you figure Doctor Octopus is just hatching another dopey scheme that will never work. He even makes a big mistake early on that you, as a comic reader, look at and say, "Well, now he's screwed. He should have just gotten on that flight! THIS IS HIS UNDOING!"

And because you've read comic books, you figure that, like always, Spidey will figure a way out.

Dan Slott's run with Spider-Man will go down in comics history as one of the best runs of all time, mark my words. This stuff belongs in there with Frank Miller's Daredevil, Chris Claremont's X-Men, and probably some other classic run written by a guy who has been working really hard to tarnish his own legacy.

Fuck me, I really hope it doesn't turn out that Dan Slott is some kind of evil bastard. That would be just about perfect. These guys really have a way of writing a great run, then doing something crazy that makes it hard to like them anymore.

Dan Slott, if you can hear me, please don't blow this for me. I know you have to live your life, and if that life involves racist screeds online or bizarre sexual appetites, that's totally cool. Just keep it a secret FROM ME. Please, please, please.

[Jedi JC Daquis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dying wish is the last Amazing Spider-man collected edition before Marvel enters into the Marvel NOW! era. This is my only Spidey comic experience and one of the very few Marvel comics I have (97% are DC and other publishers), so I don't have any idea about the Web-slinger's story. Dying Wish is about Peter Parker and Otto Octavius' final showdown, the winner of which is not decided until the very last pages. Can't say that the whole story is good or bad, I just believe that this volume is important.

[Tesutamento · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Amazing Spider-Man çizgi roman serisi 700. sayısıyla son buluyor. Peter'ın hayatı raylarına oturmuş giderken illa ki olumsuzluk yaşanmak zorundadır. Bu kez işler çok iyi gittiği için (en önde bilim laboratuvarında dolgun maaşlı bir iş, Avengers üyeliği, MJ ile yeniden bir elektriklenme) yaşanacak olumsuzluk da en az bu çapta bir şey olmalıydı. Nitekim öyle de oldu. Seriyi sonlandırmak için fena bir yol olmasa da planlama en baştan böyle miymiş acaba merak etmiyor değilim. Biraz neticeden gelişim yapılmış gibi hissettim okurken. Önceki sayılarda önemli bir şeylerin olacağı alttan alttan veriliyordu fakat bu sonuç biraz garip geldi. Sanırım çıktığı dönemki Marvel'ın yenilenme hareketi MARVEL NOW! bu kitabın sonunu etkilemiş.

Doc Ock bir süredir ölüm döşeğindeydi. Spider-Man ile yıllar boyunca çarpışmış olmak vücudunu iflasa sürüklemiş, Octavius artık gün saymaya başlamıştı. Octavius ile son karşılaşmalarında Spider-Man düşmanın icatlarını kendi lehine kullanarak onu yenmişti. Meğer bu icatları kullanırken icatlar bir arka kapı bırakıyormuş Peter'ın zihninde. Her şeyden habersiz Peter bir gün uyanır ve kendini süper kötüler cezaevinde, ölmek üzere olan Otto'nun bedenine hapsolmuş bulur. Derdini kimseye anlatabilecek halde olmadığı için tek çaresi hapishaneden kaçıp zihin aktarım işlemini tekrarlamaktır. Birkaç süper kötüyü de yanına alan Peter hem bir yandan Doc Ock gibi davranıyor ki kötüler duruma uyanmasın bir yandan da asıl bedenini arıyor. Tabii bu sırada Doc Ock Peter olmuş ve keyfine bakıyordur. Doc Ock'un hesabına katmadığı bir şey vardır. Peter'ın tüm anılarına ve bilgisine sahip olmak başta güzel gibi gözükse de aslında vicdani bir işkencedir. Tüm kendine yüklediği sorumluluklar, pişmanlıklar aklında çıkmıyordur. İkilimiz son bir kez daha karşı karşıya geliyor ve biri hayatını yitiriyor. Diğeri ise Superior Spider-Man oluyor.

[Sevki · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be honest as a Spidey fan I thought I was gonna hate this volume all this time, but now that I have read it, I think it was balanced well. I mean I still hate the idea of Ock taking over Peter's body and life, but it was done in a meaningful and probable way. It did not just come out of the blue. Also, the last 3 chapters progressed well, and their match was well performed.

Now I am moving onto 6 vol.s of Superior Spider-Man, and then 5 vol.s of The Amazing Spider-Man (all Marvel NOW! period), and then we will see if/where it goes.

[Bryan Fischer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story was unique (but short) and had a bit of a twist ending. Art was fairly solid throughout.
Dialogue/narration was a bit confusing at times due to the nature of the story, and I didn’t care much for the extra stories included with issue 700.

[Trevor · Rating 4 out of 5]

And here it is: Doctor Octopus has finally won, killing Peter Parker and taking over his body.

Spider-Man is dead, long live Spider-Man.

[Jared · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: The Goodreads star rating is a calculated average of the individual ratings I've given each of the stories in this book. This review covers the Dying Wish story arc (ASM#698-700) and the two back-up stories featured in #700. I'd highly recommend going into the Dying Wish story arc blind instead of reading reviews.

"Dying Wish" (#698-700): +5 I have essentially grown up with this story arc all through high school since 2013, and loved the extravagance of the dramatic finale for The Amazing Spider-Man book. However, reading it now as an adult with a critical eye, the flaws and strengths are now revealing themselves.

Doctor Octopus forcibly swaps bodies with Peter Parker, putting Peter’s mind into the rapidly failing physical body of Doc Ock and vice versa. It’s appreciated that there is prior set-up regarding Doc Ock’s deteriorating body - particularly in ASM#600 - so this story arc’s last-ditch effort by Doc Ock was evidently planned years prior by Dan Slott and Marvel. As a result, the arc has a decent set-up and is an interesting premise for a Spider-Man status quo change, though it is undoubtedly quite apparent Peter will come back to reclaim his body - therefore creating a worse story here and for the foreseeable future. Said future for this new character involves taking on the role of Spider-Man in a new retitled ongoing series called The Superior Spider-Man and all other books the character was in at the time. Looking past the storyline’s ramifications and planning, the arc itself is quite inconsistent in dialogue and artwork. Despite the plot telling us Doc Ock had already swapped minds in issue #698, ‘Peter’ talks and narrates very much like the normal Peter does, cracking jokes and enjoying life as both identities.

On top of all this, several times the narration refers to himself (Doc Ock) as having done tasks only the real Peter has done, but since the reader doesn’t know the twist yet, it seems quite standard knowledge. To make it consistent for readers and writers alike, the mind swap should have been shown at the beginning of #698 - or at the end of #697 - but then there would be no twist ending to entice readers to buy concurrent issues. #699 is my favourite issue here - it shows Peter being incredibly adaptive, thoughtful and compassionate, even though he’s been meticulously outsmarted by his greatest arch-enemy. Slott also wrote #700 really well, specifically the dream sequence, which is five pages of death-dream motivation for Peter to make one last push to do what’s right for himself and his legacy. Doc Ock’s arrogance towards Peter was quite frustrating to read (in a good way), and their final moments together seemed incredibly heartfelt and sincere.

The artwork style between Richard Elson’s #698 and Humberto Ramos’s #699-700 was somewhat consistent, but the differences were immediately obvious in some designs and pencils where consistency was not found. An amazing example is the life support box for Doc Ock has two visually distinct designs, and it astounds me that this went to print at all. A storyline should have implicit narrative continuation and consistency with at least the other issues in its arc - at most it should be consistent with the universe the story resides in or a given explanation for why this is not the case. Neither of these are present for Doc Ock’s life support box, which truly doesn't matter very much, but it's a clear sign of little communication between the artists. All of the layouts are really well-done, constantly varied with a mixture of smaller panels and double-page spreads - so it seems like the artists got creative a lot for the benefit of the reader.

Dying Wish really should have been way more consistent in all departments to create a super solid penultimate finale for Peter Parker, and the beginning of a redemption arc for Doctor Octopus, but unfortunately what we’ve got is a middling story leading into endless possibilities for the new Superior Spider-Man.

An epilogue story featuring Otto pondering his first days as Spider-Man was additionally published in Avenging Spider-Man #15.1, which I've also reviewed.

“Spider-Dreams'' (2nd story in ASM#700): +7 Peter Parkers’ code of responsibility as Spider-Man is such an essential part of his character, that it usually is shown through Peter juggling his personal problems and job as Spider-Man, and eventually faltering with one side of his life that ends in disaster.

In Spider-Dreams, responsibility becomes even more poignant as we see Peter build a family alongside being Spider-Man, and he comes to the realisation mid-life that risking his familys’ lives is not worth being a hero over. Peter also recognises the responsibility of being the only man to be a husband and dad for his wife and kids is his greatest responsibility of all, which exceeds being Spider-Man. The whole story centres around great-grandad Peter telling his life story and exploits as Spider-Man to his nephew Stephen, who represents the disinterested and doubtful young generation who do not care about the Heroic Age - particularly since it sounds quite fictional. Really wish this dynamic between generations had been explored further with a larger page count, as it would have made the plot wholly unique.

Giuseppe Camuncoli and Sal Buscema’s pencils and inks respectively are decent, nothing to complain about but also nothing to praise either. Having said that, the slight to considerable alterations to the visual designs of popular Marvel superheroes and Spider-Man’s classic roster of villains was presented in full page panels, which was really cool to see - and it’s obvious the artists had the freedom to reinterpret those characters however they wanted to.

Altogether, Spider-Dreams deserves a longer page count - or even its own series - to really delve into the concepts that were only really explored surface level here in sixteen pages, but it was enjoyable nonetheless from a plot and art perspective.

“Date Night - Another Black Cat Storybook Adventure!“ (3rd story in ASM#700): +9 What a cute eight page story, through and through!

The plot being centred around date night and featuring several well-known Marvel couples on dates was just adorable to read, and sometimes a little funny in J. Jonah Jamesons’ case. It’s appreciated that Black Cat is the focus here, particularly to help her boyfriend Spider-Man keep the police away while he fights a giant robot - and so they can get back to their own date night as soon as possible.

The art by Stephanie Buscema is my favourite thing about it all though, it’s got this cute and cartoony artstyle that I absolutely love and wish to see more of in the future. However, I do wish the story was longer so I could marvel at the great dialogue and art more. Sometimes it’s better to keep it short and sweet though so novelties don’t wear out their welcome. Definitive recommendation!

[Read this book several times throughout 2013-2015, read and reviewed in July 2023]

[Marcela · Rating 1 out of 5]

Jako wielka fanka MCU zabrałam się za pierwszy lepszy komiks jaki wpadł mi w ręce. A że uwielbiam Spider-Mana, miałam spore oczekiwania. Niestety bardzo się zawiodłam.
Zacznę jednak od pozytywów, a tym były zdecydowanie ilustracje. Richard Elson wykonał kawał dobrej roboty. Świetny okazał się pomysł. Na początku byłam pod wrażeniem koncepcji całego komiku. Nawet realnie zaczęłam się martwić o bohaterów.
Największy problem miałam z kwestią fabuły. I tak, jak mówiłam, zaczęła się obiecująco. Końcówka była kompletną porażką.
Mimo wszystko planuję sięgnąć po kolejny komiks od Marvela. Mam nadzieję, że tym razem okaże się lepszy...



SPOJLERY - tu wylewam swoje żale.
Bo jak można pozbyć się głównego bohatera i na jego miejsce podłożyć Doctora Octopusa? Nawet jeżeli ten nawróci się na dobrą drogę. Uważam to za kompletny idiotyzm, z którym nie mogę się pogodzić.
Poza tym, akcja skończyła się już gdzieś w połowie tomu. Czym więc zostały zapełnione pozostałe strony? Bezsensownymi historyjkami z przyszłości i przeszłości Spidey'a/Octopusa!

[Michael Church · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up mainly as a backdrop for starting Superior Spider-Man. It's a decent end to the series and I think it would've meant more to me if I was a long time reader.

The story feels a little forced and I don't totally get the big plot twist. Like I understand it, but if everything is still there, how does the new person keep control? So the back and forth was a little odd.

What was great was watching both of them sort of fall into their new roles despite their best efforts.

The highlight by far is the end. Watching Peter relive certain times of his life and then forcing memories onto SpOck to make sure he's a hero. It's a pretty touching sequence to end with.

There's also a really cool backup story that's a nice tribute.

The art is a little flat for me, but I like the style overall.

[Bill Mazzola · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh. Couldn't be more against the new direction spidey us going in. In every way that the Marvel NOW! initiative is helping some titles (uncanny avengers, all new x-men), its killing spidey (literally and figuratively)

I think the direction this is going us bad, and a gamble that won't pay off (do they not remember the clone saga?) ill be more than happy to eat my words if this ends up being great somehow, but right now - not looking very "superior" to me.

The good news - it's taken years, but Marvel has finally convinced me the One More Day wasn't the worst decision in Spidey history. This is.

[Katt Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh my, I was worried with the premise of this book. I should have trusted my instincts.

Peter Parker has gotten himself into a real mess. Trapped in the dying body of Doc Ock while his nemesis is now in control of Spider-Man...yeah...scary. It's a race against time with a conclusion that left me heartbroken and unsure how I felt about where the story would go next.

Still the creativity of the storyline, and emotion of the piece, brings the ratings up. The two stories at the end kind of lighten the tone (in an almost disconcerting contrast) - especially the cartoonish bit at the end. :)

Good book overall. I definitely want to track down more Spidey collections.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable volume. Really, it doesn't stand on its own that well, as it's a response to the recent Doc Ock arcs and it's a setup for Superior Spider-Man ... but it's the necessary connective tissue to get from the one to the other, and it's well-down.

There are a few great elements here, especially #698 with its twist and the fade-to-white scene in #700. Everything else is good.

[Dariusz Płochocki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Zapowiada się dobrze, Peter Parker odwiedzający umierającego Octopusa w więzieniu, wychodzi od niego odmieniony. Trochę chaotyczne szczególnie w środkowej części, no i jednak człowiek nie ma dokładnej wiedzy na temat losów Spider-Mana akurat w momencie pokazanym nam przez Slotta. Rysunek bez fajerwerków.

[mrzokonimow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Powrót do dawnych czasów, kiedy z niecierpliwością czekałem na kolejne zeszyty o Pająku. No, prawie powrót...
Jako że lubię igranie z przyzwyczajeniami odbiorców i przewrotne opowiastki w stylu "co by było, gdyby", jestem na TAK!
Bardzo dobre wprowadzenie do nowego rozdziału opowieści o Spider-Manie.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartbreaking

[Daulet Smagulov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Отличная история, ставшая завершением линии о всеми любимом дружелюбном соседе в лице Питера Паркера и началом новой арки. Предвкушаю ещё более захватывающее продолжение о Совершенном Человеке-Пауке!

[Marcos Kopschitz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mais uma vez, contra Octopus

Difícil dizer qual o mais clássico vilão enfrentado pelo Homem-aranha, mas certamente o Dr. Octopus é sério candidato. Nos quadrinhos, desde que são quadrinhos, o mundo é assim: eternos enfrentamentos (Coringa, Luthor, etc.).

Neste álbum, o roteirista Dan Slott prepara e faz a ponte para a série seguinte, Homem-aranha Superior . Entre os dois antagonistas, um morre (??) e o outro se transforma. O mesmo de sempre? Não, desta vez é diferente e muito bem inventado.

Há mais duas histórias no volume, não ligadas aos mesmos eventos. Na verdade, alternativas. Uma, boa, a outra, dispensável.

Referências

> Autores
- - Roteiro: Dan Slott, Chris Yost
- - Arte: Richard Elson, Humberto Ramos, Victor Olazaba, Paco MedinaJuan Vlasco
- - Cores: Antonio Fabela, Edgar Delgado, Dave Curiel
> Tradução: Mário Luiz C. Barroso
> Lançamento original nos EUA: Amazing Spider-man: Dying wish , janeiro e fevereiro de 2013, pela Marvel
> Lançamento no Brasil: 2015, pela Panini Comics
> Formato grande, aproximadamente 27 x 17 cm, capa dura

Álbuns nesta série

1. Homem-Aranha Superior, Vol. 1: Meu pior inimigo (edições 1 a 5) *** R
2. Homem-Aranha Superior, Vol. 2: Mente conturbada (edições 6 a 10)
3. Homem-Aranha Superior, Vol. 3: Sem Saída (edições 11 a 16)
4. Homem-Aranha Superior, Vol. 4: Mal necessário(edições 17 a 21)

Eventos imediatamente anteriores a esta série:

Homem-Aranha: Último desejo *** R

Outras edições de quadrinhos da Panini

Sem ligação especial, a não ser terem sido publicadas aproximadamente em um período recente e já terem sido resenhadas por mim.
Publicações no mesmo formato e qualidade gráfica, com temas próximos, também em preços atraentes.

Marvel
Novos Vingadores: tudo morre *** R

Homem-Aranha Superior, Vol. 1: Meu Pior Inimigo *** R

Vingadores: A Ira de Ultron *** R

A Era de Ultron: Futuros Alternativos *** R


DC
Legião: Origem Secreta *** R

Superman e a Legião dos Super-heróis *** R

Superman: Brainiac *** R


*** R – Álbuns já resenhados por mim.
Para ler minha resenha, role a página do livro até que ela apareça.

[Fizzgig76 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reprints Amazing Spider-Man (2) #698-700 (January 2013-February 2013). Something is up with Peter Parker. He isn’t acting like he normally does, and he seems extremely “with it” when it comes to managing his time. That’s because Peter isn’t Peter anymore, and Doctor Octopus has taken control of his body. With Peter’s mind trapped in Dr. Octopus’s failing body, he must escape prison and try to find a way to switch his brain back before it is too late…and Doc Ock isn’t having it!

Written by Dan Slott, Spider-Man: Dying Wish is the final volume in Slott’s Spider-Man run before the cancellation of the Amazing Spider-Man series (and rebranding as Superior Spider-Man). Following Spider-Man: Danger Zone, the collection features back-up stories by J.M. DeMattis and Jen Van Meter and art by Richard Elson, Humberto Ramos, Giuseppe Camuncoli, and Stephanie Buscema. Amazing Spider-Man #699.1 (February 2013) is not included in the collection but was collected as part of Morbius: The Living Vampire.

I haven’t always loved Slott’s run on Spider-Man, but I’ll give him that he tries new stuff. I was already off the title at this point, but I couldn’t imagine how he pulled it off when I heard about it. Slott does manage to make it work, but there are still some underlying problems.

The story is as comic-booky as you can get. You have people swapping brains and a villain inhabiting the body of the “hero”. It is some of these weird tonal differences that makes Slott work and hurts him. It feels like he’s a bit all over the place in that sense. Sometimes the drama is played up and sometimes the “fun” of Spider-Man is played up, but it doesn’t seem to make for a completely consistent character. The fun stuff seems to work better than the drama and there are a lot of drama portions in the story.

As a result, the storyline was kind of divisive for fans. I don’t find it divisive as much as gimmicky. You know that Peter Parker will be back and you know that Doctor Octopus as Spider-Man is temporary…it is the nature of comic books. I was surprised by how long the storyline kept going. It also sparked controversy with Peter’s relationship with Mary Jane. With Doctor Octopus in Peter’s body, essentially he’s assaulting Mary Jane even if she doesn’t know it. It is a weird way to start a new series (and add in that Dr. Octopus was going to marry May Parker at one point, and it even gets more disgusting).

Spider-Man: Dying Wish is a real directional change for the comic, but it does feel natural within the context of Slott’s run. I still don’t like much of the supporting cast built for Slott’s run, and I don’t like the direction of many of the classic characters. I will say that I kind of enjoyed Superior Spider-Man when it launched because it was kind of different and it wasn’t “Spider-Man Proper”. Spider-Man: Dying Wish was followed by Superior Spider-Man 1: My Own Worst Enemy.

[Kris Shaw · Rating 1 out of 5]

Before we begin, I must clarify that I consider myself a Dan Slott fan, going back to the Spider-Man/ Human Torch mini-series that I bought in digest form way back when. With that in mind, let's proceed. So here we are, the much maligned, highly controversial conclusion to The Amazing Spider-Man. I've avoided as many spoilers as I could, but the cat got out of the bag anyways. Oh well. Things start out well enough with issue 698, a great story with great artwork by Richard Elson with an insanely clever twist ending.

It all goes downhill fast though, as we get the godawful Humberto Ramos' “artwork” for the next two issues. Seriously, this guy is the worst artist to work on the title out of 51 years of publication. That's quite a distinction, actually, but not one that I would want.

Spoilers in the next two paragraphs!!! You have been warned. Doctor Octopus has tricked Spider-Man into wearing the helmet that he controlled his Octobots with. This has enabled Doc Ock to get a copy of Spider-Man's brainwaves and arrange for a mental transference. Peter Parker's mind will co-occupy Dr. Octopus' brain, while Doc Ock's will co-occupy Peter's. This allows them full access to each others memories, allowing Ock to pull the wool over everyone's eyes. It also allows Peter to see the memories of Doctor Octopus through Ock's eyes, including the “wedding night” with his Aunt May from issues 131-132, seen in a flashback in issue 699. It's implied and not shown, but still. Shame on you, Dan Slott. This is adolescent fanboy pandering if I've ever seen it. I like to think that there might be a 10 or 11 year old kid reading this title since Spider-Man is plastered all over lunch boxes and t-shirts at Target, etc. It's this type of crap that reinforces the negative stereotypes of this hobby.

So try as Spider-Man might, Ock has pulled out all of the stops and Peter dies in Octopus' failing body. Before he dies, he somehow forces his memories of responsibility with Ock through some lameass shared brain link, making Octopus vow to do good as Spider-Man and as Peter Parker. This is horrible, probably the worst ending that I have ever read. I will not be buying Superior Spider-Man. This is my jumping off point. I'd like to thank Dan Slott for doing something that I'd never thought that I would do: quit buying new Spider-Man comics. Congratulations, jerkoff! End spoilers. You soul will be weeping after reading this atrocity.

The back-up stories are a complete waste of time and energy. Pointless stories that served no purpose other than adding to the page count. Sorry to be so negative and cynical, but it really pains me to see a character that I've loved my entire life dealt such a horrendous blow. This book is a disservice to the legacy of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.