The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 13: King's Ransom

The Amazing Spider-Man (2018) (Collected Editions)

by Nick Spencer, Patrick Gleason (Illustrator), Federico Vincentini (Illustrator)

The Lifeline Tablet is one of the most dangerous artifacts in the Marvel Universe — and it has plagued Spider-Man’s life more than once! Mayor Wilson Fisk, formerly known as the Kingpin of Crime, wants its secrets — and he will happily kill Boomerang to get his hands on the stone! But doesn’t he know that Spider-Man is Boomerang’s roommate? Now, every street-level hero in New York will join the fight as the wallcrawler must pull out all the stops to prevent the Kingpin from wielding nigh-ultimate power!

COLLECTING: Amazing Spider-Man (2018) 61-66

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

168 pages, Paperback

First published August 24, 2021

About the author

Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Nick Spencer is a comic book writer known for his creator-owned titles at Image Comics (Existence 2.0/3.0, Forgetless, Shuddertown, Morning Glories), his work at DC Comics (Action Comics, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents), and for his current work at Marvel Comics (Iron Man 2.0, Ultimate Comics: X-Men).

Reviews

[Baba · Rating 2 out of 5]

What the Hell happened to the Spidey franchise? Kingpin mayor, Boomerang best friends with Parker, Jameson knows who Spidey is, Osborn turned good... and, did I mention Spidey has a (another) new suit and livestreams his fights. Sick bag anyone?

Not much else to add, sorry Nick Spencer, who writes great creator owned books, but has done little of interest on his Spider-Man run. Good luck to the next writer who has to tidy all this up!

2023 read

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nick Spencer is more concerned about writing more Superior Foes of Spider-Man than actually writing Spider-Man. Spidey gets a new suit (in order to sell a new action figure I guess?). It's gone by the end of the book. The new suit is in order for Spider-Man to live stream his crime fighting. I did think having Robbie Robertson and Tombstone find out their kids are dating were clever as the two have a long history of animosity to one another. The art's good, but I'm so ready for someone else to write this book. I hate how pathetic Spencer writes Peter Parker.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can’t say I didn’t enjoy this but I am more than a little tired of this book being more of a continuation of Spencer’s Superior Foes… than an actual Spider-Man book. Don’t get me wrong; I loved Superior Foes… and would be 100% up for more of that book in its own title but I don’t want it hijacking the core Spidey book.

My next book: The Complete Poems of Emily Brontë

[James DeSantis · Rating 2 out of 5]

After getting to somewhere interesting with Peter we take a nice big step back...

This feels like mega filler. Spencer trying to bring his superior foes characters back one last time. Peter just goofying around after the terrible events of what just occurred with his best friend and spilling his heart out to MJ in last volume...what a shitty step back.

Also ugly suit even if the art for the fights is amazing.

A 2 out of 5.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Kingpin wants the Tablet Of Life & Destiny, and he'll do anything to get it - which includes killing Boomerang! But wait, isn't Fred Spidey's current roommate? That might get awkward.

This arc has been burning in the background of Amazing for a little while now. It's no secret that Spencer loves Boomerang (and Superior Foes shows why that's a good thing), but I have to say that I was a little disappointed with this arc. It's very scattered in terms of focus, with Spidey and Boomerang's quest for the final pieces of the Tablet mixed in with a new plotline about the Threats & Menaces podcast that gives Spidey a new suit, and then some old Tombstone history as Robbie and Lonnie find out about their children dating. None of the plots really fit together as well as I'd have liked, and the final reveal about the Tablet is a little out of left field - given that there's only two arcs of the book left under Spencer, I'm also a bit worried that we won't get to really explore this new development before everything ends.

The art's split fairly evenly between Patrick Gleason and Federico Vicentini who have been regulars on the book for a while. Nothing bad to say about either of them, although the final King's Ransom one-shot gets a bit messy with three new artists on it in the form of Rogé Antonio, Carlos Gomez, and Ze Carlos.

King's Ransom's not a bad story, but it seems to be trying to tell too many stories at once without really following through on any of them. Spencer has laid out a lot of plot threads over his 3 year run on the title, and it seems like he's in a rush to tie them all up, but in an attempt to deal with lots of things at once, nothing really comes together.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's often hard to know what to make of Spencer's Spider-Man, because it's so often a mix of juvenile silliness (and not in a good way) with serious plotlines.

So this time, we get silly Gog and silly relationship with Fred Boomerang and silly Spidey now acting as a mobile streaming service. The plot unfortunately includes a continuation of the stupid King's Ransom MacGuffin Hunt. But there's the question of Harry and Norman in the background, and what Wilson is going to do with the MacGuffin, which turn out to both be pretty serious plotlines.

Those serious plots could make for a darned good comic, but it's just buried in a bunch of junk that isn't as funny as Spencer thinks it is.

[Frédéric · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disjointed plots (including a boring and predictable Romeo+Juliet) filling time before Kingpin’s endgame is revealed. Some nice pieces of art. Some fun punchlines.
Not enough tho.

[Jiro Dreams of Suchy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Of course Boomerang was playing both sides, Fisk underestimates the rest of the gang leaders, Spider-Man stops live-streaming for money and JJJ. Spider-Man being instantly recognized as GOOD is why I keep reading, he makes me want to be good even when bad things happen. It’s about always trying to be better.

Fisk doesn’t bring back his wife he brings back his son!

[Rory Wilding · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first thing you may have noticed on the front cover of this volume is Spider-Man wearing a whole new costume that is coloured blue and grey and looks more high-tech. Conceived by Norah Winters and J. Jonah Jameson, Spidey will be paid to stream his fights and fans can tip him at the moment to get him to do and say things. No doubt the new suit introduced some interesting ideas, some of which seem relevant to today’s streaming, whilst J.J.J. somewhat out of his depth with the technology, but revels in the success, showing his ego has never changed since 1963.

Often with a new suit, at least with Spider-Man, it sets up a new status quo, but after its introduction, Nick Spencer doesn’t go any further into how it could possibly shape Spider-Man's future, in terms of his relationship with the public. Whilst Patrick Gleason draws the hell out of the action that showcases the technical capabilities of the suit, towards the end of this volume, Spidey reverts back to his classic red-and-blue suit.

From the very beginning of Spencer’s Amazing run, Mayor Wilson Fisk has been a recurring threat to Spidey, especially in light of the latter's relationship with Fred Myers/Boomerang, who just happens to be Peter’s roommate. With this ongoing search for the scattered pieces of Lifeline Tablet, which is really a MacGuffin that we shouldn’t pay too much attention of, Boomerang’s life is truly in jeopardy and since Peter found a greater sense of friendship towards the gimmicky villain, his participation is expected.

Meanwhile, there is a star-crossed romance between Peter’s former roommate Randy Robertson and Janice Lincoln/Beetle, much to the horror from their fathers, who have an ongoing feud. Spencer does have some fun here, exploring the domestic side of these characters, including a funny sequence where their friends give advice about their somewhat troubling romance. If the comic is less concerned about the spectacle and put more focus on the soap drama, which is part of the appeal of Spider-Man, you would have a better book.

Sadly, the clutter and multiple characters and multiple artists is where I kinda lost interest. The final issue, in particular, which is a Giant-Size issue that could’ve served as the climax for the whole run, so much is thrown on every page. Whether it is the Beetle’s Syndicate or the various crime bosses or even a reunion with the New Avengers from the days of Brian Michael Bendis’s run, it’s only when we take a breather and focus on the Spidey/Boomerang relationship, that’s where the characterisation comes in.

What could’ve been the end of Spencer’s run, I would’ve thought it was just a not-so-great finale to a run that had its moments, but because we’ve got more issues coming our way, which will once again set up something big (a recurring problem in this comic), I’m curious to see how this whole thing will pan out.

[Emmett Spain · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m just so thunderously bored with this run now. It took a while, but I’m there.

[Derek Moreland · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's times like this I wish I could give a half star review, because even by the exceptionally low standards of the Spencer run, this is steaming hot garbage.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

We take a step back from the super-seriousness of the Kindred storyline and return to Pete the loser and his roommate, Boomerang. That may sound like a bad idea, but I quite enjoyed it, though I did have to wonder a bit about whether that whole Kindred thing was ever going to get wrapped-up--Spencer kind of left things hanging. There's a bit of that in the background, but the focus is on having some fun again, as Spidey gets a new suit courtesy of J. Jonah Jameson's podcast sponsors, one that's outfitted with cameras so his fans can watch the action and vote on what quippy sayings they want him to say as he's fighting supervillains. Spider-Man and Boomerang are trying to find the last pieces of the Lifeline Tablet, which the Kingpin is also after, and he's unleashed New York's criminal underground on them. Plus a star-crossed romance between Robbie Robertson's son and Tombstone's daughter, who also happens to be the new Beetle. There's almost too much going on here, but it manages to hold together and the art is pretty strong throughout, too.

[Rylan · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of a filler story but Spencer has some great character work this volume so it makes up for it.

[Jonathan Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good series. But the Kindred thing is getting old

[AJ Kallas · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like it when Mark Bagley draws Spider-Man.

[Daniel Butcher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m going with a 3.5.

Spencer’s pieces are so spread out they are easy to lose. I mean what happened 50 issues ago.

I do love the Sinister Six though.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how Nick Spencer writes Spider-Man and his world. He just gets Peter Parker and comic book storytelling. This story was the culmination of quite a few story threads (plus the continuation of some and a few twists by the end), and one of the revelations… I don’t want to spoil it, but while reading it, I just took it in stride, but afterwards… I felt ***MAYBE SPOILERS; YOU’VE BEEN WARNED****just as betrayed as Peter. It kind of stuck with me, and not in a bad way—in a I-was-fully-invested way. All of that and I even had a couple of chuckles in this graphic novel (specifically “Yes, father, I will become a boomerang.”) I’ve enjoyed every second of Nick Spencer’s time with Spidey and this volume was no exception.

[Keegan Schueler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Repping the new suit that honestly doesn’t look great but is sick in action.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

After the crazy intense drama of the last couple of Volumes, Nick Spencer gives us a brief respite before dropping us back into chaos. This Volume revolves around a couple key stories:
1) Randy Robertson, son of Robbie (Daily Bugle editor), is dating Janice Lincoln (Hornet), daughter of Tombstone. Robbie and Tombstone go way back as opposite forces, but these two together have their own kind of Romeo and Juliet story, which makes the old rivals work together.
2) Spidey's new suit and job. Getting a job working under Jonah for "Threats and Menaces", a social media news app, they give Spidey a new suit (as well as a paycheck) to just be Spider-Man. People are able to pay for VR livefeeds of Spidey, so they see exactly what he sees, which they indicate to be like a game for people. He wears it gladly under near the end of the Volume, though I'm not sure that he will put it back on.
3) Boomerang has been turning over a new leaf and living the life of a hero, but he finally reveals that he had been using Pete to get the rest of the pieces of the Lifeline Tablet for Kingpin. Though he goes back to being a villain, you can tell he misses being with Pete.
4) Kingpin desires The Lifeline Tablet so he can resurrect his wife, but he has second thoughts and resurrects his son Richard "The Rose" instead, trying to honor his wife in that way.

At the end, we see Doc Ock investigating something at a graveyard, and are teased with the upcoming "Sinister War".

Spencer's run on Spider-Man has been pretty fantastic and has really put the character through some crazy stuff. Very interested to see where it goes next.
Recommend.

[Blindzider · Rating 2 out of 5]

This volume feels a lot like Spencer is hurriedly getting all of the pieces into place for the finale. Just about everything from the previous two collections is ignored, with only a few small scenes referring to it.

A couples issues are devoted to bringing up and resolving something between Robbie Robertson (and son) and Tombstone (and daughter). In addition, it very quickly wraps up the friendship with Boomerang and the quest for the tablet pieces. Kingpin's motive is finally revealed (although the abrupt change doesn't quite make sense to me.) and yet another villain is brought on board as well.

Again, feels rushed, closing off subplots, a little filler and a few small steps to the conclusion of Spencer's run. And while I've enjoyed Gleason's art elsewhere, it seems a little lackluster on this title.

[Alex Sarll]

Finally, after umpteen tiresome issues of guilt and Kindred, we're back to the stuff Spencer does well, chiefly everyone hating Boomerang. Who here provides a hilarious spoof reprise of Spidey's endless bullshit, not to mention a few Batman digs along the way, with his troubled hero act. But there are also the joys of daft new revenue streams, and Beetle's awkward love life, and pet monster Gog (though to a British reader, the times he's fussed as "widdle Goggy-Woggy" are very jarring). Yes, Kindred is still puttering along in the background, and the whole Mayor Fisk plot remains a fairly trying Dark Reign 2: Amoral Boogaloo, but more often than not this volume was fun again, and thank goodness for that.

[Harrison Delahunty · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh.

At this point, I’m quite over Spencer’s run and he was really just spinning his wheels ‘til he got to step off the book, as far as I can tell. The new suit is largely pointless, as the same plot-line could have occurred regardless of what Peter was wearing. While I enjoyed getting to follow Robbie (my second-favourite Spidey supporting character) for a bit, the actual storyline focusing on Randy and Beetle was just weak.

The major weaknesses of Spencer’s run are really coming to the forefront here. There is far too much focus on the humour, the modernity, the side characters, to the point that Peter and MJ feel like background elements when they are meant to be the principal characters.

And, I swear to God, I’m sick of having ‘Then again’ being the last two words on every page.

[Robert Reiner · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite Marvel character is Spidey and I needed to catch up on some of his recent adventures to see what he's been up to. This collection of like 6 comics which came out in 2021 is written by Nick Spencer. It's a fun story with plenty of classic villains and supporting characters. On top of it all Spidey gets a new suit which is a tech build that allows fans to live stream all of his actions as he's fighting crime. Meanwhile he's roommates with his old nemesis Boomerang and Kingpin is trying to kill Boomerang to get a hold of some ancient tablet that can resurrect the dead. Although the whole story seems a bit cheesy and too lighthearted (as opposed to some of the deeper and more serious storylines I grew up with), I still enjoyed it.

[Mr. Stick · Rating 3 out of 5]

"YOU SURE YOU DON'T WANT HELP RUSHING INTO CERTAIN DEATH?"
- Boomerang to Spider-Man.

"FISK MIGHT BE MAYOR, BUT HE'S STILL JUST A CRIMINAL WITH A SUPERCOOL ASCOT."
- Boomerang, monologing.

It feels like a covert attempt was being made to rebrand Boomerang into a "Booster Gold" type of anti-hero. Fun. Humorous. Slightly inept.
Jameson's well-written here, too. But Norah Winters, who's supposed to be eccentric and incorrigible, was about as entertaining as a tetanus shot. We also get some obligatory cuteness from Gog and MJ.
Plenty of Bagley art and a "surprise" ending. Well, two actually. One is sort of predictable. The other surprise is legit.
I hated this volume less than previous books in this run. Three stars.

[j_ay · Rating 1 out of 5]

There is very little doubt that one of the most obvious indicators of a hack “creator” is...the dreaded costume change.
So there is no surprise that Spencer, who has yet to write even close to one half decent issue of Amazing, in YEARS, now pulls this crap. And having Mark Bagley, one of the worst Spidey artists in the history of the title, still wasting ink and paper just shows that the editorial staff at Marvel gives zero shits.
Maybe one of these years the asinine and boring plots will be resolved.
Maybe.

[Rod DiManna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now this is more like it! After a few volumes of overbearing Kindred nonsense, this volume gets back on the rails in a big, fun way. Classic Spidey villains, New Avengers reunion and the return of a long deceased character I was thrilled to see return. The Kindred subplot is still going, but downplayed quite a bit in this story. Good. Also the new Spider-Man costume? Meh. I won’t miss it. Onward to the next volume!

[Rocky Sunico · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, I have to admit that this book helped put a LOT of the craziness of the Spencer run into better perspective and made things feel better to me as a reader. It doesn't quite elevate the title to a level of greatness or anything like that, but it did make the different elements in play make a bit more sense. It was a bit of a long con given how long some of these things had been going on, but at least he stuck the landing.

[Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

Classic Spider-Man comicbook moments (we could probably play bingo at this point):

Showcase a new suit and discard it after one issue
Main character laments how their friendships fell apart
Bring back a character nobody cared about for at least a decade
Feature a character that was canceled in another book
Have JJJ bluster on about how he's smarter than the common folk

I could go on...
Peter is a sad sack in all these ASM issues. Can Spencer write him any other way?

[C.T. Phipps · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wilson Fisk wants Boomerang and the Tablet of Life. Peter Parker once more gets ropped into a "Get rich quick" scheme that requires him to wear a Spiderman live-streaming outfit. It's the kind of ridiculousness that classic Spider-Man used to get into all the time. I have to give this one applause for returning to the wackiness that Spencer's run was initially characterized with. I most loved the Robbie Roberston plots with his son dating the Beetle and Jonah Jameson killing it with his podcasts.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collects Amazing Spider-Man (2018) issues #61-65 and Giant Size Amazing Spider-Man: King's Ransom (2021) issue #1

This collection brought a conclusion to a storyline that has been a part of Spencer's run since (I believe) the very beginning. It's Kingpin vs. Spider-Man and Boomerang, and lots of other heroes and villains get involved along the way. I enjoyed this one.