Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 5

Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man #5

by Stan Lee, John Romita Sr. (Illustrator), Don Heck (Illustrator)

We finally meet Mary Jane! After months of hints and failed setups, Mary Jane Watson jumps into Peter Parker's life with a bang - leaving him unsure who he likes more, MJ or Gwen Stacy! And while Peter gets a motorcycle and his fi rst apartment with friend Harry Osborn, Spider-Man faces villains deadlier than ever! The Lizard! Kraven the Hunter! A new Vulture! The Kingpin! And introducing the Rhino and Shocker! What's a web-slinger to do? Plus: The Avengers try to recruit Spidey by sending him after the Hulk! And weary of public mistrust, Peter decides he'll be Spider-Man no more! COLLECTING: Amazing Spider-Man #41-50, Amazing Spider-Man Annual #3

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

231 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1967

About the author

Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber) was an American writer, editor, creator of comic book superheroes, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics.

With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Volume 5 of Marvel Masterworks The Amazing Spider-man collects issues #11-#20 and features such villains as Dr. Octopus, Mysterio, Green Goblin, Kraven, The Enforcers (again), The Ringmaster and his circus, Sandman and what I feel was the best story of the bunch arrives with issue #20 and the origin and battle with The Scorpion!
I enjoyed the last story a lot because it has everything in it that I dig in a great Spider-man story: JJJ, a powerful villain, a fight bringing our hero down, drama, and a Spider-man win. Just great stuff from Lee and Ditko and classic Spider-man. Honorable mentions to both the Mysterio and Kraven stories.

[David Dalton · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was kid in the early sixties, I was a comic book junkie. But when I was 10 to 12 I did not have enough money to collect comics on a regular basis. I picked up a few of the Lee/Ditko stories when I could, but it was more misses than hits. But then I started mowing lawns/shoveling drive ways, and running a paper route and soon had a limited budget to buy comics on a regular basis.

I really started getting into Spider-Man on a regular basis just as John Romita Sr came along in issues #39 and #40 (Green Goblin reveal issues). Man these stories bring back my first love of reading comics.

My favorites from this collection are issue #50 (Spider-Man No More) and Spider-Man Annual #3. This annual featured the Avengers first asking Spider-Man to join the Avengers, IF he could bring in the Hulk. They FORGOT to tell Spider WHY they wanted the Hulk. Spider-Man stopped the Hulk but then found out the Hulk is Bruce Banner. So Spider-Man let him go, not knowing why the Avengers wanted the Hulk. I remember this annual over all the others. My favorite Spider-Man annual.

On to Volume Six of the Spider-Man Marvel Masterworks. Highly recommended!
Enjoy these drives down memory lane.

[Little Timmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Marvel Masterworks volumes are fantastic reprints of the early years of Marvel comics. A fantastic resource to allow these hard to find issues to be read by everyone. Very recommended to everyone and Highly recommended to any comic fan.

[Frédéric · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Finally) introducing... M.J.!!

Face it, Tiger. You just hit the jackpot.

Apart from that, some classic moments like Peter moving in with Harry Osborn or a newcomer in the hood called Wilson Fisk. A good volume and thankfully no more Ditko.
Romita sr may not be the best there is at drawing fight scenes (there are many improbable panels where the law of gravity is openly defied) but he does excel in these groooovy party scenes with Gwen and M.J. swinging all around, celebrating Flash happily(!) going to Nam. These are the late 60’s, baby!

[Adam Bender · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been reading these Masterworks volumes one by one, and it's been amazing to see how much this comic evolved over time. By the end of this volume, the storytelling and visuals have really matured a lot from the first Stan Lee / Steve Ditko comics -- especially with the landmark "Spider-Man No More" issue.

Personally, I like John Romita's art better than Ditko's. This is the first Masterworks volume to contain all Romita art and finds the artist carving out his own style (Romita has said that initially he tried to copy Ditko's style as closely as possible so the changeup wouldn't seem so drastic). While some of the issues contained are not as memorable as others, by the end Stan Lee and John Romita are swinging for the bleachers. Recommended!

[Dimitris Papastergiou · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ditko's out in this one and Romita's in! And it shows! You don't even have to read the name, you can tell this is different, feels different and looks different. Not in a bad way, but you know, you know that you're going to miss what you were used to looking and liking and being in awe with.

Oh well! Storywise, it's pretty much the same, not for you and me but for kids, with every single thing that's happening in the panel being repetitively described to the point of losing the reason having artwork at all in the damn thing. Whatever, it's not worth it unless you REALLY wanna read everything with Spidey!

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy reading the old Spideys, but they can be tough reads. They’re pretty wordy and reading ten issues back to back can get a little old. I’ll take a break from these for a bit, but I’ll definitely pick em up again.

[Deacon D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

With appearances by The Rhino, The Vulture, Kraven The Hunter, The Lizard, and The Shocker, this excellent volume provides just about everything a Spideyphile could ask for. And Peter Parker finally meets MJ!

[Brandon Kazimir · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was younger, there was nothing I wanted more than to be able to go through every single Spider-Man comic in chronological order. My local library had the "Essential" collections of Spider-Man and other Marvel comics, but the idea of experiencing these comics in black and white was very unappealing to me. I was overjoyed when I eventually found that these smaller collections existed, which retained the color printing of the original comics. I read at least one or two of these as a child, then re-read those plus a couple more as an adult. It's been at least a few years since then, but I am picking up where I left off with volume 5.

While the dialogue in these old comics is often cheesy, it still comes off as endearing to me, particularly when you keep in mind the time that they were originally written. The use of 60s vernacular doesn't distract me much, particularly when the overall writing is quite good. Stan Lee was clearly not afraid to use vocabulary words that would likely fly over the heads of most of his readers. It was routine for me to have to Google the definition of a word at least a few times throughout each issue. These comics are also just very text-heavy overall. Between the narration and dialogue, I’d guess that there’s at least twice as much text per page on average compared to most comics today.

Story-wise, Stan does a great job weaving plots in each issue and sub-plots that carry out throughout multiple issues. It's much more interesting to read an evolving story that carries over through multiple issues rather than a story that is entirely self-contained in the span of one issue. For instance, when Spider-Man uses his webbing to cushion him from a fall in his fight with The Lizard in issue 44, it initially felt like a quick, cheap trick made up on the spot in order to get him out of a bind, which is something superhero writers tend to fall on. However, I was very surprised to see that not only did he end up suffering the consequence of a sprained arm from this, but that his sprain was carried over for the next few issues before fully healing.

It's having these consequences that make this style of superhero writing much more interesting and realistic. I also loved the idea to have a couple issues where Peter Parker is fighting a fever. I wouldn't even say this is used as a plot device. It helps add detail to the story for sure, but the story could also easily exist without it. I do prefer the fact that Stan seemed to include this just for the fact that a cold is another thing that a mortal superhero would occasionally have to deal with in the midst of crimefighting, which makes Spider-Man the more relatable.

What makes these comics work so well is Peter's relatability due to his vulnerabilities. I can easily relate to his neuroticism when it comes to the guilt and anxiety he feels when scrutinizing his feelings and choices in trying to navigate his social life. One last thing about this volume that's interesting to note, and which I believe has a point of realism, is how Flash and Peter's relationship subtly evolves. Flash still picks on Peter as he did in high school, and Peter retorts with sarcasm, yet they still choose to hang out in the same circle. It might seem disappointing to some that their contemptuous relationship is never brought to a climax, but I think it is more realistic to play it out in this manner, where both parties simply learn to live with the other, while still never really easing up on the other. You get the feeling that they do have a slight amount of respect for each other that is masked by teasing, and the parting moment between the two when Flash goes off to fight in the Vietnam war does seem to reflect this.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the stuff I've most been looking forward to in finally reading through Spider-Man's classic adventures. John Romita Sr is now the artist on the series and his versions of the characters are always the ones I imagine when I think of them.

A few villains are introduced in this volume. The Rhino gets a multi-issue arc where he's hired by an unnamed foreign power to capture J Jonah Jameson's son. John Jr's been infected with space spores that no one understands the properties of, but they give him superpowers. Surprisingly to me (because I'm familiar with John's eventual transformation into Man-Wolf), the powers are just standard strength and invulnerability at first. I'll have to keep reading to get to Man-Wolf in a future volume.

Curt Conners reappears to help Spidey defeat the Rhino, but chemicals that he uses to do that turn him into the Lizard again. Spidey injures himself while fighting Lizard, which feeds other stories because he's afraid to go into public as Peter with a bum arm. He worries that people will figure out he’s Spider-Man. Peter worries about a lot of dumb things.

We also get the first appearance of the Shocker, Kraven the Hunter returns, and when the Vulture dies in prison, his cellmate breaks out and becomes the new Vulture.

In Peter Parker's personal life (the real reason I'm reading these stories), Betty Brant returns and Peter realizes that he’s no longer in love with her (if he ever was, first crush and all). And with Betty now out of the picture, Peter starts to notice how hot Gwen is. Betty and Ned Leeds get engaged, effectively closing up that story line.

Peter still can’t get the timing right with Gwen. She invites him to a party, but he has to refuse because he’s scheduled to (finally!) meet Mary Jane with Aunt May. Gwen takes offense at his turning her down, but she still defends Peter when Flash picks on him. As much as I hated the romantic drama between Peter and Betty, I'm digging his relationship with Gwen. They're clearly attracted to each other, but prone to misreading cues and getting their feelings hurt. Which feels pretty real. Harry is easing off on Peter too during all of this, so it's mostly just Flash being mean to Peter. And he gets drafted to go fight in Vietnam, so things are actually pretty okay for Peter at college.

Just as Peter starts getting interested in Gwen, he meets Mary Jane. I never understood the timeline on that, so this is a surprise. I guess I assumed Peter knew and dated Gwen before meeting Mary Jane, so I'm super curious to see how this develops. Peter has a great time with Mary Jane, but her confidence and self-reliance confuses him into wondering if she cares about him. Which is understandable, considering his previous relationship with super needy, irrationally jealous Betty Brant. And Peter's tendency to be self-absorbed and overthink everything.

Mary Jane also meets Flash, Gwen, and Harry. Flash hits on her, of course, and Harry is also impressed with her. Gwen seems a bit jealous, but she isn’t rude about it.

Peter ultimately decides that Mary Jane is too flighty for him and he’s probably right. She's fun-loving to a fault and doesn't seem to care about much besides having a good time. But as Peter eventually notes, he doesn't feel like he's really had a chance to slow down and get to know her.

Meanwhile, he can’t stop thinking about Gwen, but she seems to be showing an interest in Harry, who's always liked her.

Harry's dad, who has amnesia about ever being the Green Goblin, gets Harry an apartment near campus and Harry invites Peter to move in with him. Which Peter does. Aunt May has been wanting to move in with her friend (Mary Jane’s aunt) for a while, so after the required amount of her and Peter's worrying about each other, they both move out of the house, which May talks about selling.

The volume concludes with the landmark issue 50 in which Peter gives up being Spider-Man. I enjoyed the story even though it wasn't as epic as I'd come to expect for as often as it's referenced in other comics. Peter's reasons for quitting are predictable because he’s wrestled with them all before: worrying over Aunt May, not having enough time to study and date, etc. I expected something earth-shattering, but it's really not. And it doesn't appear to have long-lasting consequences, because by the end of the issue, he's reminded why he became Spidey in the first place. That's a powerful affirmation of the Great Power/Responsibility maxim though. This might be where binge-reading these adventures could be a drawback, because for me it hadn't been that long since I read Spider-Man's first appearance. For the original readers, it had been four years, so a reminder about Spidey's motivation for superheroing was in order.

There is one, long-lasting repercussion of Spidey's short retirement though, which is the introduction of the Kingpin. He decides that Spider-Man's absence is the right time to consolidate the various gangs in New York City into a single organization. Clearly this will come back to bite the entire Marvel Universe (especially Daredevil), but I wonder if Peter will ever learn of his indirect responsibility for Kingpin's rise and feel guilty about it.

Finally, the volume also collects the third Spider-Man Annual, which is a weird, but fun bit of nonsense in which the Avengers decide to test Spider-Man for possible recruitment. In the process, he blows his temper and starts a fight with them, but they’re no more mature. They ask him to bring in the Hulk as his test, but without telling him why. So Spidey fights the Hulk, defeats him(!), but then lets him go, because Spidey feels sorry for the Hulk and doesn’t realize that the Avengers wanted to help him all along. Everyone’s communication skills in this story are HORRIBLE.

But it doesn't at all detract from my enjoyment of the overall collection, especially since the Annual is located toward the beginning of the book. The volume ends super strong with Issue 50 and it was a thrill to finally read these stories.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good stuff from the Spider-Man golden age. It opens poorly, with anti-climatic, hoaky final showdown with the Green Goblin that's resolved with talking-villain syndrome and a convenient bit of amnesia. But it recovers well as John Romita Sr. finds his groove. Spidey tangles with the Rhino and the Shocker, meets Mary Jane Watson for the first time, gets his own apartment and wonders repeatedly if he should just give it all up to settle on a normal life.

There's not a ton of variety: Aunt May is a wet blanket, J. Jonah Jameson is an entertaining maniac. But there is plenty of vitality, and you can still see today why these issue are so popular.

Read digital versions.

[Tar Buendía · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este NO es el tomo compilatorio que yo he leído pero la edición hecha por panini de imprescindibles no está subida y ya he devuelto el libro a la biblioteca asi que cuando vuelva a pasar por allí miraré los datos y lo subiré bien, es por no perder la pista de lo que voy leyendo.

Eso sí: estoy enganchada a Spidey

[Jacky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great set of 10 ishes (issues) of the Amazing Spider-Man. Perhaps the only downside is that Stan Lee keeps trying to make "pussywillow" a thing. Issue 50 is a real tearjerker and a good reminder to all Spideyphiles of why Spider-Man continues to fight crime.

[Edward Davies · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mary Jane makes her first appearance in this collection reprinting Amaxing Spider-Man issues 41 to 50, plus the third annual with one hell of a conflict with The Avengers. There's also the first appearance of The Rhino, The Shocker, The New Vulture and, most importantly, The Kingpin!

[Bob Wolniak · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the sweet spot of Lee and Romita Spidey creativity and popularity, a style that would dominate for years and eventually reunite in the newspaper funnies. Near the top of the list of the comics that defined the rise and dominance of Marvel.

[Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed the run in this volume. The characters outside of Spidey himself bring a lot to the table - especially as I know where things are going. Solid fun!

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume might be my favorite in the series. Possibly because of kooky MaryJane, or because he finally moves out, or because Harry always cracks me up because he looks like he's about 40?

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man - Volume 5 by Stan Lee is full Spiderman's classic villains, The reptile returns, Kurt conners has been turned back when he helped Spiderman defeat a new foe. Kraven the Hunter returns and the Vulture gets a new person to take his wings as the old vulture rots in prison. We finally get introduced to Mary Jane. Peter Parker moves in with Harry Osborn. Spiderman is introduced to classic villains the Rhino, The Kingpin, and the Shocker. This comic features others in the Marvel Universe: Daredevil, The Wasp, Ant-man, Thor, Iron man, Hawkeye, And the Hulk. This volume contains issue 50 called Spiderman No More which heavily influenced Spiderman 2 with Tobey Maguire and Alfred Molina, who are both rumored to join the MCU (or Spidey-verse) in Spiderman: No Way Home. Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man - Volume 5 collects issues 41-50 and annual #3 from The Amazing Spider-man Marvel comic book.

The Plots: The Rhino hits the scene and is looking for J. Jonah Jamison's son, astronaut John Jamison who has been exposed to spores that grant him his own powers. Flash Thompson has been drafter to the Vietnam War. The Lizard returns as doctor curt Conner makes a serum to stop the Rhino he becomes exposed and changes into the Lizard once again. The new Vulture who tricked the old Vulture to give away the location of his wings. The Vulture beats Spiderman or so it seems which brings back Kraven the Hunter to destroy the new Vulture who beat Spiderman and Spiderman himself. Peter Parker wants to me Spiderman no more as he is failing in being a friend, failing in school, and it gets to him being called a menace day by day from J. Jonah Jamison who started broadcasting his own news, with Spiderman being gone a new criminal rises who calls himself the Kingpin.

What I Liked: The villains introduced are the real deal, of Spiderman villains that are still around, Rhino, Shocker, and Kingpin. Flash Thompson dates the comics but it was interesting that this bit of everyday life was brought up. The Mary Jane and Gwen Stacy fight for Peter Parkers love. replaced the Betty Brandt and Liz Allen feud from the first 25 issues. Spiderman No More comic is interesting and looks at the frustration of living a double life, and seeing exact panel recreated in Spiderman 2 is pretty cool. Fredrick Foswell almost finding out Peter Parker is Spiderman, and Foswell's return to crime. The Vulture and Kraven fights was one of the best fight sequences so far. I liked that Spiderman was injured fighting the Lizard and kept his injuries over 3 issues. Stan Lee's writing and jokes when setting a scene, he calls out lazy writing in the editorial by using the phase "meanwhile" then keeps using it.

What I Disliked: The rhino introduction was good on power and unstoppability but not that great on actual substance, The annual with the Avengers was just okay.

Recommendation: This volume is a classic that can not be missed for Spiderman fan, too many iconic villains get introduced, along with Mary Jane. Big things happen with Peter Parker moving away from Aunt May and in with Harry Osborn. I rated Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man - volume 5 by Stan Lee 5 out of 5 stars.

[Tom Ewing · Rating 4 out of 5]

When it comes to the question of giving creative credit to Stan Lee vs his collaborators, I'm often a "team collaborators" guy. But if you want a Masterworks volume that really does make a case for Stan's own brilliance, this is the one - sure, he's letting his artist cut loose and draw what he loves (hot young people in great clothes) but he's also refining the Spider-Man recipe into its most perfectly entertaining version. One issue of Spidey on his uppers against a costumed crook, one issue where he figures out how to beat him or them. Add plenty of Peter and the gang, a couple of comic relief JJJ or Aunt May scenes, and some random limitation to add tension (Spidey has a virus; his arm is broken) and salt liberally with screwball dialogue*.

There's no subplotting or slow-building stories or real character growth, just changes of circumstances that set up a more adult status quo for Peter. Mary Jane arrives and Flash leaves for Vietnam, turning the dynamic from 3 guys vying for Gwen's attention to a Harry/MJ/Peter/Gwen quadrangle. Peter gets a motorbike, moves out of Aunt May's place and moves in with Harry. After the angst, trauma and hard-won self-realisations of the Lee/Ditko years this is a positively blithe Spider-Man, a young, good-looking guy whose second life gets him into scrapes but is otherwise enjoying some of the happiest times of his life. It's as close as Spider-Man gets to the optimistic changeless same of 60s Superman. In the final issue of the collection, the classic "Spider-Man No More", Peter's crisis of conscience over being Spider-Man comes absolutely out of nowhere, a spike of intrusive thoughts brought on by Aunt May being ill and a particularly badly (or well, from its author's perspective) timed JJJ rant.

This early Lee/Romita era is a big swing away from Lee/Ditko, but one that respects the integrity of those issues - Over his first three years in print Peter went from being a selfish outcast to a young man who's resolved most of the issues and traumas holding him back, and this era is his reward. At some point, somebody - and it will probably turn out to be Stan - decided that a contented Spider-Man is a less interesting Spider-Man, and we'll go down the road to the Death Of Gwen Stacy and the idea that Peter Parker can never really be happy. But he could, and this phase where he largely was makes for some of his most enjoyable stories.

*No 'teen-ager' has ever talked like a Stan Lee script, just as no Norseman ever talked like Stan Lee Thor (and nobody of any kind ever talked like Kirby's Darkseid or Orion, for that matter). But Lee writes a perfect kids' idea of teens, and even if the dialogue makes you cry "Oh B-r-rother!" at times the scenes still sparkle.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

After finishing off the Green Goblin story at the end of the last volume, Lee and Romita went about the business of making Spider-Man seem familiar to long-time readers and reinventing him for a new generation. I was part of that new generation, being a few months shy of 8 years old when I bought my first issue of Spider-Man, number 44 which is included in this book which reprints Spider-Man numbers 41-50.

In those days, I only owned numbers 44, 45, and 50, so reading the whole run here in sequential order allowed me to notice the way the book was changing. Romita started off trying to imitate Ditko's layouts, with all those 9 panel pages in between regular 6 panel grids for action sequences. By the end of this book, however, the fight scenes used bigger panels, with frequent three or four panel pages to make the action seem more powerful.

Though the villains - the Rhino (a new character introduced in 41), the Lizard, the Shocker (another new character, though one not nearly as memorable, introduced in 46), the Vulture (a new guy wearing the old guy's suit and wings, though the next time the Vulture appeared the old guy would take it back), Kraven the Hunter, and the Kingpin (introduced in 50 as Lee finally came up with a character deserving to put all the New York underworld under one control) - are formidable, and the battles entertaining, the real joy of Spider-Man would be his relationships with his friends.

Betty Brant is now engaged to Ned Leeds, and Peter Parker is fine with that. At the end of 42, he meets for the first time Mary Jane Watson, who had been teased in multiple Ditko issues for more than 2 years - face it, tiger, he hit the jackpot. But Gwen Stacy is becoming more and more appealing. Harry Osborn, now with a father who is attentive and not busy trying to be a masked criminal, is shown dating both these girls, and in 46, he invites Peter to be his roommate in an apartment Norman Osborn is paying for. Flash Thompson gets drafted - because it's 1966, there is no question that he wouldn't do the patriotic thing and go to Vietnam. J. Jonah Jameson's son returns, after not being seen since issue 1, and briefly becomes a superhero who fights Spider-Man.

The plots start to bleed across multiple issues - I like the way first the Rhino, and then Kraven and the Vulture, are around longer than it takes to be defeated before they finally go down for the count. And issue 50, which I distinctly remember buying from a little store near my grandmother's trailer in Ballwin, was one of the landmark comics of its time, as Peter decides to give up being Spider-Man. Needless to say, it didn't last more than a few pages out of 20, but the tale was told without the resolution being obvious until it was.

[Phillip Cash · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Horns of the Rhino! (originally published October 1966 in The Amazing Spider-Man #41)

The Rhino makes his debut, interestingly, with no origin. That doesn't happen often in these days. Anyway, John Romita is really settling into his role at this point: the art and layouts are more modern, and with that step forward, Stan's dialogue starts to become a bit less wordy.

Betty Brant is back in town, although with no word about where she went or why she's back. Gwen Stacy has a total personality change in her first appearance of the Romita era. Peter cops himself a motorcycle. Things are moving forward and progressing with the whole supporting cast and soap opera aspect of the book.

John Jameson makes his first appearance since issue #1 (!), and is an active part of the story, tying in with the Rhino plot and building on his first appearance. The Romita era is looking good... even better than I remember it! 4/5

The Birth of a Super-Hero! (originally published November 1966 in The Amazing Spider-Man #42)

The last issue did not end on a full-blown cliffhanger, yet this issue clearly follows up on its events, this time with John Jameson front and center and Rhino in the background (a reversal of the last issue). A continuing plot like this, that isn't baited by a cliffhanger, is a big deal for the era.

Not a great issue, though. Merely a decent one. Why is John Jameson, even before his brain gets messed with, so eager to tackle Spidey even though he believes him to be a crook? The final fight is mediocre. The biggest thing that happens, by far, is that we finally see Mary Jane Watson in the final panel (after much fanfare) and she of course delivers her iconic line. 3/5

Rhino on the Rampage! (originally published December 1966 in The Amazing Spider-Man #43)

Another Rhino issue, this time with an (unremarkable) origin. This issue forms a loose trilogy with the previous two. The fight between them is solid, even though they just went at it in #41.

There is a lot going on with the supporting cast! Full debut of MJ, the return of Curt Connors (foreshadowing lizardy things to come), Flash Thompson gets drafted into military service, and money problems crop up for the Parkers. The more things change, the more they stay the same. 4/5

...To Become an Avenger! (originally published November 1966 in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #3)

This annual is an interesting one. Spider-Man essentially chooses to fail at his goal, and does so out of compassion for someone less fortunate than him. That has the potential to be very compelling, but the story relies far too much on characters refusing to communicate for it to actually be great. Spidey comes off as a bit of a schmuck, and that's no good.

The Avengers (Cap, Iron Man, Thor, Goliath, Wasp, and Hawkeye) co-star, with Daredevil and the Hulk making cameos. Romita merely does layouts for this issue, while Don Heck does the pencilling, and he does an admirable job. 3/5

Where Crawls the Lizard! (originally published January 1967 in The Amazing Spider-Man #44)

We meet Dr. Connors again, with the plot from issue #43 followed up on directly. Parker Luck™ really stacks up here, and we end on a cliffhanger. Throughout the issue, the whole supporting cast gets a check-in, one by one. That's where the real strength of this series lies, in comparison to everything else Marvel was publishing at the time.

During one moment at a diner, we can see the ankles of Peter's Spidey costume showing as he stands up. I don't recall that ever being done in prior issues. Nice little treat from Romita. 4/5

Spidey Smashes Out! (originally published February 1967 in The Amazing Spider-Man #45)

This issue starts right out by stacking the odds against Spidey, mirroring Connors' non-Lizard self by having to fight with only one good arm. More Parker Luck™ and development for the supporting cast make for a rock solid two-parter. 4/5

The Sinister Shocker! (originally published March 1967 in The Amazing Spider-Man #46)

The Shocker makes his debut appearance. He's a cool villain visually, with a fairly unique power set. I like him. Meanwhile, Peter moves out of his aunt's house and into a swanky apartment with Harry Osborn (they're suddenly best buds after hating each other initially, but it's whatever) paid for generously by Norman. The word "jackass" is used in this issue, something I'm surprised the Comics Code Authority allowed in 1967. 4/5

In the Hands of the Hunter! (originally published April 1967 in The Amazing Spider-Man #47)

Flash's going away party gets crashed by Kraven (one of my favorite baddies) because Harry is in attendance and Kraven is beefing with an amnesiac Norman. This is a fun one. 4/5

The Wings of the Vulture! (originally published May 1967 in The Amazing Spider-Man #48)

Kraven is still at large, and a new Vulture called Blackie Drago (who won't end up hanging around very long) takes over for for the old one who is on his death bed (he of course doesn't actually die, and will be brought back before long).

The aerial battle in snowy New York City is aces. Romita's art really shines in this issue filled with great big panels. It ends on a huge cliffhanger. 4/5

From the Depths of Defeat! (originally published June 1967 in The Amazing Spider-Man #49)

This one picks up directly where the previous leaves off, with Spidey seemingly defeated and left for dead. Kraven goes after the new Vulture, and it's cool to see two villains brawl for once. The inevitable two-on-one fight at the end is fun too, and Romita excels once again. It's issues such as this one that remind me of how much I love how he draws Spider-Man.

The mark against it is how cringey Aunt May's behavior is. As written by Stan Lee, she always borders on being a caricature, but in this issue, she crosses way over the line. 4/5

Spider-Man No More! (originally published July 1967 in The Amazing Spider-Man #50)

Definitely one of the most iconic issues of the Stan Lee run. It would serve as a big inspiration for the movie Spider-Man 2 in 2004. The problem is, it's a little clunky, especially the sequence in which Peter remembers Uncle Ben. Even though they got the origin on point in Amazing Fantasy #15, the atonement mission would not be fully ironed out until the Master Planner trilogy in the late portion of the Steve Ditko run. Here, it just feels forced, and referring to the spider bite as a "lab accident" also suggests, to me, that Stan may have misremembered how Peter got his powers. Still, everything is in line with Spidey's character—there is no quit in him.

This was a daring issue for its time, as there is little action and no fight with a supervillain. We're also introduced to Kingpin, and see key development for Foswell. Aunt May is sick again (they're really abusing that trope at this point), and I have no idea what Romita was thinking with that fuzzy sweater that Peter was wearing in a few panels... he looks like the dust cloud that follows Pig Pen from Peanuts. Based on memory, I expected to give this one a perfect rating, but due to these various problems, I can't. Despite my complaints though, the majority of it is very good. 4/5

[Michael Emond · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some Golden issues from a golden age of comics (okay the silver age but stop nitpicking). Stan Lee loved writing this character and it showed. And John Romita SR. (not Jr.) was finding his groove with the character. Not a lot to say but we get to see some old favourite villains make their return - we see Stan Lee manage to keep up the drama in Peter Parker's private life as he moves out of Aunt May's home and try to juggle his new relationship with Mary Jane Watson "Face it Tiger, you just hit the jackpot" (such a great quote). And that was the magic of this marvel age with Stan at the helm, added greatly by his artists - Stan made you care about these characters and made them REAL people. DC was all about "fun super hero adventures and real lives be damned". I am not knocking that - fun adventures have their place - but Stan elevated what comics could be by building the super-heroes real lives as much as planning the next fight scene. Fight scenes mean so much more when Spider-man is fighting with a broken arm and at the same time trying to hide the fact he has a broken arm as Peter so no one will connect the dots.

A lot of fun - Spider-man comics of this era are classics for a reason.

[Curtis · Rating 3 out of 5]

--3.5 stars rounded down--

I've left it a bit too long since reading this to review it, so it's no longer fresh in my mind.

I quite enjoyed it but felt there was a drop in quality from the previous volume, maybe in part due to needing to readjust with the new, good-looking Peter, with all of his Swinging 60's language. To be honest, I find the sudden attempts to make Peter 'hip' (or whatever they said at the time) a bit embarrassing.

I did enjoy that the depth of the stories has begun to increase more and more, with many stories running for multiple issues now, compared to the 'One issue = One Story' system of the first few volumes. However, I'm also starting to find the stories increasingly repetitive and feel that the storylines are already getting onto the repeats. I found the teasing about Mary Jane to be a bit too drawn out and, ultimately, not really worth the wait.

Overall, a pretty decent volume with some good issues (although I can't remember which ones stood out for me) but not as good as the volume that preceded it.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great stuff. Reading some of these for the first time ever, I'm surprised by 1) how Spidey's villains are, overall, pretty lame. The soap opera is really the big draw to these stories. And 2) how good the soap opera is. Ditko and Romita are, obviously, terrific. (Don Heck, working from Jazzy John's layouts on Annual #3, isn't.) When Ditko's plotting, he does a terrific job weaving story threads through various issues, building subplots and crafting solid multi-part arcs that pull together divergent threads in a completely convincing way. And after he leaves, Stan was apparently taking notes, because he doesn't miss a step.

Reading Amazing Spider-Man in proximity to the Stan n' Jack Fantastic Four issues, I can say that the Fantastic Four was the better comic, and I can see why people consider it the best of the classic Marvel era.

[Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

THIS is where things start to really get set up for future Spidey adventures and calamities. Peter and Spidey stop being so separate. The two characters really start to become one, increasingly complex, entity. Sure there's some stupid villains and some dumb situations, but this volume seems to focus on realistic facts of life for Mr. Parker.

MJ gets fully introduced and so many other interesting connects start falling into place. For those of us who already know where the story goes, this is probably the most significant volume of the early years of Spider-man to this point.

That said - there's still a bunch of dumb, self-interested villains (are there any other kind) who can't seem to get their collective sh*t together. There's also the odd question of the Rhino and why he even exists.

Still though, getting there with the ESSENTIAL Spidey history.

[April Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Spider-Man book was truly fantastic! We get to see Gwen and MJ as friends/enemies vying for Peter’s attention. There’s also appearances by Kraven, The Shocker, Kingpin, The Vulture, etc, and Flash is drafted.

There’s a bit of a retread with Peter’ getting a cold and then Aunt May getting sick, but at least their illnesses were handled differently this time. Oh, and Peter moves out of Aunt May’s house and gives up being Spider-Man for a couple of days.

I love it that we finally have two female characters who are self-assured and are probably more than Peter can handle. It’s about time!

All in all, these stories were fantastic and the art continues to improve. A very worthy addition to your comic book collection.

[Jeff Bleyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots to like in this volume including the long teased first appearance of Mary Jane Watson who introduces herself to Peter Parker with a memorable, possibly iconic, opening line. If her hip/hippie speak in subsequent appearances has perhaps dated poorly, MJ does offer a free spirited contrast to the more conventional Gwen Stacy for the affections of young Peter Parker. Other highlights from this Marvel Masterworks entry include a guest appearance from the Avengers who consider the admission of Spider-Man to the team, the first appearance of The Kingpin, and the landmark story "Spider-Man No More" where Peter Parker both literally [his costume] and figuratively throws away his Spider-Man alter ego. Classic indeed!

[L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the collection where Mary Jane Watson finally makes her appearance. She speaks only in 60's teen slang, meaning I have no idea what she is saying half the time. There's a dark underlying story as Flash is drafted and sent to Vietnam. (I'm sure he'll be okay.) Kraven the Hunter is now able to shoot lasers out of his nipples. Peter finally moves out to an apartment but still worries about Aunt May's health, his finances, his grades, and when/if he'll ever get time to date either Mary Jane or Gwen Stacy.

[Mark Plaid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great collection!

Although I have no desire to deny Steve Ditko's legendary run on the first 38 issues of the Amazing Spider-Man, I have to admit that I like John Romita's art much better than his predecessor. Romita's skills at drawing anatomy, action, and the sharpness of his ability to capture the more mundane scenes of the plot have made me a fan of his for sure.

The stories of the issues in the collection show a good deal of increased character development and a spectacular sense of dramatic tension.

[Robert Hultman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good Place to Start or Keep Reading

I personally get sick of Aunt May and her damn worrying and pathetic woe-is-me crap, not allowing Peter to just grow up, but that is a real frustration many of us have in life! Continues the improvements in art and story began several issues back and includes the Rhino and Shocker origins!