Amazing Spider-Man #6 Comic Book Review

Spoiler-Free Review!

In this week’s Amazing Spider-Man #6, written by Dan Slott and illustrated by Humberto Ramos, we watch as Peter Parker and Silk continue to battle with both Black Cat and Electro, while still attempting to keep their hands off each other long enough to do so.

Amazing Spider-Man #6 reads more like a pre-Superior story than any of the previous five issues of the reboot. The most action-packed comic yet, we begin immediately after the previous issue leaves off, with Black Cat holding Spidey in a headlock as she is about to unmask him in front of all of New York. The scene quickly escalates into another brawl between the two parties in which Peter Parker is given the opportunity to redeem himself in the eyes of a suspicious New York City and potentially its seedy underbelly.

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The plot of this issue is a good addition to the storyline, which has been somewhat flat to this point. Through a ubiquitous lens of electric blue (literally the whole issue is almost entirely blue-tinted), readers are finally legitimately rewarded for having stuck with Pete as he, and kind of by extension Slott, struggled to fall back into the old stride. This issue also serves as a means to explore the minds of several different characters in the Spider-Man universe, including the the troubled consciousness of Electro. Regarding Peter Parker’s personal life, this issue’s main goal is to show readers that, although he was ruthless in professional and personal business, Doc Ock was much better prepared to fight some social battles than Peter ever will be, specifically regarding his conduct in Parker Industries.

As guilty as a feel about saying it, while this is significantly stronger than some of the previous issues of the current Amazing Spider-Man series, I maintain to some degree that it’s relatively difficult to appreciate fully the stakes of Peter Parker’s actions. There was never really a period in which I felt that I was watching Peter Parker play the role of Spider-Man while experiencing true brokenness after his family, friends, and business associates had all left him by the wayside. In that same vain, several of the more prominent loose ends from Superior are still left somewhat open, especially in the reader’s understanding of Anna Maria’s emotional state. Personally, I’d like to see a little bit more exploration of characters to whom we grew accustomed through Doc Ock’s eyes, but I don’t hold such against Slott too heavily.

Regarding illustration, even though the issue is seriously blue-heavy, which got a little bit tiresome after about ten pages in a row, Ramos is at the top of his game in capturing the dynamic contrast between action shots and subtle conversations.

Overall, I give Amazing Spider-Man #6 an 8/10 for pacifying the need for some kick-ass spidey action, while still falling short in exploring the psyches of integral second-string characters.

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