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steampunk-swift-arrow · 10 months

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Untitled USM fic:

(With AO3 down due to attacks, I'm posting some fics here for people to read, I'll post them on AO3/ff.net later)

Summery: Peter got injured in a fight and Danny heals him (fluffy)

Relationships: Spideyfist (can be read as platonic), and overall friendship between the kids

Characters: Peter and Danny mainly, but Luke, Ava, and Sam are also here

Words: 573

Peter woke up to the feeling of warmth against the sides of his face and the inability to move his arms. When he opened his eyes he found that he was laying on his back, Luke and Sam both holding his arms down on either side of him, and Ava watching.

“He’s waking up, you can let him move again, guys,” Ava said. The two boys let go, Sam taking flight with a comment about looking around for any signs of more trouble.

Peter looked up to see Danny’s face over his and realized where the warmth was coming from. He felt the other boy’s hands on the sides of his face and his healing chi run through him, his head laying on Danny’s legs.

Using so much power, it was like Danny’s entire body was glowing, but maybe it was just the light around them and the waking up from a head injury that made him look more otherworldly.

Oh, right. Peter had been knocked down by a hard blow to the head from the villain they were fighting. He wasn’t sure how he forgot that, probably the brain damage.

He reached up and removed Danny’s mask, since he himself was maskless. Danny’s eyes had been closed so he could focus on healing Peter but at the feeling of his hands, they opened softly to look at him.

“Spider,” Danny whispered, sounding relieved.

“Hey,” Peter replied, smiling up at him. “Did we win?”

“After you went down like a bag of wet cement, we had Danny focus on healing you while the rest of us stopped the bad guy,” Ava explained.

“We came back and you were moving in your sleep, we had to restrain you so you wouldn’t hurt yourself more,” Luke added.

“So, yeah, we’re basically heroes,” Sam concluded from the air. “We rule.”

“We need to get back to the Helicarrier and get you to a doctor,” Ava stated.

Danny removed his hands and Ava and Luke helped Peter to his feet. Once standing, Peter swayed and Luke caught him, picking him up in one arm.

Ava then helped Danny stand, the blond noticeably tired from using his power extensively.

The group got on their jet and Ava took over the driving, since Danny was too tired for that and wanted to stay close to Peter.

Peter watched the rest of his team as he settled into his chair. Despite the fact that they normally handed the controls to Danny, for reasons he never thought to ask about, Ava and Luke were actually pretty good at piloting. Sam had once bragged about being able to fly spaceships but Peter wasn’t sure about that.

Luke walked over to Danny and handed him a couple powerbars before going back to his seat.

“Wait, you have food hidden here?” Peter asked.

“Yeah, of course we do,” Sam replied. “It’s like a reward for a successful mission, or compensation for failure, it’s whatever.”

“You don’t?” Danny asked, looking at him in surprise and confusion.

“We were trained by SHIELD to prepare for anything, we have food and water on board,” Ava explained.

“That and the fact that we’re teenagers with high metabolisms,” Luke added. “And Danny uses up a lot of his energy using his powers, we keep extra snacks hidden everywhere we go, including our rooms in the Helicarrier.”

“Here,” Danny offered one of the powerbars to Peter. “You need strength too.”

#marvel #usm #spideyfist #ultimate spider-man #spider-man #peter parker #danny rand #iron fist #title suggestions appreciated #fanfiction #edit: it's been several months and I still can't think of a name help

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tinabritton-photography · 4 years

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Artisan research -

In class we were directed to find 5 movie clips, one of which needs to be of an artisan, as this is what our video is to be about.

One of my all time favourite movies since I was a kid was The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. I don’t feel like I’m cheating by adding this film, even though Iain Wallace showed it in class. So many memories flooded back as we watched this film clip. My dad was a Clint Eastwood fan and a fan of the spagetti westerns. I must have seen this particular film 100 times.

2nd sclip is an artisan clip titled The Artisan Press - A film by Stefan José Films @stefanjosefilms. I was inspired by the video in such a way that it made me want to go try the technique. The music was just right and I really liked how the artisan spoke about his craft throughout and the close shots and depth of field used in the video.

3rd clip another artisan film. Shot By SASHA. I could not understand a thing the presenter was saying, but I did not need to even though it was captioned. His voice was deep and mysterious, but as I read the words, I felt the humour and when the drums boomed in the music, suddenly I felt like I was in a photographic gunfight. The music was spot on though, thoroughly enjoyed it. Sasha is a photographer, and because I make art with my photography, that makes me, not only a photographer, but also an artisan. Black and white shots are inspiring and the whole ambience gave me goose bumps. And then I said to myself, damn, she’s using a Hasselblad! I want one.

4th clip, another fav Godzilla. I grew up on Spagetti westerns, Star Trek and Godzilla. Godzilla 2014. While I find the old Godzilla movies the best, I was rivetted by the cinematography of this 2014 version. The shots were dynamic and the entire movie was visually stunning.

Another favorite film of mine Blade Runner. A cinematic wonder. But now, we have Blade Runner 2049. A move that saw Roger A. Deakins, after 14 nominations over the years, win the Oscar® for Cinematography. I looked for some movie clips for this movie and found so many, but I also found a video created by Vice as they went to the set during the making of the film. Inside the Making of ‘Blade Runner 2049′.

I have also included ‘The Beauty Of’ which are film segments in a soundscape.

Artisan Research -

Cinematography is defined as the art and science of how light is recorded with an image sensor or on film. It encompasses the camera, how we move the camera, the images it collects and the light entering the lens.

Video is storytelling, no mature if we are making a movie or an Artisan video is key. The viewer is led through each frame at a time through the story of who a person is and why they practice their craft.

Cinematography is setting a mood framework in which to tell you story in. Camera angles and movement, lighting choices and colouring are an important part of setting a mood.

Lighting is a huge concern in Cinematography. There is natural light, if there are sufficient windows, or there is a partly cloudy day.

https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/cinematography-techniques-no-film-school/#cinematography

Different types of camera shots –

· Close-ups creates empathy and personality

· Extreme long shot includes lots of space about the area and landscape behind the subject. This establishes general location, say, as in the beginning of a scene.

Camera angles –

· High angles – Looks down on the subject. This can make the subject seem vulnerable or small so look at for this.

· Low angle – looking up at a subject/ character. This can give the character a more powerful feel. It can also make the viewer feel smaller in comparison.

Some of the Best Lenses for filming –

· Prime lenses are tops – Canon, Sony or Sigma 35mm, 40mm, 50mm, 85mm, 105mm

· Zoom lenses – Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 USM, 70-200mm f/2.8 USM, 24-105 f/3.5-5.6 IS STM, etc.

· https://www.adorama.com/alc/6-best-canon-lenses-for-videography

Lighting –

Film/Cinematography lighting is similar to photography lighting.

· Lighting creates atmosphere and mood.

· Candlelit

· Dark and shadowy is eerie

· Key lighting

· Fill lighting

· Backlighting

· Side lighting

· Practical lighting – Practical lighting is using lamps, candles, light from appliances like the tv. These can create rich cinematic night time scenes.

· Bounce lighting

· Soft lighting

· Hard light

· High Key lighting

· Low key lighting

· Motivated lighting – mimics natural light such as, moonlight, street lamps, sunlight and night time.

· Ambient light – Using available light perhaps with some diffusers.

· https://www.adorama.com/alc/basic-cinematography-lighting-techniques

Mise en scene –

· French for “The arrangement of the scenery, props, etc. on the stage of a theatrical production or on the set of a film” I.E. the setting or surroundings/composition of an event. From the Oxford dictionary.

Diegetic sound –

· Is a sound in the scene that was natural to the scene such as an opening door and closing and footsteps recorded in real time. If a sound can be heard in real life, this is diegetic sound.

Non-diegetic sound –

· This is sound that is added to a video work during the editing process such as music for effect or mood.

Editing –

· Dissolve – when one scene melts into another. This can show the passage of time. The character can be in one place and then there apartment in the next.

· Wipes – Can be used as a transitional technique from one scene to another. Use them sparingly, or not at all, in my opinion.

Camera movement –

· Panning – This can be used to give the audience a panoramic view of a setting to establish a scene. There are different types of pans, such as, the whip pan which is fast. It jolts the audience. A slow pan gives the audience time to admire the landscape or take in the scene.

· Slow push in –

· Static shot –

· The tilt – the tilt is a reveal tactic, bringing something to our attention.

· The zoom – the zoom is sudden incoming shot into the scene.

· The dolly – the dolly is a gliding shot that moves the camera fon a track system forward or sideways into or through a space.

· The reverse dolly zoom – is the reverse of the dolly in that it is zooming out from the seen on a dolly track system. This is an intense technique.

· The pedestal shot – this moves the camera up and down

· The crane or boom shot – this could also involve a camera tilt. The crane or boom shot – the definition is in the name. This is a huge 3 dimensional move. The camera is mounted onto a crane or boom and moves in large sweeping motions to capture a scene.

· Steadicam or gimble shot – Like a dolly, only the camera is attached to the camera operator which allows for a graceful glide through the scene.

· Handheld shot – the camera moves through the shot much like a dolly or Steadicam, only it causes a shaky effect to the seen which adds immediacy and anxiety in the audience. We see these shots in found footage films like Blair Witch.

· Rack Focus – the camera does not move the camera, it moves the lens. It is a focus shift.

Combining these techniques into your film can make for an interesting film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbnYBmqBbKA

Special effects –

· Are effects that cannot be captured through the usual filming techniques.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvybQ5RpMkc

Colour Palettes –

Here are some colour palettes from my research. These are quite interesting and informative.

#Artisan

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hellzyeahthewebwieldingavenger · 6 years

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Let’s talk about Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man PS4

SPOILERS for the video game!!!!!!!!

Whilst Marvel celebrated Doc Ock’s 50th anniversary in 2013 by making him the main character and presenting him as a creepy abusive scumbag, he is getting a comparatively better treatment for his 55th anniversary thanks to Spider-Man PS4.

As a character unto himself, PS4 Doc Ock is simply put one of the best renditions of Doc Ock ever, as worthy (and possibly even superior) rendition of the character than even Alfred Molina’s stellar performance in Spider-Man 2.

I have mixed feelings upon him as an adaptation of the character only because in both the Raimi films and most renditions of his origin, enduring an accident is a critical thematic aspect of his character, as is the loss of a loved ones after we got his origin in the 1990s.

In the comics giving up his fiancée and the death of his mother was what made his mind fragile enough that his accident pushed him over the edge. In Spider-Man 2 the loss of his lover and the death of a loved one was consolidated into the character of his wife Rosie. In that movie in order to make him sympathetic (and therefore work as a villain for the big screen than just be a black and white mad scientist) they added in the idea of his AI arms stimulating his darker impulses. In the comics this didn’t happen but rather his accident combined with his surviving it stronger than ever broke his fragile mind and unleashed his ego.

These elements spiritually I feel are important to the character because they make him a reflection of Spider-Man himself.

Tom DeFalco, the best Doc Ock writer of all time (author of his origin in fact), once said that one of the major factors distinguishing Peter from Otto was that Otto had his transformative accident later in life than Peter did. This meant he was already full of old cynicism and bitterness and set in his ways, not as easily able to course correct himself compared to the young Peter Parker who learned the error of his ways shortly after getting his powers.

His relationship with his mother in the comics and his wife in the movie are equally important counterpoints to Peter. When Doc Ock debuted THE most important relationship in Peter’s life was with his mollycoddling mother figure Aunt May who was prone to illness and needed him to support her, but also wanted Peter to have a life beyond her (noticeably by setting him up with Mary Jane, a potential wife). Otto’s mother by contrast was overbearing and smothering, Aunt May taken up to 11 but also insisted Otto make her the centre of his world even at the expense of the woman he was engaged to. In the movies Peter’s most important relationship is with Mary Jane, the woman he had been pushing away because he felt he couldn’t be with her and be Spider-Man due to endangering her life. Thus Rosie and her death is a commentary upon Peter and MJ’s relationship.

So these elements being absent from Doc Ock’s character do bother me a lot.

However in other respects the character’s central ideas are explored and recontextualized in ingenious ways.*

Whilst Doc Ock was never truly a father figure or mentor figure for Spider-Man in the comics, it’s certainly not something that doesn’t work, at least not in a unique universe of it’s own which is trying to respect the spirit of the comics but also have it’s own identity.

In fact the idea of making Octavius a scientific mentor figure to Spider-Man was already briefly done in the 1994 cartoon, an aspect that a lot of viewers actually really loved. Spider-Man 2 picked up on that idea but did it differently and this game again handled the same idea differently.

The biggest factor making the game the best rendition of the idea though is how much time they put into developing their relationship to the point where when Otto betrays Peter and the final battle comes it just hurts; helped by incredibly strong vocal performances.

The time invested in the relationship is equally one of the factors contributing to this being the best take on Doc Ock period.

A microcosm of the brilliance of this version of the character is in his and Peter’s last scene.

In the climax we see examples of how Insomniac paid tribute to concepts surrounding Otto in the movies and the comics, whilst adding in stuff and zigging where older takes zagged.

Like I said there is a father/son dynamic in play here and a student/teacher one too. This is even more poignant given how Peter in smaller ways is this to Miles (albeit more a big brother than a father figure) and we’ll likely see this in future instalments.

The emotion on display is just raw, much as it was earlier in the game when Otto debuted his arms and Peter was both awed and fearful for him, much to Otto’s upset. This was more than anything the moment that sent them down divergent paths but it came out of Otto’s ego crashing into Peter’s good intentions and sincere care.

Otto being a father figure and mentor figure is heightened because, like in the comics, the characters are a reflection of one another. Brown haired geniuses who want to help the world with their scientific acumen. Otto isn’t just an older male figure in Peter’s life who cares for him, his common interests mean that you genuinely could believe he was his father.

All of which fuels the beautiful contrast highlighted between them in the above scene. A contrast that (in Otto’s case) combines the Spider-Man 2 and comic book renditions of his character. Oh and a dash of Dan Slott/Ultimate cartoon.

Like in Spider-Man 2 Otto in this game sees his intelligence as a gift, a privilege and a responsibility.

Also like in Spider-Man 2 his arms (albeit not through corruptive AI tech) has ‘driven him crazy’. This was the original explanation for comic book Doc Ock’s malevolence too, his accident drove him crazy. However eventually in the comics, as was the case in the movie and this game it’s clear Otto being ‘driven crazy’ really meant that extenuating circumstances allowed him to give vent to his ego.

And when doing that we see how Otto corrupts Peter’s defining mantra about great power and great responsibility. From Otto’s ego driven POV his intelligence makes him *ahem* superior to everyone else and therefore it’s his responsibility to do what’s best for them. Which in truth is insincere of him because all he did in the game was serve his own desire for vengeance upon Norman Osborn for undermining him and not letting him shine.

In other words he wanted revenge for Norman not allowing him to show the world how smart he was. Which is comic book Doc Ock all over, he is defined by wanting the world to appreciate how smart he is. It’s also movie Doc Ock because he was willing to endanger everyone to prove how he was correct, and this ego was even present before his arms removed all inhibitions.

But despite all that it is clear Doc Ock in part genuinely does care for other people and isn’t wholly selfish. He cared for Peter and Peter cared for Otto in turn, precisely because he recognized Otto’s humanitarian streak.

Which is awesome characterization because it gives dimensions to Otto. He isn’t ALL bad but he is selfish and egotistical.

Similarly his more nasty and conniving traits are balanced out by this sympathetic desperation.

He tricked Peter into helping him with his evil schemes, tries in this scene to emotionally manipulate or even blackmail Peter but he does it out of desperation because he’s going to turn into a prisoner within his own body.*

The over all effect is a very well rounded and compelling character who is honours a lot of what makes Doc Ock who he is.

*Though it does so in similar ways to other adaptations. In truth you could almost call this version of Doc Ock a remake of the Spider-Man 2 take on the character moreso than a strict adaptation of the comic book version, right down to the utterly cinematic climax in the game.

Which is fine since most people (and I guess I’d be among them) feel that Doctor Octopus has been THE best Spider-Man villain on film.

**Yet another example of Insomniac taking lame ideas from Slott and USM and making them work. Slott invented the idea of Otto’s body degenerating thus he needed his arms to move around and then the USM cartoon designed the ugliest Doc Ock who was just from day one disabled in this way. The video game presents us with classic Doc Ock and sets him on the path of degenerating and from that idea comes his actions to save himself and settle old scores. It’s far better use of this idea than ‘I’m dying guess I’ll be worse than Hitler so people will remember me!’.

#Spider-Man #Peter Parker #Doc Ock #Doctor Octopus #otto octavius #Spider-Man ps4 #Spider-Man Playstation 4 #Insomniac Spider-Man #insomniac games #Dan Slott

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ominousflare · 6 years

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It’s Been A While

So I haven’t been using tumblr for a long time (or used it that much to begin with), but since I’ve found myself some fellow Spider-Man fans here converse with, I feel I might as well become more active, or whatever.

Anyway, I might post my future Superior Spider-Man review here in the future once I get my lazy ass to finish it. I know, I know, it’s a five year old story. I’m incredibly late. Anyway, it’s also an incredibly long review, so I don’t know whether if I should post it here or just the link of it.

For now, I guess I’ll just post a past review of mine. Here’s a review of

ASM #698-700: Dying Wish

Well, it's finally happened. Peter Parker is dead. The bad guy wins. Happy 50th anniversary, Spider-fans! Hope you enjoyed watching your favorite hero kick the bucket on his special day!

I'll be honest with you. I've been preparing for the worst. I was really uncomfortable with the idea of this arc just from reading about its details, that Doc Ock was going to swap brains with Spidey and assume his mantle. It sounded very gimmicky and contrived. Ever since "One More Day" happened, the Amazing Spider-Man comic seemed less like a character study of Peter Parker, with each story becoming a product the writers pitched as the next big thing to draw the readers of tomorrow and keep the book afloat for the next 10-20 years. Even Straczynski's run spent more time exploring the kind of person Peter was as a husband, adding new layers and depths to the hero, instead of turning each book into the blockbuster of the month. That being said... it's a good story. Not a great one, but certainly not the horrible nightmare some of us had hyperbolically generalized in a fit of panic. Somewhat disappointing, but not worth writing death threats about. And honestly, after reading an insightful article written by Cody Wilson of the ever-reliable Spiderfan.org, I realized that we were partially to blame for this "new direction" anyway. It's partly on us, the death of Spider-Man. We can gripe and complain about the writers, editors and Marvel's entire company all day long, but when it comes down to it, we have to face the facts: Spider-Man is a product, and business was booming in spite of all the supposedly "terrible" creative decisions they've made. And like any product, we the customers are a key source of how the business will be run. Over the years prior to ASM #700, Marvel had been selling us different ideas by introducing story elements that would later be used again in "Dying Wish," and our feedback to those elements in earlier stories was what ultimately led to the "Superior Spider-Man," the book that would replace "The Amazing Spider-Man" title for better or worse - at least for a year and 33 issues. Through this review, I hope to address these "elements" and analyze which of them worked for me and which merely raised my anxiety levels.

ANYTHING YOU CAN DO, I CAN DO BETTER

This wasn't the first time a supervillain stole Peter Parker's identity. Back in ASM #602, Chameleon seemingly "killed" Peter in an acid pool and subsequently went about the rest of the day being him; even interacting with Peter's acquaintances and friends. Having the eccentric behavior of improving the lives of whomever he had disguised as, Chameleon did a few selfish things, including punching Mary-Jane's stalker (with the butt of a gun), calling Flash Thompson "Puny Flash" the way he called Peter years ago, and moving Harry's homeless butt into Peter's home. These "improvements" Chameleon made in Peter's life were well-received by readers, myself included, thereby providing Marvel the first piece of the puzzle they needed. I have to admit, Peter calling the ex-bully "Puny Flash" was a guilty pleasure on its own, giving payback to the football star after so long. On the other hand, he's a crippled war hero, so it was still a scummy thing to say. And while it could be fun to see someone carry out these naughty deeds in Peter's favor - doing and saying things some of us wish Peter would just have the guts to do - it could also lead to some really creepy scenes. Let's not forget, these were bad people taking over Peter's life, Octavius the sociopathic egomaniac included. In ASM #602, Chameleon made out with Peter's roommate, who wasn't aware who she was really kissing under that mask; this lack of consent was tantamount to an act of rape.

And then in #700, Otto (in Peter's body) was clearly thinking of having sex with MJ, a woman who would be unaware of the real person she's really sleeping with. This would eventually lead to some even more sleazy storyline in the "Superior Spider-Man," which I'll touch on in the future. Playing devil's advocate for a bit, one could argue that crippling a woman and stripping her naked to show how evil a villain is was in poor taste too, yet Killing Joke was held by millions as some gold standard of storytelling. What Dan Slott wrote seemed trivial by comparison.

KILL HIM TWICE, SHAME ON YOU

There's a reason why "Death of Spider-Man" worked in the Ultimate universe: Peter Parker died being known to his world as a hero, giving us a fitting finality. In the 616 universe, on the other hand? He died leaving a villain perving on his ex-girlfriend! What kind of finality was that?! What a way to shit all over our favorite hero! Of all the feedback Marvel took into consideration, this had to be the dumbest. It's like simple math to them: "People loved Ultimate Death of Spider-Man, therefore they must be okay with killing off 616 Peter Parker and replacing him with a murdering sociopath on his 50th birthday." Unfortunately, the best storytelling is anything but simple math. And unlike USM, the moments right before Peter's death here felt rushed. Ultimate Spider-Man had the benefit of "Ultimate Fallout", a mini series dedicated to addressing how everyone reacted to the death of such a great hero. Amazing Spider-Man didn't have that advantage and had to slap together several "closures" to end the book, including MJ finally confessing to Otto-Peter her love for him, Jonah Jameson finally approving of Spidey as a legit hero, and Peter experiencing a dream sequence where everyone he cared about who died came back to greet and thank him - all within a single issue. These "closures" should have been, in my opinion, focused on in an entirely separate issue of their own, not crammed together with the already crowded plot of #700. It ended up reading like a last minute homework assignment written hastily to beat the deadline.

There's also another thing that bothered me about Peter's final moments. Using the last remnant of his energy in Octavius' dying body, Peter was somehow able to channel the memories in his own body and forced Otto to experience all the guilt and pain he ever felt being Spider-Man. Afterwards, he almost seemed content to pass on the mantle to Doc Ock. Why was he so content with letting this potential killer take over his role as Spidey, and why would his dying wish be for Otto to take care of MJ and his loved ones? He's a selfish and self-centered jerk who only ever cared about himself! Why would he trust him?! No matter how sympathetic Otto came across, and no matter how desperate Peter was, it just didn't make sense. I wish there would have been at least a last desperate struggle on Peter's part to resist letting this psycho do whatever he wanted with his powers, not quietly accept his takeover. In fact, it would have made more sense if Peter had gone to the Avengers or the Fantastic Four instead, where he could have made it his last request to have them stop Doc Ock. Not to mention, they would have bought this "mind-swap" story a lot more than Carlie - who shot him multiple times when he tried to tell her the truth - did.

DRACO IN LEATHER PANTS

The third feedback Marvel collected was the sympathetic side of Octavius. There were a number of stories detailing this, depicting him as a frail young boy in the past who had aspired to be scientist (just like Peter Parker). And there's grounds for such sympathy too, for Otto never received the proper grooming Peter had, thereby being an ideal mirror of Spidey (much like the Joker and Batman). This ambiguous side of Octavius' morality was well-received, along with, of course, Spider-Man 2, where he was made into an even more sympathetic antagonist than his comic counterpart. Yet, the decision to place a murderer behind the mask of the webbed hero for a long period of time is strange and definitely inappropriate. Octavius is tied to at least three deaths, two of which were intentional: Bradley Miles in "Peter Parker: Spider-Man" Vol. 2 #40, James Warden in "Spider-Man/Doctor Octopus: Negative Exposure" #4, and the accidental death of George Stacy in ASM #90. Would that be appropriate for the kids reading this? Spidey's been a huge recognizable icon all over the world, and now kids are going to follow in the footsteps of this scum who thinks it's okay to break the other criminals' jaws or just straight up kill them (the latter of which we'll see in "Superior" later on)? With the recent "racial/sexual diversity" movement a more political Marvel was trying to gun for, I'm surprised they would risk such an idea in our SJW climate, not to mention the aforementioned sexual aggression towards MJ.

Again, there is potential for a good story here... if it's a tale of redemption, which would only work if Octavius turns himself in. Unfortunately, a move like that could possibly end the Spider-Man books for good (unless Peter returns), which is the exact opposite of why Marvel shook things up with this brain-swap in the first place (to keep the sales of Spider-Man books from dying). And even if the books continue with Otto being some kind of anti-hero vigilante hunted by the law, there's no way Spider-Man fans (and probably many parents) could approve of a murderer remaining as the new face of the inspiring hero for long. I think Marvel knew that. Marvel's not stupid. And we knew that Marvel's not stupid, so I'm sure lots of people have speculated Peter Parker's return long before he did. What I don't know is why Marvel even bothered to hide it. It's kinda an obvious eventuality. But when all is said and done, I admit that the idea of a Spider-Man who's not so morally clean does intrigue me, somewhat. Over the years, Spidey cutting loose and unleashing all the strength and powers in him can be cathartic. While it was his integrity that made him an amazing character we could look up to, there was also an underlying pleasure in seeing him punish those who deserve it; in seeing him get a little dirty to get things done. So to have "SpOck" (god that's an awful nickname) stay for a while before Peter eventually come back? I'm actually okay with that. I wouldn't mind seeing a "dark and gritty" chapter for Spider-Man. However, a key reason I would like this approach lies in a factor that applies to me: I haven't read the other darker Spider-Man spin-offs, which brings us to our final feedback and problem.

DARKNESS WITHOUT LIGHT BREEDS APATHY

There were two other Spider-Man spin-offs around the time this story arc was released. "Scarlet Spider" (Vol. 2) and Venom (Vol. 2), both of which received very favorable reviews (Venom, in particular), and were darker takes on the Spider-Man theme of power and responsibility (Scarlet Spider, in particular, since he's literally a clone of Peter Parker). If I want a darker story, I would read either of those. The only reason I didn't was because I only have enough time for Spidey alone. No time for the myriad amount of spin-offs out there. And now a third dark Spider-story is introduced, filled with murders and bloodshed - and believe me, there will be blood. I've mentioned before that I love dark stories. I live for them. They can touch on our basest emotions and provide us a form of catharsis the lighter and warmer tales couldn't. But this is another case of businessmen blindly relying on the numbers without considering the context. Too much darkness can ultimately lead to indifference in your audience, not to mention the fact that the "lighter" stories have their place in storytelling too, offering something dark stories couldn't either: hope, and moral inspiration.

Batman is an amazing character. His stories (often through his rogues' gallery) delve into a complex analysis of the human mind; of our darkest and most frightening emotions and personalities. But not everyone likes reading Batman, and even Batman fans probably don't want every superhero to be like Batman either! That would just dilute his unique quality. Besides, would you want all your heroes to be brooding or morally complex? Did you enjoy the dark and morose Superman in Batman v. Superman or even Man of Steel? Sometimes, we just want heroes to be heroes! Not straight up kill criminals without offering redemption like The Punisher and Wolverine! We already have those in the Marvel universe! Sigh. I'm merely playing devil's advocate here. As I've mentioned, 'Spotto Octavius' wasn't going to stay for the long-term, so it's fine. A temporary period of dark Spider-Man stories is fine. For me. But I do have to put my foot down and lay out what a darker Spider-Man means for the world, and why both writers and business executors alike must be careful not to push the scale too far. Balance. There must always be balance in all things. Take it from Thanos.

WAS THIS STORY ANY GOOD?

I talked a lot about the aspects that came to piece together this Frankenstein monster. But was the story entertaining in its own right? The short answer is yes, especially #698. That first part of the story was truly like Doc Ock said, a magic trick. It began with an ordinary day in the life of Spidey. Nothing seemed unusual. But by the end of it, I was left slack-jawed and so utterly impressed by Slott that I had to read the ending twice to see if I had misread something. The second and third issues went a step further. Essentially, the entire story arc could be summed up with "Peter trying to get back into his own body." But after we knew Peter was running out of time, the pacing of the story started to pick up really, really quickly. The readers would be as concerned as Peter, and at that time, nobody knew what was really going to happen because there was an announcement around that time that "The Amazing Spider-Man" book would come to an end. It's a real page-turning thriller in spite of its simple premise. Most gut-wrenching of all, they made Peter plead for his life. On his birthday.

Talk about a punch to the gut. Brings back tearful memories ("I don't want to go, Mr. Octavius"). Humberto Ramos' art really didn't help things. His depiction of Peter trapped in a dying body was a horrifying sight to endure for me. You could see all the horrid details; his skin decaying, his eye-socket popping out, and blood spilling out everywhere. I could only imagine how painful Peter's final moments were. No wonder many fans were outraged. This wasn't an honorable death in the arms of his loved ones like Ultimate Spider-Man; it was pure torture. Does Dan Slott actually hate Peter Parker? Still, I have to give credit where it's due. It's an emotional story (albeit for the wrong reasons at times), and it's a really ballsy one too where the bad guy actually won. And it wasn't just any bad guy either - it was one of Spidey's biggest bads of all. Since Norman Osborn had already became an Avenger villain, it made sense for the next biggest Spider-Man villain in line, Doc Ock, to be the one who would finally do him in. Now onto the other question: do I like the overall story? No. I don't hate it as much as certain stories in the past (marriage and The Devil come to mind), but on principle, I can't accept this story. I know why they made this story. It's almost the same thing as One More Day. I'm guessing the sales for ASM must have been dropping. And even if it wasn't, even if I'm completely wrong about the comparisons to OMD, I still don't like how shoddily his death was treated. I don't mind a Spider-Man death - I LOVED "Death of Ultimate Spider-Man." It respected and really reminded us why Spidey was the hero we loved. This story felt like just another rushed effort by Dan Slott to clean up the book and move onto the thing he seemingly loved more, Spotto Octavius "The Superior Spider-Man," a book that he's written far better than his entire run in ASM. Are we sure Dan is a Spider-Man fan? Or did he just like Otto?

To clarify, I don't begrudge Dan. It's more of the corporate decisions of Marvel executives that I'm so infuriated about. It's always the executives at one point or another whenever we are talking about a creatively-skewed story. And while his work might have been sloppy throughout most of his run, I was reminded recently that it might be due to Marvel pushing him with agendas and deadlines, so again, not his fault. What's done is done. And I've already began reading "Superior", even as I'm writing this. It's not bad, and it's everything I expected: an extremist Spidey willing to cross the line to get things done. I like it, just not how we got there. I mean, give me a break, Peter was my hero. Is it too much that I wanted a death that wasn't as insulting? At the least, I wish that "dream sequence" I mentioned was more than just a dream, and everyone Peter cared about actually came to pat him on the back for doing a good job, that it was time for him to rest. The fact that it was only a dream felt like the final slap to his face. "Good job, hero. Now get the f*** out of here."

Final Rating: Two webs out of five

I was going to give this story three webs initially. I really did. But looking back now at how Peter's death was treated, I feel more infuriated than satisfied, and also annoyed that it was just another corporate decision that never stuck, since he would come back later anyway. It cheapened the already cheapened idea of the comic book death. Now, even one of the most iconic heroes of all time suffered from the tired cliche of meaningless death.

Next time, I shall finally witness the birth of this supposedly "Superior Spider-Man" and see if Otto could truly surpass our lovable Pete as the hero we deserve:

#spider-man #spider-man fans #amazing spider-man #dying wish #dan slott #doc ock #doctor octopus

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