Merry Christmas from the Man Who Collects Spider-Man

Dear all, Readers, Followers, Fans et all.

Well it's that time of year again. and I would like to take this oportunity to wish all of youand your families a Very Happy Christmas.

It's been a hectic year for our favourite Hero "Spider-Man" who is currently embroiled within the Spider-Verse. and for me on a personal level as since i started this page in September it's grown and grown in popularity and that it solely thanks to you readers and followers. I'm very grateful that you all have taken the time to read my articles and helped build the fanbase of my page. Amazingly since September this page has had over 6000 views from every corner of the world showing me that Spider-Man is truely a Global icon. Of course that should't be a surpirse to us as we know he is the Worlds Greatest Superhero.

I sincerely wish you all and you families a great time this Christmas as we all enjoy the festivities I hope that you will join me in 2015 and with your continued readership the it's can grow bigger. I look forward to providing you all with stories and information and reviews into the New Year lets hope the Spider-MAn News brings us all good cheer.

Happy Honiker, Feliz Navidad Merry Christmas.

The Man Who Collects Spider-Man.

 

Marvel Reveal Potential Plan for Spidey in the MCU

The latest rumors regarding the never-ending saga that is the battle between Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios for control of everybody's favourite wall crawler has yielded yet more tantalizing speculation and raised hopes even further.

It has been reported by various sources over the course of todaty, that back in November this year there was an email sent from Andrew Gumpert who is the President of Business Affairs and Administration for Columbia Pictures to Amy Pascal stating that Marvel indicated to him that in Civil War Peter Parker would be recruited by Tony Stark, in a storyline reminiscent to the comicbook arc.

The email also revealed that further to wanting to use Spider-Man in Civil War, that Marvel also had plans to have Spidey appear in both the forthcoming Avengers Movies Infinity War pt 1 and 2/ which means we could see the aboive scene played out on the silver screen. Additionally it was outlined that Marvel requested that Sony in turn would release a solo Spider-Man film around 2017. where Peter Parker was living in a world where superhero's were dealing with the fall out from the events of Civil War, although Peter would be depicted as being once again back in high school and living with Aunt May (When will somebody allow Spider-Man to become a man?)

Marvel by this account had also requested that following Infinity War that Sony will be required to release a Solo Spider-Man sequel in 2019 as they don't believe that waiting too long between sequels benefits either party and it would seem that Marvel are quite keen to capitalize on having their most profitable asset back under their umbrella in some form,

Now, personally i'm equally excited and a bit worried by this news, firstly the thought of Tony Stark being the person who creates the Spider costume for Peter doesn't quite sit right with me, unless it's the well known Iron-Spider costume from the comics. I mean admit it who wouldn't want to see this gracing our cinema screens in 2016

 Secondly it's the thought of yet another Spider-Man movie where he's recently acquired his powers and is living with Aunt May. Really?? have we not explored that enough on the cinema screen? what is there more that can be gained in regressing Peter Parker back to a teenager once again. Seriously lets have him established already. after all there's more compelling stories to be explored when he's older. rather than having to revert to a teen Parker, just to allow kids to relate. What about the long term fans how many times do Marvel or Sony think we will pay to see yet another adaptation of angst driven youth?

Just let him grow up already!

The icing on the cake though is the idea that Cometh the War of Infinity Cometh the Spider. This i really cannot wait to see. Spidey in a cosmic battlefield along with other hero's battling the Mad Titan.

I hope among all hope that Marvel and Sony can see eye to eye at the planned January Spider-Man summit at Pinewood as there are things we the fanbase deserve to see and Spider-Man lining up alongside the Avengers and others in an attempt in taking down Thanos, is what Cinema was invented for. after all this would be epic beyond anyone's wildest dreams if they managed to pull it off.

So what are your thoughts on Marvel rumored plans are you excited?> or would you prefer a cooling off period before a Sony relaunch?

why not comment below. or click the button to follow on google+ or follow on twitter @TelFirth for blog updates or additionally like our Facebook Page The Man who Collects Spider-Man

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Review: Scarlet Spiders #2 The Other

Story By: Mike Costa

 

Artist: Paco Diaz

 

       Cover Art: Isreal Silva

 

Publisher: Marvel Comics

 

Cover Price: $3.99

Scarlet Spider's #2 two continues the story of what happened to Ben Reilly, Kaine and The Ultimate universe's Jessica Drew on their mission to one of the Inheritors homeworld, where they've discovered is the location of the cloning facility that enables the Inheritors to return from the dead.

The structure of this series is clearly designed to place each of the Spider's within the story at the forefront within. the first part was Black widow centric and key to relling the tale of the mission from Jessica's perspective. 

For this insralment the story focuses more on the role of Kaine, as the spider's infiltrate the Baxter Building of this universe where the cloning facility resides. The writing for this issue is much  better than the last, though a lot of that is down to the pace being picked up as the story unfolds. The action is also well depicted by the art of paco Diaz who again appears to have improved since the last issue as at times during "The Widow" the artwork seemed rushed. However in this issue the art and writing are both consistently solid meanng perhaps that the inconsistencies of the first issue have been ironed out like the kinks on an opening night of a performance as such. 

The issue kicks of where it was left where Kane is pretending to be the captive of Iron Man, although inside the armour is Ben Reilly as the two clones attempt to gain entry to the Baxter Building. A paln that seems to be working till they are stopped by the Human Torch. who demands to know whats going on and where Iron Man is taking Peter Parker.

The pair manage to take down the torch and the subsequent security team to infiltrate further into the baxter building hunting the main cloning factory. The banter between Kaine and Ben evoke a strong feeling of ying and yang that is Peter Parker's personality but it's interesting to see and a welcome part of the story given the history of the two characters not essentially these two iterations.  and after all it's easy to forget at times that the pair are for all intense purpose's Peter Parker, just with different experiences. 

They make their way along a corridor and find a lab technician whom Kaine politely invites to let them into the lab. Once inside they discover they've found the cloning pods that house the spare empty shells that the inheritors have been stockpiling ready to download their consciousness into when required. 

Elsewhere in the facility we find Jennix in discussion with this worlds Miles Warren (Yes that Miles Warren) over the infiltration by a mystery team that appears to be invisible or extremely fast . here you get the impression that Jennix is fully aware of whom the mystery infiltrators are and is formulating a plan on how to deal with the three Spiders. 

Back in the lab Ben contacts Jessica for any information she can find regarding switching of the power feeds that are keeping the clone shells alive. she informs him the main power generator is on the other side of the building which may prove troublesome to get to, cue Kaine in stealth mode as he then battles his way through various security to establish a path to the power generator.

Kaine returns to Ben saying he's found something Reilly needs to see, and leads him to a chamber when in pods are the failed clones of Jennix.  and a few revelations and questions are answered as not to spoil i'll just leave that there although suffice to say that a few elements are explained in a way that makes sense and explains why, although the Inheritors have the means to create clones, they continue to hunt Spider's instead of just cloning them and feasting on the clones. 

I'm eager to see the outcome of this story and it's been a nice little side arc from the main Spider-Verse tale being played out in Amazing Spider-Man. the fact that we finally have Ben Reilly playing an important role after 16 years in the wilderness has something to do with that, and it's possible he has a bigger more signigficant part to play in Scarlet Spiders #3.

Overall i'm going to score this issue a 7.5 it's a good issue it moves the story along well and has excellent moments of action coupled with good banter between Ben and Kaine. 

 Do you have an opinion on "Scarlet Spiders #2"? why not comment below. or click the button to follow on google+ or follow on twitter @TelFirth for blog updates or additionally like our Facebook Page The Man who Collects Spider-Man

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Marvel Rumored to be working on a Spider-Man Script!

Could we be seeing this in 2017?

Here we go again, following the latest revelations and fall out from the Sony hack scandal and e-mail leaks come's yet another rumor regarding everyone's favorite wall crawling wonder.

I'm sure some if not all of you will no doubt be aware of the rumors and speculation that seems to have been since confirmed that Sony Picture's Entertainment and Marvel Studio's did indeed have a series of meetings and discussions regarding having Spider-Man appear in Captain America 3: Civil War. following that movie in 2016 the rumour states that Sony will release a new Spider-Man film that is being produced by Marvel Studios who will also retain all creative control and Sony will be the sole distribution rights and have a share in the profits and the merchandise. Apparently this information is set to be released early next year following Sony's Spider-Man summit to which they have invited Kevin Feige and other Marvel execs to be a part of. This information regarding the invitation by Sony to Marvel to return to talk came from Seven Webheads whom you may know in any case you can find the youtube video below.

If this news is true then I'll be whooping up and down the streets in un-contained joy however after that little titbit and further investigation it turned out that a few other news sites got wind of another rumor that appeared to allud to the list of actors that Marvel have in mind to take over the role of Peter Parker\ Spider-Man for the next set of films.

Before we all throw our toys out the pram, this news pretty much confirms that Andrew Garfield has indeed been cast aside by Sony as for the reasons I stated in my piece yesterday. Those thinking that Marvel should just recast Andrew for the new set of films should be aware that Marvel apparently have plans for Andrew Garfield in a future role within the MCU.

There had been released online a list of potential actors that Marvel see could take the Spider-Man franchise forward the list of names are as follows. Anton Yelchin, Dylan O'Brien, Freddie Highmore, Thomas Mann, Logan Lerman, Michael Angarano, Douglas Booth, Nat Wolff, and Skandar Keynes. Now not exactly household names I'm sure you will agree, but seeing as it was reported that Amy Pascal of Sony Pictures Entertainment had a favoring for Ryan Gosling these names by Marvel are at least an improvement on that choice. Not too mention given Marvels track record in making excellent casting choices for their leads i'm sure each and every one of those actors on the shortlist has the ability to do the role justice. Though If i had to pin my colours to the mast I'd go for Logan Lerman following his impressive performance in Fury recently as my pick. but hey that's the fun right? why not let me know who from that list you see as Spidey.

Logan Lerman 

the most exciting news that broke from the rumor last night however is that Marvel are already developing a script for a stand alone movie for perhaps a 2017 release, with the villains slated as the front runner being. either Mysterio, Shocker or even Kingpin using Vincent D'Onofrio to reprise his role from Daredevil.

Now i don't know about the rest of you but this latest rumor really has me excited given the proposed Marvel involvement. lets just hope that the rumors are true and the Spidey summit goes smoothly. It is said that Kevin Feige is extremely confident that things will come to fruition and I'm sure that he knows this is what the fans want. to have Spidey under the Marvel banner. Man it feels like Christmas.

So what do you make of the latest rumor? why not comment below. or click the button to follow on google+ or follow on twitter @TelFirth for blog updates or additionally like our Facebook Page The Man who Collects Spider-Man

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Is it Time for Sony to relinquish Spider-Man?

Over the last few days a few revelations have emerged regarding the future of the Spider-Man franchise currently in the hands of Sony Pictures Entertainment.

The internet is buzzing with a couple of big pieces of news that have been leaked due to the Sony hack-gate. Possibly the biggest revelation revealed was the news that Sony had indeed recently been in tentative negotiations with Marvel Studio's regarding Spider-Man being used in the forthcoming Captain America movie Civil War, in a joint venture that would have seen our favourite web-slinger finally making his bow in the MCU.

There are conflucting reports on the internet doing the rounds, with some news sites reporting that the deal has in fact broken down and Marvel have left the table. Whilst there are some reporting that the heads of Sony in Japan are not happy with the talks breaking down and they have ordered that in light of the lack of options available to the company that talk be resumed. Now interestingly it has been rumoured that Sony are set to announce their plans regarding the future of the Spider-Man franchise early in the new year, perhaps as early as January. Could this mean that Sony are at least open to the possibility that Spider-Man become a shared property between the two studios? is there yet a chance we could be seeing these posters in early 2016? 

Now before you and indeed I lose out shit in excitement over the fan made poster above it would appear that a lot of talking would need to take place before we get anywhere near to having Spidey appear in CA 3: Civil War. one of the conditions of any deal between the two studio's, seemed to be dependent on Sony having involvement in the creative direction of Marvel's movie, Sony also wanted the opportunity to use Captain America to set up Sony's Sinister Six movie.  not to mention final say on the casting decision on the recasting of Peter Parker\Spider-Man.

This brings me to the second piece of news that emerged. it would seem that Sony have become frustrated and annoyed with comments from Andrew Garfield regarding the poor reception for Amazing Spider-Man 2. back in early September Garfield has this to say during an interview with Internet news site Daily Beast.

" It’s interesting. I read a lot of the reactions from people and I had to stop because I could feel I was getting away from how I actually felt about it. For me, I read the script that Alex [Kurtzman] and Bob [Orci] wrote, and I genuinely loved it. There was this thread running through it. I think what happened was, through the pre-production, production, and post-production, when you have something that works as a whole, and then you start removing portions of it—because there was even more of it than was in the final cut, and everything was related. Once you start removing things and saying, “No, that doesn’t work,” then the thread is broken, and it’s hard to go with the flow of the story. Certain people at the studio had problems with certain parts of it, and ultimately the studio is the final say in those movies because they’re the tentpoles, so you have to answer to those people."

Andrew Garfield Spider-Man No More?

 It was these comments made by Garfield that alluded to Studio execs and producers Matt Tolmach and Avi Arad interferring in the creative process of the movie that resulted in a disjointed film that was littered with pacing issues and tonal problems. it's also thought that it was the studio's insistence that the Rhino was shoehorned into the film, and the direction was geared towards pushing the Sinister six, rather than concentrating on the continuing narrative of the Amazing Spider-Man 1.

It would appear however that the Studio's patience ran out with Andrew Garfield over a perceived snubbing by the actor of the Sony heads at a gala dinner where the actor failed to show informing them with an hour's notice that he would be unable to attend the event. So it seems that in an act of petty spite the studio terminated Garfield's contract in October this year.

It should be noted that October this year is around the time that re-boot rumours started up and hitting the internet with noises that a new actor could be playing the wall-crawler.

There have also been further revelations shown in Email exchanges between Sony Entertainment heads that they are close to running out of options with regards to Spider-Man and unless a deal can be reached with Marvel then the direction for the character under their stewardship is limited.

Therefore with this knowledge in mind is Sony's time up when it comes to Spider-Man? I personally think so. As these memo's between Jeff Robinov and Amy Pascal show, 

"Jeff Robinov, former ex-Warner Bros VP now head of Sony's Studio 8 is trying to prevent a deal that would see Sony collaborate with Marvel on
the future of the Spider-Man franchise.


In an email dated November 13 sent to Amy Pascal, Sony Pictures
co-chairman, Robinov outlined a plan to reboot the entire Spider-Man
franchise again with new leads in the vein similar to the long running
James Bond films.
Robinov also suggests possibly bringing on Stan Lee to invent a new
character for Sony to exploit. Furthermore, the conversation between
Robinov and Pascal implies that unless Sony decides to partner with
Marvel, they're running out of options.


The latest "Sony Hack" also pertains to actor Ryan Gosling. Pascal is
keen on offering the actor a number of parts and asks a colleague to ask the actor about starring in either the Steve Jobs biopic, or their planned Spider-Man spin-off "Sinister Six" possibly as their new Spider-Man."

No one is doubting Ryan Gosling's acting ability, but is he the man who screams Peter Parker? and the news that Robinov is suggesting that Sony employ Stan Lee, a man who is approaching his 92nd birthday just to create a new character for them to use, shows how out of touch Sony execs are.   

I strongly believe as do many others, that Sony have had their time. They've had a go at Spider-Man and produced five  movies over the course of twelve years. As yet they've failed to deliver a good quality Spider-Man film. Now some of you may argue that Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 2 was close to perfection, but where were the quips? where was the flowing Spider-Man humour? where was the character growth of Peter Parker? and oh look it resulted in Mary Jane being kidnapped yet again by the antagonist, 

For me Sony are done. Now it's time to give the public what they want. Spider-Man in the MCU in a solo movie produced by Marvel Studio's, Why because Marvel love the character he is their flagship hero and has been for nearly 50 years.he is their greatest creation and if they can turn a movie about a bunch of misfits a racoon and a tree into a world wide smash then imagine what they could do with Spider-Man. Not too mention Marvel have at their disposal a wealth of creative talent in writers,people who indeed understand the character and his supporting cast. 

Sony have given us some entertaining Spider-Man films over the years but now it's time for them to move aside. it's time to let someone else have a go. it's time for a Superior Spider-Man. 

 So what side of the argument are you on? Sony Entertainment or Marvel Studio's pick a side a and lets debate this. why not comment below. or click the button to follow on google+ or follow on twitter @TelFirth for blog updates or additionally like our Facebook Page The Man who Collects Spider-Man

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Review: Amazing Spider-Man #11 - Higher Ground Spider-Verse Pt 3

Released 12.10.14

Story By: Dan Slott

Artist: Olivier Coipel

 

            Cover Art: Olivier Coipel

Publisher: Marvel Comics

 

Cover Price: $3.99

 

So, here we are at last. the subplot of Spider-Verse we've all been waiting for. Amazing Vs Superior, over who gets to lead the Spider Army and a chance for Peter to vent a few frustrations.  

I did have a slight fear with that the build up to this issue would in fact have a showdown between these two would detract from the bigger picture and overshadow the overall premise of Spider-Verse, thankfully those fears were completely unfounded and this issue gave us everything we needed and more. Seriously when it comes to huge Spider tales Dan Slott knows what he's doing. Before this event started I had a feeling that this particular Marvel event would eclipse the other main Marvel events this year and given the disappointment of "Original Sin" and Axis it would prove to be the case that Spider-Verse is superior to those, or should that be amazing? 

In my pre-event article. I asked if Spider-Verse would be Dan Slott's opus, which you can read here  So three issues into the arc, I have to say that both Dan and Olivier Coipel are smashing it out of the park. It's not often that Marvel deliver's on a promise and we were promised an stonker of a story. so without any further ado lets delve into this issue and pick the bones out of this baby (pun intended) shall we?

The book opens immediately where we left the closing in ASM #10, Peter confronts Superior, informing him that he will be the SPider to lead the army not SpOCK. (Cue fanboy squee's) SpOCK demands to know why it should be Peter, who promptly hits him in the face and there ensues a minor skirmish between the two. Slott dealt with this moment very well, He would have known that fans would've been anticipating the showdown between the two and here he gets it out of the way quickly and subtly. Plus the way Peter gets SpOCK to fall into line with a clever piece of trickery is very satisfying indeed. 

The pace of the story moves at a lightening pace once again here and you can feel the intensity of the situation flowing of the page, once again coupled with the beautiful artistry of Coipel. It's such a shame that this issue marks the end of the artist's involvement in this story, however all is not lost and Gianluigi Camuncoli takes over pencils from ASM #12.  

Peter then makes the decision that the Spider army need to leave the confines of the "Safe Zone" Earth-13 but not before agreeing with SpOCK that their numbers need replenishing following the Spider's that have fallen. for this Peter sends Miles and Cartoon Spidey from the Ultimate Spider-Man tv show off on a mission to recruit other spider's to join the cause. 

There is then a moment or two of checking in with Spider-Woman, Kaine, Reilly, Ultimate Black Widow and Miguel O'Hara, who are already embarked on missions for the spider army. receiving word that Spider-Man Noir has been taken down and that they were returning them to his own world to recover, Peter takes off to meet them there with Spider-Gwen and Anya Corazon. leaving Spider-Uk in charge. SpOCK makes a crack about fighting him for it which was funny to see Spider-Uk's response.

After Peter has left the army face an attack from the inheritors, where Morlun, Jennix and their father Solus  appear in via a portal and instantly kill Spider-Monkey. (Ensuring that Spider-Ham will probably make it through this event) Cosmic Spider-Man informs the inheritors they've made an error attacking them in his domain, as he is in possesssion of the Enigma Force. the inheritors suffer their second casulty here as Cosmic Spidey kill's Jennix, who in turn respawns back at the cloning facility that the Spider Clones had gone to destroy in  Scarlet Spider's #1 an issue I reviewed here, 

Solus then informs Cosmic that there is no place that the spider's can hide and that he is a God of the multi-verse and as Cosmic Spider-Man unleashes the full force of his Universe's power at Solus, the inheritor just laughs and devours him. The closing of this issue also gas a big reveal as to whom the Scion is. and also the inheritors need to get him or her. as it transpires the Scion is the one who can end the reign of the inheritors, and by the end of the Issue the Scion is firmly in their grasp. 

The score for ASM #11 was a impressive 9.0 this storyline continues to amaze and impress, and leaves you craving for ASM #12 and leaves lamenting the mini break for Christmas

Pick it up you won't be disappointed 

Do you have an opinion on "Amazing Spider-Man #11"? why not comment below. or click the button to follow on google+ or follow on twitter @TelFirth for blog updates or additionally like our Facebook Page The Man who Collects Spider-Man

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The Real Clone Saga Vs The 90's Clone Saga

 

Spider-Verse a multi Spider-Man event is currently well underway within the comics with numerous tie-in's. There's Tie-in books crossovers, Cartoons, and also a cell-phone app game in Spider-Man Unlimited to mark this huge event, However it's not really anything new is it? in fact twenty years ago back in 1994 we Spider-Man fans and readers alike were subjected to a massive multi Spider-Man event with a story line that encompassed two long years of telling, a series of crossovers and tie-in books and two episodes of then current Spider-Man cartoon, Spider-Man The Animated Series. Funny isn't it. Although this article isn't really about comparisons between Spider-Verse and the Clone Saga I just thought that the premise of both had a similar feel. No this article is about the Clone Saga. Something that is still a touchy subject for some Spider-Man fans.

That brings me to the basis of this article, the 90's Clone saga was an unmitigated disaster for Marvel and caused damage to the character itself. there were a number of Spider-Fans that indeed dropped the book during and after the story arc due to editorial decisions that drove a large portion of the fan base away in protest of the over complicated and convoluted story lines that arose during the two years. Coupled with the fact that no-one at Marvel seemingly had any idea of how to actually get themselves out of the hole they'd dug for themselves. which resulted in an incomprehensible resurrection of Norman Osborn and a total final death for Peter Parker's clone, Ben Reilly.

That is not to say that the whole two years was a wasted venture. there were some decent parts to the 90's clone saga, some thought provoking elements and also some decent character development. not too mention the very emotional Death of Aunt May which was later retconned in the absolute debacle the storyline was to become. Make no bones about it there was a lot wrong with the Clone saga but there was some good too.

In the late summer of 2009, the powers that be obviously thought so too, as they released a condensed version of the Clone Saga billed as "The Real Clone Saga" with the tagline how the story should have been told. the issue here was how to condense two years, and roughly 100 issues of Spider-Man books into a six issue arc. The answer? well by leaving out a lot of the nonsense elements from the saga itself. 

Written by Tom DeFalco "The Real Clone Saga" attempts to pick the bones of one of the most disliked Spider-Man stories of the last twenty years and some how manages to create an adequate tale and provide the reader some insight and clarification as what it was Marvel were trying to say in the 90's tale. of course there are some flaws which is to be expected when trying to turn an turd into a diamond  chances are you're going to get some shit on you. 

The flaws are that by condensing a lot of the material, you lose a lot of the little nuances that went into the overall narrative, for instances in The Real Clone Saga, we jump months between the issues, we go from Peter encountering Ben on the hospital rooftop in issue 1, to the start of issue two where Ben is working as a short order cook and barista for The Daily Grind, thus losing a lot of character development. On the flipside though, The Real Clone Saga, almost completely omits the whole Maximum Clonage arc thank god for that although can anybody really truly forget Spidercide? that one's burned into my mind for all eternity so thanks for that Marvel. 

Here though we have the story as Tom DeFalco wanted us to see his vision and for the most part it's ok, although it does bare a remarkable similarity to the events of Spider-Girl's backstory and plays out like the MC2 version of events with Kaine rescuing baby May from the Goblins clutches and returning her to Mary Jane. 

In fact in thinking about it a lot of the Real Clone Saga actually feels as though it could be the MC2 clone sage, as whereas in the 90's version Ben Reilly is brutally murdered by the Green Goblin and then crumbles to dust, in DeFalco's revised edition Ben Reilly survives and rides off into the sunset, ready to fight another day, whilst the Parkers remain united in their family with Aunt May Mary Jane and Baby May all intact and Peter still fighting the good fight, providing a more satisfactory conclusion, than the messy convoluted aspects of the 90's version 

that's not to say that the The Real Clone Saga is a masterpiece, far from it. In fact you could argue that all the condensed version from 2009 does is elevate the Clone Saga from an utter debacle and complete waste of two years to a below average story that's slightly more palatable to the reader 

In conclusion the main reason that the 2009 version is better to the 90's version is, that it's significantly shorter and not as much a tedious read. the story itself has a slightly better outcome and there is no Maximum Clonage crap. a small redemption for Kaine and a happier ending for the Parkers. Would I now therefore recommend people read this story? Not really, not unless you have a burning curiosity to, I would say if you feel yourself curious enough to attempt the Clone Saga then you'd be better off picking up the DeFalco version as the 90's version will just leave you in a quivering heap whilst your brain slowly oozes out of your eyes.

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Opinion: Why Spider-Man would work better as a TV show.

With the future of the Amazing Spider-Man movie franchise steeped in doubt not to mention Sony Pictures failing ability to produce an acceptable Spider-Man movie. One that is capable of reaching or at least matching the levels of Marvel Studio's movies. Maybe it's time that Sony Pictures considered another avenue for the Worlds greatest Superhero to ply his adventures on. The medium of television.

After all it's happened before. Back in the late 1970's there was a live action T.V series of The Amazing Spider-Man starring Nicholas Hammond as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. the problem was at that time there were no recognized Spider villains for Spidey to go up against due to budget constraints and production costs. So in that case they has an under-powered Spider-Man taking on normal criminals and general crime. there were other aspects to the show that made it camp and a bit rubbish. These days however it seems to have garnered a bit of a cult following. You can find a number of episodes today on youtube and who could forget the funky opening credits music or sequences,

 

That shouldn't be a down point though, as Television and most certainly technology has moved on significantly from the days of the 1970's. just take a look at the comic book adaptations that are on TV nowadays, There's The Walking Dead, Arrow, Constantine, Marvels Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D, The Flash. In the coming year we can expect, Agent Carter, Daredevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones and no doubt more on the horizon.So why should there be a Spider-Man live action television series? 

For one, the technology is now available to do the character justice, granted the budget would have to be quite big but television is big business today and coupled with the technology at television comanies disposal the production values provide a better visual medium. just look at shows such as Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D. or the Flash. both of those shows regularly display super-humans with fantastic powers on a week to week basis or even Doctor Who where the production budget is relatively modest in comparison. 

The Flash's Blackout

The last Spider-Man movie "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" had production costs and a budget of around $250 mullion dollars, and yet The Flash has no where near that amount and still managed to show a more realistic electrical antagonist in "Blackout" that what we were given with Electro. Blackout even had the more realistic origin, one that closely resembled that comic book origin of Electro as opposed to Amazing Spider-Man 2's adaption of one of Spidey's more deadly foe's.

It just shows that If a show with a hugely less production budget such as The Flash can depict a character with super powers ala Electro then the arguments against a Spider-Man TV show on the basis of costs are in fact moot. For anyone who has seen the Flash episode "Power Outage" where Blackout makes his debut will know what i mean. The other interesting viewpoint is the Flash has a more Marvel'esque feel to the whole show. As you can see from the picture of Electro the production looks over the to top and flashy to compensate for the dodgy story line and hokey origin fo the character. If however The Amazing Spider-Man was a television show could concentrate more on the character development and gave a natural evolution to the characters of the show, this is where the Spider-Man films have severely lacked in the past. including the Raimi movies. 

In fact one of the best adaptations of our favorite wall-crawler was also produced by the CW network and that was The Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon. You know the one right? if not here's a reminder.

If course it would still be an expensive show to produce that's undeniable after all you can't simulate a wall-crawling web-swinger wonder on a cartoon budget, but who's to say that Peter Parker would have to every episode. there could be a number of episodes leading to a huge confrontation in the season finale with side arcs showing Peter struggling with the responsibility of being Spider-Man and trying to live a normal life. a Television show would also benefit the supporting cast of the character giving us the viewer a better understanding of the relationships between them and Peter as opposed to quick intro's and expecting us to then give a shit about them when tragedy happens to them. ala the movie versions of Curt Connors, Harry Osborn, Max Dillon Flint Marko Eddie Brock Jr. all those characters would and could have worked better with more detailed character development. so too could Flash Thompson, Mary Jane, The entire Bugle crew and Aunt May. 

It's not all that far fetched after all it's already being done with certain shows on air. This way it would allow us to better relate to Peter Parker seeing his struggles in daily life played over a few episodes rather than a few minutes in a montage, The fact is a television show would be less restrictive to the character in some ways as it would offer other avenues to explore than on the cinema screen. after all there's only so much story you can tell in a 2 hour slot, whereas Television offers at least 13 episodes. So what would you prefer a 2 hour movie every three years or 9 hours of Spider-Man, every year? I know which I'd prefer.

So what side of the argument are you on? do you feel that a live action Spider-Man show is out of the question? if so why? and lets debate this. why not comment below. or click the button to follow on google+ or follow on twitter @TelFirth for blog updates or additionally like our Facebook Page The Man who Collects Spider-Man

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Review: Scarlet Spiders #1 The Widow

Story By: Mike Costa

Released 11.26.14 Mark Bagley variant

Artist: Paco Diaz

 

            Cover Art: David Nakayama

Publisher: Marvel Comics

 

Cover Price: $3.99

Here we are again with another Spider-Verse tie-in issue, where more AU and regular Spider's are given the chance to shine. One of the most anticipated story lines since the wider Spider-Verse issues were unveiled, was the Scarlet Spider's mini series mainly due to the resurrection of a fan favorite that hadn't been seen in a Spider-Man book since the final days of the clone saga. Ben Reilly.

The premise of the mini series arc is that following the events of Amazing Spider-Man #10, that Ben Kaone, and the ultimate universe's Peter Parker's female clone Jessica Drew, use the dimension crossing portal back to a Home world of the inheritors where it's thought Morlun and his family are creating clones of themselves. 

Although I'm not too familiar  with Mike Costa's previous work,( mainly due to him previously writing TransFormers for IDW) i did find his idea and portrayal of the characters interesting. One of the faucets would seem to be the telling of the story from three differing perspectives giving each Spider a fleshed out feel. It's not a formula that's used to much and it kinda works in this instance and with this particular tale, as it gives the reader greater opportunity to feel affinity with a character that they may not have much previous knowledge of.

What lets the issue down is the art of Paco Diaz, it's fairly inconsistent for my liking and in parts the characters don't resemble each other that much which is a problem as they are Clones of Peter Parker, but don't really look like Peter Parker. so of it took me out of the story that Costa was conveying, hopefully this was gown to time constraints and the art picks up as the series goes along.

The story itself picks up immediately on the other side of the portal we saw the three protaganists jump through in Amazing Spider-Man #10 where they find themselves in a world that's quite advanced from a technological standpoint. This first Issue of the mini is told from the perspective of Jessica Drew (Ultimate Black Widow) hence the title of the book. explaning the events of the issue as she see's them Kaine, seems a bit quite but the characterization of Ben Reilly so far comes across as a very young Peter Parker who's constantly making light of every situation, which feels a bit forced and hopefully Costa will feel more comfortable with the characters as the series foes on.

The team find themselves inside what appears to be a cloning facility or rather a resting area for Clones when they are confronted by this world's Iron-Man Ben Reilly tries to convince Torny Stark to assist the three Spider's in their mission. However he is stunned to find out that Jennix is in charge of this world and has acquired Iron Man's assistance. 

Kaine subdues Stark before he can implement his plan to take the three to Jennix, The Spider's then formulate a plan to enter the Jennix complex by Ben donning the Iron Man suit and pretend Kaine and Jessica are prisoners.

It's a slow paced story based more on espionage given the nature of the mission, but with the way the issue ends i feel we can expect to see action packed issues in this arc's future. whether or not any Spider's make it out remains to be seen. 

The overall score for this Issue I feel is a solid 6.5. The pacing let it down slightly as did some characterization and the art by Diaz. I was slightly disappointed given it's billing as the return of Ben Reilly. 

 Do you have an opinion on "Scarlet Spiders #1"? why not comment below. or click the button to follow on google+ or follow on twitter @TelFirth for blog updates or additionally like our Facebook Page The Man who Collects Spider-Man

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Review: Spider-Man 2099 #6

Released 11.26.14

Story By: Peter David

Artist: Will Sliney

 

            Cover Art: Francesco Mattina

Publisher: Marvel Comics

 

Cover Price: $3.99

Finally after 5 previous issue's of Miguel O'Hara slumming it here in good old 2014, issue #6 picks up immediately from the events of Amazing Spider-Man #10. It terms of timeline for the people of 2099 it also picks up a couple of hours from when Tyler Stone CEO of Alchemax appeared to trap Miguel in 2014. 

Thankfully for both Miguel and to the chagrin of Tyler Stone, Spider-Man is back in his correct time and he's brought a couple of friends with him,..........oh and a giant immortal Spider hunting killing monster hell bent of devouring Miguel and his two Spidery companions, Six armed Spider-Man and Steampunk Lady Spider.

following the events seen in  the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #10 Superior Spider-Man along with the assistance of Kaine took down and seemingly killed Daemos of the inheritors, until they discovered to their cost that Daemos had now been cloned and returned.

Miguel, Six armed Spidey and Lady Spider fled that encounter with the corpse of Daemos, hotly pursued by the antagonists clone. Their plan to dissect the body of Daemos's corpse to find answers as to any weakness's that the inheritors may possess. The excellent Peter David drives this portion of the overall Spider-Verse arc along at an insanely fast pace from the outset of the issue as we're literally thrown into the action, with is vidually supplied by Will Sliney, who resumes his artistic duties on the book following Rick Leonardi's guest spot in the last issue. 

The story told in this issue feels quite balanced, in the sense that although the three protagonists get a slight victory over their enemy it's is not without cost and Miguel finds himself having to make a deal with an unlikely ally. which offers up a footin perhaps to other storylines to be explored after Spider-Verse comes to a conclusion........Baring in mind if Miguel survives of course. 

One of the more interesting aspects is Daemos' interactions and treatment of Lady Spider, although he does tend to later regret that with the closing of this issue. there are however down sides as in any tale and yet another Spider does get killed off although i'm sure it's in order to provide another obstacle for our hero's to overcome. but it's the manner of the killing that's getting a bit monotonous, after all you'd think that after seeing a number of the army go down in the same way, that the Spider's would switch it up a bit. After all Spider-Man is supposed to be the kind of hero that can find alternate way's to overcome a foe. 

However there are also moments of humour, such as the trashing  of Miguel's brother's apartment where he lament's "Gabriel will never let me hear the end of this.......for the five seconds or so we have left to live" it's moments like that, where you feel grateful that Peter David is back writing this character again.
  
The overall score for this Issue I feel is a solid 7.0. there are a few surprise's and fun elements but for the main part it's a bit perfunctory although that being said it does perfunctory quite well. 

 Do you have an opinion on "Spider-Man 2099 #6"? why not comment below. or click the button to follow on google+ or follow on twitter @TelFirth for blog updates or additionally like our Facebook Page The Man who Collects Spider-Man

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Spider-Verse: Who Is The Scion?

If over the last couple of month's you've been reading and keeping up with the events of Spider-Verse. Then one question is going to keep bugging you until the reveal. Just who is The Scion?

In an event such as this there was always going to be multiple players, after all it was billed as Every Spider-Man Ever!!! In cases such as these, some are going to be more important to the tale and overall narrative than the cannon-fodder. There is one player however that is named that, we as yet, have not seen, as far as we know, one that has been referred to only as the Scion. 

We've been told that he (or she, we just don't know.....for sure) is an important player and has a significant role to play, within the story. As stated by Ezekiel in Amazing Spider-Man #10 Peter needs to keep the triumvirant of The Bride, The Other, and The Scion safe. so therefore could they be the Spider's ace in the hole? the key to their own survival perhaps? What we do know is two of the trio have been identified and that Cindy Moon (Silk) is the Bride, and Kaine Parker (Scarlet Spider) is The Other. Interestingly both come from the same universe, Earth-616, the same as our Peter Parker who is labelled The Chosen One. so does the Scion come from Earth-616? or do they come from further afield?

Lets look at the Scion. the definition of the word is meant to mean descendent of a noble family, well this offers up a number of possibilities within the Spider-Verse tale. so without further ado I present a number of candidates that fit the definition of a Scion.

1) Baby Ben Parker (Earth-982)

The case for Benjy Parker is simple. He is the decendant of a notable family. There are also other factors however. Ben has already acquired his Spider-Powers, ahead of the recognized time frame for a mutant. Most mutants tend to become aware of their abilities in their early teens or the onset of puberty.


In the case of Benjamin Richard Parker, this happened when only a few months old. After he's been possessed by the Carnage symbiote of the MC2. That issue was promptly dealt with by Mayday and since that encounter Ben has displayed the traits of a Spider-Person. 


As yet it's unknown just powerful Ben could become but it's arguable that because his powers manfested themselves this early in childhood he could potentially become the most powerful Spider-Man of all. 

another notable fact in Spider-Verse is that we've been shown a number of times that Ben is being kept safe by Cosmic Spider-Man whether that has any meaning i'm sure we'll soon find out. additionally when SpOCK got off the charts reading when monitoring Cindy and Kaine. no other Spider's present gave off such high readings. Ben wasn't there. Of course that's just he is a baby, however those that have seen the cover for Spider-Verse team up #3 will notice that Mayday is accompanied by a Spider in the shadow's could he be a future version of her brother? could he be the Scion?


As with anything in comics it's always possible. By having baby Benjy in the story arc this early could get him into the collective minds of the readers. a way to introduce an older more powerful version of the character without having to go into back story too much. say in a couple of issues we see an older version of Ben then maybe he will be the Scion after all?

2) Karn of the Inheritors (Universe-000)

A bit of a wild card here is Karn. Brother of Morlun and the youngest descendant of the noble inheritor family. which technically puts him in the frame for role of the Scion.

We've seen Karn kill Spiders but we also know that he isn't really into it, not in the same way his other family members are. Karn has been portrayed as an unwilling participant in the culling, seeing it as against his nature to hunt and devour his foes. It's been said that Karn see's himself as a creator someone who tries to build rather than destroy. Now you're wondering that's all well and good but why does it place Karn in the frame for being the Scion? well here's why.

We know Karn, isn't like the other Inheritor's not only in attitude by also in looks, all the others have a similar resemblance to each other whereas the only time we've seen Karn's face was during the back up story in Superior Spider-Man #33 where he is shown to have brown hair and fairly similar features to Peter Parker. Could therefore Karn be Universe 000's Peter Parker? an adopted child of the Inheritors. We know that Karn feels no kinship to his family except to his mother whom he feels responsible for her dying. Also when confronting the Master Weaver the Weaver referred to him as 'The Chosen One' the only other use of that reference is towards 616 Peter Parker.

However he did appear to consume Al-Apec the Spider-God without the use of his spear. could it be then that by consuming Al-Apec's essence that Karn if he is Universe 000's Peter, has become a descendant of the Spider-God whose essence lives on in Karn? we shall indeed see in the coming issues but for me Karn is a possibility for the role of The Scion as much as any.

3) Baby May Parker (Earth-616)

This is a theory that's currently doing the rounds on many fan forums, yep it's a little out of left field but there also some merits to the inclusion of the apparent non existing child of Earth 616 Peter Parker. 

Some of you may recall way back in the 1990's during the height of the clone saga, that Peter's wife Mary Jane was pregnant with their child whom, it was believed to be stillborn to them but to us the readers it was revealed the child had been kidnapped by Norman Osborn for reasons unknown. Could it be that given we've had teasers for the next Spider-Arc in 'Renew your Vows' in which Peter and Mary Jane are pictured with a child, that it's here within Spider-Verse, Peter finds his kidnapped daughter? She is also a descendant of a noble family?  

Again it's worth noting that, the other members of the triumvirate both hail from Earth 616, so could she be the Scion? is this marvel's way of bringing a forgotten character back into the fold?

I tend to look at the last one as a bit of a reach, but again anything is possible and in comics everything tends to link together. Of course it i entirely possible that the identity of the Scion is none of those presented here, and will remain in the shadow's until such time as he or she  is required to step into the limelight. If it's anything like the reveal of Old Man Spidey then Slott would have pulled the wool over our eyes again and it's writing like that that keeps us coming back for more.


So who do you think is The Scion? why not comment below. or click the button to follow on google+ or follow on twitter @TelFirth for blog updates or additionally like our Facebook Page The Man who Collects Spider-Man

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