Comics Corner: Web Of Spider-Man Annual 5

   

Title: Web Of Spider-Man Annual
Issue Number: 5
Release Date: November 1989

Highlights

• Story I: War Zone: New York
• First appearance of Megasaur, Trish Fox, and Todd Tremaine
• First appearance and death of General Epititus
• Trish Fox stands in Battery Park, reporting on what is soon to be the first war on American soil since 1812
• On hand for protection with the military are Spider-Man, and the Fantastic Four, which includes a fifth member, Ms. Marvel, AKA She-Thing
• The Atlantean army attacks
• Reference is made to Avengers Annual 18
• The Atlantean army are pushed back by the heroes, and just as they appear to be in full retreat, but a second wave appears, riding a giant Megasaur
• General Epititus tries to warn Attuma that they cannot win the battle, and that he is being deceived by Ghaur and Lady Llyra
• Attuma shoots him dead for daring to suggest any of this
• Turns out Epititus was right, and Lemurian troops are attacking Atlantis at the same time
• The Atlantean army also makes its way through Washington, and as they bare down on some American soldiers, are stopped by a mysterious figure intervenes, ripping a chunk out of the wall, and blocking the enemies attacks
• After the smoke clears, he's vanished
• Back in Manhattan, the Fantastic Four all go down to the Megasaur, leaving Spider-Man standing ground on his own
• Ghaur claims one more bride for Set in Susan Storm
• The third wave of the attack comes from Attuma and his men storming the streets
• Spider-Man lures the large creature to an electric billboard, jumping out of the way as it attacks
• The electricity from within shocks the creature, going all the way to the Atlantean driver atop, knocking him out, but not affecting the Megasaur
• Without a driver, the creature instinctively returns to the sea
• NASA picks up on the nuclear explosion in Atlantis from the Lemurian surprise attack
• Attuma receives word of the attack, the destruction of Atlantis, and no signs of life
• As all the Atlantean troops retreat, Attuma stays behind, and surrenders, realizing he's been a fool
• Reed Richards holds a press conference, where he confirms his wife is missing
• The reporter asks if Spider-Man will assist, and he responds that he will if Reed wants him to
• The story is continued in West Coast Avengers Annual 4
• Story II: A Random Miracle
• Story by Gerry Conway, with art by Steve Ditko, inked by Al Milgrom
• First appearance of Quantum Mechanic
• Story III: Petey
• Fred Hembeck takes you into the life of young Petey Parker
• Story IV: Spider-Man's Most Dubious
• Another fun Fred Hembeck drawn gallery of Spidey's accessories, friends, foes, and situations
• Story V: A Mute Player For Deaf Ears
• First appearance of Jannsens, Bettermanh, Zahl, Madeline, and Frau Kuryova
• First appearance and death of Kuryova
• A solo story featuring Silver Sable
• Sable attends the funeral of one of her Wildpack operatives, Kuryova, where she is approached by his wife, Frau Kuryova
• The widow asks how she will feed her children with her husband gone
• Sable coldly answers that she prays, and then elaborates by saying to pray that the Pack Board doesn't find her husband as grossly incompetent as she does
• Again, the guy is dead
• As anger fills Sable upon her return home, we're taken to a flashback mission with her, Kuryova, and other Wild Pack soldiers
• The flashback is interrupted by her accidentally breaking a crystal cat statue in her home, which takes her to another flashback of her father training her
• It serves as an origin story, I suppose
• Silver Sable remembers another mission with Kuryova, calling him a coward and incompetent for abandoning his post, allowing good men to be killed
• The story then flashes to her and her uncle, explaining how she came up with her name
• We learn now how Kuryova died on the mission
• In a cowardice attempt to retreat, he leaves injured men behind, but as he climbs the ladder to a rising helicopter he's hit by enemy fire
• The Pack Board determines him a coward, insubordinate, and derelict of his duties, denying all benefits his wife would have received upon his dead
• Silver Sable coldly instructs her to be told all of this
• Story VI: Saga Of The Serpent Crown Part XI
• Art by Mark Bagley, inked by Keith Williams
• First appearance of the Serpent Cartel, and members Gergory Gideon, Justin Hammer, Leland Owlsley, Sebastian Shaw, Obadiah Stane, and Cornelius van Lunt

Low Points

• Story I: War Zone: New York
• It's unfortunate the story continues in an Annual I won't be reading
• Story II: A Random Miracle
• The story is all about Captain Universe, and doesn't feature Spider-Man at all
• Get your own book!
• Story V: A Mute Player For Deaf Ears
• Another story that doesn't feature Spider-Man, but at least Silver Sable is a character who got her start in the pages of his books, and occasionally reappears
• Story VI: Saga Of The Serpent Crown Part XI
• I didn't read the other nine parts, so I didn't read this one either

Oddities

• None

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Daredevil Annual 5

   

Title: Daredevil Annual
Issue Number: 5
Release Date: December 1989

Highlights

• Story I: A Friend In Need
• A story featuring the writing of Gerry Conway, the art of Mark Bagley, and inks by Sam de la Rosa
• First appearance of Leo Baxter, Serpent God, Wally Jordan, and Clarisse Jordan
• Leo Baxter is inside a local cafe and market complaining to the waitress about Dr. Tyrone's clinic
• Specifically, how they have his pal of twenty years, Wally, and won't let the two of them see each other
• Daredevil catches the story as he enters, pretending he's not paying attention
• As Leo heads outside, Daredevil picks up on the heartbeats of multiple people
• Outside, Leo is surrounded by serpent men and women
• As Leo is attacked, Daredevil intervenes
• Leo goes for a shotgun in his jeep, but Daredevil knocks it away with his club as the man aims and fires at one of the reptiles
• As the serpents retreat, Leo begs Daredevil to help get his pal back
• We get the origin of Wally and Leo's youthful friendship
• Turns out that the two were alcoholics, and eventually Wally got married to Clarisse, much to Leo's dismay
• Wally continued to drink, was also abusive, and ended up in the hospital, after getting out, he sought out Dr. Tyrone to get help
• Daredevil turns him down
• As Leo leaves, Dr. Strange appears, and makes the same request of the man without fear
• Reference is made to The Punisher Annual 2, and The Spectacular Spider-Man Annual 9
• Viper goes to Dr. Tyrone, and explains how her facility has been destroyed by The Punisher and Moon Knight
• Dr. Tyrone invites her to stay
• In her head, she seethes over accepting a man's help, and vows to kill him so she won't be indebted to him
• Dr. Tyrone reveals to Viper that he's really Tyrannus, and shows her his pet, the captive Spider-Man
• Tyrannus intends on using Viper as a vessel to resurrect Set
• Outside, Leo infiltrates the compound
• Tyrannus is informed of his presence, and sends Spider-Man to retrieve his head
• We see through Spider-Man's eyes that the spell he's under reflects Leo as a monster instead of his human self, causing Spidey to attack
• Daredevil intervenes, and as Leo runs for safety, he comes face to face with Wally, now a serpent
• Meanwhile, Spider-Man and Daredevil's battle destroys the damn controls, sending a flood of water towards the compound
• Dr. Strange saves Leo by trapping the other lizards in the crimson bands of cyttorak
• During all of this, Tyrannus begins the summoning resurrection of Set
• Strange intervenes, but the incantation is done
• Except it's not Set, it's a demon from the dimension of Dormammu
• Tyrannus doesn't care, as long as the being is bound to his control
• Tyrannus's mind control over Viper slips loose, and she flings him into the pentagram on the floor, causing him to also loose control of the demon that swallows him whole
• Strange sends the demon back to its domain
• With Tyrannus gone, Spider-Man is once again himself
• In one last act, Dr. Strange returns all the lizard folks back to their human forms
• Leo tells Wally that he can now go back to his wife and kids, but Wally tells him they don't want him around, and further, he doesn't want to be there
• Leo gets angry when Wally also tells him they were never friends, just drinking buddies, and tries to shoot him
• Daredevil once again stops him
• Story II: Role Reversal
• Art by Jim Lee
• Story III: Super Senses Comparison
• Art by Mark Bagley
• Story IV: The Rescue
• John Romita Jr., inked by Klaus Janson
• Story IV: The Redeemed And The Condemned
• Art by Wilce Portacio, inked by Al Milgrom
• Story V: Saga Of The Serpent Crown Chapter VII
• Art by Mark Bagley, inked by Keith Williams

Low Points

• Story I: A Friend In Need
• Odd ending
• The remainder of the annual has nothing to do with Spider-Man, and I didn't feel like reading another twenty-nine pages

Oddities

• None

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Secret Wars II 5

   

Title: Secret Wars II
Issue Number: 5
Release Date: November 1985

Highlights

• First appearance of Boom-Boom, AKA Tabitha Smith
• First appearance of World Complex Headquarters
• While walking down a train track, Beyonder makes a gun out of his fingers, and "fires" at the train, causing all its parts to separate, but gently landing the passengers on the ground
• Boom-Boom, who was on the train, and is also a mutant, figures out that it was him who did it, and says the least he can do is let her walk with him
• Boom-Boom says she's headed for Professor X's school
• After Beyonder makes a camp for them, we get a brief origin of Boom-Boom, and her backstory at home, and a showcase of her powers
• Beyonder leaves, and returns home, only to quickly have the desires of everything he left behind, including his love for Dazzler
• Boom-Boom has left an exploding ball in Beyonder's back pocket, and it does just that
• Beyonder returns to Earth, and drives Boom-Boom to Professor X's school
• When the X-Men see Beyonder, they storm out after him, chasing him away
• As Boom-Boom is left there alone, she quickly realizes she doesn't want to be there, but instead with Beyonder
• After not being able to call him back, Boom-Boom sets a bomb for herself, content on killing herself, but Beyonder arrives as it explodes, saving her from it
• Beyonder takes Boom-Boom for a ride - Deep into space, to the headquarters of the Celestials
• When Beyonder states he's the most powerful being in the universe, Boom-Boom tells him that the Celestials didn't so much as move when they saw him
• Wanting to prove a point, Beyonder tells the Celestials that he is going to destroy the universe in three seconds, sending them into battle against him, which he easily defeats them
• Sickened by this, Boom-Boom tells him to send her back to Earth, and never find her again
• Beyonder returns to his mansion in Brazil, and checks in on Algrim, stating he should find Thor in about a week
• Boom-Boom calls the Avengers emergency line, and with them, sets up Beyonder to be ambushed by them, which he is by not only the Avengers, but West Coast Avengers, Fantastic Four, Doctor Strange, and Thor
• Beyonder doesn't fight back, and when the fighting stops, he wanders off into the woods, depressed

Low Points

• No Spider-Man
• To continue the story, you would need to read The Thing 30, Doctor Strange 74, and Fantastic Four 285

Oddities

• None

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man Annual 5

   

Title: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man Annual
Issue Number: 5
Release Date: November 1985

Highlights

• First appearance of the Reapers gang; Ace, Al Webber, and Lorenzo Spencer
• Additional first appearances of the Dragons (all unnamed), Jean Hillman, Rosie Spencer, Mrs. Spenger, and Mr. Alexander
• First appearance and death of Sammy, and Vince DiFeo
• A gang war has broken out, and the wake leaves the dead teenage boys of the Dragons at the hands of the Reapers
• Spider-Man spies Ace sitting in an alley on his bike, and catches a picture of him with his camera
• Joy Mercado, new hire for the Daily Bugle, rushes outside, almost knocking over Peter Parker
• When she learns who he is, she grabs him, saying she needs a photographer, and drags him with her
• Reference is made to The Amazing Spider-Man 267, and Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man 103
• Al Webber and Lorenzo Spencer stand trial for shooting Vince DiFeo, unfortunately, he's in a coma, and can't be a witness
• As the trial is postponed, the defending legal team find out that DiFeo has passed away
• Peter shares his photo of Ace with Joy, and the two head to his neighborhood, asking around for him
• Peter and Joy are attacked by the Reapers, and when Ace appears on scene, he pretends to get hit by his bike, playing possum until he can change into his Spider-Man suit
• The gang kidnap Joy
• When Spider-Man tracks down the Reapers, he's surprised by Ace, who crashes through the window on his bike
• As the two fight, Spider-Man can't land a punch on Ace, nor nab him with his webbing, the guy is just too quick for him
• Just as Spider-Man thinks he's tricking Ace into getting closer for him to land a blow, the guy cuts him with a knife, so fast that Spider-Man can't even react
• The rival gang, the Dragon's show up, ready for war
• Spider-Man asks Ace to intervene and stop everyone, but he says it's none of his business
• During the fight, a "kid" named Sammy is hit by a bullet, and dies in Joy's lap
• Ace goes to see Lorenzo in jail, and tells him he's going to testify against him and Al
• Lorenzo turns out to be Ace's half brother

Low Points

• We don't learn why Ace is so fast in a fight, but a quick search of Marvel Fandom informs that he's a mutant

Oddities

• None

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Web Of Spider-Man 5

   

Title: Web Of Spider-Man
Issue Number: 5
Release Date: August 1985

Highlights

• First appearance of Kate Cushing, Michael Gerdes, Spider-Man Robot, and Doc Ock's henchmen, Larry, Mel, and Roger
• First appearance of the First City Federal Bank, and Schavian Embassy
• Reference is Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars, and Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man 104, and The Amazing Spider-Man 265
• Doc Ock creates a robotic Spider-Man to hone his fighting skills against
• Doc Ock's henchmen are happy to collect the cash for working for him, but they have no confidence that he can defeat the real Spider-Man
• Nathan Lubensky talks to Peter over the phone, and tells him that he's glad the two have made up
• Nathan informs Peter that even with all the boarders pooling their social security checks, they're still struggling to keep up with the house
• Peter goes to the Bugle looking for assignments from Robbie, but instead gets introduced to his new boss, City Editor Kathryn "Kate" Cushing
• While Peter is attempting to withdraw money from the bank, Doc Ock and his men bust in
• After beating up his henchmen, rather than pursue Ock, Spider-Man grabs a wounded bank employee, and takes her to a hospital
• Doc Ock is angry when he discovers Spider-Man was at the bank, and none of his men informed him
• Doc Ock panics, and reverts to a frightened frozen stance when he realizes he's not fighting his robot Spider-Man, but the real hero

Low Points

• Peter goes to withdraw his last twenty-three dollars, and he considers keeping the extra $100 that the machine accidentally spits out

Oddities

• Editor's Day Off: Kathryn introduces herself to Peter as, "Kathyrn," a misspelling of her name

• Peter follows Doc Ock and his gang into the bank their robbing, and ducks in a lounge to change into his costume - Um...Cameras...bank?
• Spider-Man's eye lenses are colored red in a couple panels
• Editor's Continued Day Off: They just can't settle on how to write Kate's name in the book; Kathyrn to Katheryn, then to Katherine, then Kate, then back to Katheryn - Pick a lane!

• Spider-Man goes to smash Doc Ock's mechanical arms, but is stopped by his attorney, which is backed up by the police

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars 5

    

Title: Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars
Issue Number: 5
Release Date: September 1984

Highlights

• First appearance of Galactus' Cat
• Galactus summons his home from across the universe
• The village healer, Zsaji, creates a concoction that starts to fill her hut with smoke, and after Human Torch breaths it in, she can see into his mind, and identify all the heroes and villains who have been brought to Battleworld
• She also serves as the gateway for the flashback to bring all the readers up to date of some of the important events thus far
• Johnny kisses the healer, telling her he loves her - He moves fast
• Enchantress tells Doom that together they could flea Battleworld, and asks how much he would enjoy having a goddess by his side for the rest of his life - Doom responds that he wouldn't
• Reference is made to Fantastic Four 244
• Galactus becomes aware of the heroes presence, and sends his Cat to deal with them
• Galactus begins assembling a massive machine
• As soon as the battle with Galactus's Cat ends, the villains attack again, sent by Doom to cause a distraction
• The X-Men join the battle, and attack the villains, giving the other heroes a well needed rest
• The battle gets the attention of Galactus, and Doom uses the opportunity to infiltrate his home
• Enchantress uses her powers to initiate a retreat for the villains
• The X-Men give chase, leaving a wounded Colossus behind
• Colossus is smitten by Zsaji, and doesn't like to see her being held by Human Torch

Low Points

• None

Oddities

• None

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Marvel Team-Up Annual 5

   

Title: Marvel Team-Up Annual
Issue Number: 5
Release Date: November 1982

Highlights

• First appearance of Scully, Hassl, Melvin, and Atra
• Reference is made to Marvel Two-In-One 66, 67, and Marvel Team-Up 111
• Wanda and Vision are at a movie theater watching Raiders Of The Lost Ark
• A movie theater poster says Conan is coming soon

Low Points

• Kind of boring

Oddities

• Spider-Man, Thing and Scarlet Witch are all holding the cosmic cube, but only Spider-Man's clothing gets torn up when it lets out a giant blast

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man 5

   

Title: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man
Issue Number: 6
Release Date: April 1977

Highlights

• Reference is made to Amazing Fantasy 15, The Amazing Spider-Man 109
• The mystery of Sha Shan continues

Low Points

• None

Oddities

• Editor, writer, and colorist's day off: Peter states he's taken off his glove and boots, but a look down at his legs reveals the top of his boot

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Giant-Size Spider-Man 5

   

Title: Giant-Size Spider-Man
Issue Number: 5
Release Date: July 1975

Highlights

• Reference is made to Giant-Size Spider-Man 2, as well as The Amazing Spider-Man 6, and 145
• Second story is a reprint of The Amazing Spider-Man 21

Low Points

• Pretty boring

Oddities

• Editor's Day Off: "Take it from the the girl who knows."
• Spider-Man bites Lizard's tail

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Marvel Team-Up 5

     

Title: Marvel Team-Up
Issue Number: 5
Release Date: November 1972

Highlights

• First appearance of Monstroid
• Reference is made to Avengers 89 through 97, and also 105
  

Low Points

• Puppet Master made a robot that's on the same frequency as Vision's brain...That's the whole McGuffin
  

Oddities

• Puppet Master attacks the Baxter home to get revenge on the Fantastic Four...Who aren't even home - They make no appearance at all
  

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

 

 

 

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Comics Corner: The Fantastic Four 5

Title: Fantastic Four

Issue Number: 5

Release Date:July 1962

Highlights

• First appearance of Doctor Victor Von Doom
• Origin of Doctor Doom
• Turns out Thing was Blackbeard the pirate - Interesting plot twist

Low Points

• Plot is incredibly stupid: Doctor Doom has created a time machine, and wants Mr. Fantastic, Thing and Human Torch to go back in time and steel Blackbeard's treasure - While he holds Invisible Girl hostage 
• Thing says he wants to stay in the past as Blackbeard and throw Reed and Johnny overboard in a lifeboat

Oddities

• Reed and Johnny strip off their pirate clothes to reveal their Fantastic Four uniforms underneath - Except for the fact that Johnny was wearing short sleeves and you could see his arms and hands, and Reed wasn't wearing his gloves either

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: Marvel Spotlight 5

Title: Marvel Spotlight

Issue Number:5

Release Date:September 1977

Highlights

• First appearance of Ghost Rider / Johnny Blaze, Crash Simpson, Roxanne Simpson (Blaze) and Zarathos
• Death of Crash Simpson
• Origin of Ghost Rider

Low Points

• Sloppy writing
• Issue is just a long origin story 
• Disappointing and somewhat boring

Oddities

• Johnny promises Roxanne's dying mother that he will never ride in stunt shows again, and five years later, everyone says he's a coward for not getting back on a bike
• Johnny Blaze isn't willing to ride a motorcycle in Crash Simpson's show because of a vow he made, but he'll gladly sell his soul to Satan to save Crash Simpson's life from a disease
• Seconds after Crash Simpson wrecks his bike attempting a world record jump, Johnny Blaze jumps on a bike and succeeds in the stunt - So you don't care about the guy that just died?
• Roxanne suspects that Johnny made a deal with the devil. How? She wasn't there, it's not discussed, it simply makes no sense that she just guessed this
• Roxanne tells Johnny that as long as she stays with him, the devil won't be able to take him - Then she completely abandons him the following night...So, you know, he turns into Ghost Rider

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Comics Corner: The Long Halloween 5

Title: Batman: The Long Halloween

Issue Number: 5

Release Date: April 1997

Highlights

• Made me want to get back to reading Spider-Man comics

Low Points

• I'm officially bored with this story - It's the same cookie cutter plot and pace for each issue
• Feel like I've read the same book five times, just with a different coat of paint
• Story is not advancing

Oddities

• People consider this one of the greatest Batman stories ever told

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Bat Symbols grading system)

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Comics Corner: The Amazing Spider-Man 5

Title: The Amazing Spider-Man

Issue Number: 5

Release Date: October 1963

Highlights

• The Amazing Spider-Man becomes a monthly title
• Spider-Man meets Doctor Doom

Low Points

• Peter Parker, for a moment, is willing to sacrifice Flash Thompson's life at the hands of Doctor Doom, just so he'll never be bothered by the bully again
• Uninspiring story, showcasing Doctor Doom as nothing more than a villain of the week

Oddities

• Betty Bryant, J. Jonah Jameson's adult secretary, makes a flirtatious remark towards high school student, Peter Parker

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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