I’m in. I take back almost all of the negative or indifferent comments I’ve made about Superior Spider-Man. Writer Dan Slott knocked the first issue of the new series out of the park, and I am completely on board with this big, insane plan of his. Because after reading this issue (and a few other hints around the Internet) it’s become clear that this is all one big scheme. This is a long story, and Marvel has just decided to gussy it up with a new name and a new #1 issue. Does Doctor Octopus taking over Peter Parker’s body warrant all this fanfare? I suppose. It would have probably still worked as Amazing Spider-Man #701, but that’s not how comic book marketing works these days.

Superior Spider-Man #1

If you really think Doc Ock is here to stay and that Peter Parker is never coming back, then I have a couple of homemade web-shooters to sell you. They really work too! But if you’re a Spider-Man fan and ready to put some real dedication into your comics, then Superior Spider-Man should be right up your alley.

Comic rating: 5/5: Great.

I’ve written before about my thoughts on this big status quo change, with the villainous Doctor Octopus taking over Peter Parker’s body (killing Peter in the process), and using it as a puppet to try and be a better Peter Parker and a superior Spider-Man. I never thought it was a bad idea, nor did I think it was in any way permanent. I just didn’t think I would be all that interested. It felt like Marvel and Slott were going to force us into a year of placeholder stories until they eventually got around to bringing Peter back to life. Placeholder stories that, I felt, turned all of Peter’s friends and loved ones into victims, hoodwinked by the sinister Doc Ock. Especially Mary Jane. I know some people don’t like Mary Jane Watson, but I’m a big fan, especially of her and Peter. And the idea of Doc Ock romancing and even sleeping with Mary Jane while using Peter’s body is downright creepy.

And if that’s the case, then I’m out. But after reading issue #1, I definitely approve of what Dan Slott is doing. It’s a very fun issue, with Doc Ock at his most pompous. He even dresses like Doctor Horrible! You really get a sense of the kind of fun Slott has in store for us. Couple that with a last page twist that I never saw coming and I am definitely excited to see where Slott goes from here.

Marvel has started teasing upcoming stories and ideas for Superior Spider-Man. And if what I think might happen is actually going to happen, then I do not want to miss Superior Spider-Man. First of all, Marvel released this teaser image this week, where it appears that the Superior Spider-Man is going to be fired from the Avengers. Second, blogger Graeme McMillan theorized at Newsarama that all of this is one big Spider-Man reboot. The ‘superior’ in the name is a misnomer, and Doc Ock is actually going to be a terrible Spider-Man. So terrible, in fact, that he drags Spider-Man’s good name through the mud. For the past few years, Spider-Man has been a big hero. He’s a proud member of the Avengers, he’s helped saved the world, he’s beloved by the NYPD…but that’s not the classic hard luck Spider-Man we all know and love.

Where’s the Spider-Man who can’t catch a break? Who’s hated by the people of New York even though he’s just trying to do good?

Dan Slott is bringing him back.

Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review, and learn the last page surprise!

Superior Spider-Man kicks things off with a brand new Sinister Six! Fresh off his semi-heroic run with the Thunderbolts, the villainous Boomerang has put together a team consisting of himself, Shocker, the new female Beetle, Speed Demon, the Living Brain and Overdrive, who has taken over the classic Big Wheel. This is a fun lineup. The character of Overdrive (with the ability to ‘pimp out’ any vehicle) is made for something like the Big Wheel. If Dan Slott invented Overdrive, then he’s been waiting forever and a day to make this happen. Anyway, the new Six are breaking into the science building at Empire State University to steal a barometric oscillator. And Overdrive’s Big Wheel is their getaway.

All comic writers should have a healthy respect for Big Wheel

The cops aren’t having any luck holding them off, and have called for back up – a transmission that is intercepted by Doc Ock, who is laying flowers at Doctor Octopus’ gravesite and bidding him a fond farewell. I’m going to need to come up with a good way to refer to this character. Octo-Spidey? Otto Parker? Peter Octavius? I guess I’ll just refer to him as Otto and all of you should already know that he’s in Peter Parker’s body. Sound good? Or wait, what about Doctor Spider-Man?

So Octo-Spidey shows up on the scene voicing his disgust that it seems just anybody can put together a Sinister Six these days. Dan Slott does not hold back when it comes to Otto. He doesn’t try to be a funny Spider-Man, like Peter was, and instead is an arrogant and pompous jerkass. It’s a lot of fun. He gets the various villains to start shooting each other, and uses his superior intellect to get the better of them.

At least Living Brain isn’t asking about ‘love’

At least until he gets overwhelmed by the Speed Demon and decides to just leave. Octo-Spidey webs away from the villains and is about to take off when Boomerang launches a nitro-rang at him. Octo-Spidey avoids the shot, but when he sees that the weapon is about to hit a cop, he throws himself at the guy and saves his life – to Otto’s own surprise. Why would he risk his life to do that? Especially since it gives Boomerang the opportunity to get up close and personal to choke Doctor Spider-Man. But Otto has made some improvements, and he reveals a set of small claws at his fingertips, which he uses to slash Boomerang in the chest. It’s enough to give Otto some breathing room, but at the same time, the Sinister Six escape – but not all of them. The Living Brain was knocked out in the fight, and Octo-Spider-Man requests that the cops deliver it to Horizon Labs.

Where he’s totally dressed like a studly Doctor Horrible.

Not that Dr. Horrible wasn’t studly already

Otto is rude to his co-workers as he gets to work examining the Living Brain, even when boss Max Modell shows up to express his concern that Peter is working on a lot of devices that could be used as weapons. But Otto gets rid of him by revealing a list of helpful, beneficial inventions he’s come up with recently. Max is astounded by the list and leaves Otto to work, unintentionally reminding Otto that all of his achievements from now on will be credited to Peter Parker. He has a moment of anger at the idea, one that’s interrupted by a call from Mary Jane confirming their date for that night.

At the date, arrogant Otto is on full display. From ignoring whatever MJ is talking about to staring at her breasts to wearing a ridiculous Blue Tooth headset. When MJ asks about it, Otto explains that he’s listening in to the Sinister Six plan their next heist, which is at Horizon Labs. When he clawed Boomerang in their fight, he injected the villain with a lot of little tracker microphones. So he knows exactly where they are and what they’re planning. But Otto, unlike Peter isn’t just going to rush at their HQ and stop them. He has a much better plan.

In the morning, when the Six break into Horizon to steal an atmospheric condenser, Otto is waiting for them.

It’s a trap!

As the fight kicks off, Otto reveals all of the various plans he put into place. In the hours leading up to the attack, he personally coated the floor with a frictionless chemical so that Speed Demon couldn’t run. He also installed several power-dampening field generators, disabling all of the crooks’ weapons and armor. The field also destabilizes the Big Wheel and it falls over, taking out most of the Sinister Six. He also called the media so that they’d arrive in plenty of time to watch him defeat the bad guys.

It all comes down to a fight between Spider-Man and Boomerang.

All comic writers should have a healthy respect for boomerangs

Boomerang can’t withstand the might of the Superior Spider-Man, and soon Otto has the man at his mercy. Spidey beats him bloody, declaring that he gets to win for once! He gets to succeed! And he’s going to make an example out of Boomerang. When you mess with Spider-Man, you get…

I really thought Otto was going to kill Boomerang. I thought for sure that would be the big cliffhanger ending, that Otto’s Superior Spider-Man is going  to be a killer.

But I was wrong. So very wrong.

This is the real twist ending!

It’s Obi-Wan Kenobi!

Peter Parker is still alive! Somehow, some way, his consciousness transferred back to his own body when he died. But he’s just a ghost, one whom Otto cannot perceive, but one who has some control over what the body does. And Peter swears that he’s going to come back!

I love that ending. I thought Peter Parker was going to stay dead and buried for awhile, brought back only when Marvel wanted him back. But it seems Slott has much more planned. Peter is going to remain in the series, and we’re going to watch him trying to claw his way back into his own body. That is far, far better a story than Peter simply being gone. I much prefer to watch the hero try to get his body back than be stuck with the knowledge that he’s gone ‘forever’.

Not to mention Peter might be able to control his body enough that Otto is never allowed to rape Mary Jane. That’s a plus.

I thought this was a great issue. It’s fun and very funny, with a lot of great action and a lot of good examples of how this is going to be a new and different Spider-Man. Otto is far more ruthless and indifferent to the plights of others, and his approach to superheroing is very interesting. All that planning and preparation was neat, quite different from Peter Parker’s more immediate style. It’s a nice touch and I hope Slott really explores what this will be like. Slott writes a fantastically entertaining Otto Octavius, and I look forward to seeing all of his plans fall apart.

Because I really think that’s the plan here. Otto expects himself to be a superior Spider-Man to Peter Parker, but we know better. We know that Otto will utterly fail, and it’s going to be entertaining to watch. And if that fan theory is correct, that failure to going to turn Spider-Man back into an ostracized hero. I never liked Spider-Man on the Avengers anyway.

Plus, I think the series will be far more rewarding if we get to see Peter Parker’s attempts to regain control of his body. We all want to see the hero succeed, right?

If I have one complaint, it’s the artwork. I”m not sure who to blame. Ryan Stegman is the artist, and he’s pencil work is fantastic. The action is dynamic, the characters look awesome and the book has a great feel to it. But whatever has happened, the art is a step down from Stegman’s earlier work on Scarlet Spider. Do we blame Edgar Delgado, who did the color art in this issue, according to the credits? Whoever is behind it, the art is sketchier and rougher than Stegman’s work on Scarlet Spider. I like art that’s crisp and clean. I thought the art on Scarlet Spider was great. But something has changed since then, and changed for the worse, I think.

The art’s fine, I suppose. But it’s far from Stegman’s best.

As I said in the beginning, I am definitely on board for Superior Spider-Man. This was a fantastic start, with Slott really showing his chops. The Otto/Spider-Man looks like he’s going to be a lot of fun, with a pompous, arrogant style that’s completely different from Peter Parker. And speaking of Pete, I’m very glad that he’s still going to be in the story, and watching his struggle to regain his life should be very cool.

This whole series should be very cool, if the first issue is anything to go by.