Amazing Spider-Man #606

Surely it should be Michelle looking on shocked, rather than MJ?

I'm assuming this cover is a generalisation of what happens in the book, rather than what actually happens.

@Zeppo
As opposed to the accurate depiction of Spider-Man's transformation into an arrow-wielding cherub last week? You haven't noticed the trend in Amazing Spidey these past few issues/the comics industry for the past decade?

@captbastrd

I quessed a long time ago that the cover had little to do with that happens inside. One of the first issue's of Amazing Spider-man I ever bought read said on the front "you won't believe who KILLS Spider-man this issue..."

That was quite a few years ago, I'm sure it'll come as no suprise that Spider-man didn't die, or come close to dying in that issue.

@Zeppo
That just made me laugh out loud imagining every issue with a back up story of different people killing Spider-Man.

I think The Simpsons made a joke like that where an issue of Radioactive Man has he and Fallout Boy (a pop culture reference that will forever be lost to a shitty band) dying on every panel.

@captbastrd - amen on Fallout Boy  "The goggles! They do nothing!"

In regards to the cover, perhaps MJ isn't as free and clear of Peter as she'd like to think she is.  And maybe its just a cover.

http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/amazing-spider-man-1999/8-1.jpg

Here's the cover I was refering to. It even has the possible "suspects" watching from the side as Spider-man cringes in agony.

@Zeppo, that's good stuff right there.

Damn it I was trying to cut back this week and then I see that Joe Kellys writing this. F me.

Well, at least the cover looks better.

When did ASM become a romance comic?

@ Race

Around issue when Liz Allen and Betty Brant both liked Peter. :D

That was supposed to say "around issue 8..." D'oh...

@RaceMcCloud: Since the 1960s.

I've got to say I've been enjoying the J Scott Campbell covers. Yeah they have a lot of cheesecake but its still really fun to look at. I mean if you got the Black Cat coming back to help hand Peter another wrench in his love life you've got to have the eye candy to give him all the reason to make all the wrong moves. Can't wait to see how Peter can dig him a bigger hole than he already is in.

@DarthDuck
1. Jimminy Jillickers! (One of my earliest comics memories was picking up TMNT and Radioactive Man on a family road trip as a lad. TMNT was doing this weird future story that I only recently looked up to understand and RM was way beyond my grasp. Boy, was that irrelevant!)
2. The last issue seems to imply just that about MJ; looked like she wanted to go back to NY and get together with Peter and when she saw that he appeared to be w/ Michelle, she put on a brave face.

So excited for another Joe Kelly arc.  I love the next few covers, probably #607 one the most.  Not so sure if I am familiar with Mike McKone's work, but looks good from what I've seen in previews.

This cover is waaaaay better than the last couple.  I'm really looking forward to Black Cat coming back!!

Woot! Kelly is back!

Kinda sad that none of his creator owned stuff has come out in the past couple months, but hopefully this will sate my thirst for Kelly.

That wasn't meant to be sexual.

Honest.

@ato220

Mike McKone is good (I think, anyway), he did most of the 24/7 arc a while ago (famous for drawing Aunt May and JJJ Sr in bed together), and he did the arc that explained why Harry's not dead.

He also did a Green Lantern story about the Alpha Lanterns. He's becoming one of my fav artists.

It's a decent cover. Spider-Man hasn't impressed me as much as I would've hoped over these last few months, unfortunately. It's nowhere near being dropped, though. Love me some Black Cat.

I'm guessing by the solicit that Spidey is getting impants.

Or implants even. sigh.

@Zeppo: You are correct.  I did enjoy that arc.  This does look above and beyond.

ASM is getting better and better, loved this issue....always love me some Black Cat!!!

I am looking forward to seeing where the plot goes, but I found the dialogue to be a little tin-eared. And did I really need grown people saying "pee pee" and "poo poo" on three different occasions? What happened?

Spider-Man is FUN and interesting again!

I've been reading since the beginning of 24/7 and this was easily the best issue I've read.  I can't quite put my finger on why that is, but it's the first one I've ever given a 5 and thought it had a chance at POW

@Jimski
Joe Kelly has kids, right? Young ones, about the age to start talking, I think. My guess is: there's your answer. When your's is a regular converser (if she's not already; sorry I don't know the vocal range of your offspring), some of that talk might seep its way into your writing too.

Says the childless 21 year old who didn't have any younger siblings nor much knowledge of or direct contact with children overall. 

Does MJ remember who Spidey is?

@s73v3r: Yes.

@conor: Have they explained why, or should I just roll with it?

I hate Parker. He's not better looking than me and yet... Let's just say I wish I had Joe Kelly writing my life.

@s73v3r
There was a scene in One More Day where MJ demands a condition with Mephisto and the following word balloon is blank, so as to allow for stipulations where she can still have the knowledge of the past.

I agree with Jimski's complaints about the continued bashing of OMD, but this is one problem from it. And I know the iFanboy Team Alpha (our fearless leaders) also say that part of the fun of comics of yesteryear was that you'd have to go back and read old stories to unravel little mysteries like this, but OMD is something that should never have any nostalic or reverential treatment. It was the use of the nuclear bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in comic publishing form. There are many arguments against it, but some considerable arguments for it. 

@Mangaman: That reminds me of the best line from the issue where the Chameleon impersonate Peter Parker: "Does Parker know anyone who isn't a stunningly beautiful woman?"

@s73v3r: srsly dude, it's like Ultimate Spider-man ALL over again. Is New York brimming with beautiful women or is this just another Marvel trope? I used to think it was but now... I don't know...

@Mangaman
As comedian David Cross put it, (and I'm paraphrasing) "[In NYC] You're always faced with the dilemma: 'Do I look at the most beautiful woman in the world... or the craziest guy in the world?'"

@s73v3r:

There was a hint MJ knew when she first return, when watching Spider-man on TV, then at the end of the Chamleon arc (two issues ago), they both agreed that Peter Parker's only marketable skill watch punching people with metal arms. They both know, and they both know the other one knows.

Why is anyone's guess. We've yet to be told. The brain trust say the story is written, they're just not ready to release it yet. Most likely MJ was present when Peter did whatever he did, then revealed himself to MJ asap.

goddamn that was good.  this is the only superhero book I consistently give 4's and 5's every issue

@Zeppo
I just said it: there was a panel in One More Day where MJ puts a stipulation on the shitty deal that they made with Mephisto, but we only see a word balloon with lettering too tiny to see, thus giving the writers an out wherein they can allow MJ to know/not know whatever they want.

Fun issue. Black Cat looks hot and has great.....kittens.

And has McKone's Spidey always been colored like that? The blue is very dark, verging on black even. Looks pretty cool actually, but kinda gets some getting used to.

@cromulent
I haven't seen it done that way any time recently, but the Spidey suit was actually originally intended to be red and black with blue used as a hilight color (at the time, pure black didn't print well due to the techniques used for printing comics). The same thing happened to Batman; during the '60s and '70s especially he was almost always colored pure blue and gray where it was originally intended to be black. The Spider-Man costume was however changed at some point very early on; this issue has it in black, I would surmise, due to a choice in the colorist (colorer? I'm having a brain-fart here and can't recall the correct term!), probaby because it takes place at night. A brilliant move in my opinion.

@cromulent  For as long as I can remember most colorists have colored the blue very very dark and black when spidey is out at night. it just looks cool

Did you see next week's cover?!! IT'S SO UNEXPECTED. I've never seen such a naughty cover from Marvel. Granted I've just got back into it at 2007, but still, that's nuts. I might actually treat it like a Witchblade cover and just place it in a black bag.

I hate to nitpick, but I think they meant to say Michelle is "Boricua", not "Bordecua" or however they spelled it. 

I wanted to write a review of this one, but couldn't figure out where to click.  Anyways, wow, this book was incomprehensible to me.  It was filled with wacky hijinks, and is a lot like I imagine an Archie book would be if they had superpowers.  The opening bit with the roommate was amusing, but a bit overplayed by now, and then Norah appears, and it devolves even more into bad sitcom territory.  So then Spidey blows off some steam by torturing a purse snatcher, runs into Black Cat breaking into his boss' place, with the appearance of a random super-villain for a page or two (which is switfly forgotten), and commences to make out with BC, while they are not only recorded on camera, but broadcast live to Times Square.  Now, I am all about willing suspension of disbelief, but this had me shaking my head, and saying WTF?  Light-hearted is one thing, but this crosses the line into inane.

(Nice are, though.)

@70namrepuS
I thought the same thing, but my white ass Googled it and "Bordequa" was the right word; it means something like 'American born Puerto Rican woman'. Boricua's another thing, also related to being Puerto Rican.

@Anville
It's on the Your Comics page.

I thought this was the best issue in quite a while. Such a great issue. Current front-runner for POW. 5/5.

@captbastrd

I stand corrected.