Spider-Man: The Other

Spider-Man: The Other collects Amazing Spider-Man nos. 525-528, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man nos. 1-4, and Marvel Knights Spider-Man nos. 19-22 written by J. Michael Straczynski, Peter David, and Reginald Hudlin with art by Mike Wieringo, Pat Lee, and Mike Deodato Jr. The story itself was developed by Straczynski and builds upon concepts of the totemic nature of Spider-Man's powers, with Morlun reappearing to once again attack Spidey. It appears that Spider-Man is dying of an unknown and untreatable ailment, though he successfully fights of Morlun while confronting his own mortality. In totemic fashion, he effectively gives birth to himself. As outlandish as the premise sounds, Straczynski gives this storyline a great deal of show more emotional resonance as Peter, Mary Jane, and Aunt May grapple with his impending death and reach out to Spidey's friends in the superhero community for help. The story also played a key role in setting up events from Marvel's 2014 Spider-Verse crossover event. It's well worth a re-read for those who don't remember it or who are going through the better Spider-Man stories prior to One More Day. show less

Excellent story that really digs into the guts of the Spider-Man mythos. Like "Kraven's Last Hunt" in that respect, and both stories really give the loyal fan a lot to think about.

Spider-Man: The Other is a compiled graphic novel of various Spider-Man titles (Amazing Spider-Man #525-528, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #1-4, and Marvel Knights Spider-Man #19-22) and written by Peter David, Reginald Hudlin, J. Michael Straczynski, Pat Lee, Mike Wieringo, and Mike Deodato.

After a battle with the new villain Tracer, Peter Parker receives some shocking news from his doctor. He is dying! Of course, all the best Marvel superhero doctors team up to try to help him. But Morlun is back too. And he’s just biding his time to feed off Spidey.

The story is suspenseful and exciting, but a bit choppy and incongruent over the span of the Spider-Man titles. In one scene, Mary Jane has a broken arm. In the next, she’s show more absolutely fine. But when you’re dealing with a span of multiple titles, it comes with the territory.

Some of the artwork was only mediocre at best. But thankfully, since there were multiple titles, we get to see more than one artist at work. And the story more than made up for it. show less

The conclusion of the storyline begun in the "Amazing Spider-Man" compilation, "New Avengers", in which Spider-Man and his family have been welcomed into Avengers Tower after their homes have been burnt down. Here, Spider-Man learns that the radioactive spider bite that gave him his powers is finally killing him, and he enlists the aid of the scientifically gifted among his compadres for a cure, and failing that, a way to leave this life in a satisfying way. Complicating the picture, however, is the unexplained return of Morlin, who was killed in his earlier battle to consume Spider-Man's essence. This time their battle is fatal to Spider-Man, and Mary Jane and Aunt May must deal with his death. Yet his spider-powers have one last ace show more to play, as he sheds his skin and regenerates his body in a cocoon-like state, becoming re-born in the process (unlike what Tony Stark explains, I don't think spiders can really do this. At least it's explained as a once-in-a-lifetime process). All should be joy and celebration upon Peter's return, and it mostly is, but there are some developments that make it apparent that these near-mystical spider-essence shades of the mythos aren't over, and I wish it was. The "other" is so-far confusing and not well-explained, as is Morlin's own rebirth. On the other hand, the character development and writing are just fine and emotionally satisfying. The artwork, though, swings between an artist I like very much and another I don't care for much, and it's not clear from the credits who did what. show less

Extremely poor, buy another graphic novel, there are millions out there that will give you more enjoyment than this one. Not much action, lacks the usual levity of spider-man, and some issues in this collection are very poorly drawn, or at the very least skillfully stylized in a crappy way.