Spider-man by Paul Jenkins

I once had my at-the-time small collection of comics stolen, leaving me with very few remaining and a very sad face. On the plus side, I fancy the thief at least had good taste. Among the comics taken were some superbly written and illustrated Spider-man comics from a time when there were very few. Around the time I started reading comics Spidey wasn't doing so well, story-wise. Webspinners: Tales of Spider-man was a title that was a sort of mixed-bag, written by a rotating who's who of the industry. Issues #10-12 was written by Paul Jenkins and I only recently had the chance to buy and read them again and I must say they are as good as I remember. Paul's story was simple enough, and done to death: An old foe slips into Peter's home life and takes Mary Jane hostage. Or so it would seem.

The foe in question is the Chameleon, from the original Amazing Spider-man #1. He seamlessly assumes the role of Peter and cheers up Aunt May, and leaves a message for Peter to meet him on top of the oh-so-famous bridge where Spidey fought the Green Goblin and Peter lost Gwen Stacy forever. At first it appears as though Chameleon has taken Mary Jane hostage, but this whole situation is a ruse to talk to Peter. Not Spider-man, Peter. The Chameleon reminisces about 'old times' and then tells Peter his whole life is hollow as he has no real experiences, always playing someone else. Then he tells Peter he loves him. Peter bursts out laughing, which leads to the Chameleon laughing, saying he didn't mean in a romantic sense. Peter jokingly asks what he plans to do for an encore and the Chameleon responds by jumping off the bridge.

The story has one more beat to play as Peter, shaken by this turn of events heads home, brushes off his aunt and promptly falls asleep. In his dreams Peter is confronted by all his failures and defeats, all the deaths he failed to prevent. As a young boy at the time this story was not only odd but also strangely gripping. This deep examination of what kind of man Peter Parker is, the losses that define him and his resolve to somehow keep going in spite of it all. This was an inspiring story and, along with Paul Jenkins run on Peter Parker: Spider-man with Mark Buckingham, left me a life-long Spider-man fan.


 So, if your out there, Mr Jenkins, I'll send you the bill for my junkie-like comics habit.

Until I stop reading those twenty-two page adventures, I remain

frogoat