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The Sensational Spider-Man #28
Review posted: 13 July 2006
Writer: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Artist: Clayton Crain
Letters: Joe Caramagna
Publisher: Marvel Comics
4.20 out of 5 Stars
Reviewed by J. W. DeBolt Jr.
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Some of the best comicbook stories have been those that step away from the main character and focus on someone else in that issue. In Spider-Man’s world, recall the story of the kid with leukemia that Spider-Man visited in “The Kid Who Collected Spider-Man” (ASM #248) as well as “Kraven’s Last Hunt” (ASM #293), where Spider-Man doesn’t even appear and yet the story rivets you as you crawl through Kraven’s tortured and twisted mind. These kinds of stories give the writer free reign to develop the story and infuse it with his own individual essence.
Aguirre-Sacasa does a great job of building up Jordan’s character… we learn enough to know what kind of effect Spider-Man’s revelation will have on him.
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In this issue, the driving story is the unmasking that occurred in The Amazing Spider-Man #533. Here, we get the writer’s old trick of showing us the effects of major events by focusing on one person’s reaction and the consequences to him. Midtown High School student Jordan Harrison learns, along with the rest of the world, that his teacher is really Spider-Man. Aguirre-Sacasa does a great job of building up Jordan’s character for the first six pages; there is no rush to get to the action that comes later. We learn enough about Jordan to know what kind of effect the revelation will have on him. His first reaction is one of anger. As an aspiring science student who wants to get into a top-notch college, Jordan had made Peter Parker promise to help him with his studies. But if Parker is Spider-Man, Jordan thinks, then he isn’t going to be as available as he promised he would be — and that having Spider-Man as a teacher can be a liability when it comes to applying for college.
One of the advantages of setting the story at Midtown High and centering it on a student there is that it hearkens to the time when Spider-Man first appeared — in the same place and about the same age as Jordan. Like Parker, he lost his father at a young age; he’s an excellent student with a strong work ethic; he’s shy with girls but sets his sights on the prettiest girl in class; and, when the time comes, he shows courage beyond the extent of his physical ability. So you get that feeling you had when reading the re-creations of Spider-Man’s origin, or from such books as Untold Tales of Spider-Man from the mid 1990s. The flashbacks in the issue contribute to that feeling. Another enjoyable aspect of the issue is the guest super-villain who can’t believe he could have killed Spider-Man when he just started out — if he had only known then that Parker was really Spider-Man.
The art in this issue by Clayton Crain is similar to the fabulous work he did in the Ghost Rider miniseries from last year. His painterly rendering of images may be computer-created, but nevertheless gives depth and atmosphere to the scenes. The colors are muted and, perhaps, reflect the introspective bent of the tale.
All in all, this is one of the best issues I’ve read this month. However, I might have ended the tale differently. Since the villain is known for his scientific knowledge and respect for science, Jordan’s appeal could have piqued the villain’s love of science to include the respect for his almost-one-time-assistant and almost-step-nephew Peter Parker and therefore defused his temper. But maybe not.
—CCdC—
Cover image used without explicit permission in accordance with the "Fair Use" provision of US copyright law.
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