I've decided to very slowly do a read through of Spider-Man! I've done it before, but it's been years and years now. I'll do my best to read each and every issue across Spider-Man's many titles. I'll try to put a relevant quote from the issue at the end of my reviews, for fun! In this instance though, I'll do two since technically this review covers two issues.

Something to note as well, as I go through these early issues: these are early 60s silver age comics. They are antiquated. That's just how it is. I will be rating these on a "Product of its Time" curve until I hit a sufficient point in Spidey history wherein I feel that the curve is no longer necessary. Therefore, I won't be as harsh on expository dialogue, wacky plot developments/contrivances, or outdated social content (For instance, the Red Scare and Commie hatred prevalent in early Marvel comics).

We get two "Feature-Length" stories in this issue. I'll let you all onto a little secret. The first time I read this issue waaay back in the day (Through the *amazing* complete collection CDs Marvel put out. They'd never do something like that now, but those disks are still relatively available if you want some moderately rough PDF scans of the first 400 or 500 Amazing Spider-Man issues.) I was unimpressed with this first issue. I thought, the spoiled kid that I was, that this was an uneventful issue. Spider-Man fights gravity and then Chameleon, a villain I didn't really care about. But now that I'm old and more grateful for my nostalgia-drenched colorful picture books, I find myself appreciating this issue.

It does a lot of things. It introduces everyone's favorite newsman, J. Jonah Jameson, firmly establishing the rivalry between Spider-Man and JJJ. It introduces John Jameson. It introduces Flash Thompson. It really hammers home the heft of the responsibility that Peter faces in the aftermath of his uncle's untimely death. Oh and I really appreciate the Fantastic Four appearance in the second story. If you've ever read the formative years of Marvel, you'll know that the best titles are ASM and Fantastic Four. For whatever reason, Stan Lee just really brought those characters to life in a way that he couldn't do for, say, Ant-Man or Iron Man. Not to say those other books were bad, or that they had no place, but FF and ASM were just on another level. So whenever the two interact, it's always great. Also, it's so nice to have a cohesive universe here. I cannot stress enough how important that is to Marvel comics, even today. The universe feels lived in by the time Spider-Man swings onto the scene, and I appreciate that as a comic book reader. It makes going back to these issues akin to visiting family you haven't seen in a while... Except you like them.

So yeah, this issue does a lot right. It establishes many important things that will definitely develop more over the course of the next few issues. It doesn't take long for Spider-Man to get the classic feel... And no, I don't mean that faux classic feel invented by the Sam Raimi films.

Quote of the issue: "A Tough Time Cashing It, Eh? Well, We'll See About That!" more

Good start, but the age of this comic does a thing. Some parts of this were done poorly even for that time. Also mistakes such as "Peter Palmer" spoil the impression too. However, there are many stories and it's cool to read the very beginning of such a great superhero.

(Cover date: March, 1963)

Comics from the 60s are... interesting. I do think Stan Lee was a genius for creating characters but, damn, man didn't know how to develop them properly lol.

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TSMack - Jan 2, 2022

The early storylines were pretty corny. The writing got better in the mid 60s.

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Holy antiquity, Peter Palmer!

The Stan Lee and Steve Ditko run of Amazing Spider-Man is for sure a product of its time. The dialog is primitive and at times insulting. The panel of Jonah introducing his son to the reader is down right hilariously unnatural to the point where Spider-Man 2 the movie actually poked fun at the delivery in my opinion. The art by Steve Ditko however stands the test of time. His early Spidey art almost gives Peter a inhuman like quality. His work with the civilian characters as well is downright iconic. Personally I'm not the biggest fan of the Chameleon so his story is my least favorite of the two stories. I love the inclusion of the Fantastic Four in the second story. While they could be seen as pushover's due to how easy Spider-Man defeats them I like to believe they were going easy on him. Overall I think the art really saves alot of these early issues. The best way to read them with modern lenses is to skim and just admire the art of Ditko. more

Peter after harrasing ff be like:
-I'm super cool, give me money