|
Amazing Spider-Man #566
Kraven's First Hunt Part 2 - Identity Crisis!
Credits
Writer: Marc Guggenheim
Breakdowns: Phil Jimenez
Finishes: Mark Pennington
Colors: Chris Chukry & Jeromy Cox
Letters: VC’s Cory Petit
Asst. Editor: Tom Brennan
Meltzer: Stephen Wacker
Executive Editor: Tom Brevoort
Editor-In-Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley
Spidey’s Braintrust: Gale, Guggenheim, Slott & Wells
Synopsis
Vin Gonzalez finds himself in trouble – the new female Kraven believes he is Spider-Man and has taken him captive in the sewers. Vin tries his best to convince her that she is wrong but she continues to beat on him before she kills him!
Meanwhile Peter Parker has returned home and worries that Vin isn’t there. He decides to swing around to try and find him but when he goes to put on his costume he finds it not there! Presuming that Vin has found it, he panics and hatches a plan to find out what Vin is doing and where he is…
In Hell’s Kitchen, Peter webs up his face and pays Matt Murdock (Daredevil) a visit, asking if he can borrow a costume. Murdock agrees and also mentions that he can help with Spider-Man’s lawsuit (see ASM #555).
Within the sewer system, Kraven injects Vin with some MGH (Mutant Growth Hormone) to boost his “spider powers” and make him ready for he hunt! Suddenly, the half-rat half-man beast Vermin appears and attacks Kraven for trespassing in his home!
Peter, now dressed as Daredevil, goes to visit Detective Palone and, instead of finding out where Vin is, learns via a drug-dealer who the police picked up that Spider-Man has been held captive by a young girl around Pier 17!
The bloody battle between Kraven and Vermin is brutal but quick, as Vin breaks loose from his chains and distracts Kraven which allows Vermin to escape.
Peter arrives at Pier 17, having reasoned that his roommate is in serious trouble! Suddenly the wounded and ferocious Vermin exits the sewers and attacks him!
Kraven tells Vin to run so that she can begin the hunt! He tells her that if she hurts anyone he knows he will do things to her that the real Spider-Man would never do! Then… he runs!
Above, Peter is overwhelmed by Vermin! Vermin rips a fleshy chunk from Peter’s shoulder and, writhing in pain, Peter realises that his friend will not be saved…!
Highlight
Vin, quickly becoming an excellent supporting character and developing at a suitable rate.
Comments
Guggenheim greatest achievement this issue is delving further into the mind of Vin and making him the centre of attention. The part of me that longs for the next issue is doing so because I want to find out what happens to Vin and not Peter. I’ll get on to my wariness of the villain later because Guggenheim’s page quota devoted to Kraven and Vin makes the story about those two characters rather than it solely being about Peter’s attempt to rescue his friend. It’s actually very clever of Guggenheim and proves to me that he deserves more of this title and is an incredibly strong and thoughtful writer. The development of Vin, through the torment, injection of MGH and the final, stirring and quite dark threat of his to Kraven at the end creates a natural progression of the character through unnatural things. Guggenheim picks back up the Vin who is angry at the world, would pull a gun on a cabbie to speed him up and throws his weight around in this last section to show so much potential for this character if written surely in the direction he is going.
Phil Jimenez’s art changes slightly here. Within the comic he is credited as doing the “Breakdowns” instead of “Pencils” and I think this means a big difference in terms of who does what. Last issue Jimenez’s pencils were typically detailed, often containing too many sketch lines but pretty darn good. This issue there are much bolder lines everywhere due to heavier “Finishes” by Mark Pennington, gone are most of the sketchy shading lines and the art is, in places, barely similar to last issue. And it’s great! The change means that visuals of Peter stay the same throughout the book as they are not cluttered with extra lines, it means that the scene where Peter walks on the ceiling is actually simple, clever and clear all at once, it means that there is generally more room for the colourists to do a pretty good-if-not-slightly-blocky job and it means that the best of Jimenez’s (storytelling, attention for the dramatic and panel construction) remain raw. Let’s see what next issue brings but I am more than happy with this.
Kraven is turning out to be a cracking foil for Vin. She makes mistakes, is too caught up in the theatrical and historical but has this brutal side that is probably going to see her through bit allows for an honest, rookie first hunt that allows for excellent development in the future. She’s good for Vin because he’s probably going to get the better of her and we’ll see where things go from there…! Vermin’s appearance was a bit of a surprise but not an unwelcome one as he ties Kraven’s First Hunt to Kraven’s Last Hunt in style. It’s just a pity that he has no build up whatsoever which weakens his initial impact in the sewers and then when he confronts Peter. Jimenez doesn’t help here as Vermin doesn’t look rabid, furious, wounded or dangerous enough whereas a little more attention on his earlier fight of history may have helped.
Guggenheim has talked of creating an original way of getting Daredevil involved in this storyline and I agree that the borrowing a costume idea is definitely original and I do get a kick out of supporting Daredevil for a change! The scenes where Peter asks for the costume and then goes to the police station in it are much livelier than the banter between the two last issue and the references to previous team-ups and the lawsuit are welcome continuity moments that show a nice attention to detail.
The ending is a little mixed. I’ve already said that I know which character I’m bothered about but I find that the page just peters out and there is no real resolution or cliffhanger to the issue. I actually turned the page to see a brilliant final image of Vin and peter opposed against their foes but nothing! I think Guggenheim and Jimenez try to black Peter out as he considers the fate of his friend but the seriousness of his situation with Vermin isn’t nearly serious enough and it just doesn’t sell. Apart from that the structure of the issue, flitting between scenes and showing time passing, is excellent and the pace is near perfect for the type of reactionary story being told.
Rating
Cover – 2 / 5
Overall – 4 / 5
Reviewed by Adam Rivett
|
Ultimate Spider-Man