I just started reading Essential Spider-Woman, vol. 1. Volume 2 is scheduled to ship this week (That doesn't mean that will, of course, but it's supposed to.).

I guess I'll review this in the basic style of Leo's Spidey reviews and Darren's Cat reviews. I'll probably "batch" a few issues here and there, though, rather than review them all singly.

First off is Marvel Spotlight #32, which features the first appearance of the Jessica Drew Spider-Woman. She's not called Jessica Drew yet, however, since that name comes later. Here, she's a sort of mysterious figure known only as "Arachne."

Spider-Woman/Arachne is found and brainwashed by Hydra, who send her to kill Nick Fury. Naturally, she learns that she's been played before she actually does the deed. She goes back to seek revenge on her Hydra handlers, with Fury in tow. Confronting Hydra, she learns her true origin: She's really a spider who's been evolved into a human woman by the High Evolutionary! The main Hydra villain tries to escape. Spider-Woman wrecks his plane, and he crashes.

This is a pretty good story (written by Archie Goodwin), and Spider-Woman's non-human origins provide a twist at the end. Of course, we now know that that origin was undone, and I think that that may have been a good thing. An un-human Spider-Woman just seems vaguely unsettling to me, somehow.

This "pilot issue" is followed by a five issue arc in Marvel Two-In-One.

Awesome! I JUST got that issue yesterday, after a long duration! I look forward to your reveiws, Bob!

Thanks, Darren.

Just a quick review tonight. Essential Spider-Woman, vol. 1 begins with a reprint of Marvel Spotlight #32 and then moves to Marvel Two-in-One #29-33. I read the first two MTIO reprints tonight.






Here, we see that Spider-Woman has once again been brainwashed by Hydra. In MTIO #29, Hydra kidnaps a scientist and forces him to develop some kind of "super soldier serum" with Spider-Woman's DNA. They want to create an army of Spider-Women. The Thing and Shang-Chi, unaware of Hydra's aims or of Spider-Woman's involvement, rescue the scientist. The scientist, however, somehow forgets to mention his formula - a plot contrivance that sets up the next issue.

In MTIO #30, a hypnotized Spider-Woman attacks the Thing, but the battle ends in a draw. Nick Fury enlists Ben's help to rescue Spider-Woman from Hydra. At the end of the issue, however, Spider-Woman, who is still under Hydra's spell, kidnaps Alicia Masters.

Marv Wolfman wrote both issues. I've always seen him as an underrated writer. Here, too, the story is involving, and I think that he writes the Thing quite well (Wolfman's Benjy has a common touch and displays a good heart.). There is some overly wordy dialogue, though. The story is set in London, and Wolfman's Londoners act pretty stereotypical (They say things like "Blimey!" a lot.). I noted a story contrivance above, but admittedly, I recall such things being especially common in team-up books. Wolfman doesn't immediately tell us what Hydra is up to, and the mystery did intrigue me.

Ron Wilson penciled the Thing/Shang-Chi team-up and John Buscema drew the Thing/Spider-Woman installment. I always liked Wilson, and he does a good job here, as well (I wonder what he's doing these days.)? John Buscema is, of course, John Buscema. He's not a favorite of mine (To me, his style is kind of generic, I guess.), but he does his usual good job, as well.

There are three issues left in this story, but I'll have to review them another time.

I have the MTIO issues, already. Sooo, those are in the Essential Spider-Woman AND the Essential MTIO?

And she only appeared on those two covers with the skullcap instead of her free-flowing hair, right?

Those five issues are reprinted in both Essential Spider-Woman, volume 1 and Essential Marvel Two-in-One, vol. 2, yes. (I just checked my copy of the latter to verify this, and they are indeed in there.)




She has the skull cap in both the stories and on the covers. She doesn't get the free-flowing hair until Spider-Woman #1, which was published after the MTIO issues. (Her hair in these early issues - when it isn't covered by a skull cap - is actually brown, not black. She dyes it black in SW #1. I'm getting ahead of myself, though.)

As far as cover appearances go - SW does indeed appear on only two covers during this arc. She's featured prominenty on the cover of MTIO #30 (posted above) and in the background of MTIO #32 (which features a Thing/Invisible Girl team-up.). However, she does appear in all five of these issues (although in MTIO #29, she's only in the last panel!)

I love the Steve Leialoha issues. When I did my great comics purge they were among the two hundred I kept.

Two hundred? Care to share the priveleged list (or a close proximity) of such?

I'll have to start reading my Essential SW to keep up with your reviews Bob. Thanks for posting this. I've always liked the look of Spider-Woman and her origin, villains, etc.

When I get a chance I'll make a new thread with the list.

Just read Marvel Two-in-One #32. This issue officially has no guest star! It's a Thing solo story, although Spider-Woman does also appear (There seemed to be some rule that you couldn't use the same guest star two issues in a row!).

Someone should have told Marv Wolfman that comics was a visual medium. If Ben Grimm lifts a truck, his speech balloon then will read, "Here I am, lifting this truck!" This issue has a lot of moments like that.

The story's still got me hooked, though. Hydra have now turned Alicia into a spider-monster (complete with spider-legs) and have sent her after Ben. Meanwhile, a former Nazi spy and his accomplice look for treasure in London (Presumably, this plot will eventually be connected to the larger one.).

Okay. In MTIO #32, Nazi and friend find their treasure. They open it up, and it seems to suck them into another dimension or something. This seems to be leading into the next issue, which guest stars Mordred the Mystic.

Meanwhile, the main plot - involving Hydra and a serum made from Spider-Woman's DNA - is resolved. Hydra turned Alicia into a spider-monster. The Thing and Spider-Woman try to stop her rampage while not hurting her. Ben calls the Invisible Girl in New York, and Sue rushes to London. She saves the day by putting an invisible force field around Alicia's head, thus making Alicia pass out. Alicia is taken to the scientist who invented the Spider-Woman serum, and the scientist cures her. All's well that ends well (except for the Nazi and his friend, of course.).

Dig this early George Perez cover!

Just read Marvel Two-in-One #33, the final chapter in this saga.

Okay - Now, that Alicia's back to normal, she and Ben decide to visit Stonehenge. They're suddenly attacked by four elemental monsters. The monsters have been kidnapping people, including the Nazi and his accomplice from last issue. They've been draining their energy to become more powerful and draw Modred the Mystic to them.

We learn that Modred the Mystic is a disciple of Merlin the Magician. Modred has apparently been in suspended animation since the days of Camelot. The monsters come from the Age of Camelot and plan to take Modred back to Merlin (Merlin is presumably a villain, although he never appears in the story.). Modred seems to have Dr. Strange's powers, but he talks like Thor and dresses really funny.

Anyway, Modred and the Thing defeat the monsters. During the battle, Spider-Woman appears, explaining that she followed Ben to Stonehenge (It's never explained why, exactly, Spider-Woman seems to be stalking Ben Grimm, but...whatever.). When the monsters are vanquished, Modred tells SW that she's not an evolved spider as she believed, but really is human. Modred offers to restore her memories to her. In the end, SW walks off with Modred, while Ben walks off with Alicia. A blurb tells us that Spider-Woman #1 will appear soon!

Oh...we also have another Perez cover.

Hey! Modred! What did he have, like THREE Marble appearances?

Okay. I've been on the road, but I'm back now. While I was gone, I read Spider-Woman #1-5.



In this issue, we learn that Spider-Woman is really a human woman named Jessica Drew. Her father was a friend of the High Evolutionary when HE was still human. They all lived on Wundagore Mountain together. One day, Jessica contracted radiation poisoning from the uranium in Wundagore (Why this didn't happen to the others is anyone's guess.). Jessica's scientist father gave her a serum made of spider blood. The High Evolutionary then used his genetic accelerator on Jessica, and the combination turned Jessica into Spider-Woman. Jessica's mother died "from the strain" after Jessica took ill. Jessica's father left, leaving Jessica to be raised by the High Evolutionary. Jessica does not know what happened to her father.

Jessica is still in London following the events of those MTIO issues. She can't find a job, because people (especially women) seem unsettled by her. She tries to steal food and a SHIELD agent in London happens to see her (There are a lot of coincidences here!) and pulls her "skull cap" mask off. Jessica then dies her hair, so that he won't recognize her, which makes sense. However, she then changes her mask so that everyone knows that Spider-Woman now also has black hair! Someone explain that logic to me! The SHIELD agent, named Jerry Hunt, becomes obsessed with Spider-Woman and is naturally set up as a future love interest.



This issue introduces Morgan Le Fay, the witch of the King Arthur legends. Morgan Le Fay transforms a petty criminal into "Excalibur" via a magical sword. Spider-Woman gets the criminal to drop the sword, and he transforms back.

Meanwhile, Spider-Woman also meets a mysterious old man named Magnus. Magnus reveals that he and Morgan Le Fay have been enemies for centuries. He tells Jessica that her destiny lies in America, and away they both go.



This issue introduces Brother Grimm, a sort of trickster-like villain who seems to possess magical powers.

Spider-Woman and Magnus arrive in L.A. Posing as uncle and niece, they rent a boarding house from a lady named Mrs. Dolly. Magnus shows Jessica her father's grave and tells her that her father was murdered. However, he apparently doesn't know who the killer is. (Aside: This is always one of my pet peeves in magical stories: I hate it when these all-powerful magical mentor characters only seem to be all-powerful at selective moments!) Jessica sneaks into Police Headquarters and steals the file on her father's murder. She learns that her father worked for Pyro-Technics at the time of his death.

Meanwhile, Brother Grim is harassing a crooked politician named Senator Wyatt. Jessica gets involved and learns that her father had approached Senator Wyatt about something that was happening at Pyro-Technics.



Spider-Woman again runs into Brother Grimm. She also meets her landlady Mrs. Dolly (only Magnus met her in issue #3). Like most women, Mrs. Dolly first becomes uneasy around Jessica, but Magnus casts a spell, and Jessica never has this problem again (To my knowledge, the reasons for the original affect were never explained.). We meet William and Jake, Mrs. Dolly's two sons, who seem to always be arguing. We learn that William Dolly worked with Jessica's father at Pyro-Technics, but won't talk about it. SHIELD agent Jerry Hunt goes to America to find Spider-Woman. Meanwhile, a crazed vigilante named Hangman wants to kill Brother Grimm. He captures Spider-Woman and promises that he's going to "protect her."



Spider-Woman wakes up in Hangman's dungeon. Hangman is apparently going to "protect" her by leaving her there to rot. She escapes, but then experiences a number of nightmarish hallucinations. We learn that Morgan Le Fay is behind it all and has captured both Jessica and Magnus. To be continued.

These issues are all written by Marv Wolfman and drawn by Carmine Infantino. I'm not a fan of Infantino's art - especially his 70's Marvel work - but these issues aren't bad, and I'm enjoying the story.

According to Don Markstein's Toonopedia site, Marvel largely created Spider-Woman, because they didn't want anyone else to use the name ( http://www.toonopedia.com/spidrwom.htm ). The problem with this soon becomes evident: The character is really all about the name. She has a cool costume, and some cool powers (slightly different from Spider-Man's), but beyond that, there was no clear vision. Every writer approached the character differently.

Wolfman seems to be going for a "Stranger in a Strange Land" approach, i.e. Spider-Woman grew up in Wundagore and knows little of humankind's strange ways. That's a typical Marvel formula used for characters such as the Silver Surfer. It's not a bad angle, but not especially unique.

Wolfman also makes the book a little dark, with a heavy emphasis on mystical villains. The decision to make this a mystical book baffles me. The character isn't inherently magical, and magic-based heroes usually don't sell well. Again, though, the stories aren't bad at all. They're just not particularly remarkable.

In any case, it is obvious that Marvel wasn't making another Spider-Man book here. The Spider-Woman series is very different in both tone and approach. Spider-Woman and Spider-Man don't even meet until Spider-Woman #20! If this book had launched today, you can bet that Spidey would be in the first issue.

Three more issues to review. This finishes up Marv Wolfman's run.



As noted above, the last issue ended with Spider-Woman and the mysterious magician Magnus captured by the sorcerous Morgan Le Fay. Morgan threatens to kill S-W unless Magnus gives her the book of Darkhold. Magnus promises to send S-W after the book. S-W says that she doesn't know where it is, and Magnus says that he will magically guide her. At the same time, Magnus secretly sends out a "magic signal" to SHIELD Agent Jerry Hunt, who is then instinctively guided to their location.

Spider-Woman ends up in Jack Russell's apartment. Russell has chained himself up, as the moon is full, and he's about to became the Werewolf by Night (Isn't that kind of a dumb name, when you think about it? Who ever heard of a Werewolf by Day? Of course, I digress). S-W frees Russell, and of course, he becomes a werewolf. S-W stuns him with a venom blast and brings him to Morgan Le Fay.

Morgan Le Fay is furious, because S-W didn't bring her the Book of Darkhold. Magnus explains that Jack Russell has read the book, and it's all in his mind. Morgan threatens to remove Russell's mind. Magnus finds the strength to attack her. Jerry Hunt arrives. There's a big battle and Morgan Le Fay loses. Finally, Jerry and Spider-Woman are reunited, and their romance begins.



This issue wraps up the Jonathon Drew/Pyro-Technics story. From previous issues, Jessica Drew learned that there was a connection between the company Pyro-Technics and the murder of her father, Jonathon Drew. In this issue, we learn that Jonathon Drew had been at Pyro-Technics and had been drugged and manipulated into perfecting his anti-radiation serum. Congressman Wyatt, whom we met in an earlier issue (I said Senator Wyatt before, but apparently, he's a Congressman.), has concocted a scheme to seize control of the United States. A "neutron device" will bombard military bases, making them radioactive. Wyatt's army, innoculated against radiation by Jonathon Drew's serum, will then seize those bases. Naturally, Spider-Woman and SHIELD save the day and learn what happened to Spider-Woman's father.

In this issue, Spider-Woman also asks Magnus if he is Merlin the Magician. Magnus insists that he is not. He said that he was a student of Morgan Le Fay and eventually turned on her.

So far, this is the only Spider-Woman issue with a non-magical plot. Brother Grimm does appear briefly, but this time, he appears to working with Congressman Wyatt, albeit only because he was paid to do so (He was working against Wyatt last time.).

I usually don't care much for Infantino's art, but I have to say that it looks pretty good here, with Steve Leialoha's inks.



Wolfman's last issue gives us two short stories of a supernatural nature. In the first one, Spider-Woman meets an immortal who wants to die. His curse is lifted when S-W genuinely wants to die for him (although, of course, she doesn't actually do it.) and then he dies. In the second story, a man is possessed by a criminal's suit. All's well that ends well, though.

Mark Gruenwald takes over as writer in Spider-Woman #9 and stays on the book through issue #20. Carmine Infantino continues as artist.

Gruenwald had a run on Cap that I recall enjoying.

Doesn’t really have anything to do with Spider-Woman though.

I liked that Cap run a lot, too - or what I read of it, anyway (I was in college at the time and couldn't afford a lot of comics.).

Gruenwald was a great writer. In retrospect, it's kind of surprising that he didn't get more attention.

He was sort of Marvel's "continuity guru," and he edited the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe (I think he edited all of the various editions, but I know he did the first one, at least.). His Marvel Two-In-One run included the famed Project Pegasus saga, and of course, he wrote a highly acclaimed Squadron Supreme mini-series.

I also enjoyed the Hawkeye mini-series that he wrote in the early 1980's.

I have those Spider-Woman issues! I remember enjoying them. I also did a commission S-W, that is like the cover of issue #1 by Joe Sinnott. You can see it here.....second post.

http://www.imwan.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=10625

Gruenwald also had a very underrated run on Quasar (the entire series), and I believe he wrote most of the Hawkeye stories in Solo Avengers.

Gruenwald also penciled that Hawkeye series with Brett Breeding and Danny Bulanadi inking the books.

Okay, that I didn't know.

I didn't know he was an artist either.