Amazing Spider-Man #648

Brand New Day, One More Day, One Moment In Time. The past few years have been giving poor Peter Parker a temporal smack down. Whatever your feelings about Spidey’s recent history, Amazing Spider-Man has experienced substantial changes that are reshaping Spider-Man for new generations of readers.

The last few issues of Amazing have been rough steps in tidying up Spider-Man continuity for the Dan Slott and Humberto Ramos led Big Time. We’ve seen classic bad guys enter the fray once again and we’ve been handed down clumsy crib notes from on high to remind of us the sundry dramas haunting Peter and co. Lucky for us, ASM #648 is a huge success. Slott manages to tease out timeless character while constructing the roots of an arc that is scrupulously up to date. He addresses work, romance and all things spandex in a single issue that—while not free of its pacing faults— brings coherence to a multifaceted hero. Slott also manages to elegantly refer to the Marvel universe at large, exploding the scope of what has sometimes been an insular book. Ramos’s art works wonderfully for the aims of the story. He brings a kinetic, cartoon energy that balances Slott’s grounded plotting.

In the wake of some major changes, this is a book for skeptics and true-believers alike.