Amazing Spider-Man #77: Deep Thoughts

For the record, I’ve never really liked the “writer’s room/hive mind” writing style thing. I’ve always found the whole experience kind of counterproductive and usually stories come out choppy with very little sense of flow. But, when it works, it really works, and believe me, this really works. The author of this issue, Kelly Thompson, is certainly no stranger to writing great comics and she really shines in this issue. Part awesome comic, part character study, this issue really explores Ben Reilly and who he is, something that’s been sorely needed as he’s becoming the main focus of this book for the next handful of months. Besides that, it’s just nice to know more about him. How he feels about his/Peter’s past and how he differs from Pete in some subtle ways, and in some major ways. If you’re not a Ben Reilly fan, this issue might just change your mind. In the recent past, he’s been portrayed as an opportunist and a pretty self-centered individual. This takes us inside his head a little bit and introduces some of the things that he is and has been dealing with. The reader will come out the other side of this book with a lot better understanding of just what it’s like to be Ben Reilly. It’s not all rainbows and hoodies. 

WOW!!! Sara Pachelli!!! One of the most beloved artists working today and we’re lucky enough to get her in the regular artists’ rotation on this book! What can I even say about this art? It’s gorgeous. This is the kind of book that you give somebody that hasn’t read comics since junior high and they look at it and say “Man! Comics sure have changed since I read them last!!”. Almost every panel looks like a tiny painting that took her hours to complete. I could go on, but what for? We all know Pachelli’s art is exquisite, so we’ll just leave it at that.