The Complete Clone Saga 8: Players & Pawns and Amazing Spider-Man 400

Spectacular Spider-Man 222 starts the 2 part “Players and Pawns”. We get a bunch of mystery builders in this one with Kaine confronting Jackal and the Scrier, Kaine confronting Peter, and Jackal confronting the Scarlet Spider but no real forward saga momentum. This would become a recurring theme during parts of the Clone Saga as villain-of-the-month plots creep in heavily.

Web of Spider-Man 123 concludes “Players and Pawns” and the fights from the last issue while releasing a third Peter Parker (shown briefly in the previous chapter) on the world. Between this and the annoying imp-like clone sidekick the Jackal has, this issue proves rather atrocious. Thankfully the Terry Kavanagh-written disaster (which may be a redundancy after looking back at much of Kavanagh’s writing career) would soon be mercifully put out of its (and our) misery.

These two issues lead in to the first big turning point of the Clone Saga: Amazing Spider-Man 400 (which comes complete with embossed cover). The issue puts its primary focus on none other than Aunt May. While we do get the revelation that Aunt May isn’t an idiot, she has known that Peter is Spidey for quite some time. But when we get to the story’s end and Aunt May’s death, we get the first big insult of the clone saga. Peter is gone when she dies, leaving the Spider-clone to fill in at her bedside. After thirty years of history, Peter Parker can’t even show up for the death. It serves as a prime example of the bad storytelling that would quickly turn off fans for months and years to come. After the funeral, things get even worse, as Peter is arrested for murder. Ben introduces himself to Mary Jane as the issue ends.

Issue 400 does come with two back-ups. The first is by DeMatteis, Romita Jr., and Romita. (Is this the first time Romita inked Romita Jr?) “The Parker Legacy” picks up directly after the events of Amazing Spider-Man 149 and tells the tale of Ben Reilly’s life. The second back-up is by DeMatteis, scripter Stan Lee, and the art team of Tom Grummett and Al Milgrom. This may be Grummett’s first Marvel work. I don’t know if it is Milgrom’s inks or just an attempt to ape Bagley, but his usually fantastic art looks horrible here. The story is basically a retelling of why Peter never told Aunt May, a story which serves little purpose in this issue. It feels mostly like an add-on just to get Stan Lee’s name in the solicitation copy.

Next time we move in to the post-May era with “Aftershocks”.

The Complete Clone Saga 7: Smoke & Mirror

“Smoke & Mirror” brings the separate stories back together as the deadly Jackal begins to show he is just as alive as Ben Reilly! During a terrible snowstorm, Scarlet Spider comes under attack by the Jackal’s genetically engineered minions and is left unconscious.

Part two in Amazing-Spider-Man 399 opens with a brief scene expanding the mystery of Kaine as the killer vigilante speaks with the mysterious Scrier. Spider-Man finds the downed Scarlet Spider and helps him get his wits about him. The Jackal finally appears and claims that both men are in fact clones. Any fight gets broken down as Jackal takes another figure out of suspended animation: a woman he claims is the original Gwen Stacy!

Part three erases the erasure of the Clone Saga in an earlier “Evolutionary War” annual. The High Evolutionary’s revelations were all fabrications, but to what purpose we do not learn. Peter hugs Gwen, but she quickly suffers a case of clone degeneration. Jackal escapes and leaves the two Spiders with still more questions about their own identities.

Up Next: “Players & Pawns”.

The Complete Clone Saga 6: Funeral for the Octopus

Before we continue with the main storyline of the Clone Saga, a few digressions pop-up. First, Spider-Man artist Tom Lyle writes the eighth issue of Spider-Man Unlimited, drawn by Ron Lim. And in a true bit of eeriness, the story revolves around an attempt to blow up the World Trade Center. And just to add some tension, Mary Jane is among the hostages taken. Spider-Man and Scarlet Spider both go to the tower to settle different scores. They never quite meet, but they both take out their own members of the criminal Terror Unlimited and save the city in the process. Nothing overly ambitious here, and excepting the eeriness of a WTC attack plot, nothing of note.

After those events, we move on to the three issues of Spider-Man: Funeral For an Octopus. In the aftermath of his cure, Peter Parker must deal with the ramifications of Otto Octavius’ death, while Ben Reilly has uncovered a mini-arms race, as an evil businessman as well as four of Doc’s allies in the Sinister Six are all after Doctor Octopus’s weapon cache. As the first issue ends, the Scarlet Spider confronts the combined forces of Vulture, Mysterio, Hobgoblin, and Elektro.

Issue two is for the most part a prolonged fight scene as Scarlet Spider battles the four remaining members of the Sinister Six. He is no match for the combined might and gets left under a crumbled roof. The villains attack a government building looking for Octavius’ weapons. Spider-Man stops them and retrieves an extra pair of Doc Ock’s arms. With their aid, he holds his own. But the arms malfunction and start dragging him away from the battle to parts unknown. As the issue ends, the villains have their own problem... as Kaine arrives!

The arms are running amok outside and attack the security detail at the building. Scarlet Spider breaks free, even as Kaine prepares to slay Mysterio. But he finds that the costume is occupied only by a robotic dummy. He continues to fight Elektro. Spidey tears apart the harness to free himself from the wild octopus arms. He swings off and inadvertently saves Elektro from the mark of Kaine. Meanwhile, Mysterio is actually using his illusions to get the info on Octavius’ weapon from a wayward relative, but Scarlet Spider shows up and stops him. The story abruptly comes to an end here, as does this report.

Next time, back to regular continuity as the Spider-books officially go weekly with “Smoke and Mirror”.


Just as a reminder, I will be going in to Nanowrimo mode for November, so updates will be sparse.

The Complete Clone Saga 5: Web of Death

While Web of Life plays out for the Scarlet Spider, Web of Death occupies the time of our long-time Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. Still dying (as he has been for months now), Spider-Man stumbles through the city and collapses as Amazing Spider-Man 397 begins. Doctor Octopus finds him, but refuses to kill him in his current pathetic state.

Stunner trashes a bar, only for Doc Ock to arrive and collect her. They romance for a bit before Stunner suddenly vanishes. A bit later, she beats down Spider-Man. Octopus arrives a bit later to unmask Peter as the first chapter wraps.

Chapter Two in Spectacular Spider-Man 220 (featuring the rock solid art team of Sal Buscema & Bill Sienkiewicz) has Doctor Octopus devote himself to find a cure for Peter. He does so because he cannot watch his greatest foe die at the hands of another, but even his scientific skills prove not to be a match for the poison in Peter’s veins. Kaine continues to stalk Mary Jane, but it isn’t until the final page that we get the surprise of the issue: MJ is pregnant!

Chapter Three is mostly filler, as Spidey celebrates his pregnant wife, worries about his dying aunt, and Doc Ock moves in the shadows. But finally Ock gives Spidey the cure, only for it to drop him to the floor. Peter proceeds to speak with both the recently deceased Nick Katzenberg and Aunt May, before he walks in to the light...

And in to chapter four! We open with chats with Richard and Mary Parker, a dream-state interrupted by the equally dead Norman Osborn (at least at this time). At the same time Doctor Octopus struggles to resuscitate Peter. His cure has worked, but not before Parker suffered heart failure. When Spider-Man awakens, he finds his foe is ready to renew their rivalry, a situation that flabbergasts Spidey. Doc is arrested, but rests assured that he will meet his enemy again. It proves not to be, as the mysterious Kaine first incapacitates Stunner, then attacks the convoy carrying Doc Ock. Otto fights back, but Kaine cracks his neck. Stunner arrives just in time to cradle her lover’s corpse.

And so, you have the first mistake of the Clone Saga. Say what you will about Spider-Man, Mary Jane, and the clone, but I think we can all agree that Doctor Octopus is an irreplaceable villain. Which becomes even more sad, as we move closer to meeting his replacement....

The Complete Clone Saga 4: Web of Life

Seems I am not the only one with an interest to relive the Clone Saga. Dan Slott, co-writer of Amazing Spider-Man, is bringing Ben Reilly back and with it comes a new limited series by Tom DeFalco and Howard Mackie retelling the Clone Saga. Who wants to bet half the characters get written out completely?

“Web of Life” opens with the Scarlet Spider in battle with both Tombstone and a group of terrorist. The Grim Hunter also begins his hunt for the Spider. Otherwise, not much happens. Meh.

Chapter two gives us more Kaine... and man, this guy was emo before emo was emo. Lots of whining and smashing things. In fact, so much of it, that Scarlet Spider looks positively upbeat in comparison. This chapter also gives us Seward Trainer, a scientist with a strange need to where spandex for a man who isn’t a superhero. Apparently, he is an old friend of ol’ Scarlety. Sadly, he will become far too involved in the inner workings of the Spider-books for the next couple years. We also get the first appearance of Phil Raven, the man who wants to arrest the Scarlet Spider for murder! But that story has another year or so to wait.

Chapter three opens with Kaine rescuing a homeless woman, showing us that he isn’t totally evil. But it doesn’t stop him from battling Ben Reilly, even attempting to kill our intrepid hero. But it all comes to a head when Grim Hunter arrives on the scene... with plans to kill Peter Parker. Only Scarlet Spider can hope to save his other self.

In the final chapter of “Web of Life” we finally meet Seward Trainer, even as Ben reveals more of his past dealings, and hatred, for the man known as Kaine. But in the end it comes down to a battle between Kaine and the Grim Hunter, a battle where the son of Kraven dies by Kaine’s hand.

“Web of Life” is where the Clone Saga starts to weaken. Instead of an ongoing saga following Ben, we instead get a lot of padding poorly disguised as “build-up”. But the story was far from over... even as we move over to the other two Spider-books and “Web of Life”.