REVIEW: ‘Amazing Spider-Man,’ Issue #875

Amazing Spider-Man #875 is published by Marvel Comics and marks the end of Nick Spencer’s three-year run with the web-slinger. “What Cost Victory?” is written by Spencer & Christos Gage with pencils from Marcelo Ferreria, Ze Carlos, Dio Neves, Mark Bagley, Carlos Gomez, Ivan Fiorelli, & Humberto Ramos. Ferreria, Neves, Gomez, Carlos, Fiorelli handles inking duties alongside Victor Olazaba, Wayne Fauncher, Andrew Hennessy & Andy Owens. Andrew Crossley, Edgar Delgado, and Alex Sinclair handle coloring duties. The entire issue is lettered by VC’s Joe Caramagna.

“What Cost Victory?” takes place after the events of Sinister War and features Spidey’s final battle against Kindred, as Mephisto and Doctor Strange battle for the fate of a soul. Each artist handles a segment of the story, which is one massive fight scene that pushes Spidey to his limits-and that’s saying something, considering he fought a literal army of villains beforehand. Spencer has built up Kindred as a recurring threat throughout his run, so it’s only fitting that his final issue put a close to their conflict. Out of all the artists who illustrate the final fight, Gomez delivers the most dynamic pages that show Spidey leaping around and delivering punishing blows to Kindred. Ramos closes out the issue in the same way Spencer’s first issue ended, with a tender moment between Spidey and Mary Jane Watson. Doctor Strange narrates the last two pages, with Caramagna’s golden-hued captions highlighting why Peter and MJ can weather any obstacle as long as they’re together.

In addition to “What Cost Victory?” the issue also contains three backup stories. “In Memory” is written by Gage, illustrated by Todd Nauck, and colored by Rochelle Rosenberg, and finds Peter Parker learning how his Uncle Ben had a major impact on someone else’s life. “The Complete History Of Spider-Man” is written by Sean Ryan and illustrated by Gustavo Duarte and attempts to recap Spidey’s entire history into the space of two pages which is no mean feat. Finally, “Janine” is written by Zeb Wells, illustrated by Fiorelli, and colored by Dee Cunniffe, and leads into the “Beyond” era as Ben Reilly reconnects with an important figure from his past.

“In Memory” was the most surprising of the backups, as it hit me right in the emotions. Any Spider-Man fan will tell you the impact Peter’s Uncle Ben has had on him cannot be denied, but it turns out that even before his death, Ben Parker was always trying to do the right thing. And it shows where Peter gets his desire to do good from. Gage has delivered some great Spider-Man stories before, and Nauck is one of the more underrated Spidey artists so their working together is an unexpected yet welcome combination, and I welcome it. “The Complete History of Spider-Man” is equal parts humorous and educational, as it manages to hit most of the big moments in Spidey’s history. “Janine” will have a bigger impact on those who’ve read Reilly’s adventures as Spider-Man/Scarlet Spider; otherwise, it mainly serves as a taste of things to come.

Amazing Spider-Man #875 features a collection of all-star artists celebrating the web-slinger and marks the end of Nick Spencer’s run on the title. Spencer’s run had its ups and downs, but overall I feel comfortable placing him in the upper echelon of Spidey writers with J.M. DeMatteis and J. Michael Straczynski. And hopefully, the upcoming “Beyond” era will continue to deliver great Spidey stories as Ben Reilly once again takes up the mantle.

Amazing Spider-Man #875 is available now wherever comics are sold.