REVIEW: ‘Amazing Spider-Man,’ Issue #78

Amazing Spider-Man #78 is written by Kelly Thompson, illustrated by Sara Pichelli with Jim Towe, colored by Nolan Woodard with Rachelle Rosenberg, and lettered by VC’s Joe Caramagna. It is published by Marvel Comics. At the end of Amazing Spider-Man #77, Ben Reilly was bitten by Morbius the Living Vampire. Bleeding out, Ben barely makes it to the Beyond Corporation’s headquarters-with Morbius in hot pursuit! It falls to the Daughters of the Dragon to halt the Living Vampire’s rampage while Ben recovers.

This issue goes to show that even though Ben may have better tech and support thanks to Beyond, the Spidey luck will rear its head when a web-slinger least expects it. In this case, he wasn’t expecting to get bitten by a frenzied vampire and that nearly leaves him on death’s door. Thompson’s script delves upon the parallel situations that Ben and his “brother” Peter Parker find themselves in; Ben lies on an operating table while his girlfriend Janine Godbe anxiously awaits an update and Peter flickers briefly back to life in the presence of Mary Jane Watson and the Black Cat, who are two women he’s loved over the years. It’s the human connections that Peter (and Ben) have formed over the years that made Spider-Man my favorite hero, and I’m glad that’s continuing to be a highlight of the Beyond Saga.

And for fans who are looking for their action fix, don’t worry-Thompson steps up to the plate with an action sequence pitting the Daughters of the Dragon against Morbius. It’s brought splendily to life by Pichelli, who continues to deliver her trademark sense of kinetic action to the proceedings. Pages feature Ben leaping from building to building, firing weblines; the Daughters of the Dragon also work as a skilled unit, from Colleen Wing delivering swift sword strikes and Misty Knight laying out Morbius with a punch from her robotic arm. After reading this issue, I wouldn’t mind a Daughters of the Dragon miniseries from Marvel. Towe draws the last four pages, which not only features the return of a fan-favorite Marvel hero but teases another classic Spider-Man foe for Ben to face.

However, the star of the show is Morbius. Pichelli draws him as a raging monster, all blood red eyes and snarling rage; Caramagna piles on the horror influence by depicing Morbius’ word balloons as a scraggly, guttral growl. Even the sound effects of his claws are as red as the blood he craves. How Morbius got into this feral state is an interesting mystery (and one I expect to be solved in future issues), but I do appreciate that Thompson and Pichelli are willing to utilize a lesser-known Spidey villain. Especially as this villain is slated to headline his own movie next year.

Amazing Spider-Man #78 completes another story in the Beyond Era by placing Ben Reilly on death’s door and spotlighting the Daughters of the Dragon. With another classic Spidey foe slated for the next issue, Spider-fans will definitely want to either jump back on or start reading this book.

Amazing Spider-Man #78 is available wherever comics are sold.