Written by: Zeb Wells
Art by: John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna
Colors by: Marcio Menyz, Erick Arciniega
Letters by: VC’s Joe Carmagna
Cover art by: John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna, Marcio Menyz
Cover price: $4.99
Release date: May 31, 2023

Amazing Spider-Man #26, from Marvel Comics on May 31st, 2023, finds Spider-Man, MJ, and all the Marvel heroes fighting against Rabin to stop the completion of a ritual that will turn Rabin into a bloodthirsty god.

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Is It Good?

Amazing Spider-Man #26 is remarkable. It’s remarkable because it’s rare to read a comic with 25 issues and over a year’s worth of buildup, buzz, and anticipation behind it, only to utterly fail to stick the landing and live up to the hype. I predict the “What Did Peter Do?” arc will be remembered as one of the worst-planned, worst-constructed, and worst-edited arcs in the history of ASM, and that’s saying something.

When last we left Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends, readers were treated to an issue-long flashback to MJ’s time in the alternate Earth. The flashback clarified what happened to MJ during those four years, how she developed a relationship with Paul, and how she came to be the adoptive mother of two children. Clarity is good, but nothing in the issue answered questions we didn’t already know the answer to. We already knew the ‘what’, so issue #25 gave readers the ‘how’. Not exactly compelling stuff and issue #25 put the brakes on the arc’s pacing.

Now, Amazing Spider-Man #26 finally steps out into the momentous battle between Spider-Man and a resurrected Rabin the Emissary. If you follow Marvel News, the “big” twist in this issue is the death of Ms. Marvel, spoiled two weeks ago by an internal Marvel leaker. Ms. Marvel’s death is a head-scratcher because a) this isn’t her comic, b) Ms. Marvel has no deep emotional connection to Spider-Man, and c) Ms. Marvel has almost nothing to do with this arc except for a brief cameo now and again. Why would Marvel think it would be a big deal to kill Ms. Marvel as the payoff to a year-long ASM arc? Who knows, but on that point alone, that creative choice falls flatter than tissue paper under a steam roller.

What does happen in this issue? Rabin returns to finish what he started – killing MJ to complete the ritual that will elevate him to godhood in place of Wayep. Any hero within range joins the fight to stop Rabin and protect MJ. In the scuffle, Wayep flexes his magic prowess by snapping Paul and MJ’s kids back to the alternate Earth (Or wiping them away because they were never real. This part is unclear.), MJ unleashes her lucky powers in retaliation, and Ms. Marvel shape changes into MJ to trick Rabin into killing her instead of the real MJ, somehow causing Rabin to disintegrate because he used his sacrificial blade on the wrong person… or something.

That’s it? Yes, that’s it. All that buildup for so little payoff is, in a word, unremarkable. Here’s why.

What did Peter do that caused the mess in York, PA? Technically nothing. Peter was pushed through the portal that caused the explosion.

Is the love triangle between Paul, MJ, and Peter resolved? Nope. In fact, it’s made more complex with the reveal that Paul is Rabin’s son, MJ knew, and she chose to stick with Paul anyway. In fact, readers can expect the Paul and MJ relationship to drag on for the foreseeable future.

Where does all this leave Spider-Man? A little banged up but not in a much better place than before the rematch with Rabin started. Peter’s relationship with MJ is effectively over, most of Peter/Spidey’s allies still have a bone to pick with him, and now Spidey has to deal with the fallout from Ms. Marvel’s death – a hero he barely knew.

In effect, Peter Parker/Spider-Man is no better, and maybe a little worse, off than when this arc started. On top of this boneheaded resolution, you get inconsistent art that ranges from good to terrible to continuity-breaking (see issue #21), a complete lack of curiosity-building clues for months on end that led to a general sense of reader apathy, concluded by a marketing push to label this issue as the biggest thing to happen to Spider-Man since the death of Gwen Stacy when it doesn’t even come close, and you wind up with a comic that represents a failure at every level of the comic creation process.

Where do we go from here? Unknown, but it’s fair to say Zeb Wells has no idea what he’s doing, Nick Lowe (Spider-Man editor) has no idea what he’s doing, and Marvel senior management has no idea what they’re doing. If you’re an Amazing Spider-Man fan, you have my sympathy and condolences. Save your breath, time, and money until Marvel makes a change because there’s no excuse for “What Did Peter Do?”.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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Bits and Pieces

Amazing Spider-Man #26 is an embarrassing failure for the ASM creative team, Marvel editorial, and everyone that had a hand in the “What Did Peter Do?” arc. It would be different if Wells swung for the fences to push for new, bold directions, but instead, we get a basic fight with an inconsequential death and a lot of annoyances that don’t get resolved. Loyal Marvel readers deserve better. A lot better.

4/10