**** (four of five stars)
Favorite Quote: "How's that for an inconvenient truth?" -- Spidey to Al Gore...I mean...the Chameleon
Summary
From "the secret headquarters of Doctor Octopus and the Sinister Six," Doc Ock and Mysterio monitor the other members of the Sinister Six as they engage in a "scavenger hunt" for items that Doc Ock needs to complete his plan. Chameleon steals a suit of Iron Man armor from Baintronics East in Taipei; Rhino and Sandman steal an experiment that the Leader left behind when he abanoned Hulkbuster Base Omega in New Mexico; and Electro steals the "Fang of Jormungandr" from the British Museum in London. In obtaining the items, Doc Ock declares, "The world is mine."
In Rome, an emergency G8 Summit considers accepting Dr. Octopus' offer, with Stephen Hawking confirming that Ock's plan would work: if the world helped him launch more of his satellites into orbit, his Octavian Lenses would end global warming. Former Vice President Gore declares his support just Spidey, accompanied by Captain America and Thor, arrives. Spidey reminds the assembled group that Doc Ock is an "actual mad scientist" and declares that his intention is to get the world to help him build a doomsday device. When Al Gore disagrees, asserting that it's a chance to end the greatest threat that the environment has ever faced, Spidey punches him. (Yup. Belts him across the jaw.) He then reveals that "Al Gore" is actually the Chameleon. Cap notes that it was a risky move, but Spidey tells him that he knew that it was the Chameleon thanks to a device he created to identify his specific heartbeat. At that moment, Doc Ock appears on the TV screens in the room and apologizes for the subterfuge, noting that he was merely trying to speed up the process. He announces that his satellites have enough charge to teach everyone a final lesson. Spidey calls Iron Man, telling him that Ock took the bait, and Iron Man, who's orbiting Earth connected to a Stark satellite, exposits that he should be able to trace Otto's signal.
Meanwhile, at Horizon Labs, Sajani informs Max that she thinks that Doc Ock is piggypacking off tech that Horizon used for its space station. At that moment, though, the power in the building dies. Rushing outside to see if Octopus is responsible for shutting off electricity to the whole world, the Horizon crew realizes that it's just them. The reason soon presents itself: JJJ, Jr. has had Con Ed cut off the building. Max says that Horizon can manage without the city, but JJJ, Jr. orders the Chief of Police to clear out Horizon and quarantine it. Elsewhere, Iron Man calls Spidey and informs him that Doc Ock's technology is too good for him and he can't get a read on his location. In Rome, Cap and Spidey overhear scientist's confirming the impact of Otto's "final lesson" as he begins to screen out the harmful effects of the Sun's U.V. rays. Cap notes that he doesn't like where the plot is going, and Spidey curses himself for not predicting that Ock would start helping, not hurting, the world when pushed. Otto appears on the TV screens again and states the obvious, that he could've "[turned] up the heat," but he didn't, proving that he has good intentions. He then gives everyone 24 hours to accept his offer before threatening to use "the stick" again and requests that the Chameleon is released. Spidey, Cap, and Thor watch as the Chameleon leaves, and Spidey expresses fake outrage before revealing that Chameleon's departure is part of the plan. From a limo on the outskirts of the meeting, Silver Sable receives a brief from her Prime Minister, who informs her that the majority want to go with Otto's plan. She expresses faith in Spider-Man, but notes that she'll have to keep a closer eye on him.
Later (I know, a lot happened), the Chameleon is instructed to land his craft at a huge Octobot parked on a tropical beach and expresses confusion that he's meeting the Six so far from their base. Mysterio informs him that it's because he has a Spider-Tracer on him and, on cue, the Avengers arrive. Hawkeye takes down Mysterio, though he initially thinks that he failed to do so after Mysterio seemingly turned his arrow to colored discs; it takes Spidey's special lenses to see through Mysterio's holograms to confirm that he's down. Electro meanwhile takes down the Avengers' jet (and Black Widow) and then eliminates Hawkeye and Spider-Woman. He bee-lines for Spidey, but Spidey reveals that his suit is "Electro-proof." Thor absorbs Electro in his hammer and sends him into the atmosphere. Just as he does so, Rhino, equipped with the Fang of Jormungandr, takes down Thor. Doc Ock faces Iron Man and reveals that the suit of Iron Man armor that Chameleon stole is from 2020; he uses the technology he gleaned from that suit to shut down Tony's armor. Elsewhere on the beach, Cap tries to distract Sandman to get him into the water, but Sandman refuses; instad, Flint hits Cap with a "cryo-pellet," freezing him. Chamelon, at the helm of the Octobot, uses the Leader's experiment on Rulk, who's attacking the ship. The device is an "alpha/gammer disrupter," which shuts down Rulk's brain activity. Spidey realizes that it's down to him, noting that Otto planned the battle perfectly. He tries to deploy his cyber-control helmet against Otto, which he previously used against him successfully, but Otto reveals that he had planned for that, using his knowledge of the device to take control of Spidey's suit. With the Avengers defeated, Otto makes Spidey kneel before him and thanks him for the farewell gift: his "complete and utter destruction!"
In Rome, an emergency G8 Summit considers accepting Dr. Octopus' offer, with Stephen Hawking confirming that Ock's plan would work: if the world helped him launch more of his satellites into orbit, his Octavian Lenses would end global warming. Former Vice President Gore declares his support just Spidey, accompanied by Captain America and Thor, arrives. Spidey reminds the assembled group that Doc Ock is an "actual mad scientist" and declares that his intention is to get the world to help him build a doomsday device. When Al Gore disagrees, asserting that it's a chance to end the greatest threat that the environment has ever faced, Spidey punches him. (Yup. Belts him across the jaw.) He then reveals that "Al Gore" is actually the Chameleon. Cap notes that it was a risky move, but Spidey tells him that he knew that it was the Chameleon thanks to a device he created to identify his specific heartbeat. At that moment, Doc Ock appears on the TV screens in the room and apologizes for the subterfuge, noting that he was merely trying to speed up the process. He announces that his satellites have enough charge to teach everyone a final lesson. Spidey calls Iron Man, telling him that Ock took the bait, and Iron Man, who's orbiting Earth connected to a Stark satellite, exposits that he should be able to trace Otto's signal.
Meanwhile, at Horizon Labs, Sajani informs Max that she thinks that Doc Ock is piggypacking off tech that Horizon used for its space station. At that moment, though, the power in the building dies. Rushing outside to see if Octopus is responsible for shutting off electricity to the whole world, the Horizon crew realizes that it's just them. The reason soon presents itself: JJJ, Jr. has had Con Ed cut off the building. Max says that Horizon can manage without the city, but JJJ, Jr. orders the Chief of Police to clear out Horizon and quarantine it. Elsewhere, Iron Man calls Spidey and informs him that Doc Ock's technology is too good for him and he can't get a read on his location. In Rome, Cap and Spidey overhear scientist's confirming the impact of Otto's "final lesson" as he begins to screen out the harmful effects of the Sun's U.V. rays. Cap notes that he doesn't like where the plot is going, and Spidey curses himself for not predicting that Ock would start helping, not hurting, the world when pushed. Otto appears on the TV screens again and states the obvious, that he could've "[turned] up the heat," but he didn't, proving that he has good intentions. He then gives everyone 24 hours to accept his offer before threatening to use "the stick" again and requests that the Chameleon is released. Spidey, Cap, and Thor watch as the Chameleon leaves, and Spidey expresses fake outrage before revealing that Chameleon's departure is part of the plan. From a limo on the outskirts of the meeting, Silver Sable receives a brief from her Prime Minister, who informs her that the majority want to go with Otto's plan. She expresses faith in Spider-Man, but notes that she'll have to keep a closer eye on him.
Later (I know, a lot happened), the Chameleon is instructed to land his craft at a huge Octobot parked on a tropical beach and expresses confusion that he's meeting the Six so far from their base. Mysterio informs him that it's because he has a Spider-Tracer on him and, on cue, the Avengers arrive. Hawkeye takes down Mysterio, though he initially thinks that he failed to do so after Mysterio seemingly turned his arrow to colored discs; it takes Spidey's special lenses to see through Mysterio's holograms to confirm that he's down. Electro meanwhile takes down the Avengers' jet (and Black Widow) and then eliminates Hawkeye and Spider-Woman. He bee-lines for Spidey, but Spidey reveals that his suit is "Electro-proof." Thor absorbs Electro in his hammer and sends him into the atmosphere. Just as he does so, Rhino, equipped with the Fang of Jormungandr, takes down Thor. Doc Ock faces Iron Man and reveals that the suit of Iron Man armor that Chameleon stole is from 2020; he uses the technology he gleaned from that suit to shut down Tony's armor. Elsewhere on the beach, Cap tries to distract Sandman to get him into the water, but Sandman refuses; instad, Flint hits Cap with a "cryo-pellet," freezing him. Chamelon, at the helm of the Octobot, uses the Leader's experiment on Rulk, who's attacking the ship. The device is an "alpha/gammer disrupter," which shuts down Rulk's brain activity. Spidey realizes that it's down to him, noting that Otto planned the battle perfectly. He tries to deploy his cyber-control helmet against Otto, which he previously used against him successfully, but Otto reveals that he had planned for that, using his knowledge of the device to take control of Spidey's suit. With the Avengers defeated, Otto makes Spidey kneel before him and thanks him for the farewell gift: his "complete and utter destruction!"
The Review
Slott pens a pretty action-packed story here. It's one of those rare stories where the author successfully conveys what it must be like to be the heroes at the center of the story. He gets across the uncertainty that surrounds Doc Ock and his motives and how that uncertainty affects the Avengers and their plans. I mean, you don't often see Tony Stark shrugging his shoulders in defeat at a technical problem or Captain America abdicating leadership in favor of someone else. Slott uses those moments to remind us how precarious the Avengers' grip on the situation is (if they have a grip at all) and keeps the Avengers -- and the reader -- guessing. In so doing, Slott really propels you through the story; as you turn each page, you expect the story to go one way, but it goes a completely different way. Did I expect Spidey to punch Al Gore? No. Did I expect the Avengers to track down the Octahedral? Yes. By the time you get to the last page, you're left wondering what the Hell just happened: Doc Ock's motives are no more clearer, the Avengers are defeated, and Spidey is left at the Sinister Six's mercy. You can only imagine what it must've been like to be Peter!
The Really Good
1) I
don't think that I've ever been more surprised by a comic moment than
Spider-Man punching Al Gore. Well played, Dan Slott. Well played.
2) The helmet's audio monitor set to detect the Chameleon's specific heartbeat? The
lenses to block Mysterio's holograms? An "Electro-proof suit?" Awesome. Slott shows us that Spidey has really upped his game. But, as I mentioned last issue, this series would get downright boring if the villains also didn't keep constantly evolving. Stealing the tooth of
the Midgard Serpent to defeat Thor? Procuring the "alpha/gamma disruptor" from the Hulkbuster
Base to take down Rulk? Using "borrowed" StarkTech from 2020 to shut down Iron Man? Slott shows us that Spidey vs. Ock is truly a match of equals at this point, one that could really go anywhere. You just don't know where it's going to go next. Excelsoir! (Though, I will say that it was a bit of a stretch to believe that a Tawianese company was sitting on a suit of Iron Man armor from 2020 and Tony didn't know about it. But, it was cool enough that I'm totally going to let it slide!)
The Good
1) I meant to mention it last issue, but Caselli and Martin, Jr.'s Ock is truly menacing looking. Between the tubes going into his head and the blood speckled around his mouth, you do get the sense that we're dealing with a desperate man on death's door. The depiction really helps get across the sense that he's willing to do anything to win before his time expires, augmenting Slott's characterization of him.
2) Slott really is pulling in stuff from previous issues, showing how long he's been setting up this arc. Beyond the tour of Peter's inventions from last issue, we see how busy Doc Ock has been in this issue. I had forgotten about the Sinister Six's attack on the Intelligencia in issue #676, but, here, we learn that it netted Ock the knowledge of the Leader's alpha-gamma ray, which takes down Rulk later in the issue. Sneaky little man.
3) It wasn't until this issue that I realized that Doc Ock made his announcement last issue because he needed help putting his plan into effect. (If you re-read last issue, he doesn't really ask anyone to do anything. He just sort of announces his discovery.) Assuming that Doc Ock isn't actually trying to save the planet, it seemed particularly odd that he would announce his plans, giving everyone time to stop him. However, Slott clarifies that confusion here, with Spidey noting that Doc Ock needs the world to help him build whatever device it is that he's planning to build, be it global cooler or doomsday device. The world is, in theory, aware that it might help build a doomsday device; but, the possibility of solving global warming is too great of an incentive to ignore.
4) The Avengers vs. the Sinister Six. How has this fight taken this long? I think the answer is that the Sinister Six were always considered B-List at best. I mean, if Spidey could beat them all by himself, why call in the Avengers? So, by having them not only battle, but defeat, the Avengers, Slott shows just how complete his reinvention of them is. Needless to say, the splash page of them first engaging each other is spectacular.
The Unknown
At some point, I'd really like Slott to address Chief Pratchett. He's been portrayed as JJJ, Jr.'s mindless lackey ever since the Massacre arc in issues "#655-#656, where he agreed to extrajudicially assassinate Massacre. But, I'm still confused why someone of his stature would so willingly help JJJ, Jr. break the law. Something's up there...
The Unknown
At some point, I'd really like Slott to address Chief Pratchett. He's been portrayed as JJJ, Jr.'s mindless lackey ever since the Massacre arc in issues "#655-#656, where he agreed to extrajudicially assassinate Massacre. But, I'm still confused why someone of his stature would so willingly help JJJ, Jr. break the law. Something's up there...
The Bad
I mentioned last issue that I wasn't really sure, if Otto wanted simply to solve global warming, as he claims, why he didn't just do it. We eventually learn why -- he needed help building the device, as noted above -- but we unfortunately first learn of it on the intro page. Paging pet peeve #1!
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