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Reading Spider-Man from the beginning...

Started by Fan4Fan,

19 posts in this topic

joe_collector

joe_collector

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When I reread the essentials, one thing that always got me was how quickly the Betty romance was over - when you're picking up the books (and writing them) every 30 days, your mind kind of fills in the blanks and assumes that Pete and Betty were doing something in the interim. It's also a real calender year, and not just 12 issues.

 

But when you sit down and read 10-20 issues in one sitting, you wonder "WTF was the big deal with Betty leaving/breaking up with Peter?".

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Paul_Maul

Paul_Maul

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the first 20, 30, 40 issues are the best. Setting it all up, and beautifully drawn, frenetically paced and plotted. One of the best runs in comics.

 

I must lack the Ditko gene or something, I much prefer the Romita issues. To me the high

point of the series is from issue 39 through toward the end of Stan's run.

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heinlein99

heinlein99

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the first 20, 30, 40 issues are the best. Setting it all up, and beautifully drawn, frenetically paced and plotted. One of the best runs in comics.

 

I must lack the Ditko gene or something, I much prefer the Romita issues. To me the high

point of the series is from issue 39 through toward the end of Stan's run.

 

Me too, but those early issues are still astounding. It's like the early FF's: you can see the Marvel universe, and Stan's writing skills, taking shape right before your eyes.

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ernster

ernster

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Ditko... Romita Sr...

 

Now that my collection of 1-100 is slowly getting completed, I've been able to read (almost) all of them in their original format. :cloud9: I love 'em!

 

Agreed. I have the entire run and I've read all the books including the annuals and it's interesting to see how the characters evolve over a time period. But earlier ASM issues are classics (thumbs u

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mar-vell

mar-vell

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To me the first 20 issues are the best. the early villains were so great. Doc ock, sandman,lizard, green goblin,elctro, vulture, mysterio,kraven and the scorpion! What a lineup! I really think the lizard's frst appearance was so well done it's almost as if he should have been a one shot cause i have never read an issue with him in it since that came close to measuring up! I actually have a particular fondness for #5 which is spidey's first encounter with doc doom! The gadgetry is so well drawn and i love the way flash gets scooped up by doom thinking he is spider-man-great stuff! At times the betty romance seemed a little overly dramatic but i think it's pretty cool how peter goes from her to a more serious commitment with Gwen but fate has him winding up with mary jane as his wife.

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Paul_Maul

Paul_Maul

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The best ASM run for me will always be ASM 119-150. :cloud9:

 

Yeah, even though I think technically the series was better when written by Lee, I have a ton

of nostalgia for the 20-centers. I had Spidey 110,120 and 122 as a 6 or 7 year old and I

do get an extra charge out of those covers. Conway is not my fave scribe, but Spidey was

always a good read.

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Fan4Fan

Fan4Fan

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the first 20, 30, 40 issues are the best. Setting it all up, and beautifully drawn, frenetically paced and plotted. One of the best runs in comics.

 

I must lack the Ditko gene or something, I much prefer the Romita issues. To me the high

point of the series is from issue 39 through toward the end of Stan's run.

 

I'm not a big Spider-Man fan, but I used to like Romita more than Ditko (probably because I was introduced to his art in Fantastic Four and some outstanding Cap and Avengers covers) but I've found that I now vastly prefer the Ditko issues.

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Mac Man

Mac Man

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No doubt JC that some of that BA stuff is amazing. 121 & 122- need I say more? BUT I'm still in the process of building my BA collection (the age I'm lacking the most ASMs) so I'm going to hold off before making a final call on this period.

 

And I'll probably take a lot of flack for loving on the CA stuff, but heck! That's what I grew up on :grin:

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Dale Roberts

Dale Roberts

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the first 20, 30, 40 issues are the best. Setting it all up, and beautifully drawn, frenetically paced and plotted. One of the best runs in comics.

 

Actually, I much prefer the issues from 50 to 129. My favorite run of any comic ever is the small time period where Gil Kane was doing the pencil work and John Romita was inking him (issues around #88 - 125). Especially the 15 cent issues. The best panel sequences which have ever been in comics. And I love the half pages that Marvel was doing about that time. I will post some of this stuff a little later in the Silver Age Survivor series, when I am making a case for Gil Kane in the top 5.

 

 

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Mac Man

Mac Man

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But you can't argue with the panel art of Ditko in issues like 33 with Spidey struggling to free himself from the wreckage. No need for dialogue as the art does it all. I think Point Five was the one who pointed me tackling this storyline after I had finished the 70s issue run. Great stuff.

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trmoore54

trmoore54

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I grew up with 3 brothers (no sisters) and Peter Parker always felt like a 4th brother...issue 33 interior art is a fantastic example of DITKO at his finest! As a would-be artist/illustrator, I spent a lot more time copying Ditko as he was much more stylistic and unique than Kirby (although, believe me, it's a toss-up between the two as to the best SA artist and/or my favorite of all time!)

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Mac Man

Mac Man

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TR- I have to agree with you and I only think Kirby would edge Ditko out because he was far more prolific than Ditko working his magic across both publishers. No other reason than that do I think Jack would/should beat Steve out on top SA Artist. I think I only take JRSR out of the #2 spot because Steve was there first. Otherwise, I would tie them both.

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