Since I was six or seven years old and I thumbed through my first issue in a drug store in McKeesport, Pennsylvania while my grandmother picked up her prescriptions, I have loved the amazing Spider-Man.
I loved that he was a picked-on smart kid with too-big glasses who would rather study than play sports. That was just like me!
I loved that he wise-cracked his way through tough spots, his wit covering up his fear. That was just like me!
I loved that he was flawed… sometimes selfish, sometimes unkind to his friends, always neurotic and second-guessing himself. That was… hopefully was… just like me!
The Amazing Spider-Man, especially the wonderfully corny, soap-opera-tastic issues written by Len Wein and drawn by Ross Andru, was the manual for my young life. I love Peter Parker. The Amazing Spider-Man is my hero.
Reading The Amazing Spider-Man
In this series, we read The Amazing Spider-Man from issue one through issue 545 and I share thoughts and observations, issue by issue, from the perspective of a writer, a creator and most importantly, a fan. By reading The Amazing Spider-Man, I think we can learn things about episodic storytelling, long-form character arcs, and creating comics.
Let’s get started!
Installments of Reading The Amazing Spider-Man
Issue Number One, Part One: "Spider-Man"Issue Number One, Part Two: "Spider Man vs. The Chameleon!"
Issue Number Two, Part One: "Duel to the Death With the Vulture!"
Issue Number Two, Part Two: "The Uncanny Threat of the Terrible Tinkerer!"
Issue Number Three: "Spider-Man Versus Doctor Octopus!"
Issue Number Four: "Nothing Can Stop... The Sandman!"
Issue Number Five: "Marked For Destruction By Doctor Doom!"
Issue Number Six: "Face To Face With... The Lizard!"
Issue Number Seven: "The Return of the Vulture"
Issue Number Eight, Part One: "The Terrible Threat of the Living Brain"
Issue Number Eight, Part Two: "Spider-Man Tackles the Human Torch!"
Issue Number Nine: "The Man Called Electro!"
Issue Number Ten: "The Enforcers"