Amazing Spider-Man #28 // Review
Kraven the Hunter is disgusted. The tiny robot is nothing more than a toy. A curiosity. Why would Doctor Octopus choose this new design over the powerful limbs that had served him so well for so many years? Kraven gets his answer in Amazing Spider-Man #28. Writer Zeb Wells continues his walk with Spidey in an issue that is brought to the page by penciler Ed McGuinness, inker Mark Farmer, and colorist Marcio Menyz. Wells finds a new perspective on a very, very old villain, but it may not be enough to get something truly new out of a hero-villain conflict that’s been going on for over 60 years.
Otto Octavius had been through a lot over many, many years of working as a superhuman scientist. There had been quite a few psychological slips here and there. Recently, he had a chance to do away with his greatest antagonist...but his bionic limbs were unable to complete the task. Octavius is much better now. He’s got new prosthetics that are of an entirely more advanced design. Now, he’s ready to do a little business at Oscorp. He’s got an upgrade. He’s got a new perspective on things. What could possibly stand in his way?
Wells finds something new for Doc Ock. There have been various subtle upgrades to the four robotic tentacles over the years. The new design is clever and fresh. The psyche of Doc Ock has been explored pretty extensively over the years as well. Wells doesn’t really find a whole lot of new ground in Octavius’s personality that provides any new insight into any of the themes that could be addressed by a mad scientist with superhuman prosthetics. There’s a lot that could be covered thematically with a character who never quite lived up to his potential. Even with the new tech, Octavius isn’t living up to that potential.
McGuinness and Farmer render a weight and power to the new tech that slings its way across page and panel quite well. Menyz finds a green glow for the new tentacles that feels suitably sinister, but ultimately it’s not really all that different from what Spider-Man has had to deal with countless times in the past in encounters with the villain. It continues to look cool, but the art team doesn’t do a whole lot with it that is truly new.
Wells works with all of the standard Spidey tropes in slightly new ways. It’s not terribly insightful or groundbreaking, but it DOES take a certain amount of vision and talent to put together all of those familiar elements that Spidey has been dealing with over the decades in a way that doesn’t feel excessively repetitious. The overall feel of the new Doc Ock is interesting...but lacks anything beyond the physical that would make him seem any more interesting than he has been in the past.
