Post by Doctor Doom on Oct 12, 2007 11:45:51 GMT -5
Doom's Deconstruction: As May is wheeled into a private room with Mary-Jane at her side, Peter swings downtown through a flock of birds- including a strange red one. We see where he is swinging to- it is the Sanctum Sanctorum of Doctor Strange, in it's current disguised form.
As Peter knocks, he is invited in by Doctor Strange and explains everything about May to him. The rather beautifully drawn Doc Strange is listening as Peter finishes by pleading for help. Strange explains thoughtfully how his hands were shattered and he could not be helped by fixing them, just by getting a purpose and becoming the new Sorceror Supreme. Peter snarls that if Strange is saying her death is part of a plan, he can forget it. Strange tries to let him down gently but Peter replies that May's NOT going to die, not like this. Maybe some other time, but not now. What will be different, asks Doc Strange? "It won't be my fault!" shouts Peter. He's clearly on his last legs, as it were. He stops being angry and instead falls into despair again.
Strange's head is bowed. He raises a strange bowl and tells Peter that there's nothing he can do, and he doesn't think there's anything anyone can do, but Peter must find out this for himself. From the bowl emerge two golden hands with as floating eyeball between them- they are the Hands of the Dead and allow one to travel through space and time. Peter wants to stop May being shot but Strange says they cannot do such things. Instead, he will send Peter many places in this time. He speaks the latin incantation, and wishes Peter luck.
Peter travels simultaneously to tonnes of people to ask for help, in astral form. To Black Panther and Storm, to Dead Girl, to Beast, to Hank Pym, to Reed Richards, to Doctor Connors, to Night Nurse and he's so desperate he goes even to villains like Morbius, Doctor Octopus, the Wizard, Mister Hyde and Doctor Doom. The answer is the same from all of them- there's nothing they can do. Incidentally, this is all one kick-ass double page spread.
Peter reverts to the present, and Strange hears the news regretfully but says they cannot fight the forces of creation and their intent. He leaves to get Peter a drink- from the window, the red bird looks on. Peter sneaks to the hands as Strange leaves and invokes their power, saying the latin incantation even as Strange tries to stop him.
Suddenly he's floating in astral form above the sniper at the moment before he shot Aunt May, but he goes right through him and cannot be seen. He sees himself in the past entering the hotel, and is suddenly attacked by giant monstrous creatures which slash at him and horribly wound him but which he can't stop. He tries to shout a warning to his past self but his past self does not here. He enters the hotel room, screaming warnings, but they cannot hear or see him. Before his horrified eyes, both past and present Peter Parker watch Aunt May struck by the bullet. Peter collapses in despair as the monstrous creatures move to kill him, but suddenly Doctor Strange is there and Peter is saved. Strange banishes the creatures and explains they are Nightwalkers, creatures who destroy anyone who attempts to interfere with space and time.
Peter is weak and almost dying from the wounds the Nightwalkers inflicted. Strange quickly brings him to the Sanctum, not in the present because Peter would not survive, but to a timem further in the past where he knows he himself was not present. There, in the past, he sets up the things whcih will heal Peter. Someone knocks at the door of the Sanctum and present-Strange goes to it to ensure they aren't disturbed.
Peter listens and hears... a scene from Amazing #45 (most recent one) of himself, in the past, conversing with Strange. The scene ended with Strange saying he had an appointment he could not miss- an appointment with death. Present Peter is despairing as he tries to warn his past self but cannot. Strange returns and tells him he's sorry- magical cures for magical illness, so he could heal Peter but not May. He brings them both back to the present.
Strange gives Peter one last piece of advice- he should go back to May. He should give up. Because May's going to die, and Peter should be there. He should be able to say goodbye, because if she died and Peter wasn't there to hold her hand and say he loved her, he would regret it every day for the rest of his life.
Peter leaves the Sanctum, into the driving rain, despairing. He sees the red bird flitting through the air and hears Strange's voice saying the Nightwalkers stop those who change the past and only a great power can defy them. Peter gets up and follows the bird around the corner, as he hears Strange's voice saying "We all die, Peter. You, me and those we love most dearly. We cannot change that." Then a new voice says, "He was right. You cannot change that..."
And Peter sees, where the bird was, a small girl standing with red hair, in a little red coat and with a smile on her face saying, "But I can."
TO BE CONTINUED...
The View of Doom: Wow. JMS sure is tying up a craplot of plot threads, isn't he? Mysticism and Doc Strange were a huge part of his run, now tied up. The New Avengers and Iron Man were a big part of his run, now tied up. The biggest aspect left, I think, is the idea of Spider-Man of the Future from ASM 500, and I suspect that will be tied up in time.
JMS writes a GREAT Doctor Strange. I heard he had a mini no one liked years back from JMS, but you couldn't tell from this. He has just the right air of mysticism and mystery around him, and was in general written awesomely- The Hands of the Dead are a great idea. Plus no "Oh, can't do that" for no clear reason like we have in New Avengers, it makes sense that Strange is not permitted to interfere in matters like this.
Peter's despair has been FANTASTICALLY depicted. It really is at the stage where it feels like he would do ANYTHING to save May, whatever the cost to his soul. The reader really does feel very sorry for him, as he runs out of options. JMS cleverly goes through all the major minds of Marvel in just two pages. To a degree, it does strain credibility that Reed Richards or whoever is powerless to stop an old woman from dying, but that's pretty easy to ignore, and understandable.
The stuff in the past was very well done. It serves to rule out yet another way of saving May, and at the same time adds to Peter's despair in the present as he has to re-experience the moment all over again. The Nightwalkers are a new addition and technically, should have shown up a LOT in Marvel history given the number of alterations of history but they're another facet that make a lot of sense- one can definitely see them exisiting in the Marvel Universe.
The redone scene from Amazing 45 was fantastic, and a brilliant idea by JMS. I remember that scene at the time, and never suspected it would be explained so fully. Strange's words, "An appointment with death" will always mean so much more to me every time I read that issue from now on. Brilliantly done.
The ending is very intriguing. Strange's speech is very well written, and it's at this moment when Peter finally accepts that May will die. One cannot help but feel VERY sorry for Peter in this scene as he doesn't deserve what will happen, yet Strange is right.
Then we have the very end and... well. Mysterious red bird?Mysterious powerful person in RED? Power enough to defy the Nightwalkers and change history? In a story where we know Peter has to make a horrific choice?
"Deal with the devil", anyone? Ladies and gentlemen... I think it's safe to say Mephisto has just entered the life of Peter Parker, and nothing will ever be the same again.
As to the art... well, it's phenomenal as ever. In particular, Joe Q draws one fantastic and magical looking Doctor Strange. His Spider-Man can be mixed at times but I found myself wishing Joe Q was drawing a Doc Strange series because he's really THAT good.
A great issue, and I can't wait to see where this is going to go.
Doom Decrees That This Issue Shalt Be Given... Nine Gold Dooms Out Of Ten.
As Peter knocks, he is invited in by Doctor Strange and explains everything about May to him. The rather beautifully drawn Doc Strange is listening as Peter finishes by pleading for help. Strange explains thoughtfully how his hands were shattered and he could not be helped by fixing them, just by getting a purpose and becoming the new Sorceror Supreme. Peter snarls that if Strange is saying her death is part of a plan, he can forget it. Strange tries to let him down gently but Peter replies that May's NOT going to die, not like this. Maybe some other time, but not now. What will be different, asks Doc Strange? "It won't be my fault!" shouts Peter. He's clearly on his last legs, as it were. He stops being angry and instead falls into despair again.
Strange's head is bowed. He raises a strange bowl and tells Peter that there's nothing he can do, and he doesn't think there's anything anyone can do, but Peter must find out this for himself. From the bowl emerge two golden hands with as floating eyeball between them- they are the Hands of the Dead and allow one to travel through space and time. Peter wants to stop May being shot but Strange says they cannot do such things. Instead, he will send Peter many places in this time. He speaks the latin incantation, and wishes Peter luck.
Peter travels simultaneously to tonnes of people to ask for help, in astral form. To Black Panther and Storm, to Dead Girl, to Beast, to Hank Pym, to Reed Richards, to Doctor Connors, to Night Nurse and he's so desperate he goes even to villains like Morbius, Doctor Octopus, the Wizard, Mister Hyde and Doctor Doom. The answer is the same from all of them- there's nothing they can do. Incidentally, this is all one kick-ass double page spread.
Peter reverts to the present, and Strange hears the news regretfully but says they cannot fight the forces of creation and their intent. He leaves to get Peter a drink- from the window, the red bird looks on. Peter sneaks to the hands as Strange leaves and invokes their power, saying the latin incantation even as Strange tries to stop him.
Suddenly he's floating in astral form above the sniper at the moment before he shot Aunt May, but he goes right through him and cannot be seen. He sees himself in the past entering the hotel, and is suddenly attacked by giant monstrous creatures which slash at him and horribly wound him but which he can't stop. He tries to shout a warning to his past self but his past self does not here. He enters the hotel room, screaming warnings, but they cannot hear or see him. Before his horrified eyes, both past and present Peter Parker watch Aunt May struck by the bullet. Peter collapses in despair as the monstrous creatures move to kill him, but suddenly Doctor Strange is there and Peter is saved. Strange banishes the creatures and explains they are Nightwalkers, creatures who destroy anyone who attempts to interfere with space and time.
Peter is weak and almost dying from the wounds the Nightwalkers inflicted. Strange quickly brings him to the Sanctum, not in the present because Peter would not survive, but to a timem further in the past where he knows he himself was not present. There, in the past, he sets up the things whcih will heal Peter. Someone knocks at the door of the Sanctum and present-Strange goes to it to ensure they aren't disturbed.
Peter listens and hears... a scene from Amazing #45 (most recent one) of himself, in the past, conversing with Strange. The scene ended with Strange saying he had an appointment he could not miss- an appointment with death. Present Peter is despairing as he tries to warn his past self but cannot. Strange returns and tells him he's sorry- magical cures for magical illness, so he could heal Peter but not May. He brings them both back to the present.
Strange gives Peter one last piece of advice- he should go back to May. He should give up. Because May's going to die, and Peter should be there. He should be able to say goodbye, because if she died and Peter wasn't there to hold her hand and say he loved her, he would regret it every day for the rest of his life.
Peter leaves the Sanctum, into the driving rain, despairing. He sees the red bird flitting through the air and hears Strange's voice saying the Nightwalkers stop those who change the past and only a great power can defy them. Peter gets up and follows the bird around the corner, as he hears Strange's voice saying "We all die, Peter. You, me and those we love most dearly. We cannot change that." Then a new voice says, "He was right. You cannot change that..."
And Peter sees, where the bird was, a small girl standing with red hair, in a little red coat and with a smile on her face saying, "But I can."
TO BE CONTINUED...
The View of Doom: Wow. JMS sure is tying up a craplot of plot threads, isn't he? Mysticism and Doc Strange were a huge part of his run, now tied up. The New Avengers and Iron Man were a big part of his run, now tied up. The biggest aspect left, I think, is the idea of Spider-Man of the Future from ASM 500, and I suspect that will be tied up in time.
JMS writes a GREAT Doctor Strange. I heard he had a mini no one liked years back from JMS, but you couldn't tell from this. He has just the right air of mysticism and mystery around him, and was in general written awesomely- The Hands of the Dead are a great idea. Plus no "Oh, can't do that" for no clear reason like we have in New Avengers, it makes sense that Strange is not permitted to interfere in matters like this.
Peter's despair has been FANTASTICALLY depicted. It really is at the stage where it feels like he would do ANYTHING to save May, whatever the cost to his soul. The reader really does feel very sorry for him, as he runs out of options. JMS cleverly goes through all the major minds of Marvel in just two pages. To a degree, it does strain credibility that Reed Richards or whoever is powerless to stop an old woman from dying, but that's pretty easy to ignore, and understandable.
The stuff in the past was very well done. It serves to rule out yet another way of saving May, and at the same time adds to Peter's despair in the present as he has to re-experience the moment all over again. The Nightwalkers are a new addition and technically, should have shown up a LOT in Marvel history given the number of alterations of history but they're another facet that make a lot of sense- one can definitely see them exisiting in the Marvel Universe.
The redone scene from Amazing 45 was fantastic, and a brilliant idea by JMS. I remember that scene at the time, and never suspected it would be explained so fully. Strange's words, "An appointment with death" will always mean so much more to me every time I read that issue from now on. Brilliantly done.
The ending is very intriguing. Strange's speech is very well written, and it's at this moment when Peter finally accepts that May will die. One cannot help but feel VERY sorry for Peter in this scene as he doesn't deserve what will happen, yet Strange is right.
Then we have the very end and... well. Mysterious red bird?Mysterious powerful person in RED? Power enough to defy the Nightwalkers and change history? In a story where we know Peter has to make a horrific choice?
"Deal with the devil", anyone? Ladies and gentlemen... I think it's safe to say Mephisto has just entered the life of Peter Parker, and nothing will ever be the same again.
As to the art... well, it's phenomenal as ever. In particular, Joe Q draws one fantastic and magical looking Doctor Strange. His Spider-Man can be mixed at times but I found myself wishing Joe Q was drawing a Doc Strange series because he's really THAT good.
A great issue, and I can't wait to see where this is going to go.
Doom Decrees That This Issue Shalt Be Given... Nine Gold Dooms Out Of Ten.