In the previous comic, Norman Osbourne forms the Sinister Six with Doctor Octavius, Electro, Sandman, Kraven the Hunter and Spider-Man as its members. He does this because they are all being held captive in a secret S.H.I.E.L.D. holding facility where Dr. Henry Pym is trying to rehabilitate them enough to stand trial. Spider-Man isn't being held but once the others get out they convince Spider-Man to work for them or else they'll hurt Aunt Mae. Spider-Man with the help of S.H.I.E.L.D. take down the Sinister Six and put them back in prison.

In this comic Spider-Man is dismayed to learn that Sam Raimi is making a Spider-Man movie with Tobey Maguire in it. They even use actual footage of him flying through the air for the movie. And Spider-Man isn't getting paid one cent for this movie. Which is money he could use. Mary Jane is the only one who knows his identity but with Gwen Stacey living in the house it won't be long before she finds out his secret and she blames Spider-Man for her dad's death even though it was an imposter dressed like Spider-Man who killed her father.

Doc Octavius broods in jail but not for long as someone opens the door where his arms are being held and he can still control them even with them not being attached to his body. It isn't long before he hunts down Spider-Man for revenge for putting him away in jail in the first place.

I love how this comic uses the real-life making of the movie Spider-Man and how that effects Peter Parker. The art has also come a long way and gotten really good. I think it's because they are no longer using a computer to do the coloring but an actual artist. This storyline is amazing and I give it five out of five stars. ( )

Someone is taking advantage of the Spider-Man craze by creating a movie based on him as well as Doc Oc. Spider-Man isn't thrilled with it. Neither, apparently, is Doc Oc. When the villain escapes, he targets both Spider-Man and his ex-wife, who is a creative consultant on the movie. I thoroughly enjoyed the scenes where Peter goes to where the movie is filming and they film him to use the footage for the movie. I loved that Spider-Man in the movie is being played by Tobey Maguire. LOL! The Hollywood types are clueless, and luckily they don't catch when Doc Oc actually says Peter's name repeatedly. Doc Oc manages to kidnap Spider-Man and restrain him on a plane, and Spider-Men has to not only escape and beat up the baddie but get back to New York... from Brazil.

Normal kids do NOT have to worry about this sort of thing. Poor Peter. And when he finally gets home, he finds himself staring down the barrel of a gun, because Gwen Stacy finally figured out Peter's little secret and blames Spider-Man for her father's death. Not good. By the end of the book, however, Peter is safe, the bad guys are in custody, evil metal arms are being melted down, and Peter's got his two girls supporting him. A nice end to this arc.

And ending on such a high note only makes me suspicious of how bad things will go for Peter in the next volume. ( )

Ultimate Spider-man #54-59 ( )

I had to wait a while for this trade to arrive, but it was definitely worth the wait. In this arc, comic book story meets real life as a movie (starring Tobey Maguire) about Spider-Man is being filmed. The real Spidey, of course, isn't getting a cut of the profits, and the real Doc Ock is ticked off that his ex-wife was a consultant for the movie, effectively selling his story (he isn't getting a cut of the profits, either). This bothers him enough to break out of jail, and there's an epic cross-continent fight between him and the real Spider-Man.

I really liked this arc. It was funny in the right places and made me laugh out loud a couple of times. Yes, it's also a little dated (especially with the "thong strap hanging out of the jeans" fashion statement - that seems to have, thankfully, stopped being so popular), but it's still good fun. And Bagley's art is as good as ever. ( )

688 ( )