MC2 A Day

Writer: Tom DeFalco Penciller: Pat Olliffe  Synopsis: Spider-Girl faces off against...The Faces! Comments: May finds out JJ is the Buzz, which complicates any hope of reconciliation between them because the Buzz acts so contemptuous towards Spider-Girl.  Nice parallel shots of the Faces being taken down. It must be gratifying for Phil to beat Angel Face at last.  Alison Mongrain bonded with May as a baby and is thrilled to know she is okay and be reunited with her.  May's first kiss is with Brad.  Iconic shot from Amazing Spider-Man #50. Spider-Girl was supposed to end with this issue. Although even if it had never been continued, I'm confident May would have gone back to being Spider-Girl. 

Writer: Tom DeFalco Penciller: Pat Olliffe  Synopsis: Spider-Man's final battle with the Green Goblin is revealed.  Comments: I wonder why Darkdevil has to change into costume before he can answer the phone.  Reilly's resemblance to Peter is really clear here. I felt in all the other modern appearances of Reilly, his face is either in long shot or in profile. This is a good close up. To compare, there is a photo of Mary Jane looking at a younger Peter Parker.  Spider-Man's quip about ultimate Spider-Man being entertaining seems to be a reference to the Ultimate Spider-Man comic that was launched in 2000. It featured a younger Peter Parker and it existed outside mainstream Marvel continuity in an effort to attract newcomers who might be intimidated by decades of continuity.  frogoat explains the "Gathering of Five" event better here than I ever could.  Spider-Girl's decision to let the Faces go comes home to roost here. 

  Writer: Tom DeFalco Penciller: Pat Olliffe Synopsis: Kaine is on a mission and woe be unto any Spider people who get in his way.  Comments: Felicity is established to be 13. So she must be a prodigy to attend Midtown High. And, uh oh, May went there. But she instantly regrets it.  Felicity seems to be younger than her years at times. 

  Writer: Tom DeFalco Penciller: Ron Frenz Synopsis: The Spiders (Spider-Girl, Spider-Man and the new Scarlet Spider) and members of the Fantastic Five face Apox the Omega Skrull.  Comments: The title "Gods and Monsters" is quote from the movie, Bride of Frankenstein (1935). There is a movie about the last days of the director of the Bride of Frankenstein (1935) James Whale called Gods and Monsters (1998). The Harry Potter book that Spider-Girl refers to is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix which was released in 2003 after a three year wait from the last one, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000). This comic came out in 2002, so the fans still had another year to wait.  Another reference to Amazing Spider-Man #258.  I remember the letters that came in for this scene. They printed one that was for gay relationships and one was against. Both letters were praised as well written. I hope the person who was anti-gay matured and grew along with society an...

  Writer: Tom DeFalco Penciller: Pat Olliffe Synopsis: The new Scarlet Spider presses Spider-Girl to be her partner.  Comments: The New Warriors are still mad at Spider-Girl and have kicked her out of the group she founded. Apparently, Darkdevil joined them.  Johnny makes a reference to Amazing Spider-Man #258 when he put a "kick me" sign on Peter's back. The next issue of Spider-Girl will have more references to that.  Felicity guesses May is 2 or 3 years older than her, making her a young teenager. She attends Midtown High, so she may have skipped a few grades.  May and Normie seem to have romantic tension. 

Writer: Tom DeFalco Penciller: Pat Olliffe  Synopsis: May investigates the theft of her Spider-Girl costume. Comments: First appearance of The Spider Shoppe. Also, the first appearance of Staci the salesgirl.   Heather is a closet Spider-Girl fan. Considering her enmity towards May, this is reminiscent of Flash Thompson who idolized Spider-Man, but hated Peter Parker.  I assume Felicia told Felicity who Spider-Man and Spider-Girl are. Or she could have deduced it on her own.  

Writer: Tom DeFalco Penciller: Pat Olliffe  Synopsis: Peter and May discuss Peter's origin and Ben Reilly.  Peter purposefully obfuscates how he's related to Ben Reilly and how Ben had spider powers. Just that it involved a mad scientist and things he didn't understand. I first heard of Ben Reilly in the penultimate episode of Spider-Man: The Animated Series , "I Really, Really Hate Clones." I haven't read the Clone Saga. I guess I didn't have the time or inclination to track down the comics and read them in correct order. Now that I have Marvel Unlimited, I can now read the Clone Saga. Still, time and inclination.  The confrontation between Peter and Ben on the roof is from  Web of Spider-Man  #114. Peter and Ben striking Carnage together is from  Spectacular Spider-Man  #217. Ben's sacrifice is from  Peter Parker: Spider-Man  #75.                              ...