What a Tangled Web

 Just got back from a rain-lashed Glasgow. I'd hoped to get down to Galloway but the relentless downpour scuppered that idea. I completely missed the Glasgow Comicon (Jim Starlin!!) and also had numerous property headaches. I won't bore you with the details but the role of absentee landlord is not an enjoyable one.


On the other hand, I saw a lot of theatre, including Oran Mor's obscure King John; a slick and confident
 Private Lives; and the satirical and genuinely funny summer panto, Alice in Poundland.
 Strathclyde Theatre Group, my community theatre alma mater, mounted a brisk if predictable production of Corialanus at the Cottier. My friend Erica gave me a comp for the Tron's Stones in His Pockets, a blackly comic two-hander about a Hollywood production in contemporary Ireland. The two male leads were deft and versatile. And this year's birthday movie was a big improvement on last year's Green Lantern.

The Amazing Spider-Man has been criticised for rebooting the franchise too soon. I can't agree; I'm not the biggest fan of Raimi's trilogy. I found Maguire slightly creepy . The movie versions of Doc Ock and Sandman, in particular, were uncannily good but the perpetual role of MJ as Peril Monkey grated and worst of all were the unfunny flourishes of camp. The unsubtle referencing  of Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head and Staying Alive was eclipsed by the cameos by Bruce Campbell. I imagine I'm just too old to appreciate these leaden "comedy" sequences.
I also tried to teach Spider-Man 2 as a film text in school last year and its lack of pace and hugely talky scenes turned the class off. The best thing about it is the talented James Franco.


I was first aware of Andrew Garfield in the 2007 Dr. Who episode Daleks in Manhattan. In Amazing, he exhibits some of Matt Smith's eccentric, awkward charm.His portrayal has been criticised for its introversion and un-likeability but I think those qualities are present in the original Amazing Fantasy story. Peter's "Twilight" romance with the brave and confident Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) delighted me although it will probably bore very young cinema-goers. Martin Sheen, Sally Field and Denis Leary all provide staunch support.


I didn't really find The Lizard terribly convincing: the CGI rendering made him too human and not bestial enough. Also, the subplot of the death of Peter's parents wasn't resolved satisfactorily and it seemed absurd to focus so much on Oscorp yet show no Osborns. I was relieved however that we weren't going to sit through The Night Gwen Stacy Died, since Raimi teased us twice with that. In fact, I cottoned on late to the particular Spidey-tragedy that was retold here. The crane-climax of the movie was appropriately cheesy and the audience cheered and left whistling the theme music.I gather there was a teaser scene-isn't there always?- but I had to sprint for a train, getting a pat on the back from Tommy the Barrier Guy at Queen Street, who's a fan of my Still Game episode.

The prominence of  Ms. Stacy in the movie makes this selection from Elgin Library especially apt.The Delusion Conspiracy is a  2011 Marvel Pocket Book published by Panini UK. It features the Gwen Stacy clone storyline: the culmination of  Gerry Conway's sequence of hoaxes and resurrections in perhaps the most paranoiac phase of Spidey's Bronze Age career.. Ross Andru's art, after years of Wonder Woman and Metal Men, has an angular, cartoony quality that establishes the nightmarish world's unsettling tone.
French villain, the Cyclone, is tedious but the Parisian backdrop makes a change. The Scorpion two-parter ends with a tongue-lashing for the villain from Aunt May. This whimsical beat doesn't work because it's counterpointed by May's fears of dementia when confronted by "Gwen".


The storyline briefly detours for a Giant-Sized clash with The Lizard, appropriately enough and a guest-appearance by the Man-Thing. Conway does a decent imitation of Steve Gerber with the sub-plot of the biochemist broken by recession. It feels- regrettably- more contemporary than the original Manny series ( or that terrible, terrible film).
Tarantula, another (relatively) new nemesis returns with his nasty, spiked footwear but Conway's strength in the collection is in depicting the insanity of Professor Warren, whose alter ego The Jackal owes much of his unpredictability to the Joker (and to Dirty Harry in the bus sequence). The spindly green super-villain is absurd at first glance, with his super-science gimmicks and madcap manner. However, the professor's unhealthy obsession with the "chaste and pure" Gwen is very strong stuff for the Bronze Age.
The book's coda is a delirious Gil Kane 150th anniversary issue (supposedly) resolving the dilemma of the Spider-Clone. What strikes me now, re-reading these stories after about 35 years, is the subtle signposting of the sexual element of Peter's relationship with Mary Jane.


Check out some Spidey treasuries this autumn on Materioptikon once my Super-Spectacular project is completed. There'll be some Bronze Age goodies among "The Mystery Men of July" too.


Coming Soon: X-Men vs. Dire Wraiths and Jack Kirby's Spirit World
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