It’s the most bizarre therapy session you’ve ever seen, and the only one involving a mace… I hope. Your Major Spoilers review of Amazing Spider-Man #48 from Marvel Comics awaits!

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #48

Writer: Zeb Wells
Artist: Todd Nauck
Colorist: Sonia Oback
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Editor: Nick Lowe
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: April 24, 2024

Previously in Amazing Spider-Man: Peter Parker vs. Ben Reilly! Spider-Man finally gets a rematch with his brother/clone, but things have changed for both ex-spiders.

Meanwhile, what is going on with Norman Osborn?!

QUEEN GOBLIN ADVICE: 5 CENTS

Ben Reilly, currently known as Chasm, and his long-time girlfriend (dating back to his days on the run), Janine are having relationship issues. After having his memories wiped, Chasm’s moral compass isn’t working, and the mystical experiences Janine has been through haven’t helped. Fortunately, they have the option of couples counseling. Unfortunately, they’ve chosen Doctor Ashley Kafka, the Queen Goblin, to help. Thanks to a MacGuffin called The Winkler Device, she can restore all of Ben’s memories and give him back the parts of himself that he believes are the difference between heroic Spider-Man and villainous Chasm. That’s when the OTHER Spider-Man arrives, with Betty Brant Leeds in tow, seeking the device to clear the name of her husband, who has been framed for being the Hobgoblin. It would set up a big battle between Ben and Peter… if Queen Goblin weren’t lying the whole time.

A LOT OF MOVING PARTS

It’s interesting to see Todd Nauck on a Spider-Man book, as it reminds me of the old days of MacFarlane and Larsen. His Spidey is weird and spindly, and best of all, expressive without cheating the illustration of the mask. There’s also the lovely detail that Chasm and Spider-Man are nearly identically proportioned and have similar body language, but only Ben is seen without his mask, making it feel like his story… mostly. A lot is going on here, including a lot of melodrama from Doctor Kafka, Betty and Janine sharing a moment of truth about their unpredictably abusive partners, and a not-at-all subtle foreshadowing about bad stuff coming for Spider-Man. Unfortunately, the script lacks focus, so it all feels like a shotgun blast rather than a balanced story. The idea of a Spider-Man story without a lot of Spider-Man is fine, but we also have tons of baggage from Betty, Janine, Ben, and Doctor Kafka, as well as an epilogue reuniting the Sinister Six, with another strangely unmotivated twist.

BOTTOM LINE: NOT QUITE

The upshot of that scattered narrative makes Amazing Spider-Man #48 feel very fragmented, ending with an anticlimax on almost all fronts, with Nauck’s lively art making up for a few of those weaknesses (especially in its depiction of Queen Goblin and Chasm), all shaking down to 3 out of 5 stars overall. As a build-up to issue #50, it’s more successful than as an individual chapter of comics, but if you’ve been following our hero’s adventures, it’s a bit better than average.

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