★★★★★ 5
A redundant, but improved, collection of Spider-Man's cosmic arc.
Format: Paperback
I've put off getting this volume because many of the stories have been printed elsewhere, particularly the McFarlane work. Plus, there was already a trade paperback of the Cosmic Spider-Man arc...
But this volume is a worthwhile replacement for those.
Ignoring the Cosmic material, which is generally really enjoyable, there are a few other stories collected here. There's a two-issue story of Spider-Man teaming up with the Punisher. Then there's a short two-issue story of Spider-Man against Venom. After that... three annuals, covering Spidey's Totally Tiny Adventure. It's a pretty silly story that guest stars Ant-Man for the first issue. This story is unusual, since it feels like the kind of story I would expect Marvel to publish in the late 60s or 70s. Artwork in annuals usually seems a little sub-par, but it's nice to see these stories reprinted.
Even better - the supplemental stories from the annuals are reprinted! We get solo stories for Solo, Sandman, Ant-Man, Prowler, Rocket Racer...
I was pleased to find that the Rocket Racer story ties into the Scourge storyline from Captain America!
There are other bonus pages, reprinting artwork, introductions from other collections, etc. They even include some of the Spider-Man trading cards from the old Marvel Universe cards!
I'd also like to take the opportunity to point out how much I enjoy Erik Larsen's artwork on Spider-Man. He brought his own flavor to Peter and Mary Jane. Supporting cast characters are well-defined. He has a lot of fun with background characters or people who get one or two lines. I read these comics when they first came out, and these reprints are far more enjoyable. The coloring is well matched up, the paper is great, and everything is lined up perfectly.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 3, 2015
