What I liked about this comic was that Grandmother wanted to be a mobile unit. I also liked that 1-A and Grandmother were combined. I also liked the clever inclusion of Solar.
Mads finds a fave
I liked the mummy story the best. But I liked that Spiderman was fighting to avenge his uncle, not for the greater good. That's a weird twist on superheroes. I liked this comic better. It's the best one I've read so far.
Crossover time
Wow. Amazing story that just keeps getting better. One of the things I liked was the inclusion of action, without dwelling on it. It's almost like Shooter didn't have much time to waste on the visual part of the story. I also like the story told in parallels throughout - and keeping most characters pretty allegiant to perspective - while deeping the shades of grey. The attack on grandmother is well-done - and the comparison of North Am to Japan is a strong parallel - with sides switching. Loved how Magnus's perspective was the same, but with the completely opposite reaction - and when he faces Rai next time around, it'll be great to see the characters on the same side - but facing off. Of course, I'm getting ahead of myself. The Rai side of the story is excellent - and I'm always amazed that Rai struggled with success at the beginning of the line. It's excellent.
The icon enters
Literally nothing bad can be said about the Spider-Man story in this comic. Lee interviews have detailed his stress over naming the character, and how he created it, almost on a whim. It's great how the story brings in every comic fan, placing us in Parker's shoes - the picked-on, bullied classmate with little hope to survive in the world. Lee and Ditko have built so much from and around the comic and the dialogue, that fifty years later, it's impossible to imagine the world without them. The origin looks beyond other issues - into the reason not only for powers, but the desire to achieve. Even today, "with great power," has become more than a cliche, but an amazing coda to Spider-Man's first issue, the first film, and nearly every Spider-Man story since. Even Flash makes his first appearance here. I'm stunned that this was in a 'throw away' story in a comic being canceled - but really, I believe that Stan and Steve knew a heck of a lot more that they were getting into. The cover? Lovely. The only thing I'd do would be to get rid of the statement bubbles - but how could they have known it'd be THIS big. The other stories - first-time read, here. Silly. Especially the Martian one. Painfully silly.
The verdict
Yeah. Valiant's excellent, but come on. Anyone can quote the power and responsiblity line.