Review: The Superior Spider-Man #11

Minor Spoilers for the issue below!

Superior Spider-Man has been quite a good series overall, I have to say, this issue wasn't the best., there were a few exciting moments but I don't feel it was as good as some other of this series' issues.

Just a brief summary of what this issue is about, Otto Octavius, along with J. Jonah Jameson, Glory Grant and Norah Winters travel to the supervillain prison, the Raft, for the execution of the Spider-Slayer, A.K.A. the man who murdered Jameson's wife. I have to say, I wasn't particularly excited by the premise of this issue, I think this is because I don't really care about Spider-Slayer as a villain, he's just not too interesting in my opinion.

This issue was Co-Written by Dan Slott and Christos Gage, and they did do a good job on the issue. Basically, this issue did have good writing, I just wasn't too keen on the plot. The scripting aspect of the issue was good, and I really enjoyed one little scene between Otto and Norah Winters while on the raft and the college scenes on the first few pages, I just don't think the overall plot was as good as some other issues.

Now that I'm done talking about the writing, onto the art! The penciller for this issue was Guiseppe Camuncoli, who is a brilliant artist! He is one of three rotating pencillers for this series and his issues are some of the best in recent Spider-Man comics. He draws a really different Spider-Man to the other artists on the series, he appears more muscly and Camuncoli draws that well.

Another point on the art, the colours. The current Spider-Man colourist is Edgar Delgado, who has done all of the Superior Spider-Man series and a lot of the previous title, Amazing Spider-Man. He is a very good colourist and I think his issues with Camuncoli are the best for both of them. Camuncoli's pencils and Delgado's colours work together really well, and it makes some really good art.

Overall, this issue had an alright plot, good writing but brilliant art.

Rating: 6.5/10

Top comics for June 5th 2013

Welcome to Top Comics! I'm sure you can guess from the title what this feature's about, but if not here's what it's about: Basically, I'll pick out some comics that I think are the top ones for this week and that I think you should pick up. There are some pretty important and good-looking comics out this week so here we go!

Kick-Ass 3 #1

This is the third and final instalment in Mark Millar and John Romita Jr.'s hit comic book series, Kick-Ass. I have to admit, I've never had the chance to read Kick-Ass, but it's something that I've been interested in for a while; I'd flicked through the book and seen scans on comic book websites, but most recently, I read an interview with Mr. Mark Millar, he discussed this series and I have to say, it got me hooked. You've probably heard of this series from the movie that came out a few years ago and it's upcoming sequel, Kick-Ass 2; These were based directly off the books and you can see they've done extremely well, meaning that the comic series can only be as good, most likely, better. From what I've seen of Mark Millar and John Romita Jr.'s previous work on titles such as the Ultimates ( Millar ) and Amazing Spider-Man ( Romita Jr.), this is set to be a great book and it looks like one of this week's must-reads!

Green Lantern #21

Recently, DC Comics writer, Geoff Johns, left the Green Lantern title, he'd been writing the book for around nine years. Basically, the new writer, Robert Venditti, has a lot of pressure on him to get this first issue right; I've spoken to Mr. Venditti recently about his upcoming Green Lantern run and I have to say, I'm certain he'll deliver. This is a new era for Green Lantern and I, for one, am excited to read it! Not to mention artist, Billy Tan, DC Comics recently posted some unlettered preview pages for this issue and his art looks like a great fit for this series! If you're a DC Comics fan or just a fan of comics in general, this is worth picking up. It's a good jumping on point for new readers and is set to be an exciting start of a great new run on the book!

The Movement #2

DC Comics launched two new series last month, The Movement and The Green Team. Both are great books but obviously I'm focusing on the Movement here. This new series is being written by current Batgirl-scriber, Gail Simone; Gail is a talented and brilliant writer and every book that she writes is always a good read. It's being pencilled by Freddie Williams II, a great artist who really shone on the first issue of the series, both creators make a good team and are really doing an extraordinary job on this series. If you're a bit worried about the fact you haven't been keeping up with this series, there's obviously an easy solution to that problem, pick up both issues of the series tomorrow; Trust me, it's really worth it, you'll definitely enjoy this series!

 

Superior Spider-Man #11

Onto the final comic in this feature, Superior Spider-Man! I honestly don't know how the writer of this series, Dan Slott, has come up with his ideas for this series but I love them. It has a lot of unique ideas and is a fun and witty book. In case you didn't know, Doctor Octopus is Spider-Man, this makes for a great ongoing series and despite any bad comments it's been getting, it's a truly amazing (or Superior) series! This issue is pencilled by returning Spidey artist, Guiseppi Camuncoli, who is a Spectacular ( How many adjectives are there that haven't been used for Spidey series?!) artist for this book. It's also co-written by Christos Gage, the last arc he helped to write with Dan Slott was the great Hobgoblin arc between Amazing Spider-Man 665 and 668, he and Slott make a good writing double team!

Conclusion

So, those were my top four picks from all of the comics coming out tomorrow. These are definitely worth picking up and I'm sure you'll enjoy them!

Interview: Ryan Stegman talks Superior Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2099, Scarlet Spider and more!

 
Harry: First off, Thanks for doing this interview, Ryan!

I'm going to start off with a few questions about one of the books you used to draw, Scarlet Spider!

How much of a say did you get in what the character was like,  considering Kaine was changed in a big way from his former villain identity?

Scarlet Spider by Ryan Stegman

Ryan Stegman: Hm...Most of that stuff was Yost. I got to re-design the character's costume and I made the decision to maintain his bulk, so to speak. I wanted him to look more intimidating than Peter. I do think I suggested we cut his hair and get rid of the beard so that he was more identifiable to the reader. But I think I may have suggested that and Yost said, "Oh yeah, I already planned on that." We were really on the same wavelength with everything.

Harry: Even though you don't draw the book any more, you're the cover artist on the series. Do you ever enjoy this more than interiors? Considering you still get to draw the character but you don't have to do as much for the deadline.

Ryan Stegman: No! I don't have anything against covers. I enjoy doing a few of those a month. But I'd lose my mind doing just covers. I like to tell stories. And I like to tell stories panel-to-panel. You can tell a story on a cover, sure, but you only get one image and story is generally subordinated to other aspects like design and making it "pop" of the shelves. 

I am currently in a week where I'm just trying to pump out four different covers and it's really tough because I like to think about a cover for a few days before doing it. Just marinate on it while doing other pages. Maybe I'll think about it when I go for a run, or something will come out of nowhere and hit you. But when you have to do a bunch of covers in a row you don't get that time to conceive and it makes it really, really hard.

Harry: Did drawing Kaine give you more experience for drawing web-slingers when it came to drawing Superior Spider-Man?

Ryan Stegman: Absolutely. I mean, I've kind of always drawn web-slingers in my spare time. But yeah, I really got to learn how to sequence action with Spider-characters throughout that book.

Fantastic Four by Stegman

Harry: You also had a run on Fantastic Four before it's renumbering, do you take a different approach to drawing team books than you do solo books?

Ryan Stegman: Yes. It's much harder! I really think about composition when I'm drawing on interior pages. And the more characters you have the more unruly the composition gets. Because there are so many variables that are difficult to control. So the planning stage takes longer. It all takes longer! 

Harry: Do you prefer any aspects of either type of book? For example, drawing backgrounds, there being less to draw in team books.

Ryan Stegman: I think I prefer doing a single character book because I can really connect with one character. The best example that I can give is that when I did my first issue of Amazing Spider-Man, 665, I felt like I connected immediately. I knew exactly what to do with the character. All my focus was on him. 

In Fantastic Four I felt like I really started to get it in my 3rd issue. Because I had all these little scenes with each character and we had to give each one their own emotional weight. So when I finally figured it out, my run on the book was essentially done!

Amazing Spider-Man 665 interiors
by Stegman

Harry: Onto your current project, Superior Spider-Man, which I'm really loving by the way!

This is obviously quite a controversial book, with one of Peter Parker's deadliest villains, Doctor Octopus, taking control of Spider-Man's body and taking on the role. Do you ever find negative comments distracting or unnerving or do you find it easy to carry on making the book and ignore them?

Ryan Stegman: Well, I only really get down when I read negative comments about my side of the book, meaning the art. Because I read the scripts. I read the book. I've read Dan's run on the book. I KNOW, in my mind, that it's a great story. So it's almost like an outsider looking in. I read negative comments about the story and just have a different opinion.

But when it's my art, that is harder for me to be objective about. Because I can't say definitively that what I do is good or great. That's for others to judge. So if somebody hates it I take it into account. Possibly to a fault! 

Harry: Are there any specific changes you make to drawing Spider-Man between Peter Parker and Otto Octavius?

Ryan Stegman: Only in his mannerisms and facial expressions. I draw Ock/Peter exactly as I would Peter just with arched eyebrows or maniacal smiles etc. 

Superior Spider-Man by Stegman

Harry: Do you prefer drawing the Superior costume or Peter Parker's costume?

Ryan Stegman: Both are cool. The Superior costume isn't different enough for me to really have much of an opinion. I will say that we did away with the webbing on the triceps that Parker had and that makes it way easier to draw!

Harry: On this series, there is a team of rotating artists, consisting of you, Guiseppe Camuncolli and Humberto Ramos. Are there ever times when you think "I would've loved to draw that issue" etc.?

Ryan Stegman: Well I'd love to draw every issue! But no, I am a huge fan of both artists and I love seeing how they do their issues. I'm really happy with the issues I got to do.

Harry: How is it decided which artist draws which issue?

Ryan Stegman: That's a question for Wacker! But I think he does a good job with that. He knows what our strengths are.

Harry: The writer of the series, Dan Slott, obviously starts setting up major storylines a long time before they happen. Does he usually tell you the things he's leading up to so you know a long time in advance?

Ryan Stegman: Yes. I'd like to take a journey through Dan's mind someday. It would be fascinating and terrifying. Dan will call me on the phone and just machine gun idea after idea and it's amazing. I could listen to him ramble on about this stuff all day. But yeah, I probably know what the plans are for the next two years or so right now.

Harry: (SPOILERS AHEAD) Now, the most recent issue of the series was #9, this was probably one of the biggest issues in the series and involved Otto Octavius erasing Peter Parker once and for all. Obviously this will have a major impact on the series, how do you think it'll change the tone of the book?

Ryan Stegman: Well, I drew the next issue so I don't want to give too much away. But you can rest assured that Ock is going to spread his wings and really be himself.

Inside the head of Peter Parker and Otto Octavius

Harry: This issue was mostly set inside Peter Parker/Otto Octavius' head. Was it fun to get to draw in such an odd setting?

Ryan Stegman: Oh yeah. It was awesome. I love drawing stuff that isn't real. Anything that will let me be imaginative and go nuts. And that was definitely an issue where I got to do that.

Harry: Will this change the way Otto acts in the series?

                                                                                Ryan Stegman: He will be more Ock-y than ever!

Harry: Onto some questions about a recent piece of news for the book, the return of Spider-Man 2099. Was it fun to draw such a classic character or was it a little bit intimidating?

Spider-Man 2099 convention sketch by Stegman.

Ryan Stegman: Well, if I was going to be intimidated by anything it'd be drawing Amazing Spider-Man. So no, this is just fun! I love his costume. And I just can't wait to get into the story and draw him in action. It's gonna be too much fun.

Harry: What can you tease about his upcoming appearance?

Ryan Stegman: Really, all I can say is that I hope we can bring him back right. I hope that it is so well received that we see a lot more of the character in the coming years.

Harry: One last Superior related question, is there anything you can tease for the series?

Ryan Stegman: No! Haha. Everything is under lock and key!

Harry: And just one general question. If you could draw any character or series from any publisher, who/what would you choose?

Ryan Stegman: My own characters! I love to create. Spider-Man is the gold standard at the big 2 for me. It's what I always wanted. Beyond that, the only thing that's really left is my own characters. In a perfect world I'd somehow alternate between Spider-Man and my own characters!

Harry: Thanks again, Ryan!

Ryan Stegman is one of three rotating artists on Superior Spider-Man, issue #9 is on sale now!

You can also catch him on his twitter page.