Spider-Man’s greatest enemies strike in the epic Sinister War. Doctor Octopus is back! He’s assembled a new Sinister Six – and if you think he’s thought big in the past, think again. But what Doc Ock doesn’t know is that the Vulture has a sextet of his own: the Savage Six! Brace yourself for all-out war between two of the greatest villains in the Marvel Universe – and the only person they hate more than each other is Spider-Man! Spidey’s in deep trouble with the toughest battle he’s ever faced and a deadly dozen of his fiercest foes out for blood!
Sinister War ultimately serves two purposes. Firstly, with Spider-Man: No Way Home hitting cinemas in December (which is looking to feature several classic Spider-Man villains), we have a prime opportunity to see a crazy battle with almost every Spider-Man villain out for his blood. But more importantly, it acts as one of the closing chapters to Nick Spencer’s run in a suitably epic way.
Spencer has been building several up several storylines since the beginning of his tenure on Amazing Spider-Man in 2018 which all come to a head in his final story arc. These include Kindred’s ultimate plan, the mystery of the other Harry Osborn, where Peter’s former roommate Fred Myers’ (AKA Boomerang) loyalty truly lies and Mephisto’s reasons for his keen interest in Spider-Man’s soul. Spencer spreads many of these plot points over this concluding storyline, though most of the wrap-up takes place in Amazing Spider-Man by Nick Spencer Vol. 15. The main focus of this collection is to focus on the epic battle between Spider-Man and his almost entire rogues’ gallery.
This is a very action driven collection that mainly focuses on battle. With very high stakes given to them by Kindred, The Sinister Six, Savage Six and Sinister Syndicate all have strong reasons to want Spider-Man dead. It has been a long time since we’ve had a pure throwdown with this many of Spidey’s villains. Spencer gives everyone a chance to shine and whilst the greatest enemies (Doctor Octopus, Electro, Mysterio) are given the lion’s share or the best moments, it’s those on the lower rungs who standout the most. The former Superior Foes in particular (as you’d expect from Spencer) are hilarious as always, with Boomerang getting a brilliant conclusion to his arc. All this is carried by veteran Spider-Man artist Mark Bagley who is dependably brilliant in all aspects whether it be action or character driven moments.
Sinister War is the perfect way to experience a massive Spider-Man battle with his greatest foes and will whet the appetites of those eager to see No Way Home.
Sinister War is out 23 November from Marvel (9781302931070, p/b, £14.99)
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