SPIDER-GIRL #41
"Funeral for a Fiend!"
Mildly Recommended (6/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writers: Tom DeFalco & Pat Olliffe
Pencils: Pat Olliffe
Inks: Al Williamson
Colors: Christie Scheele & Heroic Age
Letters: John E. Workman
Editors: Tom Brevoort
Price: $2.25 US/$3.50 CAN |
I was curious how co-plotter and scripter Tom DeFalco would handle Marvel's "'Nuff Said" event, given that this title has always been heavy on dialogue. It has to be, as DeFalco has a lot of Marvel continuity, a plethora of characters and a bevy of subplots to explain in every issue. Surprisingly, though, Spider-Girl is usually an accessible read, but the lack of dialogue precludes that possibility this month.
The good news: regular readers will find an emotional story with an emphasis on character over action.
Crazy Eight is dead, and as his autopsy and funeral proceed, Spider-Girl, the new Spider-Man and the villain's brother, Funny Face, all reel from the impact of the tragedy. Meanwhile, Normie Osborn, formerly the third Green Goblin, faces Peter and Mary Jane Parker for the first time since he regained his sanity and reformed. And the inexperienced Spider-Man, blaming himself for Crazy Eight's death, seeks to exact some angry justice from the crimelord known as Canis.
As always, the art by Olliffe and Williamson is quite strong. There's a sketchy realism to the collaboration, and they bring a dark sense of maturity that somehow doesn't encroach on the book's lighter aspects. The same can be said of Christie Steele's colors. She achieves a nice balance between bright and muted tones throughout the book.
My favorite moment is the scene featuring Normie's tenuous "reunion" with the man his family has tormented over the years. The awkwardness of the moment is conveyed with crystal clarity, but more important and impressive is the emphasis on forgiveness. The scene works incredibly well without words, as do a number of others in the book.
Then again, there are those moments that don't click so well without the dialogue. I have no idea what the news report about Crazy Eight is saying (was it attributed to anyone in particular?), and the stand-off between the title character and Canis didn't really work for me either. Even more confusing is Funny Face's reunion with a woman that would seem to be his mother. I have no idea who this is or if I'm supposed to recognize her.
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