This volume brings together, for the most three important sagas run JMS: "The Book of Ezekiel" (The Book of Ezekiel), "Past recomposed" (Sins Past) and "A fleur de peau" (Skin Deep) .
The first saga continues and completes the esoteric direction the writer has given the series from the start of his run Ezekiel is the mentor of Spiderman. Older, he has the same powers as him. He tells him that the spider that stung did not by chance. It is simply at the base, the chosen of an ancestral line of men chained to a religion "totemic"! But today everything has been revealed about his true origins, an even greater danger than any he has faced is about to fall ... A beautiful series of episodes, original, and brilliantly adults told. John Romita Jr., to the drawings in the series since the start of the run JMS, then made her farewell (or goodbye ...).
The second saga is a big piece: Whether it's happened at the time when Gwen Stacy, just before his death, left to Paris? Why this departure and that to has she done? The answer, which I will not reveal, will be unexpected and particularly moving for our hero ... Let's face it: This story arc was disliked by many readers, who felt they had touched in untouchable, and that the revelations made on this painful past, relatively shocking, fell under screenplay aberration (a suite was nevertheless written, available here: Spectacular Spider-man Sins Remembered). Personally, I do not regret a moment reading these episodes. It is true that the writer went really far away, as they say, but again he has demonstrated originality and courage in bringing his hero where no one had gone. Moreover, it emerges from this story through the memories revived of its main characters, a very pleasant scent of nostalgia ...
The third and final saga is much anecdotal, but participates as much of that nostalgia tied to the past of Peter Parker: He faces a former high school classmate, went mad after an experiment gone wrong, and has made him a villain. The end of the story is still quite important as the villain in question destroy everything that belongs to Peter and his family, forcing them to go stay with the Avengers, Spiderman which is now part ...
These episodes are imaged by a virtuoso Mike Deodato jr. They mark his return to comics after a long absence. And what a return! His photorealistic style, while light / dark, cutting his very "photo story" and huge boxes showing Spiderman in action you will impress the retinas!
To be honest, I must admit that continuing the run of JMS is not up to the fantastic episodes that he wrote at the beginning. However, the run as a whole still remains brilliant and inventive, adult, witty and superbly interacted. I personally consider the best I have read so far.
From the next collection, things will go wrong because, as I said above, Spiderman is now part of the Avengers. It has indeed joined the group with Wolverine story boost sales of the series under the leadership of Brian M. Bendis featured writer. It is from there that Straczynski will have to stick to the news of the "New Avengers" and lose a lot of freedom on the character. But we still reserve still a lot of surprises!
In vf, these episodes have been published in the journal Spiderman (2nd series) by Panini editions of No. 58 to No. 72
