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Welcome back superhero enthusiasts, 1980s arts and culture enthusiasts, Spider-Man fans and comic book collectors! Today we go back to the year 1985 to examine a small part of the Marvel Comics shared universe through a tale of the Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man monthly series.
I found issue #107 – the first issue of the Sin-Eater storyline – a pretty engaging tale focused on the murder of Jean DeWolff. The sudden demise of DeWolff really impacted the city of New York and its tale involved not only Spider-Man but also Daredevil. The tale is really a murder mystery that is very grounded with reality.
With those details laid down, here is a look back at Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #108, published in 1985 by Marvel Comics with a story written by the late Peter David and the late Rich Buckler.
Early story
The story begins with Judge Rosenthal lying dead on the floor in his office. Moments earlier, the judge was killed by the Sin-Eater who used a shotgun and in the same room was Matt Murdock (Daredevil). Some people entered the office and the local authorities were called. Murdock slowly makes his way out to discreetly go after the Sin-Eater.
In another part of the city, Peter Parker, Aunt May and the elderly friend named Ernie walk together coming from the courthouse. Ernie could not believe that Judge Rosenthal let go of the punks who mugged him.
As they walked further, people around them begin to panic and move around fast. Peter gets separated from his aunt and Ernie, and eventually he realizes that the Sin-Eater is several feet away armed with a shotgun. The Sin-Eater is speaking to the people even though he is causing a huge disturbance.
Moments later, Peter changed into Spider-Man and proceeds to confront the Sin-Eater in front of many witnesses…
Quality
Following the events of issue #107, this comic book shows more of the Sin-Eater and the story emphasizes why he is very dangerous to everyone. The Sin-Eater is not a superbeing himself, and yet he is capable of killing people and causing chaos in public without the need of having multiple weapons and ammunition. That said, he is tremendous villain that Spider-Man has difficulty handling.
The physical encounter between Spider-Man and the Sin-Eater here is unsurprisingly ground in reality. The comic book action visualized by Rich Buckler has this raw action aesthetic and each time a physical blow was executed, impact is really felt. Don’t expect dynamic action here but a more realism and believability.
What makes the fight between the two unique is that it happened in front of a lot of people on New York City’s street. As the fight went on, Spider-Man struggles not only with fighting the Sin-Eater (a truly violent opponent) but also dealing with the risk of bystanders getting hurt and realizing what happened to his beloved Aunt May.
As expected, the detective story elements in this tale are very strong. Spider-Man, who is not a professional detective at all, gets to do detective work with a sheer determination to solve the mystery behind the death of Jean DeWolff. Along the way, I love how the David-Buckler duo invested a lot of details about the crime which are really worth paying attention to as you read.
Conclusion
Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #108 (1985) is a powerful follow-up in the Sin-Eater storyline. As it contains all the key elements that made issue #107 a very unique and engaging read, this comic book executed good pay-off to the build-up in the previous issue while consistently building-up the plot simultaneously which is typical of Peter David (read the Spider-Man 2099 comic books back-to-back). As of now, this Sin-Eater storyline is compelling and I am looking forward to what comes next.
Overall, Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #108 (1985) is recommended.
+++++
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