Longtime Amazing Spider-Man writer, Dan Slott, hangs em’ up. Issue #801 is a touching final goodbye to the character and fans before the veteran creator web-swings off into the sunset.
***SPOILERS LIE AHEAD***
Love him or hate him, you’ve got to respect the tenure. Dan Slott has been writing Spider-Man for ten years. That’s longer than a lot of very talented people last in this industry as a whole, let alone on one title.
“There For You” is a love letter to Spider-Man and his fans from quite possibly his biggest fan, Dan Slott. We go back to the early days of Peter Parker’s crime-fighting. Spidey stops a routine burglary and keeps one man from having the worst day of his life. We spend the rest of the issue seeing what that one man does with the life he had saved by our favorite web-head.
The idea that Spider-Man may not save the entire world every day, but save’s someone’s whole world is beautiful. Slott goes for the gut and reminds us all why we love this character so much, and superheroes in general for that matter.
Readers will experience a heavy dose of heart to go along with plenty of chuckles and smirks. Slott keeps his grand finale short and sweet. Amazing Spider-Man #800 was his big epic action finale, which was also flawlessly executed. ASM #801 is a much more intimate short story that gets the point across in spectacular fashion.
Artist Marcos Martin transports us back to the early days with Spidey’s old costume design. The posing and body language are also wonderful call-backs to the first sightings of Amazing Spider-Man. Martin also loads us up with the emotional impact this touching tale needed to fully land. Colorist Muntsa Vicente does a splendid job breathing another layer of life into these panels, especially in the convenience store robbery.
The sentiment illustrated and dictated in this issue is one that readers can reference when asked why they love Spider-Man. Mr. Slott, we thank you for your time and all of your entries into the Amazing Spider-Man continuity. Good luck on your new adventures!
Slott will be writing Fantastic Four and Tony Stark: Iron Man for Marvel going forward.
