Review: Abbot & Costello Meet Godzilla In ‘Amazing Spider-Man #43’

Gog, a monster from another world has attacked Spider-Man and Boomerang as they searched for a piece to the Lifeline tablet. Under other circumstances, this wouldn’t be too bad, but Gog has grown extra large, like a monster from Power Rangers and he’s ready to wreak havoc on the city if this unlikely duo can’t stop him.

Amazing Spider-Man #43 is a fun little romp as Spidey and Boomerang try to figure out not only how to stop Gog, but how to work together. The latter is probably more challenging as Boomerang is basically still learning how to be a hero. His cowardly instincts still kick in when he’s in danger. This makes the book more a comedy than an action adventure story. In a way, it’s like Abbott and Costello Meet Godzilla.
This story does feel like a distraction as there’s so much more going on in Peter Parker’s life at the moment and that all seems way more important. Also, there’s a really odd sequence where Spider-Man destroys two city helicopters and that can’t be good for his image.

In any case, artist Ryan Ottley delivers the goods with some great sequences as this showdown gets under way. He captures the awkwardness of the team-up, the innocence of Gog, and the frustrated responsibility of Spider-Man. Ottley’s work definitely leans more towards the comedic take, especially with some fun facial expressions. It’s like the characters realize just how crazy their lives are.
Ottley inks himself for a chunk of Amazing Spider-Man #43 and Cliff Rathburn handles the rest. I don’t know who did what, but it’s a pretty seamless transition from one page to another so that’s a win for continuity. The lines are smooth and highlight the impressive amount of detail in Ottley’s pencils.

This is a bright, vibrant book. The action happens in the middle of the day with the sun shining. Colorists Nathan Fairbairn and Dee Cunniffe do a brilliant job in bringing the energy of this comic to life. Gog’s colors really stand out against the landscape of the city. It’s clear that he’s not from around here. Letterer Joe Caramagna adds the final touch to Gog’s depiction with some orange caption boxes that give us a peek into the creature’s mind. They’re never shown with punctuation, giving you an idea of where his head is at.
When I first finished Amazing Spider-Man #43, I was pretty meh on it. The story doesn’t feel like it matters just yet and, as mentioned above, there are so many other cool ideas kicking around in this series that haven’t been explored yet. Writer Nick Spencer has introduced a number of interesting concepts and we haven’t seen them come to fruition. There’s an epilogue to this story that looks like it’s introducing another one. I would love if just a few of these loose threads were tied up in the near future.
Amazing Spider-Man #43 from Marvel Comics is currently available at your local comic shop and digitally through ComiXology and Amazon Kindle.