TAZÍ

Details

• Writer: Jeph Loeb
• Artist: Tim Sale
• Letterer: Wes Abbott/Richard Starkings
• Colorist: Steve Buccellato
• Publisher: Marvel Comics
• Years of publishing: 2002-2003
• No. Of issues: 6
• Genre: Superhero

Premise

Peter Parker recalls his days falling in love with Gwen Stacy, years after her death at the hands of The Green Goblin.

So I’ve read much of what Loeb/Sale did as a team at DC Comics, and Batman: Dark Victory is my favorite Batman-comic of all time. So I thought now was the time to make a start with their Marvel color-comics – starting with Spider-Man: Blue! Let’s see if I get blue by reading Spider-Man: Blue!

The Narrative

Jeph Loeb is famous for his grant cinematic scale storytelling, emotional resonance and high-concept mystery, and all three boxes are ticked-off in this comic run. The “villain of the month” parade – that is every issue has a different villain in the picture – that serves a greater overall scheme of the story, is once again prevalent, and you wonder who the mystery villain is who orchestrated all this – until you know (I found out pretty early on tbh).

He doesn’t overcrowd panels with text, instead he trust the art of Sale to convert the mood and there are pretty and big splash pages which feel like movie posters. Speaking of panels, there were some creative panel and in the gutter moments, like showing someone from an sky-view, while the next panel shows Spider-Man webslinging in the sky. Overall, I really love Loeb’s writing, although I must admit that the whole Peter loves Gwen thing – let’s just say I actually expected more. You see mostly before they’re coming together, not WHEN they’re together, which bothered me to some extend tbh, because it makes the payoff that Gwen died (no spoiler) a little bit flat, because now she was mostly a crush.

There is basically a love triangle going on between Peter-Gwen-MJ – something puny Parker hadn’t thought when he still was in high school, I tell you. And I think now is the right time to talk about their personality types:

Peter is in this comic for me mostly an INFP (The dreamer). He is secluded and nostalgic and well yeah, blue. Gwen on the other hand shows traits of an ENFJ – she is the glue of the group, she keeps it together. And she’s charismatic, altruistic and perceptive, especially to others. And last but not least, Mary Jane is an ESTP, especially in the beginning. She lives entirely in the here and now and just wants to party. But underneath the “party girl” exterior, MJ is surprisingly sharp and pragmatic and we might just see a change of character. And at the end of the comic we finally know what Spidey meant by feeling blue.

The art

Tim Sale provides the soul of the comic. His drawing style is not realistic in the traditional sense, but its more expressionistic and atmospherical. His Green Goblin and Vulture are grotesque and he is great at micro-expressions, like showing us the subtle heartbreak of Peter in his eyes with just a precise lines. I’m not sure if it was Sale’s decision or Loeb’s, but that moment in Connors’ laboratory and the zoom in on a portrait of his wife and child were subtle but really impactful, as seen in the picture below.

Something I really didn’t know beforehand was that Tim Sale was colourblind – and he relied heavily on high-contrast black and white inkwork – which was colored in by others. And he is a master at light and shadow (something called Chiaroscuro) for example unlike artists who draw every brick on a building, Sale focused on how the light hit that building to evoke a specific feeling. And that scene he draw with Gwen and Mary Jane in Peter’s room was just gold! (I wish that happened to me ;))

Final Verdict

Spider-Man: Blue is a good comic book run. It doesn’t come near Batman: The Long Halloween and Batman: Dark Victory in my opinion, but its still a really good comic. Just a personal note: I remember when I had a crush in high school and for years I didn’t talk to her and never knew her name because I was too shy – I understand Spidey’s feelings and this is a classic case of limerence as was what I had, I just wished it got a bit deeper into their relationship at the end, instead of staying a crush. So that’s a con for me. But further the comic is really well done, there was a nice roster of villains and some great panels (scenes).

I give Spider-Man: Blue: 3.5/5⭐️

Have you read it? If you have, please let me know what you think of it:

Thanks for reading and see you in the next review! Bye!

Yours,

Rain