While this looks terrifying on the surface, there are no teeth to these actions. Absolutely none of that is clear so we have to sift through this torture porn with the hope that Peter Parker will rise above it all to come out on top. All of this would be much more compelling if we had any idea what he wants, what happened to Harry to transform him into this villain, and why any of this is happening. There’s one more trick up his centipede-clad sleeves and it’s going to pack quite a punch. Our hero is at the point where he’d give anything for this pain to stop, but Kindred’s not through with him yet. Letterer Joe Caramagna continues the use of the scratchy word balloons to convey a truly monstrous tone.Īll of this serves to break Spider-Man down.
All the while, Kindred taunts the wall-crawler in his chilling voice. The people in Peter’s life, like Mary Jane, Gwen Stacy, and Flash Thompson are shown prominently. These quick flashes are shown in a faded light to differentiate them from the horrors of the present. Colorist Edgar Delgado makes these panels pop with a selective use of red, only appearing in Kindred’s hood, the rock he uses as a weapon, and all the blood.Įach time Peter dies, he seems to be reliving his past. Inker John Dell highlights the darkness here, between the shadows looming around the villain and the emptiness in his eye sockets. This is shown as five vertical panels, bookended by Kindred’s sickening smile. There’s an early sequence that really stands out, when Kindred initially lets loose. Since this takes up the majority of Amazing Spider-Man #54, it gets to the point where it’s just uncomfortable. Artist Mark Bagley makes us feel every blood-soaked punch, every sickening thud as Peter is killed over and over. Although it’s been shown repeatedly as of late, we are treated to a few more examples as to how powerful and deadly Kindred is.