Spectacular Spider-Man 96

The Final Answer!
By Al Milgrom, Jim Mooney
Nov 84

Part 3

- lots of recap and references to other comics
- Final confrontation involving Spidey, the Black Cat, Cloak, Dagger, Kingpin, Silvermane, and the Answer
- trapped inside Cloak's cape Silvermane lashes out and fights his way back out causing considerable pain to Cloak
- after changing into his old costume Spidey meets Up with Black Cat and they head to Kingpin's HQ
- the Answer doubts that Dagger can help Vanessa now because Dagger is so weak; the Kingpin doesn't want to hear it and sets a plan in motion to have Dagger's life energy transferred to Vanessa
- interlude 1: MJ thinking about her relationship with PP
- interlude 2: Flash Thompson and Betty Leeds trying to avoid armored men running around the city wrecking havoc
- Spidey questions BC as they head to KP's HQ; he thinks she is hiding something; she won't tell him but later on he hears it from KP that she owes KP a favor
- Spidey and BC arrive at KPHQ and find Silvermane fighting a bunch of KP's thugs
- Cloak arrives and tries attacking KP but the Answer takes him out of the fight fairly quickly; Cloak is still weak
- Spidey and Kingpin fight; then Silvermane busts through a walk and joins the brawl, he is after Dagger; Kingpin fights Silvermane to prevent him from getting to Dagger and gets beaten pretty badly by the cyborg
- the fight ends when the Answer takes the comatose Dagger's hand and then vanishes; Dagger awakens and gives back to Silvermane the life energy she took from him; Silvermane is restored and leaves without saying a word
- Dagger is cracking with energy; Kingpin begs her to restore his wife, she refuses; she restores Vloak who has collapsed on the floor and then they teleport away
- Black Cat and Spidey take off after Kingpin turns on them, leaving Wilson Fisk alone with his wife, Vanessa
- final page get a glimpse of Spidey's black suit trapped at the Baxter Bldg trying to escape

- what happened to the Answer in the end ? Converted to energy helping to heal Dagger; according Comic Book DB his power is to develop a power for whatever he needs but just one or two powers at a time; 1st appeared in SSM 91-97; but his appearance in SSM 97 might just have been a recap appearance and then nothing until 1993 (9 years later); just 5 appearances in 1993 and then nothing until 2005

- first mention of the Dark Dimension

- see Thor 349 for the reason why it is snowing in the Summer; must have something to with the cask of ancient winters
- see ASM 258 for the full details on why Spidey is back to his old costume and how it is that MJ now knows that Peter Parker is Spidey

- my favorite story of this collection, very intricate; the art not so hot but it gets the job done; the only story of this collection not written by Mantlo

6/7