Writer: Nick Spencer & Ed Brisson
Artist: Mark Bagley, Carlos Gómez & Zé Carlos
Colorists: Brian Reber & Andrew Crossley
Cover Artist: Bryan Hitch & Alex Sinclair
Reviewer: StoryBabbler
Spider-Man is in quite the pickle, ain’t he? Five different teams of supervillains all gaining up on the good old Webhead. Of course, the true mastermind behind this attack is the ever enigmatic Kindred who is out to bring a reckoning upon Peter Parker. In Sinister War #3, the gnarly villain is unleashing the Sinister Six and the Savage Six upon Spider-Man who’s in need of some help, if anyone can spare any.
Review:
The issue picks up where right where Sinister War #2 left off with Spider-Man getting the beating of a lifetime from five, count ’em 5 different supervillain teams. Again, this companion series seems to be where all the big action is taking place. This is the issue where readers continue to get more of what was promoted – Spider-Man vs. multiple supervillain teams. It even comes with some narration by Kindred, but there’s nothing too revealing here. Just more tapping on the whole “sins” routine.
The comic establishes this weakened state Spider-Man finds himself in very well from beginning to end. Whether it’s his narration, his weary actions, especially how he’s drawn in this comic, Spidey looks like he’s seen better days and this is one of his worser ones. It maintains this visual and narrative tone of exhaustion as Peter tries to fend off thirty supervillains who all want a piece of him thanks to Kindred.
There are a few interesting twists and turns in the comic, Nick Spencer and Ed Brisson certainly put in the effort to put every villains’ talents to good use and showcase some of their personalities, too. Especially showing the differing villains clashing with each other over how they can fight and do Spider-Man in. The star villains of this issue are without a doubt the Sinister Six and the Savage Six who get another shot at the webslinger. The art and colors look solid as each page shows off Spider-Man and these supervillains in epic fashion without getting lost in the background. And the supervillain fight fest doesn’t stop there with these two teams as others join in on the brawl in their own way.
What’s clear is that the comic continues to push that not all of the supervillains are there just to defeat Spider-Man. Some of them have their own motives and agendas but they’re all being manipulated, threatened really, by Kindred to do what he wants as part of a typical devilish deal – do what he wants and they get what they want. By the end, it’s clear that the supervillain brawl is not over yet and Kindred still has more than a few tricks up his sleeve.
Final Thoughts:
Sinister War #3 continues the supervillain free-for-all with Spider-Man trying his best to stay alive. The comic establishes a more weary Spidey who’s barely hanging in there while trying to fight off multiple supervillain teams. The art looks great, the pacing is solid, most of the super villains get their own time to shine in one way or another. Sinister War lives up to what it promised so far, here’s hoping it keeps it up.