The upcoming 'Spider-Man Beyond' era, which launches in Amazing Spider-Man #75, is ramping up with a pair of covers for issues #75 and #77. The cover of Amazing Spider-Man #75 from Art Adams, who joins the title as the ongoing cover artist with the issue, shows Peter Parker teaming up with his clone Ben Reilly, who will replace him as the main Spider-Man in the 'Beyond' era ... at least on the cover, anyway, which may be symbolic and not storytelling literal.
Meanwhile, following up on the previously revealed cover of Amazing Spider-Man #76, which depicts Peter Parker lying near death in a hospital bed, the cover of Amazing Spider-Man #77 shows Ben (judging by the costume) about to be stabbed by some kind of bladed cyborg.
Marvel is apparently playing up the mysterious identity of the robo-baddie who has Spidey in his clutches, with the publisher's announcement of the covers asking, "What villain did the unthinkable and took Peter down?"
Whoever it is he or she apparently has Ben in their clutches too.
The injuries Peter seems to suffer in the story that concludes current writer Nick Spencer's run on the title and which ushers in the expansive new creative team (read more on the new creators involved below) will lead to his replacement as both Spider-Man and the star of Amazing Spider-Man itself by Ben Reilly, his clone, who previously took up the mantle in the infamous 'Clone Saga' back in the '90s.
Interestingly, the cover of Amazing Spider-Man #75 shows Peter and Ben teaming up against the U-Foes, a group of radioactive villains last seen being employed by Henry Peter Gyrich (currently a member of the mutant-hating group Orchis) to track down Bruce Banner in the pages of Immortal Hulk. Could Gyrich be involved in whatever happens to Peter Parker?
Amazing Spider-Man #75 is due out October 6, with the title continuing three times monthly afterwards. Read on for more about what to expect in the 'Spider-Man Beyond' era, including the full creative team and a gallery of all the art released so far.
Stay tuned to Newsarama for Marvel's full October 2021 solicitations, coming later this month.
Original story follows.
The art team for the impending new era of Amazing Spider-Man, which kicks off in October’s Amazing Spider-Man #75, has begun to come into focus with several artists now named for the series - and it all starts with previously named creator Patrick Gleason, who will serve as both writer and artist on Amazing Spider-Man (with plenty of back-up in both roles, of course).
Alongside Gleason, artists Sara Pichelli, known for co-creating Miles Morales, and Black Cat artist Michael Dowling will join Amazing Spider-Man. Meanwhile, covers for the title will be provided by Art Adams.
"Writer/artist Patrick Gleason will be the bedrock of the team, leading the design and doing the art on the oversized milestone issue Amazing Spider-Man #75," reads Marvel's announcement. "Joining him will be acclaimed artist Sara Pichelli, the co-creator of Miles Morales doing her first work on Amazing Spider-Man, as well as Michael Dowling, known for his incredible work on Black Cat," it continues.
"In addition, comic book legend Arthur Adams will grace this epic run with his amazing artwork on each and every cover. And this is just the tip of the iceberg for the legends who will be bringing this revolutionary epic to you!"
As for the story being told in the new era of Amazing Spider-Man, it all revolves around Ben Reilly returning to the mantle of Spider-Man in the absence of Peter Parker. Peter's fate hasn't been revealed, but art included in Marvel's announcement seems to indicate that, as previously hinted, he'll be physically out of the picture.
The included art shows Peter in a hospital bed in his tattered Spider-Man costume with Mary Jane watching over him - potentially implying he's either in a coma or worse, on his deathbed.
"When we started building 'Beyond' we knew we had to pull out all the stops from the artistic side. That began with making sure Patrick Gleason was with us from the get-go as a writer AND an artist," states editor Nick Lowe. "His recent webhead covers have rocked the industry showing yet another element to the incredible career that we all saw on display during his run on Amazing Spider-Man. He quickly stepped up to be our artistic cornerstone, but we also needed to make sure that whoever else joined him were elite talents."
Here's a gallery of art from the new Amazing Spider-Man era:
Lowe goes on to praise the art team, discussing the particular talents each artist will bring to Amazing Spider-Man.
"Sara Pichelli is an absolute legend, creating some of the most impactful work of the last ten years. It's crazy to think this will be her first time drawing Amazing Spider-Man, and she's already blown us away with her masterful work," Lowe states.
"Michael Dowling's work on Unfollow and other works got him hired for Black Cat, but his work there showed us that he would be an absolute superstar, and his issues are already blowing our minds," Lowe continues. "And then, to be able to land Arthur Adams as our cover artist. I mean, from his classic X-Men Annuals to today, Arthur has defined the Marvel Universe visually as much as almost anyone. So to have him here? I'm beyond excited. And wait until we reveal the rest of our all-star roster!"
Lowe's comments imply more artists will be joining the Amazing Spider-Man creative team, possibly to match the roster of writers who form what Marvel calls the 'Beyond Board' for the new so-called 'Spider-Man Beyond' era, including Gleason, Zeb Wells, Saladin Ahmed, Kelly Thompson, and Cody Ziglar.
Here's a gallery of covers:
Wells will kick off the new 'Spider-Man Beyond' era as the writer of October 6's Amazing Spider-Man #75 and October 13's Amazing Spider-Man #76, both with art from Gleason, while October 20's Amazing Spider-Man #77 will be written by Kelly Thompson with art from Sara Pichelli.
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