Essential Marvel: The Amazing Spider-Man Volume 2 by “Stan Lee, Steve Ditko, John Romita & Friends”

(pb; 1965, 1966 and 2005: Collects The Amazing Spider-Man #21-43 and Annual issues #2-3)

From the back cover

"The bite of an irradiated spider granted high-school student Peter Parker incredible, arachnid-like powers. When a burglar killed his beloved Uncle Ben, a grief-stricken Peter vowed to use his amazing abilities to protect his fellow man. He had learned an invaluable lesson: With great power, there must also come great responsibility! Through all his trials, Spider-Man remains steadfast in his determination to use his gifts for the benefit of all!"

Review

The artwork in this comic book omnibus is excellent and realistic (particularly the figure work), the action is visually exciting and fun. My only criticism of Volume 2 is that the comic’s good-natured chatty narrative and dialogue can, at times, can be melodramatic, even for tales centering around an adolescent, emotionally muddled protagonist. This is a minor nit, though – after all, the writers and artists did this with their target audience in mind. Volume 2 is worth owning, if you are okay with the latter criticism and appreciate excellent, classic artwork.

Followed by Marvel Essential: The AmazingSpider-Man Volume 3.