"WALK THE SAVAGE LAND!"
Writer: Roy Thomas/Penciller: Gil Kane/Inker: Frank Giacoia/Letterer: Artie Simek/Editor: Stan Lee/Cover Art: Gil Kane
Synopsis: Desperate to find some way to recover the Bugle's failing fortunes, J Jonah Jameson drags Peter and Gwen off on a trip to the Savage Land, in search of a monster...
Review: The second and final Roy Thomas tale begins here, and unfortunately, it's a major downgrade from his previous effort. In many ways, I feel his Savage Land two-parter demonstrates a problem that was also present in the Six-Armed Saga, just nowhere near as egregiously: Roy Thomas doesn't really get Spider-Man. He's a dab hand at imitating Stan's dialogue, yes, but the tone and style of his four ASM issues is a little off, giving us stories that would feel far more at home in his X-Men or Hulk runs. This worked in the Six-Armed Saga's favour, as that story had this dark, brooding, gothic quality to it that helped it stand out. This adventure just feels like a rather outdated, hackneyed take on King Kong.
The artwork is as beautiful as ever, and Kane gives us a pair of truly dynamic splash pages in this issue: one on the first page as Spidey kicks his way through a gang of bad guys, and later on, when the monstrous Gog towers over Peter and Gwen; the perspective and figure work in this second one in particular are just sublime. Kane also makes each environment stand out from one another, from the litter-strewn streets of Manhattan to the snowy Antarctic landscape to the lush jungle of the Savage Land itself; if there's one big positive I can point to in this issue, it's Gil Kane, but then that was kind of a given.
The plot is really where everything falls apart. As said, the whole thing is basically a riff on King Kong, with Jameson in the role of Carl Denham, Peter as Jack Driscoll, and Gwen as Ann Darrow. Now, I like the original King Kong; it's a very fine film. The problem is that this sort of adventure just doesn't work for Spider-Man, a hero most at home among skyscrapers and urban sprawl, not a dense, fantasy-esque jungle, doing battle with giant serpents. The characterisation has always felt kind of off in this issue as well; Jameson calling Peter 'Pete' just feels far too chummy, and Gwen is reduced to little more than a dumb blonde ready to get captured by the monster. There are some nice moments: I like that the question of Peter and Gwen getting hitched is raised again, and I genuinely love that Jameson agrees to go on this dangerous trip with his young companions, rather than just staying at the office where it's safe. He's not such a bad guy deep down.
This issue also sees the return of two old faces, the first being Ka-Zar, accompanied as always by his faithful friend Zabu. If you've read my review of ASM #57, you'll know I'm no big fan of Ka-Zar, but his inclusion here does at least make sense - doing a story set in the Savage Land and not including Ka-Zar would have irked me more. The much more exciting familiar face, however, belongs to Kraven the Hunter, making his first appearance in ASM since Issue #49. It's honestly about time he showed his face again, and even though he only appears in a few panels in this particular issue, we can rest assured that he'll be back in full force next time. Much like Ka-Zar, Kraven actually fits this environment perfectly, and he helps somewhat in mitigating the very un-Spidey elements, grounding the story with a recognisable villain.
ASM #103 is just a bit of a blah issue for me, a sentiment I'm fairly confident will be echoed in my review of the next one. It has some gorgeous artwork as always, and there are some nice comedic moments with Jameson, but it's a bit of a slog to get through, personally; Spidey just doesn't fit in this brand of adventure. Admittedly, this is just the kind of story I wouldn't be much interested in even if the starring hero did feel perfectly at home; it's just not my cup of tea, I suppose.
Rating: 2/5
Next time, Spidey and Kraven reunite, with Ka-Zar and Zabu stepping in to lend a hand (or paw)...
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