The Avengers and Infinity Inc. (And More!)

 

Mr. Universe returns for his 12th appearance as STF's greatest villain, and this time he is super-charged enough that it will take two teams to beat him.  Fortunately, this issue is 100 pages, so there will still be plenty of room left for some fun back-up tales!

My goodness, are we really on the march towards STF #5000?

Here are some larger views of this issue's individual stories:

Spider-Man and Green Arrow in: "Dire Consequences!"

 

It was very cool to see behind the scenes footage of Spider-Man: Brand New Day featuring practical web swinging by Tom Holland and his stunt men.  It's cool to see that kind of filmmaking in this age of digital effects, and I can't wait to see how that scene looks in the finished film.

Spider-Man and Green Arrow previously met in STF #1364...

Spider-Man and Black Canary

 

This is another example of a cover that required a bunch of de-cluttering before I could add in any new elements. Here's a look at the behind the scenes progress: 

 

Justice League of America and Samurai Jack (And More!)

 

For this Anniversary Issue, I thought that I would present the kind of Saturday morning line-up that would have made my head spin.  With shows line these and some Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch, I would have been all set.  Here are some closer looks at the stories in this issue:

Spider-Man and Karate Kid

 

Avengers: Doomsday is about to begin filming, and I wonder what Spider-Man's role in it will be.  I am sure Marvel will want to include him, but his new status quo after No Way Home means that all of his ties to Earth's Mightiest Heroes are gone.  How will a loner like him fit in with the rest of the action?

Spider-Man and Darkman

 

When Sam Raimi was first announced as the Director of the first Spider-Man movie, I thought back on his comic book-inspired Darkman movie and knew that the wall crawler was in good hands.  How cool would it have been if Raimi could have brought audiences a big screen team up between the two heroes?

Spider-Man and Mr. A

This is another pairing that has been long overdue.  I never read too much of Mr. A, but I was intrigued by his rigid take on life and crime. It would have been interesting to see him confront the wall-crawler, especially if such a meeting was depicted by Steve Ditko.

 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Spider-Man

 

I mean, they all make New York City their home base of operations, it would only be a matter of time before they ran into each other.  Not that NYC is where this particular story takes place!

Spider-Man and The Challengers of the Unknown

 

The fourth Tom Holland led Spider-Man movie now a go according to the actor.  Rumors have swirled from the plot being tied in heavily to the two upcoming Avengers: Secret Wars films to a smaller, more street level adventure.  I think that I would prefer the latter.  I loved the status quo set up at the end of the last movie, and would like to see that explored a little before he gets mixed up with a big crazy universe-changing story again.

Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends and Static

 

I remember seeing that cool giant fire monster during the opening credits sequence of Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends.  Alas, he only appeared for a few moments in one episode, taken out easily by Firestar and guest star Sunfire - and he was certainly nowhere near as large as he was depicted during that credits cameo.  

Vigilante and The Amazing Spider-Man

 

You just know that if these two actually shared a universe, they would be bound to clash sooner or later.  Would Adrian Chase continue to hunt down the wall-crawler... or would he eventually fight by his side?

Super Friends and Spider-Man

 

Miles Morales has been seen traversing the multiverse into many realities, some quite familiar to long time comic fans.  It would be cool to see him wall crawl his way into the Saturday Morning Hanna-Barbera universe.  I'd love to see his reaction to these family-friendly heroes.

The Super Friends met the Peter Parker Spidey (and his Amazing Friends) in STF #1299...

Spider-Man and The Guardian

 

We've seen Peter Parker put his smarts to work for various companies over the years, so why not Cadmus Laboratories?  I think its a simple set up that could lead to all kinds of fun stories.

Wallace & Gromit and Spider-Man

 

I was very happy to see that Wallace & Gromit have a new movie coming out for Christmas this year - Vengeance Most Foul.  Even better, it will feature the return of their nemesis from The Wrong Trousers - Feathers McGraw.  I can't wait to watch it.

Brenda Starr and J. Jonah Jameson

 

Brenda Starr, Reporter was not the typical type of comic strip that I liked growing up - I was more into action heroes and humor strips.  Still, the illustration was by the great Ramona Fradon, so I found myself following the daily adventures.  Fradon recently passed away, but she left us decades upon decades of amazing artwork - she will always be remembered.

Spider-Man and The Ray

 

Spider-Man goes with just about anyone, and I like it when he meets other heroes close to his age.  I think he and Ray Terrill would get along for the most part - unless a situation like the one depicted above were to arise.

Spider-Man and Tintin

 

Spidey may not be open to switching photographers for obvious reasons - but there's no denying he could use some better marketing.  Tintin previously met Peter Parker when they were both members of The Newshounds in STF #1770...

Spider-Man Vs. Poison Ivy

 

Spidey has had experience fighting a villain that controls sand, but what about all plant life?  At least he has the full face mask to prevent her from giving him one of her hypno-kisses!  It would be a fun battle to see.

Spider-Man and The Flash in: "The Heinous Half-Dozen!"

 

I've paired Spider-Man together with Barry Allen a couple of times, first in STF #695 and then later in STF #4091, but I thought that it was time that the wall-crawler met the original speedster, Jay Garrick. Even with three on one odds, I don't know how much luck the villains will have here, let's hope they have an ace up their sleeve!

Vigilante and Spider-Man

 

This one was me just experimenting.  I've gotten a kick out of some of the covers I have seen that feature heroes against a solid black background, with only the highlights of their costumes coming through in stark contrast.  I thought I would try to emulate one of those covers here.