2008 Preview: Spider-man: Brand new day

So, after One More Day, it only makes sense to have a Brand New Day storyarc. Here's what's happening in the Spidey-verse in 2008!


2008 PREVIEW: SPIDER-MAN: BRAND NEW DAY
Meet the new villains tormenting Spidey in ’08

By Kiel Phegley and Matt Powell

Posted December 20, 2007

Spider-Man has always boasted one of the best rogues galleries in comics featuring classic villains from the Green Goblin to Doctor Octopus and beyond. But come January, the creators behind the thrice-monthly Amazing Spider-Man stories known as “Brand New Day” aim to prove that fans ain’t seen nothin’ yet.

“Seeing this as a real ground zero for Spidey, it was a rare opportunity to introduce some new threats at a time when the spotlight was focused on them very brightly,” says Amazing editor Steve Wacker. And for a taste of the cruelty to come, co-writers Dan Slott, Zeb Wells, Bob Gale and Marc Guggenheim delve into the maniacs, murders and mob bosses that will test Spidey’s mettle in 2008.

MR. NEGATIVE
APPEARS IN: January’s Amazing Spider-Man #546
This monochromatic Chinatown mob boss takes it to Spider-Man through old school crime, says Slott. “Mr. Negative is on his way to being the crime boss of New York—not the fancy, shmancy ‘people running around in costumes’ boss, none of this Hood stuff. We’re talking drugs, prostitution, assassinations. Real crime.”

MENACE
APPEARS IN: February’s Amazing Spider-Man #549
The glider-riding maniac at the heart of the series may seem slightly familiar to fans. “There very much is an essence of Goblin-ocity about Menace, isn’t there?” laughs Slott. “It is a legacy. It is something he’s been tied to and something that always leads to anguish, pain and torment.”

JACKPOT
APPEARS IN: February’s Amazing Spider-Man #549
This near-invulnerable redheaded bombshell is a hero that sill creates trouble for Spidey. “Jackpot is very new at the game, and as a result she makes a lot of rookie mistakes,” promises Guggenheim. “She ends up making a mistake that has some pretty serious consequences.” Could this perhaps be Mary Jane post-“One More Day”? The best we can get from Guggenheim: “Hmm…”

FREAK
APPEARS IN: March’s Amazing Spider-Man #552
A drug addict who mutates with new and strange powers, Freak has ties to a certain Spider-Man mainstay. “Freak’s connection to Curt Connors [aka the Lizard] is accidental,” notes Gale. “They have the same things in common that any research scientist would have in common with a drug addict who hangs out in a soup kitchen!”

DEITY
APPEARS IN: April’s Amazing Spider-Man #556
An immortal and supernatural foe who blows into NYC along with a horrific blizzard, Deity is more a force of nature than a supervillain. “He can be heard referring to himself as ‘The One Who Walks the Black Road,’ ‘The Wayep of Kulkulkan’ and ‘The Death Dealer,’” says Wells. “I don’t know what that means, but people who see the Deity tend to agree with him.”

SCREWBALL
APPEARS IN: May’s Amazing Spider-Man #558
An acrobatic assailant, Screwball lives up to her name while fighting Spider-Man. “It’s the first time Spidey is going up against a villain who’s funnier than him. That is really frickin’ annoying!” says Slott.

PAPER DOLL
APPEARS IN: May’s Amazing Spider-Man #559
“Usually you’ll have supervillains who use their powers to make crimes or try to take over the world or take revenge,” says Slott. “Paper Doll is a supervillain who uses her power for a whole new obsession. Her particular brand of obsession will be very much fed by Peter Parker and a horrible choice he makes.”