Another month, another classic. The John Romita cover to Amazing Spider-Man #135 is one of those iconic, often-imitated Spider-Man covers - Spidey leaping right at the reader with a spider emblem in the background and a montage of characters between the spider's legs. I would argue that the period between Amazing Spider-Man #135 and Amazing Spider-Man #149 truly was the high point for Spider-Man, as many of the character's most memorable stories and images, including this one, come from this two-year period.

The issue picks up where Amazing Spider-Man #134 left off - namely with Spider-Man, still weakened by the Tarantula's venomous stings, staring down the barrel of the Punisher's gun. Spider-Man tried to stop the Tarantula and his goons from hijacking a ferry whose passenger list includes Mary Jane Watson and Flash Thompson. However, the Tarantula kicked Spidey with his poisonous spikes and to make matters worse, the Punisher, who made his debut in Amazing Spider-Man #129, thinks Spider-Man is in league with the bad guys! "You fooled me once before with your 'Mister Innocent' act -- but this time, I caught you red-handed with your gangster cronies!" the Punisher says. "So say your prayers, wall-crawler -- this time you're going to die!" Spider-Man disarms the bloodthirsty vigilante, and the two fight. However, that gives the Tarantula and his henchmen the chance to escape. "Adios, amigos! Muchas gracias!" the Tarantula yells as he boards the waiting helicopter. Realizing his mistake, the Punisher leaves, too, although not before telling Spider-Man to meet him at midnight at the Museum in Fort Tryon. Faced with an angry mob of passengers, Spider-Man has no choice but to dive into the Hudson River. A few moments later, a passenger spots Peter Parker treading water near the boat. "I was shoved over during the assault," Peter tells Mary Jane, although Flash doesn't seem to buy that cover story. However, J. Jonah Jameson is happy about the developments, as he had reluctantly agreed to pay the Tarantula's $1 million ransom request on behalf of the city. Yes, Spider-Man saved Jonah $1 million - typical Parker luck.

Spider-Man keeps his rendezvous with the Punisher and the Punisher has prepared a slideshow on the background of Anton Miguel Rodriquez - the man now known as the Tarantula. Six years earlier, he had been a revolutionary fighting against the oppressive dictatorship of his South American homeland. "Criminal" was more like it, as Rodriquez specialized in robbery, kidnapping, assassination and sabotage. In fact, he was so brutal that he was kicked out of the revolutionary army. But the dictatorship's army embraced him and trained him to become his nation's Captain America. There, he fought against his former comrades in the revolution, until he was dismissed from the government army for murdering a prison guard who wouldn't let him torture a prisoner. After fleeing his homeland, he made his way to New York, where he's set up shop as a freelance criminal.

The Punisher also has tracked down information on the Tarantula's current hideout, so he and Spider-Man stage a sneak attack. The Punisher takes out Hidalgo and Juan, the Tarantula's henchmen, while Spider-Man and the Tarantula brawl out into the street and to Central Park (as an aside, it seem like most of Spidey's fights from this era end up in Central Park). This time, Spider-Man is able to avoid the drugged spikes on the Tarantula's boots and defeats the villain, giving him a lecture worthy of Captain America in the process: "You're a first-class creep - a traitor to your own friends," he says. "Men who were trying to free their people from a dictatorship - heroes whose boots you aren't fit to shine! You know something, 'Amigo,' it's bums like you who give revolution a bad name. Sick little criminals who don't give a hang about the cause they are fighting for - who only care about themselves and their own twisted egos." You tell 'em, Spidey! The Punisher makes his usual quiet exit, but he won't be away long - we see him again in Amazing Spider-Man #161. However, the Web-Slinger has even more deadly things than the Tarantula to worry about. While Peter is in the shower, his estranged roommate Harry Osborn rifles through Peter's dresser and finds his Spider-Man costume. Harry's descent into total madness is now complete. At the end of the issue, Harry goes to his father's old hide out - the lair of the Green Goblin - and walks through the secret sliding door. We all know what awaits him on the other side.

After two relatively lackluster issues with the Molten Man, this two-part Tarantula/Punisher story is a great way to set the table for next month's blockbuster. Writer Gerry Conway and artist Ross Andru have done a wonderful job of building up the storyline of Harry becoming the second Green Goblin, while also keeping page-turning stories in the forefront on a month-to-month basis. I always found the Tarantula to be more interesting than most run-of-the-mill villains because he has such an interesting back story: the revolutionary-turned-government agent who was too violent for either side to handle. As Spider-Man says, knowing that he turned on his comrades makes him that much more despicable. While I loved the Roger Stern/John Romita Jr. run on Amazing Spider-Man in the early 1980s, the one big mistake I thought they made was in killing off the Tarantula (in Amazing Spider-Man #236). He was too good a villain to lose. We next see him in Amazing Spider-Man #147 during the classic Jackal saga.

Next issue: It's one of the all-time classics of the Spider-Man mythos: "The Green Goblin Lives Again!" 'Nuff said!!

Reviewed by Bruce Buchanan.

Reprinted In:
Marvel Tales #112
Marvel Tales #211