Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 27

The storied Spider-Man run by fan favorite creative team Tom DeFalco & Ron Frenz run concludes!

Spider-Man will need some amazing friends to survive the stories in his latest Marvel Masterworks! A bigger, badder super-villain mercenary team--the Sinister Syndicate--has formed and it’s an action extravaganza as Spidey fights five of his greatest enemies all at once. Then, the era-defining saga of the Hobgoblin continues with Flash Thompson on the run and an enigmatic figure lurking in the shadows who offers clues to the burning mystery of who really is the Hobgoblin. Next, a war for control of New York City’s underworld erupts into the streets. Spidey is joined by Silver Sable, Daredevil, Black, Cat, Falcon and the Punisher to combat the chaos and the identity of the Rose is revealed. Also featuring an early appearance of X-Factor and the future-Iron Man of 2020!

COLLECTING: THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1963) #279-288 & ANNUAL (1964) #20 and material from MARVEL TALES (1966) #198.

Tom DeFalco’s earliest comic-book scripts were for Archie and DC; he soon moved to Marvel, where he wrote Avengers, Machine Man and other titles, also launching Dazzler, a hit series of the early ’80s. In addition to writing long and well-received runs on Amazing Spider-Man and Thor, DeFalco edited many titles, eventually becoming editor in chief. During the 1980s, he headed the creative team that provided fictional biographies for G.I. Joe members, originally included with Hasbro’s toys and later used as the basis for multiple storylines on the animated series. Perhaps his best-known work is multi-title character Spider-Girl, whom he introduced in 1998. DeFalco has authored multiple books, including Ultimate Guides for Avengers, Fantastic Four, Hulk and Spider-Man.

Few can match Ron Frenz’s record of substantial stints on two of comicdom’s most influential and revered characters, Spider-Man and Superman, both of whom he provided with controversial new looks. Frenz succeeded John Romita Jr. on Amazing Spider-Man, and his artwork was favorably compared to Steve Ditko’s original web-slinger. With Roger Stern, he introduced the Hobgoblin, covering the mysterious villain’s debut and revealing his identity more than a decade later in Hobgoblin Lives. With writer Tom DeFalco on Thor, Frenz debuted a new look and identity for Marvel’s Thunder God, eventually branching into Thunderstrike. Later, Frenz and DeFalco launched the MC2 Universe, home of Spider-Girl, the only Marvel heroine to reach one hundred consecutive issues.