Amazing Spider-Man Ends of the Earth: Doctor Octopus & Dan Slott

For those Marvel fans that have been following all the major happenings at Marvel and are into the next big thing at Marvel I want to point out that the Amazing Spider Man series is very good and has a major story arc coming involving the Sinister Six some of the toughest villains Spider Man ever fought and Spider Man’s old foe Doctor Octopus (Dr. Otto Gunther Octavius).  His first appearance was in The Amazing Spider-Man #3 (July 1963). Doctor Octopus was created by the great Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. A highly intelligent mad scientist, Doctor Octopus is one of Spider-Man’s greatest foes. He is typically portrayed as a stocky, myopic man who utilizes four powerful, mechanical appendages, and is obsessed with proving his own genius and destroying Spider-Man. In the first story Dr. Octopus’ last name was spelled “Octavious.” All stories since have spelled it Octavius. Spider-Man has also nicknamed Octopus as Doc Ock.

During the Dark Reign storyline, Doctor Octopus learns that due to injuries suffered from his many battles, his body is failing, giving him only months to live. He has now modified himself to be mentally connected to his own army of miniature ‘octobots’, and has added four additional appendages to his harness. He used the octobots to take control of all of the technology in New York City and planned to turn it into a paradise under his control, though he subconsciously also targeted Spider-Man, and disrupted the wedding plans of  Aunt May. Spider-Man and the Human Torch eventually tracked down his base, save the captive J. Jonah Jameson Sr. (May’s fiancee), Carlie Cooper, and Norah Winters, and finally destroyed Doctor Octopus’ hold over the city. Doctor Octopus is then able to escape (still holding power over his octobots) and vows a “terrible revenge”.

In Dan Slott and Stefano Caselli’s “Ends of the Earth” arc, he and the Sinister Six have an explosive endgame in store for the world. Only the Avengers and Spider-Man can stop them. With the 50th anniversary of Spider Man this series reports to be something very special. I will share excerpts from the interview with Dan Slott by CBR on the web.

Slott: For me, the biggest motivation of the 50th was that I could see it coming. With the twice monthly book, you end up working on three or four arcs at once because everyone has to keep working. It can be a grind. Knowing the 50th was coming was the carrot. It was my reward. I kept myself going through a couple of all-nighters by saying, “You can do this, you can do this. The 50th is coming!” It’s an honor, and it’s something I take very seriously. We’ve got a lot of great plans, and we’re building to a lot of things because these moments should be special. It’s 50 years of Spider-Man! But I can’t spoil too much.

CBR: The one thing we do know is coming up is “Ends of the Earth” — Doc Ock’s big return with the Sinister Six that we’ve been waiting for for quite a while now. Dan, why was now the time for those chickens to come home to roost in the wake of “Spider-Island”?

Slott: You’re always building to something bigger and bigger, and when you look at the journey Spider-Man has taken, especially in our opening arcs, you see how all the pieces of our status quo have fallen into pace. The Sinister Six have been out there planning something. Spider-Man has this job at Horizon, and on top of that he also has this new mission. He’s given himself this almost untenable goal, like the War on Drugs or the War on Terror. He had decided that whenever he’s around, on his watch, no one dies. And that’s because of the death of Marla Jameson. Everything grows out of those big moments and beats and will keep building. You’re going to see a major shift during “Ends of the Earth” as a lot of those elements come to a head, all in a big, globe-trotting, world-spanning adventure!

CBR:Obviously, with “Spider-Island” we had a core story in “Amazing” that was supported by a number of minis and one-shots. With “Ends of the Earth,” we know there are six issues of main story, but will there be any support books with the rest of the Spider-Man cast?

Slott: We’re going to do a one-shot special. This story has ramifications for all of planet earth, and in the one-shot, you’ll see superheroes from across the planet dealing with this problem. There are characters here that might not have been highlighted for a while from different countries and fan favorites it’ll be fun to touch base with. And in “Ends of the Earth,” you’ll see a lot of fun stuff with the supporting characters, particularly the Horizon cast, during the course of the six issues of “Amazing.” But for the most part, this is like a movie. “Ends of the Earth” is a Spider-Man blockbuster focused on action between Spider-Man, the members of the Sinister Six and Doc Ock. They’re your stars.

CBR: Many people on the boards were playing detective about “Ends of the Earth,” with NickFury90 pointing out that we’re looking at a new costume coming up in issue #683. What lies ahead on that front?

Slott: Stefano Caselli designed a great suit, and you’re going to see why Spidey needs it in “Ends of the Earth” and what it can do. It is something we’ve been building to, and you’ll see Humberto Ramos do his take on it too. It’s great, but we’re not sharing it yet. We’re hiding it!
DISCLAIMER:  Comicstalk.com is protected from liability under “safe harbor” provisions and will disable information that knowingly commits plagiarism, piracy, trademark or copyright infringement. End of excerpts of interview.

In the modern age of comic book stories this looks like something to check out. A dieing man’s revenge and the persistence of possibly Marvel’s greatest hero to save the day Spider Man to celebrate his 50th birthday. The art work looks great and the story has real possibilities of being one of the best Spider-Man story’s of all time. That is what is happening this March in Amazing Spider Man.  Be there Marvel and Spider Man reader. We will be there also commenting on the ‘Ends of the Earth’. Stay tuned comic faithful for more. 🙂 Walt

SEE THE SERIES PREVIEW HERE