Classics #1 - The Amazing Spider-Man #33

The number one issue on my list of "The Top 10 Spider-Man comics by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko" should come as no surprise to anyone who's familiar with their work. It's not only the best issue by that team - it's also one of the all-time greatest comic books.

"The Final Chapter" is one of those amazing issues where ever element works perfectly. It's the wrap-up to a multi-issue story that revolved around the villain known as The Master Planner, who had stolen a vital serum needed to save Aunt May, who is in the hospital, her life hanging by a thread.

Last issue Spidey had his big fight with the bad guy, whose identity was revealed (I won't spoil it for you here, because that character doesn't appear in this issue). Their fight was in the bad guy's underwater lair, and the main support was smashed in the fight, sending tons of machinery crashing down and trapping our hero.

As water leaks into the room, he can see the serum just out of reach, and he faces not only death, but the possibility that he'll fail to save Aunt May, just as he failed to save his Uncle Ben.

The five-page sequence that starts this issue depicts the heroic resolve of the hero in a pure, inspiring sequence that could only be depicted in an illustrated format. Only in a comic could there be room for the slow build, the dialogue, the pacing required to make this scene so effective.

Ditko's plot and art are at their zenith, with detail and emotion spilling off the page. You can feel Spider-Man's resolve, the strain he's under, and the monumental effort of lifting the machinery.

But the sequence wouldn't work without Lee's script. His dialogue and captions amplify Spider-Man's struggle to lift that impossible weight, to find a way to succeed when there seems no way out.

Without a doubt, it's one of the most memorable sequences in comic book history, and it cemented Spider-Man as a hero with the character to tackle any challenge.

And that isn't even the end of the story - Spidey still has to escape the flood, fight a small army of bad guys, help devise a cure for Aunt May and deliver it in time, all in addition to helping the police, getting some photos of the arrest for the Daily Bugle, and talking Jameson into a fair price for his photos.

Together, Stan Lee and Steve Ditko produced many amazing stories - lots of fantasy and science fiction shorts, and a couple of years of Dr. Strange adventures (among others) - but their mark on history was made in The Amazing Spider-Man, and this issue was the best of the bunch.

And brother, that's saying something.

Grade: A+