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| Spider-Man/Black Cat: Evil That Men Do Marvel Premiere HC (Spider-Man Graphic Novels (Marvel Hardcover)) | 
| Authors: Kevin Smith, Terry Dodson
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Category: Book
List Price: $19.99
Buy New: $4.18
You Save: $15.81 (79%)
New (13) Collectible (1) from $4.18
Avg. Customer Rating:  11 reviews
Sales Rank: 616577
Media: Hardcover
Reading Level: Young Adult
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 176
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 10.4 x 6.9 x 0.6
ISBN: 078511095X
Dewey Decimal Number: 741
EAN: 9780785110958
ASIN: 078511095X
Publication Date: May 31, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: New; Excellent condition! Clean crisp tight copy, no marks,could have some minor shelf wear. Email Notification, Satisfaction Guaranteed,Direct from our warehouse.
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 1-5 of 11 | | NEXT » |
An unscheduled turn January 16, 2008
13 out of 13 found this review helpful
The long delays that often dog Kevin Smith's comic-book scripts can sometimes have devastating results. In the case of "The Evil That Men Do," a tale pairing Spider-Man with ex-flame Felicia Hardy (the Black Cat), the long gap between issues caused fan interest to wane -- and created a Jekyll and Hyde dichotomy between the first half of the miniseries and the last.
Set in a period when Peter Parker was separated from his wife, Mary Jane, the reintroduction of the Black Cat was boiling with potential. While Mary Jane has proven time and again to be Peter's soulmate, there's no denying the chemistry when Spider-Man romps over the rooftops with Felicia. (Their relationship back in the day was more sexual than romantic, after all, and Felicia fled the scene when Peter wanted to get more serious.) Now regretting her hasty flight, Felicia returns to New York City in search of a missing friend. She of course runs into Peter, and their flirty interactions just bubble with possibilities. "No one's ever tried to French me through the mask before," he tells her, after a life-saving clench. The first half of the six-issue mini just trills with the stuff, and fans were left wondering if Mary Jane was going to return after all, or if this daring beauty was poised to take her place.
Then Smith took his long, unscheduled hiatus from the book, and when he came back, he was in a much darker frame of mind. (No wonder, he spent the time off finishing "Jersey Girl," and that would ruin anyone's good mood.) Playtime was over for those crazy kids on the rooftops; now, Smith wanted to deal with issues such as rape and incest. Credit where due, he deals with difficult topics well, with sensitivity and tact. The story is, no denying it, powerful.
But damn, Kevin, where was your turn signal? The sudden shift in tone is jarring, to say the least. It feels less like a delay, more like a different writer stepped in to finish the script. (Of course, by the time Smith submitted his final pages, Peter's separation from his wife was over, and his flirty fling with Felicia was no longer appropriate.)
The book is gorgeously illustrated by Terry Dodson, who draws with a focus on Felicia that leaves you no doubts he was bottle-fed as a child. Still, for all her eye-popping glory, the pages jump with color and action -- although the book takes on a suitably darker cast as the story shifts into its less light-hearted mode.
by Tom Knapp, Rambles.(net) editor
 A Must for Black Cat Fans, Despite the After-School Special Feel August 1, 2007
This book starts off as a typical super-heroes vs. drug pushers book (done to death in the 80's...), and ends up as an after-school special on sexual abuse, complete with characters quoting statistics ("...some studies show that 1 in 4 women..."). There are several reviews here that question whether the miniseries was ever finished. For the record, the miniseries was completed--this trade paperback includes all 6 issues of the miniseries. Without trivializing the very real issues at hand, I have to say that Kevin Smith's dialogue in the final two issues comes off as hokey rather than heavy.
Why recommend this book, then? Well, the first four parts of the series could very well be the best Black Cat/Spider-Man team-up ever. Smith has a great handle on the dynamics of their relationship, and it really makes you wish that they'll hook up again in the future (once Marvel kills off that whiny model Mary Jane...).
 A powerful and appropriately titled comic gem December 8, 2006
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
So, I just got finished reading Evil That Men Do. Coming into the mini, I was sort of unsure of whether I'd enjoy it much; while it was written by Kevin Smith - writer of the fantastic Daredevil and Green Arrow relaunches - at the same time, it seemed to recieve a lot of jeering from the fans. However, this jeering seemed to stem mostly from the lateness of the last 3 issues of the series, and since I was reading this in TPB, I really couldn't complain about that.
With all that in mind, I began reading. The first thing that struck me about the book is just how wonderful a spotlight it was for Black Cat. As the title suggests, this is Spider-Man AND the Black Cat. And it's all done very well. The characterization and banter between the characters is excellent. It plainly reminded me why I've quickly become a bit of a fan of Black Cat, and what a solid supporting character she can be to Spider-Man.
Now that's the first half of the book. The second half - while still focusing very much on Black Cat - takes a very different angle. Namely rape and sexual abuse. This is dark stuff. This is disturbing stuff. The kind of subject matter that is almost always uncomfortable to read. At the same time, it's a subject matter that should be read. People should understand what it's like to be raped. Both as an act of prevention against committing it, and as a compassion for the people who have suffered it. Smith details that perfectly. He shows exactly what it does to people. Shows just how truly horrible it is. And that, while uncomfortable, is ultimately powerful. Very powerful.
With that said, I would be remiss to mention the art. It's fantastic. I've always been a fan of the Dodson's, and this - next to their current Wonder Woman run - may be the best art they've ever turned out. While I generally consider their style to be a rather light one, it actually ends up fitting the darkness of the story very well, making the whole book all the more captivating to read.
While it may very well be too uncomfortable for me to read again, I must say, the book certainly left a great impact on me, and I'm certainly glad I spent my $13 bucks, and 2 hours to read it. It's one of the better Spider-Man stories I've read, and one of the more powerful comics in general I've read. If you can forgive Smith for his three years of lateness, Evil That Men Do is certainly a book you should pick up.
True fan of the Black Cat November 4, 2006
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I love just about any story with the Black Cat and Spider-Man and this one was good. It gave a human feeling to her character of the person who is still in love with Spidey. The villians weren't the best but a female Scorpion was a plus. I recomend this book as part of the Spider-Man story that will probably be seen again in his comics.
Great Art but a strange mix of superheroes and super real problems July 13, 2006
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I think the art of this book is great.
I love Dodson works (he's as good as Adam Hughes), so I bought this after the MK Spider-Man hardcover and I'm not disappointed at all.
The story is a strange mixture o superheroes and super real problems (some ideas on the superheroes or supervillains side seem to be used only to talk about the real problems). So I'd say: maybe it's not what you would expect from a Spider-man / Black Cat tale, but it's the kind of approach you'd expect from Kevin Smith. If you love him, you'll love this book.
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