Issue(s): Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #98
Cover Date: Jan 85
Title: "True confessions!"
Credits:
Al Milgrom - Writer
Herb Trimpe - Penciler
Jim Mooney - Inker
Danny Fingeroth - Editor

Review/plot:
In the spirit of the Peter Parker series' original remit to be more focused on the downtime stuff, this is basically an all-talk issue (there are a few "vs. thugs" battles to provide a little action) as Spider-Man and the Black Cat try to work out some issues in their relationship.

The Black Cat comes away feeling like everything's settled, but Spidey's still having doubts.

I really like that Milgrom pretty much devoted this entire issue to character development. It doesn't necessarily have the greatest dialogue, but it's done well enough.

Meanwhile, we retroactively get an origin for the Answer. Addressing a group of scientists charged with created a new super-powered agent, the Kingpin says:

I know that the Answer was granted his power by technology developed by the late Harlan Stillwell, just as I know that in a subsequent experiment we used that technology to grant the Black Cat her powers.

It's also said, later, by the Black Cat, that the process didn't just give her bad luck powers, but also enhanced her strength, speed, and agility, which i wasn't aware of.

One of the scientists, who has been studying readings of Cloak's powers from the recent battle at the Kingpin's building, winds up turning himself into a super-character. He'll wind up being something of a joke, but i enjoyed his origin story here. He's a mild mannered scientist trying to impress his boss and doing his best to study Cloak's strange energy source, and he winds up getting sucked into an extra-dimensional area and picking up a weird variation of Cloak's powers.

Symbiote on the loose:

It's hard to look at that panel without thinking of this.

Quality Rating: B-

Historical Significance Rating: 2 - first Spot

Chronological Placement Considerations: N/A

References:

• The scientist who becomes Spot observes that the Kingpin is somewhat distracted, in part due to his wife's condition and in part due to the "recent problems with Micah Synn". The Synn issue was resolved in Daredevil #214, published concurrently with this issue (the footnote just directs us to "current issues of Daredevil").
  
• While lecturing the Black Cat, Spider-Man recounts his origin story from Amazing Fantasy #15.
  
• While Betty Brant is on a "just friends" date with Flash Thompson, she thanks him for seeing her safely home "through the freak blizzard we had". That happened in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #96, but there are also footnotes for Thor #350 and Avengers #249.
  
• While Spidey and the Cat are arguing, Felicia brings up the fact that Spidey swung past her and ignored her after telling her it was too dangerous to go looking for Dagger alone. That was in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #95, and in this issue Peter speculates (correctly) that it was actually his symbiote costume taking him out for a spin while he was sleeping.

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

When the Spot first appeared, his visual design and powers seemed to be the sort of thing that Steve Ditko would have designed.

The title of this issue seems ironic, given that the Black Cat's confession is weirdly slanted against her and makes her look as bad as possible. She wanted power because her lack of power allowed Hobgoblin to escape and Mister Hyde to nearly kill her boyfriend! She never intended to honour the deal and planned to hand over her benefactor to the police. She didn't know she was dealing with the Kingpin and was horrified when she found out! Why is she saying that she deliberately struck a deal with him? It's like she was possessed by somebody who wanted to justify Spider-man dumping her in a couple of issues so she could be written out...