Issue(s): Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #111
Cover Date: Feb 86
Title: "...And then the gods cried."
Credits:
Christopher Priest - Writer
Rich Buckler - Layouts
Many Hands - Finishes
Jim Shooter - Editor
Tom DeFalco - Executive Editor

Review/plot:
Possibly due to some revisions from Jim Shooter, who notoriously re-wrote a lot of Secret Wars II tie-ins, the hand off between Amazing Spider-Man #273 and this issue isn't all that clean. The Amazing issue ended with Puma back in Peter Parker's apartment and having summoned the Beyonder. But about half of this book jumps back to while Puma was still in Japan, introducing a Japanese sensei that Puma calls Master...

...and inserting another encounter with the Beyonder between the two shown in the Amazing book.

Also note the odd credits, with regular editor Jim Owsley/Christopher Priest actually writing this issue, Jim Shooter being listed as Editor, Tom DeFalco getting an explicit Executive Editor credit listed after Shooter's. And also the Many Hands on finishes, which indicates a rush job.

When we finally get back to where we left off in Amazing, things get really goofy really quick.

The net of it is that the Beyonder has decided that he wants to die, and he's going to let Puma kill him when, for a brief moment, he will be powerful enough to kill him.

However, Spider-Man interferes, and tells Puma that he's being manipulated, and in the end Puma loses his opportunity.

A weird driver for this story is, um, Ralph Macchio, whose wife was killed in a car accident involving members of the Cult of Cosmic Oneness, and for which Macchio blames the Beyonder.

I don't know if Macchio was really married at this point, but i wouldn't want anyone "killing" any of my loved ones in a comic book. It seems to be in really poor taste.

Anyway, Macchio tries to kill the Beyonder, but winds up killing Puma's sensei-turned-rockstar instead.

Puma puts the blame for this on the Beyonder, ensuring that the Puma will try to kill him.

Also in this book, we learn a little more about Joy Mercado, mainly that she's much hipper than Peter Parker.

The old traditional Japanese guy turning out to be wearing a walkman and listening to Duran Duran is a classic Jim Owsley thing, but it's a weird tone shift from the previous issue, and much of this book has a feel closer to the actual Secret Wars II series (albeit with better art, despite Many Hands on inks) than most other tie-ins. It's got the sort-of satirical but also pseudo-philosophical feel that makes the main Secret Wars II series annoying. It's also weird how Secret Wars II derails Puma. He was an intriguing, vaguely immoral corporate businessman/adventurer, but we learn with these issues that he's got this cosmic purpose to kill the Beyonder. And then not only does he fail to do so, but in the not so long run we'll learn that it really wasn't all that important. So is there really any purpose to the character anymore?

Quality Rating: C

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: Concurrent with and then continues directly from Amazing Spider-Man #273.

References:

• The Beyonder gives Puma some of his background, including the original Secret Wars, his infatuation with Dazzler from Secret Wars II #4, and Dr. Strange's attempt to help the Beyonder find oneness with the universe in Doctor Strange #74.
  
• Reflecting on some recent events - including Nate Lubenski's attack in Amazing Spider-Man #271, "Homer" Popchik's arrest for shooting street thugs in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #110, and his encounter with Dominic Fortune in Web of Spider-Man #10 - Peter thinks that all of Aunt May's friends are unlucky to have known him.
  
• Considering all the stress in his life, Peter says it's no wonder that he attacked J. Jonah Jameson in Web of Spider-Man #13.
  
• He's also worried that his landlord Mrs. Muggins is going to hit him with a bill for the fire and water damage from the fire in Web of Spider-Man #11 and Web of Spider-Man #12 (though even with the confused chronology of this issue, Peter should already have heard that Mrs. Muggins was doing exactly that in Amazing Spider-Man #273).
  
• Contemplating the prophecy of Puma, the Beyonder finds himself visited by Death, who he destroyed and recreated in Secret Wars II #6.

Crossover: Secret Wars II

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

One minor correction- the kids Popchik shot didn't die- we'll be seeing them in a couple of issues.

Thanks Michael.

Why didn't the Beyonder just resurrect Muramoto? How does he decide which people to bring back from the dead and which ones to leave dead? And what kind of omniscient being is he if he's so distracted by the Puma that he doesn't notice someone nearby who intends to shoot him?

Isn't the whole thing with the Beyonder that he's omnipotent but not omniscient? That is, he has the power to affect all things, but not the total knowledge that would enable him/it to see the consequences of cosmic-scale actions?

There's a line in this issue where the Beyonder says "I know what I WANT to know".

Hmmm, I could have sworn there was a reference or two to him actually being omniscient, but I'm not finding it on this site and I'm not about to dig through all my comics looking for one. So ok.

Still, he was in his 'helping people finding their roles in the universe' phase, and he's spent a few days with Muramoto, so it's hard to believe he wouldn't have "wanted to know" whether or not Muramoto's purpose was to die within a few days from a bullet aimed at the Beyonder. I'd think he could do that much. Or, failing that, bring Muramoto back to life.

I think the Beyonder can be omniscient if he wants. He just usually didn't want to be. I'll look for a reference next time I read through my SECRET WARS II Omnibus (yes, I actually bought one and enjoy it). But yes, I agree, the Beyonder definitely should have brought Muramoto back, just like he should have brought Nebula back from wherever he sent her to. He didn't always use his omnipotence like he should have.

I have the omnibus as well. It's in storage so I can't check, and I'm sure I didn't enjoy it as much as you, but I do have it.