Issue(s): Sleepwalker #5, Sleepwalker #6
Cover Date: Oct-Nov 91
Title: "Web of Confusion part one" / "Web of Confusion part two"
Credits:
Bob Budiansky - Writer
Bret Blevins - Penciler
Michael Bair / Bret Blevins - Inker
Kevin Kobasic - Assistant Editor
Don Daley - Editor

Review/plot:
Spider-Man's sales boosting guest appearance for new titles is a little bit late, perhaps due to the art fill-in last issue.

On a tip from Ben Urich, Spider-Man is checking out a warehouse occupied by a new crime lord named, er, Crimewave (sadly, no relation to the Crime-Wave that Daredevil encountered circa Daredevil #59). But while he's there, he's approached by Sleepwalker.

Spider-Man has encountered a lot of weirdos in his day, so i don't have a problem with him acting so casually. But you'd think by now he'd learn how to avoid a Misunderstanding Fight.

Sleepwalker notes Spider-Man's webs' similarity to his ancient enemy Cobweb, and now we've got a full blown fight on our hands.

Spider-Man is at least listening enough that he hears Sleepwalker talking about Spider-Man like he's a villain (sometimes in Misunderstanding Fights the heroes are just oblivious to this kind of talk), and he convinces Sleepwalker that he's a good guy, and that it's the guy driving away in the limousine that is the criminal. At this point Sleepwalker has Spider-Man all wrapped up, though. So Sleepwalker goes after Crimewave on his own. Spider-Man throws a spider-tracer, trying to hit Crimewave's car, but hits Sleepwalker instead. And Crimewave knocks Sleepwalker down with a grenade.

Unsure of what to think, Sleepwalker heads home and leaves his human host, Rick Sheridan, a note.

As i mentioned last issue, this is my favorite bit about Sleepwalker; the idea that the hero can't communicate directly with his alter-ego. It potentially falls apart the more you think about it: last issue we saw the two communicating via the answering machine, which would allow for more detailed messages. And if Sleepwalker can write in English, why not write a full note explaining what happened instead of taking the time to draw a sketch of Spidey and then simply writing "Good? Evil?". But we can wave that away: Sleepwalker may not yet have learned how to record a message on the answering machine (he can only press Play), and his English vocabulary may not be very good yet.

In this case it is a rather simple question anyway, but Rick is confused enough by it that he doesn't respond at first. But that evening, Spider-Man follows his spider-tracer and learns that it was swallowed by Rick's dog Rambo.

Spider-Man asks if Rick knows anything about Crimewave, but he doesn't, and Spider-Man leaves. But that night Rick circles "Good" before going to sleep. And it turns out that Spider-Man suspected that something was up (although he was still expecting a connection to Crimewave), and he's been lurking outside Rick's apartment. So he sees when Sleepwalker comes out. When Spider-Man sees Sleepwalker, he leaves and tells Sleepwalker to stay away. But Sleepwalker wants to make amends for his actions the previous night, so he follows.

Spider-Man comes across Crimewave's gang robbing a party boat that was holding a charity event. But when Spidey and Sleepwalker land on the boat, Crimewave launches a rocket at it from another boat nearby. The explosion knocks both Sleepwalker and Spider-Man out, and Spidey is captured by Crimewave. Crimewave's top lieutenant is not pleased to hear that Crimewave would have launched the rocket even if she was still on it.

Crimewave has called a meeting of all the local crime bosses, to impress them with the money he stole (pretty lame!). The Kingpin is also invited, and he says that the charity event was actually something that the Kingpin arranged, as part of his bid for legitimacy in the city. Crimewave might have actually known that; it seems that he's really just trying to embarrass the Kingpin. The fact that he's also captured Spider-Man is also used to embarrass him.

I have to say that Crimewave is lucky that he happened to capture Spider-Man. Because i have to imagine if he had called the Kingpin to his little meeting having only robbed from the Kingpin's charity event, he would have become very dead very quickly. The fact that he's captured Spider-Man perhaps gives him a little more leverage in front of the other mob chiefs. But that was just a lucky break for Crimewave, and he still comes across looking really dumb and unsophisticated. Look i stole some money!

The Kingpin still seems weirdly impotent in this story.

But he does win out. Crimewave's disgruntled lieutenant sees Sleepwalker climbing out of the water, but the Kingpin stops her from killing him and winds up hiring her into his organization (we don't learn this until the end). So Sleepwalker is able to rescue Spider-Man and set a little trap for Crimewave.

It's actually too bad that the real Spider-Man shows up after that, because it would do wonders for his rep amongst the criminal element if they thought he was a monster. But of course then we couldn't have Spider-Man Teaming-Up alongside a Sleepwalker wearing his costume.

Crimewave gets away, and hilarity ensues when Sleepwalker is giving Spider-Man a lift back across the river when Rick wakes up and Sleepwalker disappears. Spider-Man swims to shore and then heads back to Rick's apartment and demands that he go to sleep right now to get Sleepwalker back.

It takes hours for Rick to fall asleep.

Spider-Man and Sleepwalker then head to a fashion show that Crimewave is... doing something at, and catch him.

"A few nights later", Sleepwalker is returning to Rick's apartment when he sees Rick disappear.

There are some cute moments between Spider-Man and Sleepwalker, and the switcharoo with Sleepy in Spidey's costume is funny. But having a villain called Crimewave, a supposed master criminal who is challenging the Kingpin while engaging criminal activities worthy of the Penguin in a Hostess Fruit Pie ad? That's ridiculous. And Spider-Man hanging outside of Rick's apartment for hours while waiting for Rick to fall asleep is funny, but it's funny in a way that belongs in What The--? or something, not a real book.

Still, Brett Blevins draws a nice Spidey and there are fun moments here.

Quality Rating: C

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: Next issue is an Infinity Gauntlet crossover for Sleepwalker. I've pushed these issues forward in publication time to get them in front of Infinity Gauntlet. Spider-Man's appearance is context free. Rick's disappearance, "a few days later" than the rest of the issue, is part of the disappearance of half of the universe caused by Thanos, and takes place during the beginning of Infinity Gauntlet. Next issue opens the day after the disappearance.

References:

• We learned about Cobweb in Sleepwalker #3.

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A