Amazing Spider-Man #534
The War at Home Part Three
Iron Man has gathered his registration supporters and congratulates them for the battle they just recently fought against Captain America and his anti-registration forces.[1] However, he says that their job isn’t over as they will be transporting the prisoners they captured across town from the temporary holding facility to a more permanent location. Suspecting that Captain America and his supports will attack the transport Iron Man has developed a detailed plan to face any opposition they might meet and dismisses everyone to prepare. Noticing that Peter Parker has been quiet the whole time, Iron Man asks him what’s wrong, Peter says there is a lot wrong, but he doesn’t see much point voicing his concerns anymore. When Tony tries to explain himself, Peter only puts on his Spider-Man mask and says all he needs to do is follow orders and leaves.
Later, Spider-Man joins the prison transport, riding atop one of the vehicles looking around for any sign of trouble. The whole time he sees that the public is divided on super-human registration as much as the superhero community and once again begins questioning if he made the right decision siding with Tony Stark. On the one hand, he is on the right side of the law for the first time in his career, he still wonders if what they are doing is morally right. When Spider-Man asks Iron Man why he hasn’t been sent ahead, Tony says he wants Peter close by in case he senses any trouble. This causes Peter to pause, as he’s certain he hasn’t told Iron Man about his spider-sense and makes a mental note to do a thorough investigation of his new Spider-Man armor later.[2]
That’s when Spider-Man’s spider-sense goes off, warning him that Captain America and his forces are going to launch their attack from the sewers below and warns Iron Man that an attack is coming. Bracing for an attack, Iron Man orders the transport diverted as protesters block their route. Spider-Man realizes they’re headed for trouble when he notices that they are turning on to Yancy Street.[3] Suddenly, members of the Yancy Street gang begin showering the passing convoy with junk. Suddenly, Spider-Man’s spider-sense warns him of missiles that are heading for the convoy and quickly acts to divert them to where they explode harmlessly. By the time he has come back, there is a full-on fight going on between pro- and anti-SHRA forces. That’s when Captain America confronts Spider-Man and asks Peter to reconsider the side that he is on, believing that Parker knows in his heart that he is on wrong side. Instead of taking Captain America’s hands, Spider-Man attack and the two finds themselves evenly matched, even though Spider-Man has superior agility and speed. Spider-Man thinks he gets the advantage when he webs Cap’s shield to the ground. Still, Captain America manages to land a blow that pinches a nerve. In response, the wall-crawler lashes out with his mechanical spider-arms, scratching Cap’s face and drawing blood. When there is a sudden explosion nearby, Captain America stops fighting Spider-Man to go see who he can help. That’s when Spider-Man notices some people trying to steal Cap’s shield and scares them away so he can recover it himself. He later leaves the shield webbed up where nobody but Captain America can retrieve it.
With the battle over, Spider-Man questioning his things even harder than before.
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, Secret Avengers (Captain America, Vision, Daredevil, Cable, Goliath, Hercules, Falcon, Cloak, Dagger, Luke Cage, Speed, Patriot), Pro-Registration Heroes (Iron Man, Ms. Marvel, Wonder Man, Invisible Woman, Thing, She-Hulk, Wasp, “Yellowjacket”)
Continuity Notes
This battle took place in Civil War #3. Some of the combatants aren’t who they appear to be they are:
The person who appears to be Daredevil is actually Danny Rand, aka Iron Fist, who took Daredevil’s place while his alter-ego, Matt Murdock, fought against the SHRA on the legal front, as seen in Civil War: Choosing Sides #1.
The person who appears to be Yellowjacket is actually a Skrull spy as we’ll learn in Secret Invasion #1. As explained in Mighty Avengers #15, the real Hank Pym was replaced prior to Beyond! #1.
This story posits that Peter has kept his spider-sense a secret from just about everyone but Aunt May and Mary Jane. I don’t exactly buy this since there are countless Spider-Man stories where he outright says he has a spider-sense to anyone around who might be hearing. Although I’ll be damned if I can recall any specific comic where Spider-Man says this around Iron Man. If anyone knows please drop me a line. At any rate, Spider-Man’s new costume was built by Tony Stark and given to Peter in Amazing Spider-Man #529.
Yancy Street is home to the Yancy Street Gang who has tormented the Fantastic Four’s Thing since Fantastic Four #15. The battle between pro and anti-SHRA forces depicted here is told from other perspectives in Captain America (vol. 5) #23, Civil War #3, Civil War: Front Line #6, New Avengers #24,
Civil War Continuity
The events of this story intersect with the main Civil War limited series and its various spin-off and tie-in issues. They are:
The flashback on pages 1 & 2 happen during the battle between pro and anti SHRA forces that occurs between pages 7 and 16 of Civil War #3.
The prep for the prisoner transport is expanded upon in greater detail in Iron Man (vol. 4) #13.
While the battle on Yancy Street is expanded upon in Fantastic Four #534, and Civil War: Choosing Sides #2 (2nd story)
