Really awesome art alongside the worst chronologically collected stories and issues I've ever seen done in comics. Certain stories (like "The Lost Years") spoil huge things in the future of this event, and it's unforgivable, frankly. Ben Reilly and Kaine are awesome. I really love both. But again, the collection is a mess.

The single most glorious and gratuitous example of what was wrong with comics in the 90s--writing a bad review of this is piling on, a bit like telling a sensitive cat with stomach issues that it has a smelly ass every time you see it. Still, it's got some horrifically fascinating elements, and the proverbial car wreck analogy is appropriate. It's a must-read if you want to get a sense of what the speculator boom, burgeoning days of the annual summer mega event, and move toward flash over substa...

The first John Romita Jr section was a good read. What comes after is choppy and disjointedly put together. Overall a bit confusing - like the preceding collection.I've finished reading the book now and I still had the same trouble with the editing. It's obvious some parts of the story are left out. Perhaps that will smooth out in the future collections. Mainly, aside from that quite well done J.R., Jr. bit at the beginning this material is a good example of the crappy side of Marvel's 90's comi...

I'm reading through all the Ben Reilly stuff I can in preparation for an article. And my expectations going in were awfully low - this is probably the most-maligned story of the 1990s, which is a pretty maligned decade in comics in general. This is around when I stopped reading Spider-Man the first time, due in part to the increased cost of following everything coming out. So all that said, why does this get such a high rating from me? Well, for one, the miniseries "Lost Years," contained in thi...

I wish to all things holy that DeMatteis could have just run this story for a couple of arcs and then retired but...here we are. The first issue's actually *really* good, so is every issue in here that DeMatteis spearheaded but everything else lacks continuity in art (at the end of one issue Ben's mask is almost ripped off his face by a villian and in the one that immediately follows it the mask is whole again,) and the writing is really one big plot hole that keeps getting deeper and oh no we'v...

It's a 2.5 for me.Some aspects of the story are stupid but aside from that I enjoyed it and the art is amazing

The Clone Saga is infamous for being not terribly good. I thought I would try to find out for myself, and checked this out. Likely, this puts things out of publication order, since early issues in this trade spoil a bunch of things that aren't otherwise revealed by the end of this volume. While they are presented in the order that they should have happened chronologically, they take away some of the suspense of the later issues. The quality is pretty spotty for these issues. The prelude issues a...

I remember when I learned about Ben Reilly (Scarlet Spider). I was watching the last two episodes of Spider-Man: The Animated Series where Ben Reilly made his first TV appearance. I learned that he was from another universe where he was the clone of Peter Parker, who later on bonded with the Carnage Symbiote after grieving over the loss of his aunt May. Since then, I wanted to learn more about the Scarlet Spider in the comics.Finally, I've decided to read about the Clone Saga as I live about Ben...

(Read to page 195)I don't usually not finish books but I cannot bring myself to keep reading. This book has cheesy plot lines, dialogue, mediocre art, and is just all around confusing.

Collects Amazing Spider-Man (1962) issue #394, Peter Parker, Spectacular Spider-Man (1976) issue #217, Spider-Man (1990) issues #51-53, Spider-Man Unlimited (1993) issue #7, Web of Spider-Man (1986) issues #117-119, Spider-Man: The Lost Years issues #1-3, and additional material showing Ben Reilly's return to New York.I was around 12-years-old when this story was originally released, and I loved it! Since then, Ben Reilly has always been a favorite Marvel character of mine. This is the first tim...

Ur-90s comics: fantastic art from some of the industry's best talents of the time, plenty of fights and twists, maybe not the most sensible or serious. So far, the Clone Saga has surprised me: Ben Reilly is an immediately interesting character and I can see why fans of the 90s found themselves captivated by this Spider-Man. It apparently doesn't turn out well, but this is an entertaining kick off.

So, if we are being objective and all, the 90s Spider-Man Clone Saga was not quite what we'd call good. Entertaining? Sure, if you were a kid then collecting every Marvel issue. It's even an interesting premise. And yeah, some of the art is quite good. But the crossover nature just doesn't read well as a graphic novel years later, and it infamously became the most overbloated dragging storyline in the history of the superhero genre. But damn if I'm not nostalgic when I see the Scarlet Spider swi...

This collection of '90's Spidey comics has an amazing plot and fabulous artwork. I'm looking forward to the later volumes.However, I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't mention the implied profanities, misuses of God's name, and rather freaky scenes throughout.So, even though it's old-school, it's much like the more modern comic book omnibuses I've read in recent years: quite the mixed bag.

I remember being an avid Marvel Comics card collector, and one of the cards I remember fondly was one with the Scarlet Spider. I'd never read the Clone Saga as a child, so I had no idea who or what the Scarlet Spider was, but I was definitely intrigued by him with his red suit and blue hoodie sweatshirt.So finally, I've read about Peter Parker's clone, and I must say I am fascinated by the premise. Here is a man, who is a non-man, with no true identity, except that of a fake. The torment and con...

Fascinatingly bad.I read this legendarily ill-conceived storyline when I was a teenager, but, like so many, never finished it as it dragged on for two-plus years over the course of over a hundred comics. Now Marvel is inexplicably collecting it in book form (it will probably take up to eight or nine fat volumes when done). Well, almost inexplicably. Marvel likely predicted that people like me would see it on a shelf and that morbid curiosity would lead them to see just how it holds up today.A lo...

Why in the world would they decide to put this in chronological order rather than published order? I've read enough about the story that nothing was really spoiled but the Lost Years storyline definitely assumes that you've already read the main storyline. Understanding some of the stuff actually required that you knew what was coming. So why would they publish it before you read the other stuff?That main problem aside, this is a somewhat enjoyable read. It's super 90s but that's to be expected....

I couldn't bring myself to finish this trip down memory lane. The first two miniseries collected in this book, about Ben Reilly's adventures, have fantastic artwork by John Romita Jr. But the rest of it is bad and boring. I especially disliked how they would splice a single page from various Spider-Man issues in to give you characters cameos in unrelated plotlines.

The sinister Jackal once created a clone of Peter, used to confuse and distract him in battle, way back around ASM #149 in the '70's. According to the story, the clone died accidentally, but the folks at Marvel thought it would be cool to retcon that death out of existence and bring the clone back in this volume as a conflicted version of Peter who thinks he's less than human. He takes the name Ben Reilly after his uncle and aunt's maiden name, and finding that he can't ignore the "false" memori...

Overall, a pretty enjoyable collection of stories. I'm familiar with the clone saga, but have never read it, so I'm glad to get started. It is an interesting choice to collect the stories in chronological order instead of in publication order. Doing so causes a huge problem - The Lost Years miniseries spoils massive twists that are revealed much later. Thankfully, I was already familiar with those twists, so nothing was ruined for me. If you are unfamiliar with the main beats of the clone story,...

A mixed bag of comics are contained in this collection. The "Lost Years" miniseries by JM DeMatteis and John Romita Jr. is very good, but then there are a few subpar issues to kick off the storyline in the present day (and published before the Lost Years), but then things pick up when Ben Reilly suits up as the scarlet Spider. Some of the storytelling is very "90's", but good fun.