Superior Spider-Man #4

Name: Superior Spider-Man #4
Brand: Marvel
Availability: InStock

Apr 2013 · Marvel · 3.99 USD

📊 ~95,892 copies sold its debut month

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“The Aggressive Approach”

★ 1st appearance — Anna Maria Marconi

About this Issue

Superior Spider-Man #4 is a structurally pivotal installment in Dan Slott's landmark run because it is where Otto Octavius's willingness to cross Peter Parker's moral lines becomes undeniable: facing the mass-murderer Massacre, Otto resolves to kill him rather than repeat Peter's mistake of showing mercy — a decision that ripples through the entire series and fuels the Avengers' later intervention. The issue also plants the first seed of the Goblin Nation, as a disguised Green Goblin quietly recruits the remnants of Vulture's criminal network in the final pages, quietly beginning the long-form antagonist thread that would define the series' endgame. Simultaneously, it records the first appearance of Dr. Don Lamaze, a supporting character whose rivalry with Otto-as-Peter at Empire State University sharpens the book's ongoing tension between Otto's outsized ego and the ordinary academic life he has inherited. Together these threads illustrate how Slott was layering villain plots, personal character development, and systemic world-building across a single issue, something readers and critics pointed to as evidence of the series' unusual narrative density.

In "The Aggressive Approach," Otto Octavius—now inhabiting Peter Parker’s body as the Superior Spider-Man—takes an unexpected turn by re-enrolling in college to finish the doctorate Peter never completed. Meanwhile, the escaped Massacre, now a relentless killer, strikes again at Ravencroft, leaving a trail of violence that pushes Spider-Man to the edge of his moral code. Written by Dan Slott and illustrated by Giuseppe Camuncoli with inks by John Dell, this 2013 issue blends academic ambition with escalating dread, all under a cover by Camuncoli and Dell.

writer Dan Slott · artist Giuseppe Camuncoli · inker John Dell · colorist Edgar Delgado · letterer VC's Chris Eliopoulos · cover Giuseppe Camuncoli, John Dell

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CGC 9.0 · 3 in census $20

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History

The issue was produced as the fourth chapter of the opening 'My Own Worst Enemy' arc, launched as part of Marvel's 2012–2013 Marvel NOW! publishing initiative that repositioned and relaunched several flagship titles. Dan Slott — who had been writing Amazing Spider-Man solo since 2010 and engineered the mind-swap at the climax of Amazing Spider-Man #700 — continued as sole writer, with Giuseppe Camuncoli, one of the series' rotating pencilers alongside Ryan Stegman and Humberto Ramos, handling interior art, inked by John Dell and colored by Edgar Delgado. The book was edited by Ellie Pyle and Stephen Wacker under Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso.

Trivia · 10 facts

Title: 'The Aggressive Approach' (Marvel Database) / listed as 'Collateral Damage' on Marvel.com — sources disagree on the exact story title.
Released February 20, 2013; cover-dated April 2013; part of the 'My Own Worst Enemy' story arc (issues #1–5).
Written by Dan Slott; pencils by Giuseppe Camuncoli; inks by John Dell; colors by Edgar Delgado; letters by Chris Eliopoulos; edited by Ellie Pyle and Stephen Wacker.
First appearance of Dr. Don Lamaze, an ESU academic whose professional antagonism toward Otto-as-Peter Parker becomes a recurring subplot.
Cameo appearance of Anna Maria Marconi, who would grow into one of the series' most significant supporting characters and Otto's romantic interest.
Death of Dr. Ashley Kafka: the long-standing Ravencroft psychiatrist is killed by Massacre during his escape, marking a significant loss from Spider-Man's supporting cast.
Otto deploys a city-wide spider-bot surveillance network — an early expression of the Superior Spider-Man's hyper-efficient, surveilled approach to crime-fighting that distinguishes him from Peter Parker.
The Green Goblin (identity unrevealed in this issue) makes an early appearance recruiting Vulture's abandoned gang members, quietly initiating the Goblin Nation subplot that builds to the series' climax.
Otto re-enrolls at Empire State University under Peter Parker's name to complete a doctorate, establishing the academic thread central to his identity arc.
Collected in the trade paperback Superior Spider-Man Vol. 1: My Own Worst Enemy (ISBN 0785167048), which gathers issues #1–5.