Expert: Grant Hudson - 9/13/2009

Question
Hi, there. I'm currently thinking about purchasing some Spider-Man comics, and am not sure where to start exactly. I've always been a fan of the character and I love the movies, but I'm not really a comic reader. I'm just wondering where I should start. I saw on Amazon, the Marvel Masterworks series that compiles the first ten issues, and I was leaning towards doing that. I didn't know if that was the way to start, or if I should purchase an omnibus based on famous story arcs. After looking up the Spider-Man Wikipedia page, I was quite confused with all the arcs, cross-overs, limited series, reboots and so forth, so any direction would be appreciated.

It is also important to note that I am not concerned with being a collector or finding comics that are worth something. I would prefer collections over individual issues, anyways.

Thanks for any help that you can give.

Answer
Your best bet is to acquire the Marvel Masterworks series you mention, detailing the first few issues of the character. This will give you the "core" or essence of Spiderman, the elements which every writer since has been trying to recapture. Once you have grasped those, you'll develop your own instinct for which story arcs, crossovers, reboots, etc, are the most interesting.

Hope this helps.

Grant