Death is a common plot twist in superhero comics, and even A-Listers like Batman and Superman aren't immune to it. Spidey himself dealt with being dead for a couple weeks during "The Other" crossover several years ago. So why did the announcement of Superior Spider-Man garner such controversy? Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that Peter Parker wasn't just being killed off, but that his body was being stolen by one of his greatest villains. The ignominy of it all was too much to bear. Or maybe it was the fact that Dan Slott routinely emphasized that the status quo change was a permanent one. He took no small delight in his temporary "heel turn," even informing younger readers that yes, Peter Parker was dead and would never be coming backn any case, it was clear to long-term readers that Superior Spider-Man was something Slott had been building to for years, even before he had taken full control of Amazing Spider-Man. The seeds began in Amazing Spider-Man #600, where Slott revealed that a decrepit Otto Octavius had only a short time left to live and was struggling to leave his mark on the world using a series of mind-controlled drones. Peter's exposure to the mind-control device opened the door in his own mind for Otto to eventually take over. And 100 issues and several years later, that's what Otto did. He banished Peter to the rapidly dying body of Otto Octavius, claiming the fit, powerful body of Peter Parker for his ownThat could have been the start of a truly dark, depressing comic, with Spidey becoming an outright supervillain and terrorizing the world in ways Doctor Octopus never did. But the final key ingredient came at the climax of ASM #700. Peter knew that if he couldn't reclaim his body, the most he could do was bombard Otto with images of his life and the lessons about power and responsibility that shaped his career as Spider-Man. Otto may have won the day, but he emerged as changed psychologically as he was physicallySlott set up Superior Spider-Man not as another Dark Reign, with villains unfairly ruling the day, but as a long, complicated story of Otto Octavius' redemption. And the more that focus became apparent, the more the series seemed to assuage the naysayers' fears and win over devoted fans. The point wasn't to show that Otto was a better Spider-man than Peter, because for all his fancy gizmos and ruthless efficiency, he clearly wasn't. The point was to make a formerly unrepentant villain see the value of heroism and acknowledge that his old foe was truly the better manSuperior Spider-Man is a series that could have faltered for any number of reasons. Luckily, there were enough elements working in its favor from the beginning that it was able to justify its premise and quickly build momentum without getting too caught up in the memory of Peter Parker (more on that later). As mentioned, Slott established right off the bat that the series was really devoted to Otto's quest for redemption and the character arc that involved. He was able to turn this former villain into a complex, flawed, but ultimately well-meaning character. The book toed a narrow line in offering readers a darker Spider-Man book without besmirching Peter's name or fundamentally damaging the character. Otto committed some foul deeds that Peter is going to be stuck answering for in the months ahead, but he did the mantle proud in the end Slott was also able to make up for the loss of Peter's signature Spidey snark by exploring humor in other areas. Maybe Otto hasn't mastered the art of the wisecrack, but that in itself was often cause for amusement. There was humor in his humorlessness, and also humor in seeing various other characters react to Spider-Man's sudden personality shift. Whether it was Black Cat having her advances rebuffed with a punch to the face or Otto berating his new robo-assistant, Superior still managed to be a funny comic despite its overall darker tone. And Slott managed a balance between the old and new. We saw how Peter's relationships with his familiar supporting cast evolved, including Aunt May, Mary Jane, J. Jonah Jameson, and his colleagues at Horizon Labs. But Slott also emphasized newer characters, including Otto's new girlfriend, Anna Maria, and his old college nemesis now turned science professor. The key element is that all of this felt organic, building directly from work Slott had done on Amazing. Otto managed to ruin any chance Peter had left of rekindling his romance with Mary Jane. He exploited the newly warm relationship between Spider-Man and JJJ and then squandered it. And Anna Maria was a key character, allowing Slott to navigate around the tricky issue of having Otto enter into a romantic relationship with any of Peter's old flames. Had MJ continued to date the man she thought was Peter Parker, it would have opened up all sorts of moral issues too dark even for this book. It was important that Otto find a love interest all his own. And the series emphasized Otto'