Yes, LIFE OF REILLY is fascinating reading. And rather nostalgic, much as I hate to admit it.

I'd like to reiterate--my prime reading years were during the Clone Saga. I 12 was when Peter was "revealed" as the clone, and was really upset about the whole mess even back then (Reilly taking over as Spider-Man, Osborn's return from the dead, etc.).

I will say, however, that Marvel did a good job...at first. I was way more interested in the adventures of Ben Reilly than I was in the "I am the Spider" stuff going on with Peter Parker at the beginning of the storyline, and pretty much only bought the Reilly books.

...which was the whole idea, wasn't it?

Nearly every story written since the introduction of Venom on some level or another, I believe, has betrayed the nature of the hero in the Spider-Man titles. Brand New Day itself was utter and complete garbage, no question, but in some respects, it did herald a "return to form" for the basic premises of Spider-Man. For those who respect and enjoy those premises, Brand New Day was a breath of fresh air. As for it resulting in new material worth reading, well, I'm still waiting...

I'm getting tired of always agreeing with you, Brian!

For whatever it's worth, Greg, I never get tired of it! :-)

"I will say, however, that Marvel did a good job...at first. I was way more interested in the adventures of Ben Reilly than I was in the "I am the Spider" stuff going on with Peter Parker at the beginning of the storyline, and pretty much only bought the Reilly books.

...which was the whole idea, wasn't it?"

I agree. Ben Reilly was more Peter Parker than the real one. Of course, in those days, I wondered why couldn't they simply tell stories featuring Peter Parker acting as Peter Parker. Tom DeFalco, to name one of the group, was surely able to do it.

I gave Brand New Day a chance but I dropped it entirely with the Lizard storyline from a few years ago (the final result just bothered me too much). Marvel under Joe Q has bragged that they don't need a complete universe reboot but why not do that instead of a ridiculous premise like One More Day? But I gave it a shot and I just didn't care for it. Slott's a good writer it's just a culmination of things that I didn't like built up to the point where I stopped buying it.