Summary
- Rek-Rap, the demon sidekick of Spider-Man, receives more praise and glory for his minimal work than Peter Parker ever has for his major heroic efforts.
- Despite Peter Parker doing the difficult hero work and saving the day, it is Rek-Rap who is granted a parade in Limbo, even though he was on the sidelines for the majority of the battle, which Peter handled.
- Peter Parker, once again, fails to get the recognition he deserves, another instance of the infamous Parker Luck.
Warning: Spoilers for The Amazing Spider-Man #38!
Peter Parker has never gotten the respect he's long due, but to add insult to injury, the demon Dark Web event. Inspired to be a hero, the demon named himself Parker-Man, then Rek-Rap, and has subsequently earned more praise in his short career than Peter has ever received.
The Amazing Spider-Man #38 – by Zeb Wells, Ed McGuinness, Mark Farmer, Wade Von Grawbadger, and Marcio Menyz – finds Rek-Rap's heroic efforts finally start to pay off. Rek-Rap has served merely as Spider-Man's bumbling sidekick in this most recent arc, but somehow gets even more praise and glory for putting in minimal work.
The distinction between the praise that Rek-Rap receives and the praise that Peter once again fails to garner seems to be another prime example of that dreaded Parker luck coming into play. It is his erstwhile companion that ultimately is praised for saving the day, in a humorous, yet typical Spidey moment.
Spider-Man Is The Hero, But Rek-Rap Gets the Glory
In The Amazing Spider-Man #36, Rek-Rap escaped Limbo, determined to be a hero in New York City. The Queen of Limbo, Madelyn Pryor, sent her collections agent, Re-Po, to bring Rek-Rap back to Limbo, but the demon lets his petty feud with Peter Parker – from his past life – get the better of him. Thus, even after sending both Peter and Rek-Rap to Limbo, Re-Po remained on Earth for some extracurricular activities, beyond what Pryor asked of him, including attempting to murder Peter's friend and former roommate, Randy Robertson. Hellbent on saving Randy before Re-Po did his worst, Spider-Man enlisted Rek-Rap's help to get back to the world of the living.
As events play out in Amazing Spider-Man #38, it is naturally Spidey who does the difficult hero work of saving Randy, as Rek-Rap remains on the sidelines after helping his idol escape Limbo. Peter fights off Re-Po, forcing Re-Po to devour himself, sending himself back to Limbo in the process. After the fact, although Peter gets nothing for his efforts, Madelyn Pryor grants Rek-Rap a parade in Limbo for doing...nothing. Rek-Rap has been a stand-out comedic character since his introduction, particularly in this run, with this conclusion perfectly encapsulating the zany spirit of the character, proving why Marvel should continue using him.
Spider-Man Suffers Parker Luck Again
It's almost a cliché now to blame all of Spider-Man's misfortunes on Parker Luck striking again, but it's hard not to find some validity in the concept when things like this happen. As is always the case, Peter Parker fails to get his respect for saving people and being a true hero. He gets absolutely no recognition for what he does, which seems to be a running theme throughout his career. Meanwhile, things just kind of work out in Rek-Rap's favor after doing close to nothing in Amazing Spider-Man #38, if not for the entirety of this arc. Parker Luck gets the better of Spider-Man again.
The Amazing Spider-Man #38 is on sale now from Marvel Comics.
