Amazing Spider-Man #596
American Son Part 2
Following a press conference where Norman Osborn welcomes his son to the Avengers, Peter Parker pays a visit to Harry to ask him what he was thinking. Not telling Peter how he just learned his girlfriend, Lily Hollister, is pregnant, Harry tells him that nothing between him and his father has changed and that he has everything under control. Peter warns Harry that his father destroys everything he touches, but Harry tells Peter to say out of this and trust him to be the one to save them all.[1] Later, Peter tries to get his mind off of things by web-slinging as Spider-Man. He quickly discovers how consuming this is of his thoughts when he almost ignores the cries for help inside an apartment fire.
The following morning, Norman is showing Harry around Avengers Tower, showing his son all the sections that he can access. Norman also insists that Harry moves into the building, saying that all essential personnel live in the Tower. Watching the Osborns go is Norah Winters, reporter for the Front Line, who is attempting to get a job giving tours of Avengers Tower as part of her investigation into Norman Osborn.
At that same moment, Peter is sampling patterns for outfits to wear to the wedding of his Aunt May and Jay Jameson. He takes this opportunity to ask May what she thinks about the situation with Harry Osborn. His aunt tells Peter that he’s going to have to leave Harry to make his own mistakes. After making a decision on the pattern, Peter agrees to a private conversation with Jay. Jameson wants to come clean with something Norman Osborn said about him the night before. He admits that he went AWOL from the military and was dishonorably discharged. He explains that he was going to be shipped off to war while his wife was pregnant with Jonah. It was a complicated pregnancy and the military refused to allow him to leave to by her side, so Jay left the army to be there. Tragically, Jay’s wife died giving birth and unable to handle raising a child on his own, Jay gave baby Jonah to his brother to raise.[2] Peter understands why Jay did what he did and doesn’t think he is a coward.
Back at Avengers Towers, things aren’t going so well. Norman has taken Harry to a lab where he insists that everyone with is clearance needs to be inoculated due to concerns of being catching Skrull pathogens.[3] At first, Harry refuses, however, is forced to comply because Norman is holding Lily over his head. Watching from a tablet, Lily Hollister is glad to see that Harry has come to be with her. Meanwhile, Peter is paying a visit to the grave of Gwen Stacy for further guidance on what to do about Harry. [4] As usual, the answers he finds are not the easiest ones. He soon arrives at Avengers Tower with some coffee in the hopes of being able to talk to Harry. He runs into Norah Winters, who reveals that she managed to land the tour guide job in the hopes of getting dirt on Osborn, saying that she was inspired by Peter’s passioned speech earlier at the Front Line. Peter warns Norah to watch out because Osborn is dangerous, Norah takes this as an insult and storms off, telling Peter that she can handle things on her own. The final straw for Peter is when he spots Norman Osborn’s versions of Spider-Man and Hawkeye swing past an adoring crowd.[5]
As Spider-Man, Peter enlists the aid of the Invisible Woman to help him out with his latest scheme. Later, “Hawkeye” goes out to keep an eye on “Spider-Man'“ while he goes cruising for prostitutes for his symbiote to eat. While “Hawkeye” is distracted, Spider-Man attacks Venom with a sonic device strapped to his back. Venom tries to escape but is trapped in one of the Invisible Woman’s force fields. With Venom contained in a special containment unit, the Invisible Woman then gives Spider-Man a specially made costume that can mimic the abilities of Venom’s symbiote so he can infiltrate the Dark Avengers. At that same moment, Harry Osborn wakes up and uses a device to disable the security cameras in his room. Opening up his suitcase, Harry begins digging through the supplies he brought to help him free Lily. As Harry is plotting his escape, Spider-Man has successfully infiltrated the Avenger’s inner sanctum. Sitting in on a meeting with the Dark Avengers and Norman Osborn, Osborn tells them his plans for Harry, telling them that his son will be part of a project he’s calling American Son.
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, Dark Avengers (Norman Osborn, "Ms. Marvel”, “Spider-Man”, “Captain Marvel”, Ares, “Wolverine”, “Hawkeye”, Sentry), Harry Osborn, Aunt May, Jay Jameson, Lily Hollister, Norah Winters, Invisible Woman
Continuity Notes
Peter mentions Harry’s past history with drug abuse. Harry suffered a drug overdose in Amazing Spider-Man #96-99 and has struggled with addiction ever since.
Jay specifically says that he was going to be shipped off to serve in the Korean War. This should be considered a topical reference.
After killing the leader of a recent Skrull invasion of Earth in Secret Invasion #8, one of Norman’s main tasks since being given the job of America’s top cop is tracking down remaining Skrulls.
Gwen Stacy was murdered by the Green Goblin in Amazing Spider-Man #121.
When Norman formed his own team of Avengers in Dark Avengers #1, he selected villains to take on the identities of known superheroes. The Spider-Man and Hawkeye seen here are Venom and Bullseye respectively.
