Sensational Spider-Man #33.2

Monsters Part Two

Carlie Cooper has been investigating a human trafficking operation, despite the fact, the FBI is trying to bar her from investigating further. To get around this, she had been investigating the Vulture, leading to the villain to snatch her off the street. He now demands to know why she has been investigating him. She tells him about her human trafficking investigation. The Vulture tells her that he does not involve himself in such things and lives to feed off weak criminals.

Meanwhile, Spider-Man is questioning a man who was hired to assassinate Carlie. That’s when he hears her scream and leaves the shooter webbed up. When he catches up with the Vulture, he tosses Carlie to the ground, but not before telling her an important number to remember that ties into the human trafficking operation. Spider-Man catches Carlie and puts her safely on the ground. By this time the Vulture is long gone, so Spider-Man decides to continue questioning the gunman to find out who hired him.

The following day, Carlie has a colleague investigate the phone number that the Vulture gave her the night before. However, it is assigned to a burner phone to a John Doe who prepaid service for an entire year. She is disappointed that it wasn’t connected to Balik Vorski, her prime suspect in the human trafficking operation. This gets her thinking about the women she found in a shipping container the night before. Although they are in the country illegally, she still believes they deserve justice.

Meanwhile, Spider-Man has been roughing up crooks on the docks in the hopes of finding evidence they can use against Balik Vorski. Instead, he finds something else: While staking out Vorski’s favorite restaurant he photos graphs someone meeting with him. When Peter shows the photo to Carlie, she recognizes him as FBI Agent Charles Devonshire, who is investigating the human trafficking operation. They find it suspicious that he is meeting with Balik without his partner, Vito Casio. When Peter suggests getting Spider-Man to look into this further, Carlie refuses, wanting to do this with some good old fashioned police work.

Later, Spider-Man starts keeping an eye on Agent Devonshire, unaware that the Vulture has taken interest in the FBI agent as well. Meanwhile, Carlie meets with Agent Casio outside the immigration detention center to tell him about his partner. Although her investigation hasn’t proven anything, it sows the seeds of doubt in Vito’s mind and he promises to look into things for her. Meanwhile, Spider-Man has been staking out the home of the man hired to kill Carlie Cooper. Balik Vorski has sent men to silence him and Spider-Man takes them out.

Meanwhile, Carlie has been called in to her lieutenant’s office. There she is being told that Balik Vorski was cleared in any wrongdoing in the human trafficking operation and that Homeland Security and the New York Port Authority are awarding his company a security contract worth millions of dollars. Carlie can’t believe this but is also told that Charles Devonshire has since gone missing. Worse, the women who were found in the shipping container are being deported back to their country. While Spider-Man and Carlie Cooper try to come to terms with their failure, Boris Vorski is furious that his minions failed to silence the assassin. When Vorski returns to his office he finds the Vulture waiting for him. The villain has Agent Devonshire tied up and hanging from the ceiling. The Vulture has just heard of Vorski’s good fortune and wants to “celebrate”.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Vulture, Carlie Cooper

Continuity Notes

This issue is part of the 50th anniversary of Spider-Man. Previously canceled Spider-Man titles were briefly brought back with new .1 issues that continue where the series left off. While the first volume of Sensational Spider-Man ended with 33 issues in 1998, this story takes place in during the “Brand New Day” era of Spider-Man. Chronologically, according to the Marvel Chronology Project, this story takes place after Amazing Spider-Man #594.