On the Town!

The day after his battle with the cyborg assassin named Assassin-8, Spider-Man still can't believe how positively received he has been in the British press. He wonders what J. Jonah Jameson would make of the stories, especially since he can't do much since he is no longer the editor of the Daily Bugle anymore.However, even though Spider-Man is getting good press in England, some people still don't trust him, as he learns when a mother pulls her child away from the wall-crawler. As Spider-Man travels across London, he is being observed by the mysterious Dark Man who has vowed to destroy the hero. He then turns his mind to his hired killer, the cyborg known as Assassin-8. He has come to see his supplier, a man calling himself the Armourer. As the Armourer begins repairs on Assassin-8's blaster, he learns how Andrew Booth has been convinced that Spider-Man was the one responsible for placing the landmine that cripple him and led to his becoming a cyborg.

At the Daily Herald, Peter Parker has once more sold photos to the Bugle's British affiliate. There the publisher is impressed with the photos and has paid handsomely for them, much more than J. Jonah Jameson would ever pay him. He meets again with Mai Ling and briefly remarks how attractive she is. However, he dismisses any romantic possibilities as he is still getting over his troubles with the Black Cat. Soon, Peter leaves with Richard, the paper's sportscaster, to go sightseeing. After an enjoyable tour of London, Peter calls it a night, thanking Richard for showing him around. Changing into Spider-Man, Peter goes web-slinging across the city. He soon catches to thieves trying to mug a cab driver and easily trounces them then webs them up for the police. When the authorities arrive on the scene, Spider-Man fears that he is going to get a poor reception and flees the scene. When the police follow after him, he refers the worst. When he gets back up to the roof of his hotel room, the web-slinger finds a police inspector waiting for him. He explains that the police are looking for Spider-Man's assistance. He explains that someone has planted bombs at the Thames Flood Barrier and has asked Spider-Man to come and diffuse them. The wall-crawler willingly joins the authorities in trying to stop this act of terrorism.

Airlifted to the flood barrier by helicopter and he begins diffusing the bombs placed on the structure. Suddenly, the hero is ambushed by Assassin-8 who blasts Spider-Man from behind. Knocking out the hero, Assassin-8 prepares to land the final blow.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Mai Ling, Assassin-8, Dark Man

Continuity Notes

• J. Jonah Jameson stepped down as editor-in-chief of the Bugle in Amazing Spider-Man #251.

• Although not specifically identified as the Dark Man here, his name is given in Marvel Fact Files #97.

•  Assassin-8 was led to believe that Spider-Man was responsible for his injuries in Spider-Man (UK) #607.

• At the time of this story, Spider-Man had just recently broken off his romance with the Black Cat in Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #100.