This Spider-Man Story Is DEVASTATING…

Added: 2026-05-17

[00:00:00]Hey, welcome or welcome back to the stash. Now, upon my massive reading journey going through all of Spider-Man's comics, there's one era in particular that always stuck out to me.

[00:00:11]One that while not being the main title, somehow felt like it was easily the best out of the bunch, and that's of course JMD Matas's and Selma's run on the spectacular Spider-Man. Them two as a pairing on this book was genuinely a gamecher. I'm talking like zero bad stories, all just straight hits. And whenever the series went above and beyond, it would give us comics that feel like they transcended the medium.

[00:00:32]From something like The Child Within to an unsuspected hidden gem like Another Fine Mess to even one of my favorite Spider-Man stories ever, Best of Enemies. But for today, I want to go for another story I personally love from that era, and that's of course Funeral Arrangements. Now, Funeral Arrangements is a story created by the Masford duo mentioned just before that's centered all around the final days of one of Spider-Man's most earliest villains, the Vulture. And the way it not only expands upon his character, but the entire Parker family as well easily puts this comic way up there for me. It's a shame though because I never really see all that much talk for this one online. kind of feels like a story that slipped through the cracks of a long run filled with so much quality and it really doesn't deserve that fate. Because when you actually sit down and read Funeral Arrangements, it soon becomes clear that this story actually hits harder than almost anything else. Because Spectacular Spider-Man issues 186 through to 188 is a story about a very bad man who knows he's going to die and what he chooses to do with the time he has left. It's a story where Spider-Man desperately tries to protect his family from a villain who actually means them specifically no harm at all. Because at the center of it is a question that never gets an easy answer. And that's what do you do when someone who's destroyed a major part of your life ask for forgiveness?

[00:01:54]But hey, real quick, here at the Stash, we're swinging for 27,000 subscribers.

[00:01:58]And you know what they say, with great power comes great responsibility. So, if you're into Spider-Man and comic book deep dives, feel free to hit that subscribe button. Also, if you play this little game, I don't know if you've heard of it, it's called Fortnite, you can now use my creator code Emmen Stash in the item shop to directly support the channel. Seriously, any support means the world to me. And be sure to stick to the very end for another episode of comics from the stash. This going over all my copies of Funeral Arrangements, be it the single issues or the collected format for my own collection. But with that all said, let's get right back into the video.

[00:02:33]The story crucially opens with death for the vulture has already begun. He tracks down a man named Frankie Filmore, someone who betrayed him years ago. And without hesitation, he drops him from the sky. A man who once lived, who once was a member of society, for better or for worse, is now reduced to nothing more than a name crossed off a list. And immediately, it's pretty clear to us that there's something very different happening within this story, especially with the Vulture himself. Because Adrien Tombs isn't just settling scores that now plague his mind, he's running out of time. And that idea persistently hangs over everything that follows. Even when he moves on to his next target, a lone woman walking through this hellish storm that's taken over Manhattan, he stops and hesitates. Now, no, it's not out of mercy, but more so since he needs it to be all right and ready. He wants that control over the situation because the only thing he really has left. This though is the first time the story brushes up against Peter Parker's world.

[00:03:36]But I really like how it resists by making sure it doesn't fully collide with it yet. Meanwhile, though, our hero, the spectacular Spider-Man, is dealing with something else entirely.

[00:03:45]He's searching for the Green Goblin for his best friend, Harry Osborne. Whether it's running through abandoned hideouts or chasing ghosts that open up old wounds for our hero. Every dead end though only makes things worse because the goblin knows who he is. And that fear not only lingers, but it also plays a minor role within the very first issue of the story. Back at the Vultures hideout, we finally get the truth that Adrien Tombs is dying. The very device that gave him the ability to fly, the one that's given him his powers and troubled Spider-Man all these years, has also given him terminal cancer. It's the moment where everything clicks in a place. For this isn't a story solely about revenge, but also the haunting sense of fear and desperation. It's a man staring directly at his own death and refusing to go until all his debts are settled once and for all. It's the only way the vulture can be content with his own demise. So when he finds Gregory Bestman, the man he blames for ruining his life, there's no hesitation nor second thoughts. And even with Bestman begging, pleading, and trying to reason with him, none of that matters to the Vulture because in Tomb's mind, this is his justice. With one final act, he snaps Bestman's neck. It's yet another name crossed off the list, yet another step closer to the end. And what makes it even darker is the way he reacts to it all. I mean, sure, at the start, it feels like maybe the vulture isn't really happy with what he's done, but then the way he exclaims about how it made him feel so much better is genuinely haunting. I just love the way that JMD Matas and Susma handle it all.

[00:05:21]From the writing down of the artwork, it is just such a good scene. Later though, when the vulture perches above the city, he looks out at everything below him and amidst the one thing he's been trying to avoid. He doesn't want to die. And that fear, that raw human fear is what drives the rest of the story to the heights it's able to reach. Because when he sees Spider-Man swing past, he instinctively attacks the webslinger purely out of rage. Out of the simple need to feel like he still has control over the one he hates most. And when Spider-Man barely escapes, the vulture chooses not to pursue his prey any longer. Even with the advantages all being on his side, he instead lets him go because first he must take care of one more problem. He's going to finish everything else. And then when he's ready, he's going to make sure Spider-Man suffers a slow, personal, painful death. And to make things worse, while all of this is happening, Peter's world is still trying to function like it's all normal. Back in Aunt May's house, life goes on.

[00:06:22]Dinner is being prepared. Conversations between MJ and May are happening with warmth and comfort filling the air. But underneath it all, there's something heavier. Because when MJ does talk with May, the conversation soon shifts from small talk to something deeper. They talk about the future, about children, about time slipping away. And for a moment, the story allows itself this crucial chance to pause and focus on the two most important people in Peter's life. And within that moment, Mace says something that actually kind of defines the whole story right from the very first issue that her and Peter do what they have to do to survive. And it's a line that hits differently, especially when paired with Selma's incredible artwork that so effortlessly captures the emotion of each and every scene.

[00:07:08]Because while AR May and MJ are talking about life and how to truly live, the story is showing us someone who has completely lost sight of that. The Vulture isn't trying to really survive anymore as he's trying to make his final days mean something through pain, revenge, and through forcing the world to acknowledge what it did to him. And that's what makes the Vulture the most terrifying he's ever been. Because Adrien Tombs will never ever let go of the past. For all he wants is to drag everyone else into it with him. And by the time the night comes to an end with Peter and MJ heading back home, there's one final shift in the issue. May goes upstairs. Everything is quiet and everything feels safe until she opens the door and sees the vulture is there waiting for her.

[00:07:55]Know what happens next is not what you'd expect, especially if you're not super familiar with the law, but nonetheless, it's a choice I genuinely love.

[00:08:03]Seriously, I think this core aspect for the story makes the entire thing for me, and I can't get over how painfully human it all is. So, the vulture doesn't actually attack Aunt May. He doesn't even threaten her nor lash out. Instead, the broken old man apologizes. I love how this one moment and choice completely reframes the whole story from a revenge plot to something far more complicated. You see, Adrien Tombs explains why he's there. He talks about Nathan Lubensky, about how Nathan treated him with kindness when almost no one else did, about how for a brief moment, he gave him something to hold on to, and how losing that broke something inside of him, especially when he had no clue he was the cause of Nathan's death.

[00:08:46]He admits his responsibility, miss that even if he didn't know at the time, it was still his fault. It's a death that's always haunted him ever since it happened. And now standing at the end of his life, he wants one thing, and that's forgiveness from May Parker. And May's response, though, is the complete opposite of what he would have wanted.

[00:09:04]She's sick and tired of all the vultures who's pecked at her life. All the bad people who've come in for a brief moment and taken something near and dear from her heart. So, she slaps him and tells the vulture to leave. I love how the story doesn't try to soften anything as well as it just allows it to all play out because in doing so, I feel like it's made all the creative choices most effective. May's reaction isn't wrong.

[00:09:28]If anything, it makes it feel like it's completely justified, but that's what makes the conflict so powerful because the vulture leaves more broken than he already was. And that rejection only pushes him even further. When Peter learns what happened, he he completely loses it. I mean, like, with everything going on thanks to Harry's fall from grace, as well as his long history with all these villains, it feels more personal than ever before. His family is literally being pulled directly into his double life. It's a line he's always tried to maintain. But lately, he just feels like it's all falling apart. So he goes after the vulture immediately. And at the same time, the vulture escalates everything by threatening J. Jonah Jameson and forcing him to print a declaration that he's actually going to brutally kill the Amazing Spider-Man.

[00:10:14]Soon after though, the vulture returns to May's house again. But still, he means them no harm. For any of the Parker family, he believes he's already caused way too much for them as it is.

[00:10:25]He just simply needs that forgiveness.

[00:10:28]It's one of the last pieces of the puzzle that would allow him to die with some twisted form of peace. But when Peter confronts him, old webhead can't help but snap. He hits him with everything he has, sending the vulture crashing down the stairs. And for a moment, you see just how far Peter is willing to go. How close he is to losing control completely whenever his family is involved. I mean, this is one of his oldest villains, and he did walk into his childhood home. Peter, of course, has to reel it back in or else he could say goodbye to his secret identity, which all leads to him allowing himself to be captured. Once at the hideout, Peter is surrounded by the past that haunts the Vulture, including the body of Best. Even when Vulture was actually managing to get through to Peter, that corpse was an instant reminder for just how much of an animal Tombs really is.

[00:11:14]So, Peter leaps literally at the first chance he can get to switch into his costume. And man, oh man, the fight that follows is soing good. Neither of them really thinking clearly anymore, but especially the vulture. He is completely consumed by an insane thirst for blood to finally end this nightmare once and for all. He pushes his equipment beyond its limits. He tries to take both of them down, hoping for one final moment where he can decide how this all ends, but it fails. Everything fails. The harness burns out. And just like that, the plan collapses. And for the first time, Adrien Tombs is left with basically nothing. But as he falls, Spider-Man then quickly gets to work and saves both of their lives with minimal injuries. And when it's over, in one of the best moments in the whole comic, the Vulture breaks down and actually cries.

[00:12:04]All because fate wouldn't even allow him a quick and easy death. But Spider-Man isn't done with Tombs just quite yet. He brings his captured foe back to Arme's house where he apologizes once again for all he's done. But this time, May doesn't hold back. She tells him exactly what she feels. She wishes that his death would be long and painful. And even the vulture himself says that he's sure it will be because deep down he believes he deserves it. And that's the tragedy of it. Because even after everything, he's still no closer to peace than he was at the start of the story. But our tale doesn't end there because the next day, Aunt May actually visits him. And this is where everything finally comes together. She doesn't go to forgive him. She makes that very clear. She can't and she won't. It's that simple. But she also doesn't want to live the rest of her life consumed by hate. So, she lets it go. Not for him, but for herself. And that ending ties the entire comic together so well. I'd argue it's a major part as to what makes this story so powerful. Because, you know, it doesn't give you an easy answer. Forgiveness isn't guaranteed, nor is redemption earned. And sometimes the best you can do is choose not to carry the weight anymore, even if the pain never really goes away. And that is what makes this one of the very best Spider-Man stories ever told in my opinion. Because in the end, the Vulture was trying to outrun something no one ever can. And when it finally caught up to him, there was nothing left but the truth. He couldn't escape.

[00:14:13]Hello and welcome. Welcome to another episode of Comics from the Stash. For today's installment, we're going over my copies of the masterpiece that is Funeral Arrangement. So, without wasting any more time, let's get right into the showcase. So, I reread the story with one of my favorite purchases I've ever made, the spectacular Spider-Man Omnibus. I was dying for Marvel to reprint it, and man, when they finally did, I literally pre-ordered it as soon as physically possible. if you haven't already and you can find one in person or online, I'd highly recommend picking this one up. After that, we go to Spectacular Spider-Man issue 187. Now, this would have been my only single issue of the story if it wasn't for one of my recent pickups today, which means we also have the Spectacular Spider-Man issue 186.

[00:15:00]But that has been it for today. Thank you guys so much for watching. If you have enjoyed, please like, comment, and subscribe if you haven't already because here any support means so much. And uh yeah, thank you guys again for watching and I'll see you in the next one.