This is a interesting Spider-Man omnibus because besides Venom, this is the most slice of life Peter Parker probably has ever had, or least in awhile. I'd probably give this closer to a 2.5 stars, primarily for McFarlane's Spider-Man and impact on the look, but the writing could have been more interesting. Some plots dealt with some fairly heavy topics but was strangely juxtaposed by the cartoony art. It really starts to feel as if they were coming up with excuses to bring in either a villain or hero just to see McFarlane draw the character. Slowly you get to some of the heavier hitters, but there's only 1 maybe two, true multi-part story arc. The rest of the issues though were fairly one-off initially featuring C/D-list villains. Despite Spidey's crazy life, MJ was supportive and she actually turns out stronger, being the main breadwinner and dealing with her own nemesis. What was nice though was the fact that Michelinie showed a happy, functional marriage which doesn't really happen that often in comics. These issues also took place shortly after Peter and MJ are married, a somewhat controversial topic. It's a nice way to add something to Peter's timeline yet still make it fail for him with his luck and it is still referenced in today's stories. What I did like was a multi-issue idea that the Daily Bugle sells a book of Parker's photos, although he doesn't get the royalties.
The stories though were fairly forgettable with a couple exceptions. If you are looking for realisim this isn't it (except for a high level of detail), but if you like the fun, cartoony style this should please your eye. Despite all that, he has a distinctive style and as a whole, fits together. Keep in mind this was the 90's, where at least 1-2 splash pages per issue were mandatory. And as far as storytelling ability, I don't recall ever really being lost visually, but his panel per page count averaged around 4. McFarlane's quirky anatomy and flattened perspective faces can be a bit jarring at times. However, the "cartooniness" of the rest of his art is fairly evident. Every frame with Spider-Man is just so energetic and I really did enjoy looking at those particular panels again. While some people draw him contorted, often times it looks awkward, but not with McFarlane. His Spider-Man just exudes power and agility. Looking at it now, there's still quite a bit of excitement there. It was an exciting change and really redefined Spidey's look for a long time. When it did come out back in the 90's I too was taken by McFarlane's art even though I'm a die-hard classic Romita guy.
I've been a long time Spider-Man fan and was reading comics at least a decade before this material even came out.
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