In this review of The Amazing Spider-Man #34, Spider-Man takes on Electro during a failed bank robbery, while juggling the weight of recent personal developments.
THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #34
Written by: Joe Kelly
Art and Main Cover: Ed McGuinness
Variant Covers: Lee Bermejo, Simone Di Meo, Kris Anka, Ryan Stegman
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: August 5, 2026
This review contains spoilers
The Amazing Spider-Man #34 jumps into action with Spider-Man facing the supervillain Electro, AKA Max Dillon. Max fries Spidey’s brain, leading to his memories being disoriented. We get a flashback dealing with the repercussions of Cormac Crane’s introduction into the Parkers’ lives.
Peter makes heart-shaped pancakes for Aunt May, but quietly throws them in the trash as they become forgotten about when Cormac sends a heap of flowers. Another flashback shows Agent Griffyn and Spider-Man conversing about an operation to take down Electro. Spider-Man warns Damage Control about moving on Max before he commits a crime, believing the chaos will lead to a higher number of casualties than his average victim count of 2.4. He convinces them.
The fight resumes and another shock leads into a flashback featuring a dialogue between Glitch and Peter. Raelith has healed after the events of issue #32, but is upset at Peter. Peter bottles up the conversation with her, saving it for a later date.
At the climax of the fight, Spider-Man and Electro converse, with the scene revealing a bank robbery gone wrong. 12 people have died, and Spider-Man asks why. Electro implies he didn’t do it, and that he only stumbled upon the scene.
A Damage Control agent comes in with a rubber suit designed by Spider-Man. It safely absorbs Electro’s power, before Spidey knocks him out and blames himself for the casualties.
Afterwards, Robbie Robertson reveals the Crane family history. Cormac was adopted by a long line of American entrepreneurs, and he broke their traditional habits by rewarding workers and performing philanthropy. Peter ends the issue by sadly watching Cormac and May bonding from a distance.
Analysis
For starters, I really liked the flow between the flashbacks and the present day in The Amazing Spider-Man #34. Using Max’s powers to create that dichotomy was a good reason, as it kept us in the battle even when we weren’t there. Additionally, it avoided feeling disjointed, unlike the previous issues.
As for Max, the fight between him and Spidey was good. There was a moment where Spider-Man crouches mid-air to avoid Max’s electricity, it was very spider-like. Personally though, I would’ve liked to see the finish for the fight against Tarantula and Grizzly started last issue. I think it’s a fun matchup and it would’ve been nice to witness the new Damage Control and the Wall-Crawler’s first official team-up.
On the relationships side, the weight of Cormac continues to pile on. The usage of different daily life moments–such as the heart-shaped pancakes and Peter missing a family dinner–keeps the plot feeling fresh and nuanced.
However, the dialogue within The Amazing Spider-Man #34 for some of the relationships left a lot to be desired. There’s no real reason given as to why Raelith is mad at Peter. The transition from the conversation with Griffyn to the fight with Electro is also weak, as it didn’t properly convey why Peter felt waiting until the crime’s aftermath was a better option.
It also didn’t convey Peter convincing Griffyn to wait, that only becomes apparent after reading the following pages. The whole sub-plot seemed to be an excuse to throw more weight and guilt onto Peter’s chaotic situation anyway, which I can be fine with. It just needs the proper build-up and transition at the very least.
Final Thoughts
Some good ideas fall flat amid mis-executed build-up, but the momentum for the Cormac Crane plotline continues to be on fire.
