If you don't or didn't read Spawn, you never appreciated this run

But you should.

Yes it is true, many readers here do not like Spawn.  Perhaps you don't like Todd McFarlane.  Or you don't like his art.  Perhaps you think the character was a demon powered version of Batman.  Death forces a person to make a tragic choice, he chooses to live as he if had or with powers so long as he life or those powers last.  In the Batman case, it was new, different, powerful.  When Spawn did it there were reasons for thinking, meh. Or maybe you don't like the kind of character Spawn is, the anti-hero.  Evil but not the worst evil.

And I get all of that.  I've not been a wholly confirmed member of the fan side of the audience for Spawn. I viewed the character as having had potential, it possesses a powerful image and look, and I am, in fact, a fan of the artwork of Todd McFarlane.  I've a conflicted view of Todd McFarlane. I have been told by people who have worked for him some of his questionable decisions/choices.  On the other hand, some said it wasn't his business practices but his ruthless control over his intellectual property.  If it is the first, I think he sucks.  But I completely believe in ruthless control of any property you create.  No one who has a popular character or story should ever give up ownership of it, if they own it. 

So why is this run particularly good?  From Spawn issue #151 to #184 it was written by David Hine.  This run of issues compared to any other run, from the beginning middle or present, is superior to any of them.  It explains the motives of the characters, it gives reason to worry, it gives flesh to body of work beyond a change of an artist, or a story of Todd McFarlane plots with a writer of the words. Because it is so well written you might only see the micro story,  and perhaps not appreciate this for what it is, that is, an epic tale from beginning to end, with a sense of majestic cosmic importance.  Not every comic book character or story is necessarily important.  But for the concept of a demon spawn you really need a fleshed out hierarchy and cosmology to make it work.  David Hine the writer did this, and made the run worth reading issue after issue.

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