Comics Alliance: An AOL Comic Book Community

1. I think that having Mary Jane along with Peter limits the plot possibilities, considering that she's not superhuman. Time was when attention to Spiderman would spike each time he's being linked to someone. Marvel would exhaust the plot possibilities with each relationship, giving Spidey's stories different twists each time.

Posted at 12:27PM on Jan 3rd 2008 by The Comics Creator

2. Yo nailed it.
The Former House of Ideas.
Quesada is a big jerk with no respect for the character, ever since Amazing #400 things have been poorly handled.

They already have Ultimate Spiderman.
Why did they need to star anew.
USM is cool
no need to dumb down the core series
Continuity is another issue

Posted at 4:11PM on Jan 3rd 2008 by JIFF

3. 'Former' House of Ideas? Sorry, you lose. Marvel's putting out more better comics than any time since the 70s. Iron Fist. Punisher. Punisher War Journal, for God's Sake. Criminal. Captain America (the best it's ever been, storywise and great art), Daredevil (the best it's ever been storywise and some of the best art it's had). Astonishing X-Men. X-Factor. The last year-plus of Hulk. Oh, I don't like the cartoony Mighty Avengers with the gorgeous Cho art, so I'll choose the noirish New Avengers with the gorgeous (though uninked) Yu art. All under Joe Quesada's watch.

And ASM. Love or hate the new plot decision, Straczyinski's been writing it better than it's been written in 35 years.

The 90s Marvel? Don't even make me laugh. That was true crap. 80s Marvel? Minus a handful of ongoing titles like Claremont and Byrne's X-Men and some great minis, you can't even begin to compare it with what the company's putting out right now.

As a former fan of Marvel who's finally reading several titles they put out again, I say thank Jeebus for Joe Quesada.

And considering this is a classic Mephisto plot (which means it will eventually get overturned as the hero comes out victorious, in this case getting his marriage back), I'm more than happy to stick around and see how it turns out before going apoplectic that a spandex-clad funnybook character had his marriage magically erased.

It's like all these fanboys haven't read comics before. ZOMFG, Spider-Man lost his wife to Mephisto and will nevar get her back! NEVAR!! JOE QUESADA IS THE REAL SATAN!!!!!

My one real complaint with Marvel right now...pay for some damned inkers!

Posted at 4:28PM on Jan 3rd 2008 by Christian

4. I forgot to include Runaways.

Posted at 4:38PM on Jan 3rd 2008 by Christian

5. i Love MJ to, the green one =]

Posted at 7:47AM on Jan 6th 2008 by Aperfectt1

6. the movies have ruined the whole story, it doesnt matter how they butcher this comic book story anymore, they're making it appeal to these little kids, they dont care about the older cats anymore

Posted at 12:47PM on Jan 6th 2008 by doobie

7. everyone's better with a little mary jane :)

Posted at 1:57PM on Jan 6th 2008 by smiles

8. Ok. As the truest of the true comic fan. I will say this and this only. This story is poor. There is no earthly way that you can convince me Peter Parker would sacrifice not only the love of his life, but also the unborn child that Mephisto is apparently so concerned with, for the life of a woman who has certainly lived it to her fullest. That's just not a very stirring argument. That aside, I'm willing to see where this arc goes, but if it features Peter Parker swinging around as Spider-man with Aunt May alive and well and him not torturing himself over the decision or the world not somehow dramatically different in some way or another then I will walk up to Quesada and punch him in the jaw. Straczyinski is a truly phenomonal talent. As witnessed in the Rising Stars series. All in all. You can't say whether this was a good or bad decision till you see where the story goes from here.

Posted at 2:50PM on Jan 6th 2008 by The Man Who Wasn't

9. Overall, Quesada has been the best thing to happen to Marvel. He's come up with great initiatives to get new readers and put unique creative teams on Marvel's core books to give readers a fresh perspective. While some feel he over hypes some projects, I think it shows that he enthusiastic and has confidence in his creators to put out the best projects possible.

HOWEVER, everybody makes mistakes and his whole handling of the Spider-marriage is his. He has been very open about wanting to get rid of it since they reduced the number of mutants. Unfortunately it wasn't that big of an issue. The marriage has been around for 20 years and was viewed by many as a natural progression for the character. (How it was executed, is another thing altogether) Yes, it does eliminate the avenue of Peter Parker constantly getting dumped but you have 'Ultimate Spider-Man' for those stories. You can actually tell more stories with a married Spider-Man if you make the effort to examine the institution. All the great sitcoms were about married couples. Why not make the marriage a little sitcom-y. It would inject more humor into otherwise dramatic stories. Not to mention give their marital problems more emotional weight when a writer decides to address them. If you ask me Peter Parker and Mary Jane had the potential to be the Ralph and Sue Dibny of the Marvel Universe, which would be a good direction for the couple.

But to get back to the point, my main issue with the split is the fact Peter MADE A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL. By sacrificing his marriage to alleviate his guilt, he comes off as looking selfish and weak. Not once did he even attempt to stand up to Mephisto, or challenge him to a game of wits to save both his aunt and his marriage. A true hero would do this, and Spider-Man has always been the purest hero in the Marvel Universe. He is the standard bearer. This just makes him look weak and pathetic.

This gives Spider-Man more baggage then his marriage ever did, and I really hope that within the next year or two something is done to at least save the characters soul.

Thank you for taking the time to read my long rant.
-Todd

Posted at 3:20PM on Jan 6th 2008 by Todd

10. One More Day basicly killed Spider-Man for me. It's a huge retcon. Mary Jane was an important character for so long and now all of that importance doesn't exist. And on top of that Spidey's identity is secret again. They didn't need to do that. If you read Avengers: The Initiative #7 then at the end the 3 Scarlet Spiders claim that Peter Parker was the 4th Scarlet Spider who they had to let go of and that the real Spider-Man was somewhere else. Then Harry Osborn is alive again, that's ridiculous. By having Mary Jane never marry Peter it causes Harry to stay alive and not be the Green Goblin? It's only a matter of time before we see Gwen Stacy alive and and well again. Heck, we might even see Steve Rogers and Bill Foster with this retcon(that last statement was an exaggeration btw).

Posted at 4:24PM on Jan 6th 2008 by Ghost_Hunter

11. While I think the storyline sucks (as to why, it's mostly been said already), I can't say I find the loss of MJ a huge sore point. She was never one of my fave characters, and I do think that by getting rid of her it will open up the way for more new and different stories: there are only so many stories you can tell about the 1 relationship, then you have to move on. However, that being said, I think erasing that relationship from the character's history is a bad idea: where does that leave the Peter Parker we know? Couldn't they have had her die under a bus or something? (oh, wait: comic book girlfriends are never truly dead)

As to the movies (Spidy 3 made me weep!), I actually think they'd do better without MJ too - they sort of moved her and Peter's relationship along too far in number 2 anyway, then for the third it was like, 'OK, now what?'. I actually think the pacing of the character development is piss poor in the films.

Anyway, knowing Marvel, in a few issues time the whole thing will probably be reversed anyway. Comic death is never for ever.

Posted at 7:41PM on Jan 6th 2008 by janey

12. To be honest im waiting to see where this goes.I honestly believe that after so long of having mary jane be a big part of peter's life,they would not just throw it all away like it was nothing.I think that it is all just part of the story anyway.the next couple of issues will be peter being drawn back to mary jane with mephisto attempting to stop him.

If that is not the case,them maybe its a good thing that they are sending out amazing spider-man 3x a month.when my subsciption runs out i simply wont renew it.But like i said i seriously doubt that they would go this far and things will be restored the way they were.

Posted at 10:01PM on Jan 6th 2008 by spiderfreak

13. I was against the idea at first, because I grew up w/ Spidey and MJ married. But after reading Mister Mets' exhausting article on the subject at The Comic Crypt (click my name for the link), I've decided that it should be given a chance. "Retcon" is such a taboo word in the industry. I don't think retconning shouldn't be judge as much as the stories that will result from the retcon. As Mister Mets stated in his article, the marriage wrote Spidey into a corner, and this might be the way out. Besides, the way it's looking now, if Marvel ever wanted them together again, it's very possible to do that.

Posted at 10:22PM on Jan 6th 2008 by David

14. I just think it's a bad idea.

There's a list, you know? A list of fantasy marriages/couples that is iconic to pop-culture. Superman and Lois Lane, Lucy and Ricky, Buffy and Angel, Han Solo and Princess Leia, Gambit and Rogue...and Peter Parker and Mary Jane. Look on any list for top ten comic book couples and you see them. They are one of the most well-known examples of how a geeky guy (superhero yes, but still geeky) can get the gorgeous girl. And I think it's very dangerous to make that never have existed.

Posted at 10:54PM on Jan 6th 2008 by Sara

15. Basically, it was known for a long time that editorial was unhappy with Peter being married, so the pact with Mephisto was a quick way to get rid of MJ as well as to save Aunt May from the brink of death. This storyline did suck, which is disappointing because Back in Black was OK. What upsets me more is that the comic is $1 more than it used to be but they claim it's still 3.99. WTF???

Posted at 12:35AM on Jan 7th 2008 by journalismdude

16. o its all just a big soap opera!! spidey will get back with MJ somehow they always get back together.. just tryn to add more drama

Posted at 12:52AM on Jan 7th 2008 by Jessica

17. It's no secret that Marvel has long hated Mary Jane, but let's face it; she's here to stay. Peter Parker and Mary Jane are as iconic to comics as Clark Kent and Lois Lane.
Regardless of Mary Jane not having any powers, she's shown, very often I might add, that she's as independent, resourceful, and down right stubborn as anyone else in Marvel. To be precise, she's one of the few people in Marvel at all who would have no problem giving someone like Thor, Cap, or Iron Man a piece of her mind without hesitation - something most super-powered people can't say they'd do.
I do think they'll find a way to return to one another, and more than likely this will be a Faustian tale for Peter (especially because he did this without her consent - something MJ will probably raise Hell about after they return to normal).
I really don't think this is permanent, especially because of the backlash that this could cause, or has already caused. People like Mary Jane, plain and simple; Marvel and Stan Lee can whine all they want that they always like Gwen Stacy more, but when you have a brooding, uncertain everyman superhero like Spider-Man, you really do need that one pillar of strength, or else it's going to turn into a weeping contest. And for those of you who don't think it's gonna go back to the way it was, one way or another, let me just remind you of one very important, and possibly similar, incident - the "new" Superman costume... I rest my case.

Posted at 1:46AM on Jan 7th 2008 by chris barley

18. I think Mary Jane should stay because you can't just get rid of her character this late in the story. And besides Mary Jane is a great character in the comics it will be an awful waste to get rid of her so late in the story. And besides the relationship between M.J. and Peter Parker aka Spider-Man is priceless. Whats next no more Lois Lane in Superman?

Posted at 2:32AM on Jan 7th 2008 by Randall

19. This idea is awful. It basically shows that the "House of Ideas" has none left when it comes to Spider-Man and his marriage. Spidey was always a great read to me b/c of his supporting cast... MJ, JJJ, Robbie, Betty, even Flash. This destroys it and I will never pick up a Spider-Man book again until this MESS is fixed.

Posted at 6:41AM on Jan 7th 2008 by william

20. Spider man should still love MJ #1 I love her and #2 it gives the movie fachizzle.!.!

Posted at 6:45AM on Jan 7th 2008 by yoyo