Comics I Think I'm Retiring From Spider-man

[Kevin]

Who was that directed to?

 

[DACrowe]

Well on your last question first, I have not dropped any title for good (okay save for Superman). I more just take breaks. I was subscribing to the Spidey runs throughout all of Jenkins, Millar and JMS' first 3 years. I thought even if they made mistakes here and there I did not like (Jenkins screwing with the Lizard badly, Millar hurting Jenkins' GG story and getting rid of Brock in a lame way) I thought it was resurgance of good Spidey tales. JMS inparticularly I thought hit them out of the park with the first Morlun story, the Digger, letting Aunt May know, being the first main continuity writer to make Aunt May a real character, giving some depth to MJ again, etc.

But then came Sins Past which was a huge misifre and a trip back to the awful Howard Mackcie eyars IMO. Not only was it a bad story and not only did it screw up the characters then and there badly for a time, it ****ed with the past. I lost taste and during the fire guy who burns down the Parker house storylline I grew bored and cancelled my subscriptions. I've read on/off and looked at firends' copies of The Other and Civil War and hwile I've bought a few issues myself of Sensational and Amazing since then....I just have no desire to want to come back.

Same with X-Men I guess. I haven ot quit X-Men and sometimes will pick up new issues if something big is happening, but I just grew bored and if the stories starting going in directions I really like again, then II'll probably start subscribing again. But I've never "quit" a title for good. Just stop reading in bad patches.



As for the DC stuff. I do agree that 1960s Batman very much was a JL team player. But then came post-crisis. And in post-crisis Batman npretty much IMO plays it one way. And why Batman of the '80s and '90s was on JL doesn't make sense to me. I feel the same way about the DCA, where Batman is definatley portrayed as a manipulative loner and even in Batman Beyond Superman says "He never was a teamplayer," but for some reason he joins the JL b/c the cartoon would not be as good without Kevin Conway's Batman, even if it doens't make sense.

Recently, he has become more trusting but hey recently Jason Todd came back to life as a villain when Superboy punched the timeline....so I am not the biggest fan of that kind of thing.

But I admit there are some really strong characters in the DC universe, albeit I find most of them in the Batman universe and niche of it (Batman, Dick Grayson, Timm Drake, Barbara Gordon, Jim Gordon, and not to mention the best assembled rogue gallery in comics history).

Though, iti s true that the DC characters have depth. I am not calling them the flash in the pan pre-crisis versions though. I just think that for the most part the focus of DC comics is not on the individuals but on their heroic life.

What I mean to say is for example I love reading Peter Parker, Matt Murdock, Charles Xavier, etc. as they are interesting indivduals where whole stories can be told without costumes. But more likely is there is a balance between the costumed fights and the person's own problems and inner-struggles with living their life (whether they be a struggling photographer with a tough marriage with the wife or a blind lawyer outed by his enemies in public who has lost everything, etc.)....

In DC, while the characters are deep, they're more about their superpowered lives. They'll go most issues wihtout ever reverting back to their other selves or when they do the focus is still on their superpowers. They have inner-demons and struggles now but the focus at DC always seems to me to make these people into gods on Earth. The Justice League where they come together to fight the good fight to the world's appraisal certainly supports this. They are attempting to be modern mythology in the Greek sense and while I respect that, it just doens't interest me for the most part though.

However, I do agree they aren't just masks and superpowers. Perhaps what I mean to say is I prefer it when the focus is evenly divided or even more focused on the face behind the mask than the activities in the mask, if that makes sense. And as I said I'm not a big fan of the Crisis standard of just creating ifinate earths and blowing one up and starting over or having a diety punch a timeline, etc. to just start fresh and erase histories.

Just my opinion though.

 

[Dangerous]

The '81 show I think is way too simplistic in comparison and din't capture the feel of the comics.

More simplistic true.
It did however capture the true feeling of the comics and Spider-man better than TAS.
Even though it was not rooted in the comics of the time in terms of plots as much as TAS was.
In terms of art however, it was way more faithful than TAS.
All characters looked EXACTLY the same as their comicbook counterparts.
No new 90’s styled Doc Ock costumes designed here.

It just stands up better as an adult. Even if I remove nostolgia from it, I see it as a better show.

And to me, I see SM '81 far superior in every area.
Like I said I want a SM cartoon to embrace the format of a kids show, make it fun and action packed.
I'm not interested in a show that tries recreating the comics of the era because it just comes lame, goofy and over complicated for a Saturday morning cartoon.
That’s my opinion.
SM '81 totally captured Spider-man the character and all his enemies perfectly.
It also was BY FAR the most visually authentic recreation of the comics.
That combined w/ the fact that the fight scenes were fun to watch (more so than TAS) and Spidey had real charisma, not cheesy one liners like in TAS.
All this makes SM ’81 the definitive SM show.

But whatever. I was jsaying why I think it stands up better and I just don't get the Amazing Friends b/c it was like Scooby-Doo with the gang hanging out and the stupid pet doing funny things gag they've used in every cartoon since Scooby-Doo/Josey and the Pussycats. And I was glad to see TAS never stooped to that.

Why do you keep bringing up Amazing Friends?
You will get no argument from me.
Yes it was cheesy, yes the dog was stupid.

 

[DACrowe]

We'll just have to agree to disagree. Other than art resemblence (whichyou seem to care more than actual feeling of the comics) I fail to see '81 anywhere near as good as TAS. TAS had better characters, was more negaging to watch episode from episode, had better animation and voice acting and in the end the characters were all fun to follow and were nowhere near as simplistic.

The '80s show reminds me of GI Joe, Ninja Turtles, Smurfs, etc. All '80s shows I enjoyed on their last legs as a kid (albeit I never saw the '81 show until a few years back) but the '90s 'toons, particularly in superhero fare (Batman TAS, X-Men TAS, Batman Beyond, Spider-Man TAS, etc.) were just superior.

I did not watch the '81 show as a kid so this may be why but I don't really care about the episodes much because all of the action is simplistic in a formula for superhero cartoons no different than the mystery formula in a Scooby-Doo cartoon. The Spider-Man TAS had character and story arcs while bieng more pleasing to the eye and ear and just much more entertaining.

I think we'll have to agree to disagree here.

BTW what did you think of Roscoe as Kingpin. As far as I know he was not on the '81 show but he was an amazing voice for the Kingpin I thought and kind of was the focal point of all the violence in TAS, even if he wasn't the biggest villain though.

 

[Dangerous]

We'll just have to agree to disagree.

Yup.

Other than art resemblence (whichyou seem to care more than actual feeling of the comics)

Apart from the art direction & animation being superior in SM ‘81, like I previously noted it also feels more like the real Spidey you read in the comics, even though the plots had less to do w/ the comics.
By contrast TAS desperately tries to be like the comics by borrowing heavily from 80’s and 90’s comic arcs but conveys non of the feeling.

I fail to see '81 anywhere near as good as TAS. TAS had better characters,

Wrong.
SM ‘81’s characters like I said above were much more authentic.

was more negaging to watch episode from episode,

Wrong.
Like I said, for me SM ‘81 was way more entertaining.

had better animation and voice acting and in the end the characters were all fun to follow and were nowhere near as simplistic.

The voice acting on SM ‘81 was by far the best assembled and definitive SM cast in a cartoon.
The animation & art direction was also best in SM ‘81 as it was by far more faithful to the source than TAS was, also there were no crappy computer graphics and the animation was always smooth and jerk free. Richly painted backgrounds also featured to help convey a creepy atmosphere.

The '80s show reminds me of GI Joe, Ninja Turtles, Smurfs, etc. All '80s shows I enjoyed on their last legs as a kid (albeit I never saw the '81 show until a few years back) but the '90s 'toons, particularly in superhero fare (Batman TAS, X-Men TAS, Batman Beyond, Spider-Man TAS, etc.) were just superior.

Lets keep this on topic- TAS Vs SM ‘81.
Everyone knows the 90’s Batman animated show was superior to the TAS.
In TAS Vs SM ‘81, SM’81 wins hands down for the reasons stated throughout this response.
Basically it was the more authentic and most importantly- entertaining and fun Spider-man show.

I did not watch the '81 show as a kid so this may be why but I don't really care about the episodes much because all of the action is simplistic in a formula for superhero cartoons no different than the mystery formula in a Scooby-Doo cartoon.

Have you actually watched an episode?
Can you recall one and detail the plot to me?
It sounds a lot like you are confusing this show w/ Amazing Friends.
The action in TAS was just as simplistic, that being not particularly so considering we are dealing w/ super-powered heroes and villains.
What was simplistic more so in SM ‘81 was the plots Vs TAS multi episode plots.
In TAS this factor worked against the show and made it seem like it was trying too hard to be a comic. Instead of embracing the new possibilities that an animated show presented and try something new and original, all TAS tried to do was adapt arcs from the comics in a rather basic, and un-inspired fashion.

The Spider-Man TAS had character and story arcs while bieng more pleasing to the eye and ear and just much more entertaining.

More pleasing on the eye?!
Are you kidding?

SM ‘81 Looks EXACTLY like a Lee/Romita SM book.
No ones art is more pleasing on the eye than John Romita Sr, if were talking about SM.
TAS had arcs that lasted over many episodes, but what this did in the most part was create a show that many people could not just sit down and watch. You had to have watched the previous couple of shows to know what was going on. Thus it was less accessible to kiddies and casual viewers, and more patronising to comic readers by delivering ham fisted and dumbed down translations of famous comic arcs. Translations that in most cases were vastly less entertaining than the original content of the SM ‘81 show.

BTW what did you think of Roscoe as Kingpin. As far as I know he was not on the '81 show but he was an amazing voice for the Kingpin I thought and kind of was the focal point of all the violence in TAS, even if he wasn't the biggest villain though.

Kingpin was good, as was the voice actor for him.

Ps -I will win.

 

[DACrowe]

Actually you just lost.

I wasn't arguing and now you're posting your opinion as fact.

Personally I thought the voice acting was juvenile in both '80s shows (and the '60s one too) and hammy without any depth. AS compared to Barnes who nailed Spidey or the Doc Ock, Hale's Black Cat, Azaria's Venom, Rosco's Kingpin, etc.

BTW, ironically the GG was voiced by the same actor in the '80s show as the '90s show. But in the '90s show he was a recurring character who was a bad father struggling with his son and didn't physically transform into a goblin.

And I disagree that the '80s show captures the feeling of the comics beter. I found it extremely shallow and it was a formula of singular villains showing up and being defeated without much carrying over of storylines. The '90s show had storylines, villains and supporting cast subplots that moved ever. And they were fun to watch....instead of the same episode with a new villain, over and over and over and over....

Also, I do agree the '80s show attempted to look more like the Lee/Romita era (my favorite art and story-wise) while the '90s show tried to get a DeFalco era look. Neither I think captured their aim as both looked simplistic and dumbed down. But the animation (motion) was fluid in the '90s show and not blocky like in '81.

NOw qualit yis all subjective so I won't say you're right or wrong, but I know the '90s TAS captured the tone and atmosphere of the comics better. Whether you like it as much or prefer the voice acting, whatever. Nostolgia will aways win out but it is all subjective anyway.

Maybe we should have a poll then?

 

[Dangerous]

Actually you just lost.

I wasn't arguing and now you're posting your opinion as fact.

The ‘I will win‘, comment I just posted because it amused me.

Does posting sentences that comprise of-
‘TAS had better characters,’ and- ‘TAS was more negaging to watch episode from episode.’
Highlight that you are expressing an opinion and not fact? Strange, it did not seem that way.
If we look at my sentences, you can see that I used ‘in my opinion’ to explain it was an opinion-

‘I'm not interested in a show that tries recreating the comics of the era because it just comes lame, goofy and over complicated for a Saturday morning cartoon.
That’s my opinion.’

Personally I thought the voice acting was juvenile in both '80s shows (and the '60s one too) and hammy without any depth. AS compared to Barnes who nailed Spidey or the Doc Ock, Hale's Black Cat, Azaria's Venom, Rosco's Kingpin, etc.

To me I found the voice acting, particularly on Peter Parker himself way off.
PP came across as a moaning b-itch deliberating over every minor decision he faced in any given day.
His voice too did not really sound like PP, instead like what someone thought PP might sound like.
Go watch SM ‘81 that is the real voice of PP/SM.
In SM ‘81 apart from others things, PP/SM is portrayed as a much more collected and cool character, less of a whining *****. Also there is nothing juvenile about the voice acting, I think you have just said that because you cannot raise any valid complaints against the voice acting, as I can towards TAS.

BTW, ironically the GG was voiced by the same actor in the '80s show as the '90s show. But in the '90s show he was a recurring character who was a bad father struggling with his son and didn't physically transform into a goblin.

Interesting fact, I did not know that.
The actor was very good in both shows, but obviously I prefer the art style and simplified take on GG of SM ‘81. It works better in the format of a Saturday morning cartoon.

And I disagree that the '80s show captures the feeling of the comics beter. I found it extremely shallow and it was a formula of singular villains showing up and being defeated without much carrying over of storylines. The '90s show had storylines, villains and supporting cast subplots that moved ever. And they were fun to watch....instead of the same episode with a new villain, over and over and over and over....

Well we have been over this x times and no doubt it will continue.-

GG did return a few times in SM ‘81 and ultimately SM ‘81 was the show that truly nailed the real Spider-man for me. TAS did it for you. For me though it is SM ‘81 that is more exciting to watch on numerous repeat viewings. I also find many TAS episodes to be a great bore, or vastly imature.
Such as the forgotten six hero’s (or whoever they are) in space w/ Spidey (boring) plus the re occurring neogentic recombinator plot lines. These especially were vastly more juvenile than anything that ever appeared in SM ‘81. Again I find it amusing tho not surprising that you are unable to detail any plot lines or specific episodes in SM ‘81 that you thought were juvenile. Whereas I can of TAS.

Also, I do agree the '80s show attempted to look more like the Lee/Romita era (my favorite art and story-wise) while the '90s show tried to get a DeFalco era look. Neither I think captured their aim as both looked simplistic and dumbed down. But the animation (motion) was fluid in the '90s show and not blocky like in '81.

To be honest I can recall many scenes in TAS were Spidey might have jumped onto a wall and the animation was jerky. Almost looking as if it was in slo mo, tho clearly not meant to be. I never saw this type of thing in SM ‘81, and I have been comparing episodes on my computer last night.
SM ‘81 perfectly captured the Romita look, whereas to say TAS was based on Tom DeFalco era is a bit of a cop out as he worked w/ numerous artists.
It’s a bit like saying nothing.

NOw qualit yis all subjective so I won't say you're right or wrong, but I know the '90s TAS captured the tone and atmosphere of the comics better. Whether you like it as much or prefer the voice acting, whatever. Nostolgia will aways win out but it is all subjective anyway.

Maybe we should have a poll then?

To me TAS captured a familiarity w/ the comics because it was trying to recreate them by dumbing down adapted arcs. SM ‘81 they did not adapt any comics arcs directly, yet it did TOTALLY capture the cast both in appearance/animation/mannerisms and especially in voice acting- see SM ‘81 for perfect PP/SM & DOC OCK etc. Better than any other media based on the comics that has appeared before or since.
A poll does not always yield accurate results as everybody remembers TAS, but half the posters here probably have never seen the superior SM ‘81.

 

[Feature]

To me I found the voice acting, particularly on Peter Parker himself way off.
PP came across as a moaning b-itch deliberating over every minor decision he faced in any given day.
His voice too did not really sound like PP, instead like what someone thought PP might sound like.
Go watch SM ‘81 that is the real voice of PP/SM.
In SM ‘81 apart from others things, PP/SM is portrayed as a much more collected and cool character, less of a whining *****. Also there is nothing juvenile about the voice acting, I think you have just said that because you cannot raise any valid complaints against the voice acting, as I can towards TAS.

You really believe that is a valid complaint?
"That Peter Parker doesn't sound like the REAL Peter Parker! It sounds like what someone thinks Peter Parker would sound like! How so? Because only I know what the real Peter Parker would sound like! And what I think he would sound like is his real voice!"
No, it's what someone thinks he would sound like, except in this case you have no problem with it because you're the one doing the thinking.
Peter Parker does not have a real voice as he is a FICTIONAL CHARACTER.

 

[Dangerous]

You really believe that is a valid complaint? ["That Peter Parker doesn't sound like the REAL Peter Parker! It sounds like what someone thinks Peter Parker would sound like! How so? Because only I know what the real Peter Parker would sound like! And what I think he would sound like is his real voice!"

No my complaint is that PP on TAS came across as a whining ***** who agonised over everything more so than the real SM in the comics ever did.
SM as portrayed in SM '81 was much more reminiscent of the cool collected superhero who featured in the Lee/Romita era of comics.
The inflection too of the tone of PP’s voice on TAS was always of a rather neurotic disposition.
He was like some batty old house wife sometimes the amount of stuff he worried about.

THAT is my complaint of the voice acting on TAS.

 

[crivelliman]

The 90's animated series sucked hard. If you watch, even in the first episode, they started cutting corners and re-using animation from previous episodes (or from the SAME episode). I remember the X-Men crossover in particular was pretty lousy, but they all got sloppy after the 1st season. SM would jump across an open field, pivot off his hands inside a laboratory, and then land outside again.

And because bullets were too scary and realistic for kids, everyone had a laser gun? ******ed. What really upsets me is how people associate the cartoon with the actual comic. You have no idea how many times I've been asked by non comic fans who either discovered the show recently or saw the show when it was on, "So Venom's in the next movie. Venom's a moon rock, right?" Yeah, moron. A moon rock.

 

[Dangerous]

The 90's animated series sucked hard. If you watch, even in the first episode, they started cutting corners and re-using animation from previous episodes (or from the SAME episode). I remember the X-Men crossover in particular was pretty lousy, but they all got sloppy after the 1st season. SM would jump across an open field, pivot off his hands inside a laboratory, and then land outside again.

And because bullets were too scary and realistic for kids, everyone had a laser gun? ******ed. What really upsets me is how people associate the cartoon with the actual comic. You have no idea how many times I've been asked by non comic fans who either discovered the show recently or saw the show when it was on, "So Venom's in the next movie. Venom's a moon rock, right?" Yeah, moron. A moon rock.

You know the score.

 

[diespinne]

Another thing that really killed the 90's series for me was the fact that the network did not allow Spidey to throw a punch. Ugh... it seemed at times Spidey was absolutely helpless and stood around while his guest stars did all the work. The animation did get REALLY bad especially towards the end. In my opinion, even Rino Romano did a better job voicing Peter Parker.

For the next Spidey cartoon, I wish they could get a production/writing crew as good as the ones that work on the DC animated stuff. I just youtubed a bunch of JLU episodes, and besides the crappy music, that show is AMAZINGLY well done. The quality of writing and animation is very consistently high and manages to pack a lot of depth but still be totally accessible. The action scenes are really dynamic and pretty brutal for a kids' show. First time in a while that I've watched a cartoon that really made me care what happens next. Great stuff, and I'm not even much of a DC fan at all...

 

[Doc_OCK_4MUGEN]

I know we need a DECENT new spidey cartoon... not over censored or on another planet... and faithful to the comics until the '90s... Season 1 could follow the 60s season 2 the 70s season 3 the 80s and the final season would work the 90s... JMS COULD write the episodes with the following UNBREAKABLE RULES:
1: Thou shall not suggest Totems, Sins Past or The Other on the series.
2:Thou shall adapt the stories to be televised, but stayeth true to the source material.
3:If rule 1 is broken thine ass shall be kicked by every fanboy on this universe.

Somehow his writing works for tv but when it comes to comic it is sometimes hit or miss...

 

[diespinne]

I know we need a DECENT new spidey cartoon... not over censored or on another planet... and faithful to the comics until the '90s... Season 1 could follow the 60s season 2 the 70s season 3 the 80s and the final season would work the 90s... JMS COULD write the episodes with the following UNBREAKABLE RULES:
1: Thou shall not suggest Totems, Sins Past or The Other on the series.
2:Thou shall adapt the stories to be televised, but stayeth true to the source material.
3:If rule 1 is broken thine ass shall be kicked by every fanboy on this universe.

Somehow his writing works for tv but when it comes to comic it is sometimes hit or miss...

DAN SLOTT!!!

 

[DACrowe]

We're going in circles. I say TAS is superior for a number of reasons and you say '81 is superior for a number of reasons.

It's all subjective, I think we've both made our main points by now. It was fun, but I'm done.

 

[DACrowe]

P.S. You really shouldn't call another points invalid. It is all subjective. To me Barnes captured Spider-Man as a witty individual who is a little nerdy but a fun persona who is burended by his selfish problems (like all teens and '20-somethings) as Peter Parker.

I think he matchedi t perfectly, you call him a whinning ***** whatever. I thought he sounded boring and the "typical" hero voice in '81 with no personality or defintion. And for the record go back to the comics, Peter has always been a "whinning *****." I mean show me an issue where he isn't complaining about something.

But as I said, fin.

 

[diespinne]

What?! It can't be over just like that! We have to keep this going, before this thread veers back on topic.

 

[Kevin]

that won't happen. I gave up LONG ago.

 

[The Joker]

Spider-Man 90's animated show was great for the first three seasons. Season one being the best. Season four and five were terrible.

The voice acting was superb from all. Particularly from Spidey, Jameson, Ock, Kingpin, and the Green Goblin.

My major complaint with that show was the over use of the Kingpin. He was in practically every show and involved in every plot. Got really tiresome.

 

[Eddie Brock]

Spider-Man 90's animated show was great for the first three seasons. Season one being the best. Season four and five were terrible.

The voice acting was superb from all. Particularly from Spidey, Jameson, Ock, Kingpin, and the Green Goblin.

My major complaint with that show was the over use of the Kingpin. He was in practically every show and involved in every plot. Got really tiresome.

now you know how i feel about USM...i still love the series, but God! let the Kingpin go already!

 

[Dangerous]

We're going in circles. I say TAS is superior for a number of reasons and you say '81 is superior for a number of reasons.

It's all subjective, I think we've both made our main points by now. It was fun, but I'm done.

True. I am done also.

 

[Dangerous]

P.S. You really shouldn't call another points invalid. It is all subjective. To me Barnes captured Spider-Man as a witty individual who is a little nerdy but a fun persona who is burended by his selfish problems (like all teens and '20-somethings) as Peter Parker.

I think he matchedi t perfectly, you call him a whinning ***** whatever. I thought he sounded boring and the "typical" hero voice in '81 with no personality or defintion. And for the record go back to the comics, Peter has always been a "whinning *****." I mean show me an issue where he isn't complaining about something.

But as I said, fin.

For the record I could show you plenty of issues of SM were no self pitying is done, and instead all we get is wise talking ass kicking Spidey.
Check out the Stern/Romita era of ASM to see what I'm talking about.
In TAS he was like a school girl the amount he fretted over.

Ted Schwartz voiced SM in the 1981 show.
His voice was rich w/ personality and he sounded exactly as you would expect PP/SM to sound.
Mostly his voiceover was kinetic and exciting to listen to and he captured PP/SM perfectly.
By comparison the guy voicing in TAS, to my recollection only ever seemed to speak in strained tones musing over his problems.
Boring.

Plus you gotta admit if it’s true what an earlier poster stated,- about SM not being allowed to throw any punches in TAS, that’s pretty lame. In SM 81 he kicked all kinds of ass.

 

[Themanofbat]

I like the '67 Spider-Man cartoons the best, because as someone else said it before, the best ones are the ones you grew up with.

And I grew up on those babies...

 

[SpideyInATree]

I love the Character, I really do. But I'm realizing that he's not really for me. Spider-man, as of late, has been going into so many directions that it's just too hard to focus and care. There are past story elements that I've never liked, not important what, but may resurface one day. Spider-man is just not the character I grew up with (The tv version) he never was, really.

This is not a "The writer sux, I hate what he's doing with the character!" thing. I think I'm just outgrowning him. I only stay for MJ honestly, and Aunt may, so I shouldn't even be reading this book as it's about Peter Parker.

After civil war is over, Amazing will be dropped, and maybe Friendly. Sensational Is top notch, but I feel it's storyline may get dragged along because of the other books, as time goes by that is, but I will give it a chance.

If the event of me giving up Sensational does happen, I will no longer browse the spider-man boards, I won't care enough about him to.

Kevin D.

I sort of went through the same thing after the Clone Saga ended. I felt betrayed by Marvel because I truly thought that Ben Reilly was the one true Spider-Man and I was very excited about it. Though they changed it, killed Ben Reilly, and I was a Spider-Man fan left sitting there betrayed. The books after that didn't feel the same to me and I needed a break.

Unfortunately, I took a break from ALL of my comics, not just Spider-Man. And it ended up being like 4 to 5 years before I picked up another comic book, which was right around the time when Spider-Man 1 was coming out.

Don't worry though. The books will get to what your standard is but it'll just take some time...or maybe all you need is a little break from it. But, there is always that sinking feeling that you may not ever go back. But that's up to you and Marvel.

 

[Themanofbat]

I sort of went through the same thing after the Clone Saga ended. I felt betrayed by Marvel because I truly thought that Ben Reilly was the one true Spider-Man and I was very excited about it. Though they changed it, killed Ben Reilly, and I was a Spider-Man fan left sitting there betrayed. The books after that didn't feel the same to me and I needed a break.

Unfortunately, I took a break from ALL of my comics, not just Spider-Man. And it ended up being like 4 to 5 years before I picked up another comic book, which was right around the time when Spider-Man 1 was coming out.

Don't worry though. The books will get to what your standard is but it'll just take some time...or maybe all you need is a little break from it. But, there is always that sinking feeling that you may not ever go back. But that's up to you and Marvel.

I went through a bit of a 4 year break from comics around the same time (1997-2000). I was just getting HellBlazer & Preacher and maybe something else that was catching my eye, but for the first time (at that time) in 19 years, I stopped buying Spidey monthly. I only came back when all the hullaballoo about JMS started, and I got a bit excited. When I signed up for Spidey again, I basically went out and found 4 years worth of missing back issues to fill the void.

So no matter how bad it gets for me, I've seen many rough spots in 32 years of buying Spidey books, and I know it'll get better after a while. Sometimes, you just have to wait longer than you might like.

Happy New Year's everybody....

Mike aka TMoB