Is Spider-Man the most character driven superhero ever?

[NotFadeAway]

Yes or No, and why?

 

[Darthphere]

What the **** is that supposed to mean?

 

[PhotoJones]

I think he's asking if the Spider-Man stories are more character driven then other superhero stories.

I'd argue, yes. Stan Lee pretty much invented the idea of the character driven superhero story with Spider-Man.

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

I think he's asking if the Spider-Man stories are more character driven then other superhero stories.

I'd argue, yes. Stan Lee pretty much invented the idea of the character driven superhero story with Spider-Man.

QFT.

 

[masteryoda]

I'd have to say yes, as well.
From uncle ben, to Aunt May to Gwen Stacey. Pete has always been motivated by the people around him and the choices he has made.

 

[SouLeSS]

Peter got powers and then started fighting crime because using said powers ended up getting his uncle killed.

Bruce watched his parents murdered in front of him, and has sdone everything humanly possible to fight crime.

Dunno, Batman is pretty high up there.

 

[Sloth7d]

Definitely a toss up between Bats and Spidey.

Both have had love ones die or get hurt due to their mistakes. Both try to make sure those mistakes never happen again.

 

[BrianWilly]

No. It always depends on the story and the writer, not the character.

Always.

 

[Red Mask]

Spidey is one of the first, but that doesn't mean he was always that way. I think Constantine and the early FF were also good. It was fun to see how their lives developed through through time.

 

[Sawyer]

No, its Batman. Spidey's second.

 

[GoldenAgeHero]

batman isn't really character driven. spidey is before JMS got his hands on him. back in the early 90's (mackie and the guy who wrote moonshadow or something) spidey was really chracter driven..

 

[Kirk Langstrom]

I think he's asking if the Spider-Man stories are more character driven then other superhero stories.

I'd argue, yes. Stan Lee pretty much invented the idea of the character driven superhero story with Spider-Man.

I'd say with Fantastic Four, placing Spidey at a close second.

 

[Da Games Elite]

I'd say Spidey is pretty character driven, sure. Batman is pretty high up there, too, but I'd put Spidey first.

 

[Red Mask]

I'd say with Fantastic Four, placing Spidey at a close second.

They both are character driven. And they've got a great CONSISTENT number of supporting characters. Few one-night stands there.

 

[The Geek Vault]

I think the original gravity mini was character driven.

 

[masteryoda]

The difference between Batman and Spiderman is that Batman's parents were taken away from him because they chose to walk down the wrong ally. Spidey's Uncle Ben was taken away because Peter chose not to act. Batman decided to fight crime so others wouldn't be a victim like he was but Spiderman fights crime to make up for his mistake.

 

[Mr Jide]

Definitely a toss up between Bats and Spidey.

Both have had love ones die or get hurt due to their mistakes. Both try to make sure those mistakes never happen again.

spider-man is a much more fleshed out character than batman. spidey has himbeat with relative ease I might add. Batman just goes out seeking revenge, spider-man does what he does because he feels as though its the right thing to do. He feels he has a responsibility and obligation to intervene where ever possible. Batman is just a nutter with too much money, making good on a grudge that he really should have gotten over by now.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

The difference between Batman and Spiderman is that Batman's parents were taken away from him because they chose to walk down the wrong ally. Spidey's Uncle Ben was taken away because Peter chose not to act. Batman decided to fight crime so others wouldn't be a victim like he was but Spiderman fights crime to make up for his mistake.

Doesn't that just make Spider-Man more guilt-driven than Batman?

 

[PhotoJones]

It makes Spider-Man more guilt-driven and Batman more revenge-driven.

 

[masteryoda]

Doesn't that just make Spider-Man more guilt-driven than Batman?

Well, yeah...but feeling guilty or being motivated by guilt is still a character trait. What I was trying to say is that everything good and bad that's happened to Peter has happened as a result of his choices. Batman just had a bunch of bad **** happen to him.

 

[PhotoJones]

Yeah, but the choices he's made because of all that bad **** makes him who he is today.

 

[LeChuck]

No, just the most emo.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Well, yeah...but feeling guilty or being motivated by guilt is still a character trait. What I was trying to say is that everything good and bad that's happened to Peter has happened as a result of his choices. Batman just had a bunch of bad **** happen to him.

Yeah, but the choices he's made because of all that bad **** makes him who he is today.

Exactly, Batman really had one bad thing happen to him. Then he made a series of choices after that that built him into one of the most interesting characters in comics.

I'm not trying to take away from Spider-Man, though. Frankly, although Spider-Man probably did start out as the most character-driven superhero, the whole genre has risen to embrace character-driven motivations pretty much across the board. If I were to answer the question posed by this thread, I'd go with BrianWilly's answer: it all comes down to how the writer wants to portray the character in question.

 

[November Rain]

i don't think spiderman stands out in particular.

 

[PhotoJones]

Based on what we've gotten, though, Spider-Man's entire existence has been defined by character-driven stories. Sure, someone can do a storyline that's all plot and no characterization, but that doesn't take away from 50+ years of strong characterization.