Yes, but that same character is so far and away from what Lee and Ditko created, that its not a lot of surprise some people prefer another take on the character.
The Lee/Ditko Spider-Man was different within 5 years after Ditko left, yet nobody complained... because it was a natural "evolution" of the character.
From a highschool nerd who got his powers but accident and learned to hard way that he need to use those powers to help other people, we got:
1. A slap to the fans face that a Spidey they read about for 20 years isn't the real Spider-Man.
2. Some crazy totem theory that contradicts what the character is about.
3. A revelation that his first love lost of virginity to his arch nemesis, and that his wife knew about it.
4. Constant tries for the last 20 years to break the only good thing to happen in the last 20 years (The marriage).
5. Pointless powers gains that actually offer nothing to the character. (Talking to spiders? Wow)
6. And lately the unmasking (Alltough so far the outcomes are interesting, so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt).
It's funny that you use "20 years" a lot because most of the 6 points that you come up with as a "radical" change to Spider-Man's character have all occured within the last 3 years.
Let's look at them point by point, shall we...
1. A slap to the fans face that a Spidey they read about for 20 years isn't the real Spider-Man.
I'm not sure what you meant by this one, but I'll go with the assumption that you were refering to the fact that Ben Reilly was the real Spider-Man and not Peter Parker, or the Clone Saga of the 90's.
Many people will tell you that while angered with the idea that "the Peter Parker of the last 20 reading years was fake", they still thought the Clone Saga was a good tale
IF it was allowed to occur within the 6 months that it was originally intended to take. But Marvel let this story drag on for for nearly 3 years before finally coming up with a resolution... but the length it took had scared too many fans away.
Over the years, we've all liked Marvel for taking the harder road in it's decesion making as opposed to the easy storytelling approach, and while the fans may not have liked the final "intended" resolution of the CLone Saga, I still applaud Marvel for wanting to take a chance, and Ben Reilly's influence amongst the fans today proves that the idea wasn't all that bad.
2. Some crazy totem theory that contradicts what the character is about.
I'm not sure that I get this one... the totem theory is not set in stone, nor does it contradict what Peter Parker is all about. He was a poor nerdy kid that attained Spider-like powers (either through science and/or magic... it doesn't matter), and chose to let these powers get to his head until that one fateful night where he could have stopped his Uncle Ben's killer yet chose not to. Spider-Man is not the hero... Peter Parker is the man who has chosen to become a hero out of guilt of what he didn't do when he had the opportunity... and that's a character trait that still lives on in the 616 Spider-Man of today.
3. A revelation that his first love lost of virginity to his arch nemesis, and that his wife knew about it.
Big deal... it was a story, albeit a bad one, and you move on from it. That's life... it's not always a bowl of cherries, and Peter Parker's life has been one of constant struggle... and though very Jerry Spriner-ish in nature, Sins Past occured, and now we can just move on.
4. Constant tries for the last 20 years to break the only good thing to happen in the last 20 years (The marriage).
I don't know which Spidey comics you read, but I don't see "constant tries" to break up the marriage. Yes, during the Mackie/Byrne era, they did attempt to bring back Peter to his old swingin' single ways, and yes, when JMS came on board, MJ took some time away to reflect things. But guess what? She came back... and she's still here. And the only time it's ever been mentioned as a bad thing has been under Joey Quesada's watch... though many "comic creators" in the field feels it hinders their abilities (or inability) to write good Spider-Man stories. Personally, I like them together... I hope it stays that way. But if they do have to part ways (and I suspect "One More Day" will make that happen... unfortunately), then life goes on and we'll see where Peter's life moves on from there... these aren't finite stories where Peter will die from old age... it's a never-ending soap opera, and sometimes crap happens that we don't like.
5. Pointless powers gains that actually offer nothing to the character. (Talking to spiders? Wow)
I've never seen Peter Parker "talk" to a spider. I've seen something akin to spiders being attracted to Peter's personality... but again, so what? I think it's kind of cool. Even during the hey-day of Spidey's comic career in the 70's had some pretty bad storylines (Spider-Mobile anyone?
), so why should we all like everything that comes out now? Stories are extremely subjective... and if you don't like them, then simply don't read them... different eras of EIC's at Marvel have created both good and bad times for Spider-Man... but there has always been changed and evolution of the character (and at times, some de-evolution). And we've been witness to these changes since Amazing Spider-Man #1, and personally, I'm thankful for change. Otherwise, we'd still be reading about Peter in High School... oh wait, that's what Ultimate Spider-Crap is for... to appease the spoon-fed readers.
6. And lately the unmasking (Alltough so far the outcomes are interesting, so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt).
I see lots of potential with it as well, so you can't see it as a bad thing. And while everyone has been going on about how "it's against Peter's character", I saw it in a different light. He felt allured by the idea of being on the "right" side... he was pressured by a long-time colleague and peer (Tony), and lastly, he was given Aunt May's blessing to do the right thing... imagine being Peter Parker your whole life... always living with guilt and secrecy, and the one driving force that helped you through EVERY BAD THING (his Aunt May) tells him that it's ok to tell the world he's Spider-Man. That must have been such a heavy burden lifted off his shoulders that it's no wonder that he made that deceision without really thinking it through... and both his Aunt May and wife were safely hidden in Stark Towers, so threats to his family were no as seemingly bad as one would think... and THEY TOLD HIM IT WAS OK.
Guybrush said:
Basiclly after all that things its hard to still look at 616 Spidey as the same guy from 20 years ago. So no surprise some people prefer other takes on the character.
Don't get me wrong I still enjoy 616 Spidey but currently I have to admit I prefer the ultimate version, and it seems a lot closer to what Lee and Ditko made 40 years ago (More edgy no doubt tho) then what we see in the 616 universe.
But it's a good thing that he's not the same as 20 years ago... just like he was a different Spider-Man 20 years ago when compared to 40 years ago.
And if you think the Ultimate guy is closer to the Lee/Ditko version, then that's your opinion. If I want to read Lee/Ditko Spider-Man, I'll read my Masterworks or Essentials. However, like many others, I'd rather read about an evolved Spider-Man from the Lee/Ditko era.
In my opinion, I think Peter's character has remained pretty true to it's origins over the last 44 years, and while I haven't liked everything, I'm pretty good with his evolution as a person.
And I'm glad he's not in High School... because who needs to pay money every month to be bored silly?
Just my two cents...
