Comics What you miss most about Spider Man

[shinlyle]

Robbie Robertson.

Amazing how he's been totally left out of the book, isn't it?

Love your sig, by the way, man!!

"What about the chick who played the sexy nurse?"

 

[Captivated]

Nice list, Captivated!

You pretty much nailed it.

The thing is, alot of people seem to be hung up on Peter being single again...why? If you want to read abotu young, single, inexperienced and occasionally stupid Peter, read Ultimate Spider-Man.

Exactly.

And don't forget, the Essentials and the first 2.25 decades of 616 titles has him single too... of course, even single he was always looking for a steady girl-friend... love and marriage was in his cards early on. Some guys are just that way.

 

[shinlyle]

Exactly.

And don't forget, the Essentials and the first 2.25 decades of 616 titles has him single too... of course, even single he was always looking for a steady girl-friend... love and marriage was in his cards early on. Some guys are just that way.

Precisely.

He was pursuing a relationship with Betty....then he moves on to Gwen....then he went onto MJ....then Felecia....

He was always a one-woman-man. People think that making him single again and having him being a dateless loser will make things better. He never had a problem getting a date, from what I've read....he just always had a problem keeping the date!

Every time he had a date, he seemed to get sidetracked into his Spidey buisness by some pesky arch-villian, and the girl gets mad at him.

Those MJ-haters would probably like Peter to go back to having bad acne, get glasses again, and then have a comatose Flash Thompson smack him around like a football.

Come on, people, he moved on in life, let's do the same!!

 

[Doc Destruction]

A supporting cast (Like Betty, Ned, Liz, Flash, Harry, Robbie, Glory, Pete's neighbors and landlords, Mary Jane's friends, Felicia, etc) and all the drama with their lives. Yea, the soap opera stuff neatly woven around the action. I love it.

Peter progressing through life stages and lessons... you know, like most of us do. (A caveat would be: Don't kill Aunt May) He would naturally stay married to MJ (he IS after all a responsible, decent guy, who was marriage-minded early on) but someday let them have kids.

A strong, smart Peter, whose Spider-sense actually works, unless there is a reason given... you know, like his has the flu, etc.

A Peter who wholeheartedly loves his wife, sans mental obsession with a long dead girlfriend. Peter went through the stages of grief. Even though Gwen will always be special to him, he really moved on. He's completely into MJ.

Art on the realistic side, as opposed to the cartoony... I hate the freaky, buggy, scrawny Spidey. (JR Sr. was closer to a Deodato in realism than to Jrs. And has anyone else thought that JR Sr.'s Peter had a sight resemblance to Elvis?)

A more secret secret-identity. Finding out who he is should be a bigger deal.

Webbing that doesn't break. It used to be such tough stuff... now everyone and their dog seems to be able to snap it.

Continuity. Even references to past issues, so we know they are paying attention.

Shorter stories, at least now and then. I don't mind the 6-parters, but how about a stand alone now and then, or a TPB with two 3-part stories? Of course, there should always be the relationship threads that are on-going.

The Letter's page. I love reading these in the old issues.

You just brought a tear to my eye. I would LOVE for these to happen.

 

[Silver Sable]

Cardiac
Bommerang a little
Doc Ock 2
Shriek
Alien Costume

 

[Popo 85]

Only one... geez. I guess if it had to be just one thing back to the way it was, no more padding for a TPB. I don't care if it's helping the industry to sell TPB. I buy single issues. And I don't like 6 issue story arcs. I don't like 4 issue story arcs. I'll be honest, I get a little annoyed at the idea of a set "arc" within a span of comics. An arc that has the ability for a person to go in, knowing nothing of the character, get the full story within the arc, and then the next arc assumes you know nothing again. I've been reading for 10 years now. I know the character.

J.M. Demateis(sp?) do you guys remember him on Spectacular back around 1996? He had that Chameleon story, that wove in the Legion of Losers, that led to Gibbon and Grizzley and White Rabbit, Slip in Kraven back from the Chameleon part, Jack O Lantern, Man Wolf without fur. He made so much stuff happen and I don't even think that covered a full year's worth. It was just a flow of, basically, sub and main plots, one turning into another, and it was awesome.

Now we get 4 issues of Spidey fighting someone who's NEVER going to return (because he sucks) just to have an excuse to burn down Aunt May's house.

Look at Paul Jenkins and how moving his Mindworm story was, how funny his poker story was,

"I miss fun stories that could be told in one issue alone.That's spidey"

That IS Spidey. Now look at all the issues the Digger arc was and by the end, Digger's dead, and nothing has been added to Spidey's continuity except for bits on Peter, MJ, and May... The only characters JMS will write.

Supporting Cast is second, but I'm going to leave it at the padding.

 

[Hobgoblin]

J.M. Demateis(sp?) do you guys remember him on Spectacular back around 1996? He had that Chameleon story, that wove in the Legion of Losers, that led to Gibbon and Grizzley and White Rabbit, Slip in Kraven back from the Chameleon part, Jack O Lantern, Man Wolf without fur. He made so much stuff happen and I don't even think that covered a full year's worth. It was just a flow of, basically, sub and main plots, one turning into another, and it was awesome.

DeMatties's 1996-98 run on SSM was fantastic. The other titles at the time may have been crap, but I loved Spectacular. I couldnt beleive that it got cancelled and replaced with the reboot crap.

 

[hulkamania85]

I miss fun stories that could be told in one issue alone.That's spidey

This and Robbie RObertson.

 

[Arkady Rossovich]

Respect for continuity.

...and webshooters.I hear he fires organic webbing now.

 

[SpideyStu2]

The Daily Bugle

 

[TasDvl9]

Like most of you, I really miss attention to continuity...
but most of all I just miss Peter being an average, ordinary guy in his personal life.

Peter's life used to be really mundane. He always had money problems, problems with his girl-friends, even problems finishing his school-work when he was at university. In addition to all these problems that most of us can relate to, he had his responsibilities as Spider-Man. His life wasn't better because he was Spidey. It took alot out of him. His responsibility as Spider-Man seemed to be a burden that he couldn't quite carry and give his personal life the attention it needed.

It's been a while since it seemed like his life sucked. He's got a supermodel wife, no money problems. Heck, he doesn't even need to keep his identity as Spidey from Aunt May. (Or anyone else, it seems lately.)

As for Spider-Man being a burden on his life, he now lives in Stark Tower rent-free because he's Spider-Man.
What problems does he have? Oh right, he's got a mystical curse/disease because of the whole Spider-Totem thing. Good old mundane, everyday guy problems.

Oh, I also miss a sweet, innocent Gwen Stacy who was devoted to Peter and would never, ever cheat on him. (Seriously, did JMS get some help on that story from Jerry Springer or what? -- Sorry, I know that's been discussed ad nauseum, but it still drives me nuts!)

I agree wholeheartedly!

 

[Idio]

I'm just gonna list em off.

-Super Strength. Shinlyle mentioned this one and its totally true. Spiderman can lift 10 Tons, that's 20,000 pounds. He should be owning most heroes and villains considering how fast and agile he is. He shouldn't be getting his ass handed to him as much as he does.

-Old villains. Seriously, Spidey has one of the greatest rogues gallery in comics, and yet writers feel this need to keep creating new villains. How many new villains have stuck and haven't been god awful?

-The Daily Bugle.

-Webshooters that are mechanical.

-Less Avengers. I think the progression of Spidey to be a member of the Avengers was a great idea, except I just don't feel that these are the Avengers.

-Shorter stories.

 

[Gregatron]

I miss the Spidey books being fun and being written for fans of all-ages, instead of the (im)mature, "realistic", "relevant" garbage that's being published now.

I miss self-contained stories that actually told a complete story in every issue (even when part of a multi-parter).

I miss the supporting cast.

I miss the Daily Bugle.

I miss the days when every other issue DIDN'T have major retcons or events that will "change things forever".

I miss the days when the emphasis was NOT on violence, swearing, sex, and pain (emotional and physical).

I miss the days where there was the *illusion* of change--Spidey would deal with a major life crisis, learn a lesson, and then next issue, we'd be back to normal, ready for a new, fun adventure.

I miss the days when Peter Parker was the *teenage everyman* trying to make his way in the world, but constantly screwing up as teenagers do (instead of being a 30-year-old loser).

I miss the days when being Spider-Man was *escapism* for Peter (and the readers), not a curse.

I miss the days when Peter's secret identity was secret.

I miss the days when only *one* villain (the Green Goblin--and not the "resurrected" version from 1996-on) had a *personal vendetta* against Peter and his private life.

I miss the days when Peter was bitten by a radioactive spider by accident, and didn't have an origin tied-in to a bunch of pseudo-mystical crap.

I miss the days when the villains were colorful, sci-fi-based egomaniacs and petty thugs in costumes (instead of violent, mystical types or purely evil masterminds)

I miss the days when Spider-Man worked solo, and thought the whole world was out to get him.

I miss organic web-shooters and the classic set of super-powers.

I miss the days when Peter fought to help *others*, instead of constantly defending himself from threats to his own life.

I miss the days when Gwen Stacy was a girl who loved Peter and was faithful to him (and HE was the one who caused all their problems, because of his double life).

I miss the days when Norman Osborn was dead and buried, and didn't have incredible healing powers, and involvement in every stubbed toe in Peter's life.

I miss the days before the Clone Saga, the Reboot, Sins Past, and The Other.

I miss the days when--


P O S S I B L E S P O I L E R:












---- Peter had binocular vision.
















I miss the days of fun, love, and family, of comedy, drama, and pathos.


I miss the days of Great Power going hand-in-hand with Great Responsibility.


But most of all...I miss Spider-Man. I miss the friend I call Peter Parker.


That's what I miss.

 

[spideylover89]

I miss the respect for the characters and their history...'Nuff Said.

 

[spideylover89]

Exactly.

And don't forget, the Essentials and the first 2.25 decades of 616 titles has him single too... of course, even single he was always looking for a steady girl-friend... love and marriage was in his cards early on. Some guys are just that way.

Bingo. Pete was never the swinging type, he didn't date just to get around. Peter has always been the commitment freak and he has always become so attached to every girl he dated. Hell his relationship with Felicia is a great example. She was in it just for the excitement and sex appeal, but Pete fell in love with her and he was in it for the long run. So to keep a guy like Pete single for so long doesn't even make sense.

 

[jaydawg]

Amazing how he's been totally left out of the book, isn't it?

Love your sig, by the way, man!!

"What about the chick who played the sexy nurse?"

Thanks, Harold and Kumar has to be my favorite mindless comedy. But yeah, its a shame about Robbie. The guy was basically Peter's third father and his best man to boot. If theres one thing I liked during the reboot was the frequent visits by Robbie.

 

[mre]

Spoiler

His left eye.

 

[Popo 85]

I have a friend in one of my classes who has a 7 year old son, so I was looking through my pile of comics I didn't want anymore to see if there were any I could give to her. But then I was always fearfull that there may be a curse word in there somewhere. So of all the one's in my "garage sale" pile, I could only give her two.

Maybe this is just me, but I think that at the very least, Spidey's main book, ASM, should be cuss-word-free. I should be at least a bit more "all-ages" but I'd settle for no cussing. Especially having Peter cuss. I mean, it doesn't bother me, but I could never hand an issue to my nephew, ya know? Anyone else?

I also miss Jenkins, and Zeb Wells, and any writer that would write a SHORT fun story. I tired of serious stories that last 6 issues. Then don't lead to anything. Okay, he killed Digger, what does that mean now? Honestly, I had fun reading the Digger arc, but everything else by JMS was just kind of there. It didn't move me at all. And at the end, nothing really mattered. The totem thing was just left to question anyway, and all original villains that he made died (Digger, Shathra, Zeke) or were rip-offs that we KNOW we won't ever see again (Shaker, Killshot, Charlie, Ock III, GG 87, GG 88) ...wait. I don't want to go into a JMS rant so I'll cut it here. But basically I miss writers that I found fun.

The supporting cast is completely gone. Mackie used so many supporting cast members, as did Jenkins. How hard is it? JMS uses Peter, MJ and May. Sometimes that cop. He has one central villain and idea. Hardly any sub-stories going on (they're there, but not much.) So how do his stories always end up so long?! ...ranting again, sorry. I want Jonah mostly. And Betty, Randy, Flash. And I don't want these characters as cameos. Jonah's shown up, I think twice, in ASM as a cameo joke. I'm sick of it.

I miss the old villains. Millar used a lot of them very well, I thought, in MKSM. I really liked how he used Electro in that. Bendis made him, one of Spidey's most powerful, if not the Most powerful, villain get trapped in a bubble then ... faint at the sight of Luke Cage. I guess what I really want is a writer that respects the villains as much as the heroes. I don't think the Marvel Universe should be looked at as the home of all these powerful "heroes," but the home of many super "characters."

I may have slipped into more rants. If so, I'm sorry. I'm very tired.

I also miss the letter's page.

 

[imdaly]

Popo: as much as I still enjoy my Spidey comics very much and continue to look forward to each coming comic, I have to agree with every single point you've made there. Maybe I've just gotten used to the ways things have "evolved" into, but I read your post there, I can't help but think "yeah, that WAS something I always loved about the Spidey comics...what happened to it?"



I think the biggest thing I really miss about Spidey and his world is something that couldn't have been avoided. I miss discovering his world and his history.

When I first got into comics, I started out with Spider-Man Classics #1, a reprint of Amazing Fantasy #15. I was immediately sucked into his world. It was much like the perfect pilot episode for a TV series. It gave you the base of the series and left you knowing that you're about to jump into a whole new world. One that is full of great stories that build to a great history for this character.

My second comic was Amazing Spider-Man #377, I believe. It was part two of a 2-part Styx and Stone storyline. So now I was smack-dab in the middle of Spider-Man's life. I had no idea who Styx and Stone were. I had no idea what had happened between his origin and that issue. It was almost like reading another language.

But rather than seeing it as "oh there's no way I'll ever understand this", I saw it as a reason to start searching the older issues. I wanted to find out when and how Peter became married to Mary Jane...whoever that was. I wanted to find out when the last time Spidey had faced the villains were and what history he had with them. I wanted to find out what was up with that guy that seemed to be made of gold (unless my copies were just somehow colored wrong when it came to him).

I had a fresh plate.

Helping me out so wonderfully were the footnotes that were strung all through the issues, referring me to exactly what issue to check up on to find out about what was just referenced to. Spidey mentions his parents being kidnapped by some dude named Venom? Well according to the footnote, I should check out Amazing Spider-Man #375 to find out more. I had a mission now! I must get that issue!

Before I babble on to much, I'm gonna try to stop. But you get the point. The thing I miss most about Spidey and his world...is discovering it. Meeting and getting to know the cast. Finding out what happened that allowed the story to get to the point it was now at. And getting excited about learning more about the characters in the next issue.

Now, 12 years later, and 1200 collected issues later, I'm pretty darn schooled in all things Spidey. Now I admit that I still don't know EVERYTHING there is about him, but anything I don't know is nitpicky details. The thrill of the hunt for discovery is gone. I guess that's why I didn't really mind it when some points in the history are modified or expanded on, because it just feels like I'm getting to read a past story that I haven't gotten a hold of yet. I get just that little bit more of discovery rush back again.

 

[LarryLegend]

I miss good writing.

 

[The Joker™]

The Amazing Bag-Man

 

[rscal]

[the supporting characters: Flash. harry(oops he died), Betty, JJJ, Robbie, and the likes. making him an avenger took out the average guy aspect. now just hangs out with superheroes all the time.

oh and actually drama where things actually mattered not something that will just be explained away in an issue( death of characters and such). Changes in situation instead of changing the history of the character. the totem stuff didn't really bother me since it just added to something it didn't take away or change the history. the gwen thing was stupid. norman coming back was really stupid, i mean that was part of that great story which now is soften because he is back. parents coming back, then being clones or robots that look like them stupid.

 

[Spider-Kurt]

The power that ASM 121 and 122 once had in my eyes :-(

 

[LarryLegend]

The power that ASM 121 and 122 once had in my eyes :-(

Good one.

I'll add in respect for Spidey's history by current writers and editors.

 

[Xofenroht]

Mechanical webshooters and supporting characters.