Comics Will Mary Jane eventually fade into obscurity?

[dkamphaus43]

I've had this worry lately that as the years go on, it's highly possible that Mary Jane might eventually fade into obscurity. I mean let's face it, the comics division seems pretty hellbent on trying to either diminish her in the books, and when they actually do feature her in some capacity, she acts pretty unlikable, which certainly won't help endear her towards new readers who are just being introduced to the comics for the first time these days.

The most recent things to somewhat validate my concerns are the extremely high possibility that it doesn't look like she'll be featured in the new films (which is where the majority of the public will be receiving their exposure to the franchise) and a recent article at CBR.com where even they were wondering if there's really a place for her anymore in the Marvel Universe:

http://www.cbr.com/is-mary-jane-relevant-marvel-universe/

And even though current spidey writer Dan Slott has tried to assure people over the past year that he and everybody else at Marvel loves her character and that nobody is trying to bury her, I don't think he's being entirely truthful.

And don't get me wrong, I don't want this to happen at all. I think she's an amazing character (even though she's essentially been ruined over the past decade) and I would hate to see her eventually go the way of the dodo bird. But what do you all think. Do you think I'm just being paranoid, or do my concerns have some real legitimacy?

 

[Ben_Reilly]

Mj was pretty unlikeable early on and just before she left in the mid 70's

 

[dkamphaus43]

Mj was pretty unlikeable early on and just before she left in the mid 70's

I'd say it's a different type of unlikable these days, a far worse type.

 

[Ben_Reilly]

True
Instead of a sl*t, she's just a b*tch...

 

[Darepool]

She'll have her highs and lows, but fade into obscurity, uh no.

 

[psylockolussus]

She's an iconic Spider-Man character.

 

[NealKenneth]

I understand why this is a concern but I do not think it is possible for her to become unimportant to Spider-Man. With Slott being fired and the success of Renew Your Vows, I think we might even see the marriage return to the comics.

 

[Ben_Reilly]

1 - When was Slott fired?
2 - Renew Your Vows is about to tank, badly, after being so well received.

 

[dkamphaus43]

She's an iconic Spider-Man character.

Something which Marvel seems pretty hellbent on trying to diminish.

 

[Themanofbat]

She's going to have her ups and downs like any other supporting character...
We've seen Flash, JJJ, Betty, etc... all have their moments, and then disappear for a while...

MJ was out of the books from 1978 to 1983, gone for a year after her "fake plane death", during the JMS run for a bit... it happens...

 

[dkamphaus43]

She's going to have her ups and downs like any other supporting character...
We've seen Flash, JJJ, Betty, etc... all have their moments, and then disappear for a while...

MJ was out of the books from 1978 to 1983, gone for a year after her "fake plane death", during the JMS run for a bit... it happens...

She's had almost nothing but downs for the better part of a decade now, and I don't see any signs of that changing anytime soon. And what's going on with her seems quite different than what's happened with the other characters you've mentioned.

It all basically boils down to the people in charge viewing her as a threat to their misguided vision for the character of spider-man, which is why they insist on either trying to bury her or ruin her character, and they may very well be successful eventually if things continue to go the way they are now.

 

[Vampfox]

No.

In order for her to fade into obscurity Marvel would have to make people forget about her which is kind of hard to do when Marvel is still reprinting stories where her and Peter were still married.

 

[Themanofbat]

She's had almost nothing but downs for the better part of a decade now, and I don't see any signs of that changing anytime soon. And what's going on with her seems quite different than what's happened with the other characters you've mentioned.

It all basically boils down to the people in charge viewing her as a threat to their misguided vision for the character of spider-man, which is why they insist on either trying to bury her or ruin her character, and they may very well be successful eventually if things continue to go the way they are now.

I dunno... The exchanged "I love you's" during Spider Island seemed nice and not forced and reminded us of her importance.

 

[dkamphaus43]

I dunno... The exchanged "I love you's" during Spider Island seemed nice and not forced and reminded us of her importance.

Oh big deal, that was about 6 years ago. And it's obvious in retrospect that it was just Slott doing what he does best, trolling his audience. Once Superior started, her character became even more ruined than she already had been at that point, and she eventually got so underused to the point where another writer was able to snatch her and place her in a series she had no real reason to be a part of.

What happened during spider-island has pretty much been completely chucked out the window at this point, and judging by the way she acts the few times she actually appears in the book these days, it really seems like she genuinely doesn't even like Peter all that much anymore.

And BTW, you're a little off about the exchanged "I love you's", because MJ was the only one who said it and to this day Peter still has no idea that she said it.

 

[Themanofbat]

Oh big deal, that was about 6 years ago. And it's obvious in retrospect that it was just Slott doing what he does best, trolling his audience. Once Superior started, her character became even more ruined than she already had been at that point, and she eventually got so underused to the point where another writer was able to snatch her and place her in a series she had no real reason to be a part of.

What happened during spider-island has pretty much been completely chucked out the window at this point, and judging by the way she acts the few times she actually appears in the book these days, it really seems like she genuinely doesn't even like Peter all that much anymore.

And BTW, you're a little off about the exchanged "I love you's", because MJ was the only one who said it and to this day Peter still has no idea that she said it.

Hahahaha...

The book is about Peter Parker, his life as Spider-Man, and his supporting cast.

Like I stated earlier, supporting cast members have their ebbs and flows...
Mary Jane will not disappear like a Deb Whitman. She's far too valuable and will always be in the books.

Perhaps not in the spectacular limelight that you think she deserves to be, but that opinion is subjective, and certainly not one deserving of such emotional energy.

And please, Marvel has been doing the "jumping one character to another book" ploy for decades, and it can be a useful sales ploy at that.

Get over it.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

MJ did leave the Spider-Man books for about 4 years before Stern brought her back and he wasn't really even a fan of hers aside from giving Peter an outlet.

Time away from the books isn't always a bad thing and given how Slott decides to treat her and use her it may actually be a good thing for now. With the exception of RYV-miniseries and Spider Island, Slott has made her out to be downright awful. Rumor on the streets is he's out after 800 and if true, MJ may soon make a full on return.

I agree that she's far too important a character, loved by too many fans, sells too many comics as a feature cover character, for her to fade into obscurity. Based on what Zdarsky had said in previous interviews it did seem apparent MJ was going to be written back into ASM thru the SSM series but for some reason that plug was pulled and we ended up with Theresa coming into the book.

Regardless, MJ will be back. But until then we'll just have to enjoy her in the only real good Spider book at the moment in Renew Your Vows.

 

[dkamphaus43]

Hahahaha...

The book is about Peter Parker, his life as Spider-Man, and his supporting cast.

Like I stated earlier, supporting cast members have their ebbs and flows...
Mary Jane will not disappear like a Deb Whitman. She's far too valuable and will always be in the books.

Perhaps not in the spectacular limelight that you think she deserves to be, but that opinion is subjective, and certainly not one deserving of such emotional energy.

And please, Marvel has been doing the "jumping one character to another book" ploy for decades, and it can be a useful sales ploy at that.

Get over it.

Don't tell me to get over anything. I have the right to be upset when a great character (or at least she used to be great) keeps getting crapped on by the current PTB because they have a personal bias against her. If there's anyone that needs to get over anything, it's them.

BTW, do you personally feel that her character is being done justice or being handled well in the current books?

 

[Ben_Reilly]

PTB?
I don't know that abbreviation...

 

[Themanofbat]

PTB?
I don't know that abbreviation...

Powers That Be

Don't tell me to get over anything. I have the right to be upset when a great character (or at least she used to be great) keeps getting crapped on by the current PTB because they have a personal bias against her. If there's anyone that needs to get over anything, it's them.

BTW, do you personally feel that her character is being done justice or being handled well in the current books?

I dunno if there's a personal bias towards MJ, "personal" sounds a bit much in regards to a fictional character, but there's no doubt an effort to make Peter available to date, but to maintain his friendship with MJ. Feel free to agree/disagree, but there's an old school of thought that Spider-Man as a character, the one that first appeared in the 60s and 70s, doesn't work in a long term committed relationship, because the Spectre of Spider-Man will always interfere... The original wedding was a sales ploy because Stan was doing it in the strips... Read the books from that era, it was all forced.
Eliminating the marriage/relationship was a step in the right direction imo.
It may have been ugly, but at least MJ didn't have to unnecessarily get killed.

But to answer your question, I find mostly ALL Marvel characters being butchered currently, similarly to what was going on in the late 90s.

 

[Ben_Reilly]

Less than a year after Peter and Felicia break up, Pete and MJ get married.
I grew up with them as marrried, and while I did like it, I much preferred single/dating peter.
As I've said before, I'm re-reading every spidey book. I'm up to Assassination Nation.

 

[Themanofbat]

Less than a year after Peter and Felicia break up, Pete and MJ get married.
I grew up with them as marrried, and while I did like it, I much preferred single/dating peter.
As I've said before, I'm re-reading every spidey book. I'm up to Assassination Nation.

I think Peter stayed over at Felicia's place during Gang War

 

[Herofan]

Feel free to agree/disagree, but there's an old school of thought that Spider-Man as a character, the one that first appeared in the 60s and 70s, doesn't work in a long term committed relationship, because the Spectre of Spider-Man will always interfere...

But how long can/should the character remain very much like that version before it starts feeling stale? I think him being married is less of a change, or a better one, than him being one of the Avengers.

The original wedding was a sales ploy because Stan was doing it in the strips... Read the books from that era, it was all forced.

A lot of it may be nostalgia for me but I thought the relationship was rushed but pretty believable and interesting (all the more impressive as behind the scenes writer Michelinie was not fond of the marriage development). Besides, Lee does have a pretty great take on the character so following his concepts generally doesn't seem like a bad idea.

 

[Ben_Reilly]

I think Peter stayed over at Felicia's place during Gang War

He was already married during Gang War

 

[Themanofbat]

He was already married during Gang War

Nope.

Gang War occurred in ASM #284 to 288.
Peter proposes in ASM #290.
She accepts inas m #292.

 

[Themanofbat]

But how long can/should the character remain very much like that version before it starts feeling stale? I think him being married is less of a change, or a better one, than him being one of the Avengers.

I agree that things can get stale, but that's for the writers to come up with unique situations/status quos to make things fresh to the readers.

Remember, the point of serialized fiction is to make things exciting for the new readers to get them on board, not to placate the middle aged man who's been reading the books for 30 + years. We, as the latter, can enjoy the stories if we can, but Peter Parker's story will never end, he will not age alongside us.
Some old timers have a hard time with that.