Far From Home Zendaya IS MJ

[Deck Rickard]

Yeah, I don't understand why they didn't just call Zendaya's character Mary Jane. And she could have been the same way (an eccentric crusader type) and also be an aspiring actress. I don't know why they went the "she's kinda sorta maybe not really Mary Jane" route.

 

[CaptainWagner]

I would guess they didn't call her Mary Jane because of the likes of certain posters here...

 

[TheVileOne]

I would guess they didn't call her Mary Jane because of the likes of certain posters here...

Then why call her MJ at all?

 

[I Am The Knight]

So they wanted to be progressive so they made MJ of mixed ethnicity...
But they didn't want to be that progressive / offend the racists so she is not actually Mary Jane...

What we are left with is a half measure that satisfies no one.

 

[Infinity9999x]

Then why call her MJ at all?

That’s more or less how I feel. I don’t mind Michelle as an original love interest. Pete didn’t meet MJ in the comics until college anyway.

I also don’t mind race swapping MJ as long as she acts like MJ.

They’ve done an odd middle ground thing here, where she’s not Mary Jane, but called MJ, but doesn’t really act like her, yet anyway...it’s just very strange. Not sure what’s the idea was behind it.

 

[TheVileOne]

In Peter's early years, didn't he become smitten with like every girl he would meet?

 

[UltimateWebhead]

That’s more or less how I feel. I don’t mind Michelle as an original love interest. Pete didn’t meet MJ in the comics until college anyway.

I also don’t mind race swapping MJ as long as she acts like MJ.

They’ve done an odd middle ground thing here, where she’s not Mary Jane, but called MJ, but doesn’t really act like her, yet anyway...it’s just very strange. Not sure what’s the idea was behind it.

You can pretty much say this about the entire supporting cast of characters.

I was hoping the MJ line at the end of Homecoming would've been one of those throwaway lines. Because it felt so forced, out of place and cringe inducing. But no. At this point I was hoping they'd just have Michelle be this new character that could be a love interest for Peter without any attachment to MJ. That would've been fine imo.

 

[Infinity9999x]

You can pretty much say this about the entire supporting cast of characters.

I was hoping the MJ line at the end of Homecoming would've been one of those throwaway lines. Because it felt so forced, out of place and cringe inducing. But no. At this point I was hoping they'd just have Michelle be this new character that could be a love interest for Peter without any attachment to MJ. That would've been fine imo.

I don’t mind the others all that much, because, honestly, Liz, Ned and such have all been tertiary characters at best. So I don’t care what changes they make to them. And Flash hits the general beats of what I want out of Flash: a bully. Now, do I hope they show more to him? Sure, but none of the films have really tried this outside ASM for a brief scene. And this goes more to my belief that Spidey is best adapted as a TV show compared to film.

Mj is the one real head scratcher to me. It’s just such an odd middle line stance. I’m with you, I’d be fine if she was just an original love interest, or if they had made her act like MJ and called her Mary Jane. Trying to do both was....weird.

 

[CaptainWagner]

So they wanted to be progressive so they made MJ of mixed ethnicity...
But they didn't want to be that progressive / offend the racists so she is not actually Mary Jane...

What we are left with is a half measure that satisfies no one.

This is pretty much what it feels like, and it most likely stems from the two studios trying to hammer their own individual visions into the same movie.

 

[Spider-Fan]

More or less I look at her as an original character, anyway. If the character had just been properly named MJ, I wouldn't have cared about the changes. But it feels tacked on with the way they do it. So more or less, Michelle is just a new character they invented to me.

 

[Infinity9999x]

In Peter's early years, didn't he become smitten with like every girl he would meet?

It seemed like there were quite a few, Liz and Betty notably. Though neither of those seemed to last very long.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

I don’t mind the others all that much, because, honestly, Liz, Ned and such have all been tertiary characters at best. So I don’t care what changes they make to them. And Flash hits the general beats of what I want out of Flash: a bully. Now, do I hope they show more to him? Sure, but none of the films have really tried this outside ASM for a brief scene. And this goes more to my belief that Spidey is best adapted as a TV show compared to film.

Mj is the one real head scratcher to me. It’s just such an odd middle line stance. I’m with you, I’d be fine if she was just an original love interest, or if they had made her act like MJ and called her Mary Jane. Trying to do both was....weird.

Yeah Liz was good but the rest, I don't recognize them. Ned is in name only as he resembles Ganke. Gwen, er, Betty...is just an all round weird visual choice and she's reduced to nothing. Flash is a bully but I don't buy it. He's the opposite of intimidating. He's more just an annoyance and I honestly don't get why or how Peter would even be bothered by him. He's less attractive, imo, he's smaller in stature, he's not as smart and none of the girls in the supporting cast seem to be interested in him. Horrible choice for Flash imo and again I don't buy him as a bully. Then there's MJ...which you and I completely agree. It's by far their worst decision. They tried to make changes but it's obvious they couldn't or didn't commit to one direction for her. This half measure isn't working for me.

More or less I look at her as an original character, anyway. If the character had just been properly named MJ, I wouldn't have cared about the changes. But it feels tacked on with the way they do it. So more or less, Michelle is just a new character they invented to me.

So why keep referring to her as MJ? It's so odd to me. I'd rather they forgot about the MJ line and just rolled with an all new character called Michelle. From the very start of Homecoming casting and production, there's always been something off with the studio and how they handled the whole Michelle Mary Jane thing.

 

[Spider-Fan]

So why keep referring to her as MJ? It's so odd to me. I'd rather they forgot about the MJ line and just rolled with an all new character called Michelle. From the very start of Homecoming casting and production, there's always been something off with the studio and how they handled the whole Michelle Mary Jane thing.

Even if they keep calling her MJ, she's more or less a new character even still. Down to the name, LOL! I agree it could have been handled much better, but whatever. More or less she is a new character who they slapped her initials onto and called it a day. Again, I look at her as a new character anyway.

 

[Infinity9999x]

Yeah Liz was good but the rest, I don't recognize them. Ned is in name only as he resembles Ganke. Gwen, er, Betty...is just an all round weird visual choice and she's reduced to nothing. Flash is a bully but I don't buy it. He's the opposite of intimidating. He's more just an annoyance and I honestly don't get why or how Peter would even be bothered by him. He's less attractive, imo, he's smaller in stature, he's not as smart and none of the girls in the supporting cast seem to be interested in him. Horrible choice for Flash imo and again I don't buy him as a bully. Then there's MJ...which you and I completely agree. It's by far their worst decision. They tried to make changes but it's obvious they couldn't or didn't commit to one direction for her. This half measure isn't working for me.



So why keep referring to her as MJ? It's so odd to me. I'd rather they forgot about the MJ line and just rolled with an all new character called Michelle. From the very start of Homecoming casting and production, there's always been something off with the studio and how they handled the whole Michelle Mary Jane thing.

Yeah, I enjoyed Liz. But again, with Betty and Ned, does anybody really care all that much? Really? Like, who was pulling for a super 100% comic accurate Ned Leeds? What fan is over there holding up their favorite Ned centric stories from the comics in anger? The biggest thing I remember Ned contributing to the comics was dying in Berlin. So the changes to them I really didn't care about. They were characters that were never centric to the mythos.

For Flash, eh, I can buy it. Bullies today don't have to be the good looking jocks. They can be the rich kids. And Flash was clearly a spoiled rich kid. Is it my ideal version of Flash? No, but it's a close enough take that I think it works.

And yeah, the MJ thing is just odd. Spider-fan, I agree with you. I essentially view her as a new creation, but, again, why muddle it with the MJ confusion? It's just messy. And needless annoys the people who would be hoping that we might see a comic accurate Mary Jane (personality-wise, I could care less about her race) for the first time. Raimi's films butchered her, and now we'll never see her in this. Which is a bummer. But, again, if you don't ever have her called MJ, then I wouldn't be annoyed or putting unnecessary expectations on this character. You keep her as Michelle, you have her be a new creation, and I would never get a tinge of annoyance that they're trying to straddle the line with this "kind of Mary Jane adaptation and kind of not" thing.

And overall, it's just a really weird choice. I don't know why they thought it was a good idea.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

Even if they keep calling her MJ, she's more or less a new character even still. Down to the name, LOL! I agree it could have been handled much better, but whatever. More or less she is a new character who they slapped her initials onto and called it a day. Again, I look at her as a new character anyway.

I remember after Homecoming released one of the first script writers said her character was supposed to be a new version of Mary Jane. That's before the studio and or other writers stepped in and made changes. So, yes she is ultimately a new character but you can tell they couldn't make up their minds about what to do. Or maybe they couldn't agree. So, we're left with something half-a$$ed. I love Mary Jane so I'm disappointed.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

Yeah, I enjoyed Liz. But again, with Betty and Ned, does anybody really care all that much? Really? Like, who was pulling for a super 100% comic accurate Ned Leeds? What fan is over there holding up their favorite Ned centric stories from the comics in anger? The biggest thing I remember Ned contributing to the comics was dying in Berlin. So the changes to them I really didn't care about. They were characters that were never centric to the mythos.

For Flash, eh, I can buy it. Bullies today don't have to be the good looking jocks. They can be the rich kids. And Flash was clearly a spoiled rich kid. Is it my ideal version of Flash? No, but it's a close enough take that I think it works.

And yeah, the MJ thing is just odd. Spider-fan, I agree with you. I essentially view her as a new creation, but, again, why muddle it with the MJ confusion? It's just messy. And needless annoys the people who would be hoping that we might see a comic accurate Mary Jane (personality-wise, I could care less about her race) for the first time. Raimi's films butchered her, and now we'll never see her in this. Which is a bummer. But, again, if you don't ever have her called MJ, then I wouldn't be annoyed or putting unnecessary expectations on this character. You keep her as Michelle, you have her be a new creation, and I would never get a tinge of annoyance that they're trying to straddle the line with this "kind of Mary Jane adaptation and kind of not" thing.

And overall, it's just a really weird choice. I don't know why they thought it was a good idea.

Yeah I agree. By pointing out changes made to Ned and Betty--I wasn't arguing they're so important the changes shouldn't have been made, it's more about showing how changes they've made make little to no sense. Change for the sake of change?

Flash was more than just a bully though. That's just one facet of his character. With all the changes they've made they should have just made him a new character as well.

I'm not a fan of this supporting cast. When Marvel and Sony made their deal, I definitely wanted the supporting cast to play a bigger role like we saw in TSSM. Liz, Betty, Flash, Robbie, Sally, JJJ, etc. Imo they had a great opportunity...it's lost on me.

 

[Spider-Fan]

Yeah, I enjoyed Liz. But again, with Betty and Ned, does anybody really care all that much? Really? Like, who was pulling for a super 100% comic accurate Ned Leeds? What fan is over there holding up their favorite Ned centric stories from the comics in anger? The biggest thing I remember Ned contributing to the comics was dying in Berlin. So the changes to them I really didn't care about. They were characters that were never centric to the mythos.

For Flash, eh, I can buy it. Bullies today don't have to be the good looking jocks. They can be the rich kids. And Flash was clearly a spoiled rich kid. Is it my ideal version of Flash? No, but it's a close enough take that I think it works.

And yeah, the MJ thing is just odd. Spider-fan, I agree with you. I essentially view her as a new creation, but, again, why muddle it with the MJ confusion? It's just messy. And needless annoys the people who would be hoping that we might see a comic accurate Mary Jane (personality-wise, I could care less about her race) for the first time. Raimi's films butchered her, and now we'll never see her in this. Which is a bummer. But, again, if you don't ever have her called MJ, then I wouldn't be annoyed or putting unnecessary expectations on this character. You keep her as Michelle, you have her be a new creation, and I would never get a tinge of annoyance that they're trying to straddle the line with this "kind of Mary Jane adaptation and kind of not" thing.

And overall, it's just a really weird choice. I don't know why they thought it was a good idea.

I agree that it was a weird choice to meet in the middle sort of. But that said, it still doesn't bother me much since in the end, she is basically a new character. I can see easily why some are bothered.

 

[CaptainWagner]

The names still don't make sense. And I definitely think there are some Sony shenanigans to blame. But at this point, everyone really needs to accept it is the way it is and just judge them as characters in their own right.

 

[ironwez20]

Do you think Sony wanted to do this. Sony wanted to make the characters unrecognizable cause of rights issues?

 

[Marvel united]

Do you think Sony wanted to do this. Sony wanted to make the characters unrecognizable cause of rights issues?

Maybe? Classic MJ did appear in Spider-Verse after all. It's really a shame because the Raimi films didn't do the character justice and she was cut out of TASM2. And now we're getting an MJ who isn't "really" MJ but still is MJ. Mary Jane has never been done right in a live action movie. If she were accurate to the 616 interpretation -- she would basically be a fresh character to the GA, so wouldn't that still fit their "new and different from before" criteria? Zendaya is basically Mary Jane in real life anyway. Missed opportunity.

I wouldn't at all be surprised if years down the road, we found that Sony was the reason for the Michelle confusion

 

[TheVileOne]

I doubt Feige was averse to it.

Marvel Studios has made plenty of comparable changes to characters in their own films. To me it's a pick your battles situation. Does it annoy me? Yes. Am I going to rage and boycott over it? No.

 

[Boy Scout]

I don’t see Sony being especially interested in changing everything around for ****s and giggles, and even if they were, Marvel probably could’ve put a stop to it all if they cared enough. We obviously don’t know all the details of the deal they made, but we do know that nothing happens within the MCU that Feige doesn’t sign off on. And if he had any issue with the Michelle/MJ situation, it would’ve been DOA.

 

[hellblazer103]

Does it annoy me? Yes. Am I going to rage and boycott over it? No.

Don't cha ever get the feeling that maybe you should, though? I do....

 

[TheVileOne]

Don't cha ever get the feeling that maybe you should, though? I do....

I mean, I could, but I think it wouldn't really solve anything, and I'd rather just move on and find something else to enjoy. Like Goblin Slayer.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

Maybe? Classic MJ did appear in Spider-Verse after all. It's really a shame because the Raimi films didn't do the character justice and she was cut out of TASM2. And now we're getting an MJ who isn't "really" MJ but still is MJ. Mary Jane has never been done right in a live action movie. If she were accurate to the 616 interpretation -- she would basically be a fresh character to the GA, so wouldn't that still fit their "new and different from before" criteria? Zendaya is basically Mary Jane in real life anyway. Missed opportunity.

I wouldn't at all be surprised if years down the road, we found that Sony was the reason for the Michelle confusion

I've been saying this for awhile...if they actually put a version of Mary Jane that is close to the 616 version on screen, it would actually be refreshing and new. Because all she's ever been is a damsel or some kind of amalgamation.

For some reason the writers or the studio or whomever seem bent on making changes to her character when they really don't need to and it's frustrating.