This thread's for the Spider-Man comics and spin-offs, whether they're decades old or brand new.
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- Characters and comics that originated in Spider-Man but are no longer directly connected to the spider-franchise (e.g. Punisher, Silver Sable) are not on-topic, unless you're discussing historical connections and crossovers. If in doubt, check before you write a long post. If this isn't the right place, there's a more general Marvel Comics thread
which covers them.
Technically, Marvel's Infinity Comics (and their predecessors, Infinite Comics) are webcomics, not comic books, but it's fine to talk about their Spider-Man stories here.
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Edited by MacronNotes on Jul 10th 2023 at 10:58:13 AM
The true nitty gritty of it is that writers and editors simply just didn't want a married Peter because of the "hypothetical stories" they could no longer tell. It's the same thing with DC comics, and why Superman and The Flash are also no longer married. They try to hide it behind excuses ("It ages the character") but the truth is they simply don't want to write about a married character.
Just read Superior Spider-Man #31. Best moment was when Peter explained the situation to Miguel. "Yeah, that sounds just about stupid enough to be right." Christos Gage has a real knack for lovingly poking fun at stories.
Right behind it: Green Goblin: "When it all goes boom, you'll have nothing left!" Peter: "Except the dignity of knowing I never carried a man-purse. Beat. Goblin: "It's you''." Awesome.
I do feel bad for poor Anna Maria, though. No way Peter tries to keep up a relationship with her, under the circumstances. I wonder how he'll break it off. Either way, poor girl's about to have her heart broken.
Edit: Also, I just want to say that I was a fan of Peter and MJ being a couple. I think she was, in many ways, the perfect partner for him. She wasn't a superhero, but she wasn't a coward. She could handle herself when she had to, and she usually avoided being a burden. She was someone Peter could relax with. A lot of people want him dating Captain Marvel or Spider-Woman or She-Hulk or Black Widow, but those women are superheroes. They're people who love excitement and danger. They're not people who live ordinary lives. Peter needs someone more ordinary. Someone who can make him forget about being a superhero. MJ provided that, but as a girl who likes to party, she was also able to drag Peter out of his shell once in a while, get him out of the apartment for a night on the town. She could force him to have fun.
It's a little disappointing how few married characters there are. Reed and Sue, obviously. Luke and Jessica in Mighty Avengers. But that's about it. Hopefully, Luke and Jessica won't get broken up.
edited 16th Apr '14 3:52:11 PM by Tiamatty
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I hat how Gwen is now always seen as this perfect saint. i feel that that is doing a disservice to her.
also the miguel line was cute but pointing out your story is stupid doesnt make it less stupid. and yeah that gobby realization was great.
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
Completely agreed that as the most "normal" Marvel hero, Peter needs a "normal" partner.
Love is Love is Love
Why would people want She-Hulk and Peter to date? I think at least one part of Peter would object to that union.
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Well now that Peter's free again he can date Spider bite girl. we just need to know who she is.
I find it kind of surprising that in all Spidey's fifty years, only three love interests - MJ, Gwen, and Felicia - have really clicked with the fans.
In fairness, it wasn't Christos Gage's story. He just did the scripting for some of it, including the last few issues, which were still plotted by Dan Slott.
Who's "spider bite girl?"
Felicia? Oh, you mean that one-dimensional Catwoman knock-off whose popularity, I'm convinced, comes entirely from her inability to operate a zipper. Sorry, I just really hate Black Cat.
And yeah, I don't know why people are still portraying Gwen as a saint. I like movie Gwen, but that's a mixture of good writing and Emmmmmmmmma Stone. Comic Gwen lost her comic book sainthood when they decided, "Oh btw she slept with Norman Osborn (maybe he convinced her he was Tommy Lee Jones) and while we've got your attention, check out the Green Goblin's O-face." MJ has always been my favorite, and I find it weird that so many at Marvel don't seem to care for her. I mean, when Peter met her, face it, writers, he just hit the jackpot.
Old MJ was like, "yeah, I'll erase our marriage so we can save Aunt May, don't worry, we'll find each other again."
New MJ's like, "I can't deal with your crap any more, Peter! Even though none of all this was your fault because you were a ghost! It's all too much! Even though I survived Venom, and every other big scary thing that was a problem for two decades!"
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Funny but not helpful
Lets not slut shame Gwen for sleeping with a guy, lets just raise a single eyebrow in confused disbelief at her choice in men.
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EXACTLY! Tommy Lee Jones with white guy cornrows, also he was a supervillain and a murderer? Gurl, whatchu thinkin'?
heh, imagine if she had told Peter.
"Peter, I slept with your best friend-"
"WHAT? How could you? When I find Harry, I-"
"-'s father."
"THAT'S WORSE!"
edited 16th Apr '14 6:00:56 PM by RedM
The very best, like no one ever was. Check out my Spider-Man fanfic here! [1]
I still say the Jackal probably made those kids. It just sounds like something he'd do, doesn't it?
Funny but not helpful
Spider Bite girl is the girl who got bitten by the same spider as peter after it bit him. she was someone in his class and will be revealed in original sin.
And maybe also for the fact that she was in a committed relationship?
You know, part of me wonders if The Jackal was created because Gerry Conway remembered halfway through this plot he was writing that he already killed the Green Goblin and had to scramble to make a new villain to meet deadlines. "Uh, uh, he's green, that's good, and he uh, uh, he's gonna be a big villain, and he uh, he uh, ooh, he's someone Peter knows as an authority figure or something! Aaaaaand he's a scientist! Whew! With two hours to go til deadline, I'm keepin' this job!"
And then the Green Goblin was revealed to be the one who'd manipulated the Jackal into manipulating all the manipulations that were the Clone Saga, so it came full circle.
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Wait, I thought the Jackal did the original Clone Saga by himself and that Norman only hired him for the 90's Clone Saga.
Funny but not helpful
That's true but I think the fact that it was a fugly old norman is the more pressing issue.
That's part of why I think it makes sense to have him be the creator of Gabe and Sarah. He's got Gwen's DNA, and he worked for Norman and thus could have taken some off him, too. So he made his own "ideal family" or something, but used Norman as the "father" because... he considered himself "unworthy" to give his idol, Gwen, children. Or something. Shut up! It's not like the original story made any more sense.
edited 16th Apr '14 6:12:15 PM by HamburgerTime
"revealed in original sin"
Ah, OK. I haven't read many articles about Original Sin, because I don't particularly care.
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Maybe he hypnotized her with his shitty hairstyle.
Love is Love is Love
Don't diss that wave! It is the hairstyle that has been passed down the Osborn line for generations!
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If my memory of the big DK Essential Guide to Spider-Man by Tom De Falco that I had as a kid is correct, it was Norman Osborn's Scrier organization who gave Miles Warren the boost he needed to take his cloning to the next level and make clones of Peter and Gwen. Then he just kind of chilled out in Europe and ran his Scrier cult or whatever until the Jackal had died again and Ben had become Spidey and Peter and MJ were expecting a baby and jumped out from behind the curtain yelling, "Surprise! I can heal from impalement through the chest! Also I'm going to make you have a miscarriage! And Ben's dead! Now we're back to the childless Spidey status quo, and once I've made a few calls to Mephisto, in a decade or so, my master plan should be complete! Muahahahahahaha!"
Truly Peter's One True Love was Deborah Whitman. The comics have been downhill since they broke up
To be honest, I always thought there'd have been more potential to that character if they hadn't made her so unlikable. Spectacular! and Movie! Gwens kinda are hybrids of Gwen and Deb that are superior to the sum of their parts.
Truly Peter's One True Love was Deborah Whitman. The comics have been downhill since they broke up.
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