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Spider-Man General Discussion

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This thread's for the Spider-Man comics and spin-offs, whether they're decades old or brand new.

  • Apart from the main Marvel Universe titles, Ultimate Spider-Man, Spider-Man "What If?" stories, crossovers, guest appearances in other books, Alternate Universe tales and things like Marvel's manga adaptations are all on-topic here.
  • Spider-Man 'family' books are on-topic (as are their own crossovers, guest appearances etc.) - e.g. Spider-Man 2099, Miles Morales, Spider-Woman, Silk, Spider-Gwen, Venom, Carnage, Black Cat, Red Goblin and Spider-Verse.
  • 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.

Discussions that are only about Spider-Man adaptations in other media (films, video games etc.) are off-topic, but discussing the differences between the adaptations and the original comics is fine - as long as spoilers for the adaptations are tagged.

Please follow the spoiler policy rules - tag spoilers for the latest issues, for any previews or content leaks, and for off-topic comics. When including spoiler tags, try to write so that tropers can make an informed decision before viewing them (e.g. which series and issue will they spoil?).

     Original Thread OP 
Since everyone likes talking about him. I know little about him(Ironically,I got nearly all I know about him from a Batman thread),but he's apparently important so I made this thread. Enjoy.

Edited by MacronNotes on Jul 10th 2023 at 10:58:13 AM

miraculous Goku Black (Apprentice)
Goku Black
#32026: Nov 11th 2023 at 4:28:47 PM

I thought ultimates 3 and Ultimatum did that

"That's right mortal. By channeling my divine rage into power, I have forged a new instrument in which to destroy you."
Bocaj Funny but not helpful from Here or thereabouts (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Funny but not helpful
#32027: Nov 11th 2023 at 4:32:19 PM

I thought the universe bonking into the main marvel universe did that

And Galactus was involved before then

Forever liveblogging the Avengers
slimcoder The Head of the Hydra Since: May, 2013
The Head of the Hydra
#32028: Nov 11th 2023 at 4:36:26 PM

To be clear Hulk was never that major a character in the Ultimates to begin with.

He was barely in the sequel after the first arc.

"I am Alpharius. This is a lie."
raykoda16 Volunteer Vexilologist from Between here and there Since: Apr, 2019
Volunteer Vexilologist
#32029: Nov 11th 2023 at 4:41:36 PM

Does Jan actually *like* Hank? Or can she just stand to be in the same room as him? I know that there was that Geoff Johns run where it seemed like they could get back together, but nowadays we can call that OOC, right?

Obviously no modern writers would put them back together, even just for the bad optics. But would modern writers even let Jan forgive him, or be close at all?

We would have answers to this if Hank was alive and they interreacted recently, but I guess not. In Ewing we trust...

Edited by raykoda16 on Nov 11th 2023 at 4:42:49 AM

U.S Army E-sports Discord Server Ban Speedrun Any%
slimcoder The Head of the Hydra Since: May, 2013
The Head of the Hydra
#32030: Nov 11th 2023 at 4:51:51 PM

We're talking about Ultimate Janet. In Ultimates 2 she actually saw him behind Steve's back and had a great time talking with him despite the assault. And at the end of the book after Hank is arrested for assisting the Liberators, Janet is shown visiting him in prison with a sad look on her face.

Also 616 Janet likes Hank just fine. Their romantic relationship is over but she still values him as a friend and fellow hero, having since forgiven and put aside the slap years ago.

"I am Alpharius. This is a lie."
miraculous Goku Black (Apprentice)
Goku Black
#32031: Nov 11th 2023 at 4:54:26 PM

That's really weird. Like I get 616 Janet as Hank only did that one time when he was goibg through a mental breakdown and cooled off.

But like the abuse of ultimate hank was way more extreme.

"That's right mortal. By channeling my divine rage into power, I have forged a new instrument in which to destroy you."
Blueace Surrounded by weirdoes from The End Of the World Since: Dec, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Surrounded by weirdoes
#32032: Nov 11th 2023 at 4:58:12 PM

Feelings don't die that easy, and let's face it, most of the people in the Ultimate Universe were deeply, deeply fucked up.

Wake me up at your own risk.
slimcoder The Head of the Hydra Since: May, 2013
The Head of the Hydra
#32033: Nov 11th 2023 at 5:00:13 PM

Janet only starts seeing Hank again because she found Steve an unfufilling partner. Cause he was in full "I don't understand young people" and acted like an annoying old guy so Janet went back to Hank because she could hold an enjoyable conversation with him.

Not helped that when Steve found out he was more upset by how it makes him look and acting like a white knight towards her.

Edited by slimcoder on Nov 11th 2023 at 5:01:21 AM

"I am Alpharius. This is a lie."
CharlesPhipps Since: Jan, 2001
#32034: Nov 11th 2023 at 5:21:52 PM

Notably, Janet and Hank did get back together after the slap. They were together for years afterward and Janet even married him.

Author of The Rules of Supervillainy, Cthulhu Armageddon, and United States of Monsters.
immortaleditor Since: Aug, 2023
#32035: Nov 11th 2023 at 6:19:45 PM

Yeah, people (like, well, Mark Millar) tend to overstate and flanderize how much of a mess Hank and Janet’s relationship was. Like, don’t get me wrong, they were messed up and bad for one another, but compared to some toxic relationships, they were far from the worst and afterwards they’re still friends who care about one another.

The same can’t be really said about Ultimate Hank and Jane, who took the toxic abuse up to eleven with Hank.

Edited by immortaleditor on Nov 11th 2023 at 6:23:13 AM

slimcoder The Head of the Hydra Since: May, 2013
The Head of the Hydra
#32036: Nov 11th 2023 at 6:21:35 PM

It's rather telling that it's characters other than Janet who hold the slap against Hank.

Janet has long since moved past it but then you have cases like AI Tony in Secret Empire bringing it up as a cheap low-blow to Hank.

"I am Alpharius. This is a lie."
CharlesPhipps Since: Jan, 2001
#32037: Nov 11th 2023 at 6:26:52 PM

Yeah, hank's daughter looks at Janet like she's a battered wife when she says she's not angry over it.

Author of The Rules of Supervillainy, Cthulhu Armageddon, and United States of Monsters.
Nofix from Over there Since: Jan, 2015
#32038: Nov 11th 2023 at 6:35:07 PM

It still amazes me that Peter doesn't get nearly the same amount of hate for slapping a pregnant Mary Jane because it happened in the Clone Saga, and thus was in the middle of a large sludge pile of issues people wanted to forget.

CharlesPhipps Since: Jan, 2001
#32039: Nov 11th 2023 at 6:40:50 PM

It's because Hank is such a Vanilla Protagonist that him slapping his girlfriend is what people remember about him.

Edited by CharlesPhipps on Nov 11th 2023 at 6:41:20 AM

Author of The Rules of Supervillainy, Cthulhu Armageddon, and United States of Monsters.
immortaleditor Since: Aug, 2023
#32040: Nov 11th 2023 at 6:51:11 PM

[up]True. Aside from his mental breakdown, Hank’s always been pretty generic in comparison to Scott and Eric.

Bocaj Funny but not helpful from Here or thereabouts (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Funny but not helpful
#32041: Nov 11th 2023 at 6:54:45 PM

The slap was part of a whole plot arc about Hank falling to his lowest point and dragging himself out of the pit

Peter slapping MJ was incidental to the specific clone saga story so it’s more forgettable

Forever liveblogging the Avengers
TrashJack Confirmed Doomer from beyond the Despair Event Horizon (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
Confirmed Doomer
#32042: Nov 11th 2023 at 7:08:14 PM

[up] Besides that, not a lot of kids were exactly rushing to buy (or rather, getting their parents to buy them) T-shirts and toys of Ant-Man back before his movies came out, whereas Spidey has been about as consistently well-known and marketable as Superman and Batman since the '60s or '70s (at least until Superman started to flag in popularity in favor of Batman, and then both got caught up in the disaster that was the DCEU, leaving Spidey and the MCU-boosted Iron Man as top dogs). As such, there's a lot more motivation for Marvel to sweep an instance of Spidey committing an act of domestic violence under the rug than there was for them to do the same with Hank.

Edited by TrashJack on Nov 11th 2023 at 10:19:44 AM

"Cynic, n. — A blackguard whose faulty vision sees things as they are, not as they ought to be." - The Devil's Dictionary
immortaleditor Since: Aug, 2023
#32043: Nov 11th 2023 at 7:12:56 PM

[up]Yep. One of the benefits of being an A-Lister is that there’s more motive from execs or writers to wave away your bad showings… even when those same execs and writers are to blame for the bad showing to begin with.

HandsomeRob Leader of the Holey Brotherhood from The land of broken records Since: Jan, 2015
Leader of the Holey Brotherhood
#32044: Nov 11th 2023 at 7:38:46 PM

Hank beat up the Masters of Evil singlehandedly. It's really sad people forget that and focus on the slap instead.

Wait. I forgot. He beat up the Masters of Evil singlehandedly while chained to a wall. He didn't even move until he uncured himself afterwards and punched out Egghead.

Edited by HandsomeRob on Nov 11th 2023 at 7:39:01 AM

One Strip! One Strip!
Shadow-Whisperer Comedy guy from Tacoland Since: Jun, 2022
Comedy guy
#32045: Nov 11th 2023 at 8:18:18 PM

[up] That sounds really cool, any pointers to where it happened? (so I can learn more)

Antiyonder (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#32046: Nov 11th 2023 at 9:15:21 PM

Also Peter's break down was even in the interest of making his replacement by Ben all the more acceptable.

Bocaj Funny but not helpful from Here or thereabouts (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Funny but not helpful
#32047: Nov 11th 2023 at 9:16:22 PM

Avengers #228-230 is the span of issues. The overall arc started in #211, where Hank rejoined the Avengers very desperate to prove himself. But the Hank Kicks So Much Ass part is directly relevant to that span of issues I mentioned.

Forever liveblogging the Avengers
Nofix from Over there Since: Jan, 2015
#32048: Nov 11th 2023 at 9:33:04 PM

Also Peter's break down was even in the interest of making his replacement by Ben all the more acceptable.

Poor Ben Reilly, created and assassinated for the same reason of replacing Peter Parker. People liked Ben, people liked the Scarlet Spider, and hell, I'd even go as far as to say they liked Ben as a Spider-Man.

Not the Spider-Man, as in the only one, but a Spider-Man. Like

Even after all the stuff with Jackal II and Chasm, I still think there's a good story to tell with him, even if it's just a six issue mini-series. About a man burdened by a life of trauma and the weight of memories (both Peter's and his own), about a man defiantly refusing to accept the idea that he doesn't deserve a good life because he's a clone, and about a man refusing to give up his past and his memories (again, both Peter's and his own) despite how much suffering they've caused him.

slimcoder The Head of the Hydra Since: May, 2013
The Head of the Hydra
#32049: Nov 11th 2023 at 9:35:23 PM

I hate how Ben is turned into a 90's joke for the Spider-Verse seauel.

Which isn't even an authentic take or critique on the character since being edgy was never his thing.

Edited by slimcoder on Nov 11th 2023 at 9:35:32 AM

"I am Alpharius. This is a lie."
HamburgerTime Since: Apr, 2010
#32050: Nov 11th 2023 at 9:41:02 PM

TBH I kinda liked Jackal II. He wasn't even all that villainous, really; the "they'll all turn into zombies" thing felt like a Debate and Switch added fairly last-minute.

Edited by HamburgerTime on Nov 11th 2023 at 11:41:11 AM


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