The last few weeks have been a maelstrom of anger and rage over writer Dan Slott's conclusion to The Amazing Spider-Man.
Major spoilers ahead. Be warned...Leading up to the conclusion of nearly fifty years of stories, Slott has written a storyline that sees Peter Parker's mind switched with the evil supergenius Doctor Otto Octavius. The conclusion of the story has been leaked online revealing that Parker does not survive their final encounter leaving your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man dying in the body of an old man, while Octavious takes over Peter's body for good and strives to become a hero in the Marvel NOW! relaunch The Superior Spider-Man.
Fans are outraged. Death threats have been issued to Slott. The authorities have been contacted. Message boards are brimming with venomous rage about one of the most iconic heroes in comic book history being dispatched with such disrespect. Mixing up the status quo is nothing new for Spider-Man. And I have to wonder if people aren't getting worked up a little needlessly. Okay, a LOT needlessly. Before you rattle off an angry forum posting and your neighborhood comic forum, let's just remember a few things.
1. They already killed him once
In the Ultimate universe, they killed Peter Parker like a bitch. Beat down at the hands of the Green Goblin in a street fight of all things. I suppose since this was the "Ultimate Universe" it didn't count.
2. They've played fast and loose with the continuity foreverSpider-Man has been one of the most creatively molested characters in the history of the medium. I could spend a couple of hours on the sad reality that comic books become choked by nostalgia. These characters exist for decades and they don't age, they are rarely allowed to have long term relationships. Emotionally castrated archtypes who are never allowed to mature. Eventually the status quo gets mucked with over and over again until fans cry foul, and they fix the issue by hitting the rest button and starting over from scratch.
Go back to the 1990's for the clone saga, when it was revealed that Spider-Man had been a clone for years and was replaced by the 'original' Peter Parker. Then that all went to hell and they pull an 180 faster than you can say 'Scarlett Spider'.
Just a few years back the internet raged over the "One More Day" storyline where Spider-Man makes a deal with the devil in order to save his Aunt's life. Backlash ensued.
And now you have an even crazier story: Spider-Man gets mindjacked by Doctor Octopus and is killed. Fans will fume. But if I'm being honest here, this is the first time in a long while that I've been interested in picking up a copy of Spider-Man. And here's why...
1. When was the last time Peter Parker was interesting?
Spider-Man as a character has been taken through so many iterations over the years that it becomes difficult to invest in the character. When I started reading comics, there was one Spider-Man book you had to follow. Twelve issues a year. Simple stories at a standard pace. Not this modern era where there are a half dozen Spider titles telling overlapping stories and nothing really makes sense. Spiderman goes to space. Spider-Man is an Avenger. Spider-Man is in the Fantastic Four. Marvel has used Spider-Man so much that i no longer care about his comic book antics. The truth is Spider-Man is no longer interesting because he's been manhandled by Marvel editorial for decades and overused to move units.
You got Spider-Man movies, Spider-Man TV shows, and a thousand old stories available in print and trade. If you want Peter Parker, you have options.
3. Continuity is a noose
I feel sorry for any writer saddled with five decades of stories and given the task of trying to please anyone. It's impossible. There will always be a vocal minority who call any attempts to take the character in another direction as heresy. The truth is, writing a popular comic book confines comes with smothering conditions that must stifle even the best writer. Not that I'm calling Dan Slott a great writer, but I think fans need to get over the idea that their interpretation of the character and the canon are somehow the only way to tell the story.
4. F*** the Status Quo
I like my comic books to delve into mental territory from time to time (maybe that's why I'm a fan of Grant Morrison). The idea of a supervillain taking over for Spider-Man interests me.
I understand the main complaint: one of the greatest comic book characters of all times died in a way unbecoming of a hero, But that brings us back to everyone's favorite creative tool...
5. The Reset Button
If it doesn't work, they're just going to push it and take it back to where it started from. It's only a matter of time.
So while you are all bitching about The Superior Spider-Man, I'm going to read it and see if this ridiculous story is actually worth reading.
Now everybody take a deep breath.
Anghus Houvouras
It's pretty clear you're not a spider-man fan. I'm sure all you're looking for is in other comics though.
ReplyDeleteI've collected 500 Spider-man vomics, and feel this way. Is that wrong?
ReplyDeleteSpider-Man is my favorite super hero! I've read over half of Amazing Spider-Man in the last year, and I'm working on reading the rest! This is definitely gonna be different, but different isn't so bad. I'm gonna read it, and he's right! Its not like their gonna let Spider-man fade away. If its terrible and everyone hates it they'll find a way to reverse it! But even if they didn't/don't, It's been 50 years and 700 issues! That's a pretty good run! I'm excited about Superior, and can't wait to read it!
ReplyDeleteWill not read it, will not care. Just another cheap attempt to attract readers, much like killing off Superman for all of 6 months, or killing off Captain America.
ReplyDeleteIf you Google the World Wide Web, you’ll find out what happens online in issue 700. Someone leaked the ending.
ReplyDeleteSuppose they are correct. Doctor Octopus has been inhabiting Peter Parker‘s body – at least it has Doc’s brain waves. We find Peter’s brain waves trapped in a dying Doc Ock body. What does Peter do? He gets some old villains to break him out. Then he tried to reverse things – within 700 minutes (about 11.67 hours). But Doc has traps, measures and counter measures in place. Here’s my objections:
What does psychology and psychiatry say about different personalities inhabiting a body? Isn’t the personality of Otto Gunther Octavius radically different from that of Peter Parker? Just look at any book on personality disorders (i.e. The Three Faces of Eve).
Even if someone can superimpose their essence into another body, they won’t be able to control their daily routine like the original person. A case in point is any version of the movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Even though the alien spore took over the body, those close to them complained they were somehow different.
This inhabited Spiderman body is subject to others sensing something is wrong. Any of the science types might start a scientific investigation – Reed Richards, Max and his brainy crew, his former detective girlfriend, etc. How would this invader shield himself from any of the Marvel universe telepathic mutants or mystic types (i.e. Doctor Strange)? And wouldn’t Daredevil sense lies via the heartbeat?
Would a leopard suddenly change it’s spots? Why should Doc Ock become “good” just because he can be Spiderman? Otto was doing bad things all though issue 700 and prior issues
How would Otto as Peter Parker shield himself from scientific, telepathic and mystic/magical probes?
What would I do if I were Peter? I know that Doc Ock has many contingency plans. Remember the old saying – the enemy of my enemy is my friend? Why didn’t Peter just contact his enemy the Jackal? Then he could just transfer his brain waves into a clone? Then he could work with the Jackal to defect Doctor Octopus. After all, the Jackal is also brilliant. I’m sure the Jackal would help – for a price. This would also allow Peter time to defeat both enemies. Why didn’t Peter think of that?
Frankenstein is now a hero in the DC Comics world (DC gives the creation the same name as the creator). Suppose Bruce Wayne decided to retire as Batman. He wants to focus on business and humanitarian endeavors. He asks Frankenstein to take over the Batman mantel, while he finances everything.
Would the old Batman audience be happy? Can the old Spiderman audience be happy with rumors of leaked endings – if true? One could argue that the composite knowledge and intellect of Otto and Peter is one smart dude.
While I'm going to snatch up a bunch of variant covers and put in a subscription at my local comic shop, I still feel like part of my childhood is gone. Mostly because of HOW he went out, not THAT he went out.
ReplyDeleteSpider-Man was the first comic I ever picked up. I watched him fight clones, bury his aunt, lose his brother (Ben), gain another (Kane), and sacrifice his marriage to the devil himself. I carried his action figure in my school bag for eight years, played almost every videogame, and have seen every movie.
Peter Parker will be missed, but I keep hope that one day he (or possibly Ben) will return and become the beacon I grew up with. Untill then I shall wait and watch, praying that Octavius (and the writers!) remember that with great power comes great responsibility.
There's one main problem with this..saying Ultimate Spiderman died like a bitch..Saved Captain America, fought of his rogues, and finally succumbed to his injuries after beating the Green Goblin into the dirt with a freaking truck. That's fucking heroic. Mainstream Peter didn't have an ounce of a heroic end at the hands of Ock. Instead, he gets beat down by his own body and does one last desperate attempt to pass memories on before dying in a broken corpse. It wasn't heroic, it was just sad.
ReplyDelete