With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility
Unless you’ve spent the last few years hiding under a rock, you likely know that the above tagline is the motto and mantra of the Amazing Spider-man. Whether you know the web-head from his trilogy of films, his myriad cartoons or the comics that spawned him, there is no denying that the character of Spider-man is a cultural icon.
I must confess that I am a long-time comic book aficionado. My knowledge of both Marvel and DC Comics characters is proof positive that I am unafraid to let my geek flag fly. In fact, my love for comics helped give birth to my passion for writing. For over twenty years, I have followed my favorite heroes through adventure after adventure.
Through it all, Spider-man was my favorite. Sure, Superman was godlike in power and Batman had all the cool gadgets. Wolverine and Punisher were awesome anti-heroes and Captain America was someone to look up to. But, for me at least, Spider-man was more real than them all. He was an average guy who, through a simple twist of fate (and the imagination of Stan “The Man” Lee,) became a hero. He was flawed and made mistakes, but he always learned from them. He became a better man and a better hero each month… right before our eyes.
About the time I started reading about Spider-man (1987), he married his on-again/off-again sweetheart, Mary Jane Watson. True, MJ was a model and, to this day, some think it is unrealistic for a nerd to get the hot girl. I disagree. I think it’s sexist and shallow to insist that a model would not marry a decent man like Peter Parker. I, myself, am blessed with a beautiful wife who, when I met her, seemed way out of my league. Most women reach a level of maturity where they realize it’s better to have the decent guy instead of the guy with the hot car and the gym membership. I’ve never found the MJ/Peter marriage to be anything less than good for both characters.
Joe Quesada, current EIC at Marvel, disagrees and has done so quite vocally over the years. To my horror and dismay, he co-wrote the latest Spider-man tale “One More Day,” which found Peter and Mary Jane making a deal with Mephisto (Marvel’s version of Hilary Clinton) to save the life of Peter’s elderly and perpetually hanging-on-by-a-thread Aunt May. To save her, all they had to do was let Mephisto wipe their marriage out of existence. Your eyes aren’t deceiving you, friend. They traded their marriage so that Peter’s octogenarian aunt could have a few more days to be victimized by whatever villain comes along. They even had MJ convince Mephisto to erase people’s memory of Peter’s recent unmasking so May would no longer be in danger. Right. Because she was never in danger BEFORE people knew Peter and Spidey were one and the same.
Don’t get me wrong. Bad writing happens all the time in comics and is no stranger to Spidey (though the majority of J. Michael Straczynski’s run has been stellar considering the editorial pressure he was under.) To intentionally make the decision to wipe away 20 years of continuity and character growth is insanely shallow and childish. It’s as though a bonged-out frat boy who can’t see his way past his zipper has been put in charge of the character development of an icon. Now Joe Q will say he isn’t wiping away continuity – that everything we read happened – that MJ and Peter were a couple, just not a married couple – but that’s BS. It still makes the last 20 years of stories feel like they were a waste of my time and money. Oh, and the webshooters are back (Pete had developed organic webspinners like in the movie,) so I hope Joe Q can explain how “not remembering” the marriage retconned that little detail. No, folks, this Marvel’s EIC deciding to reset 20 years of continuity to his own liking.
Why? Well, he told the folks at CBR the following:
When Peter Parker got married, it caused the character to be cut off from many of the social situations and settings that put him at conflict with his family, friends, and especially the girl he was dating. Suddenly, something as simple as the tension he had with Felicia Hardy was completely defused; if Peter ever gave in to temptation or even considered it, he would be, in the eyes of the fans, the lousiest guy in the world. It became harder to place Peter in situations where he could hang out with other single characters, without him seeming like the oldest person in the room, even if he wasn’t. And whatever nerdish sex appeal he possessed, we had to tread very carefully. He became the perpetual “designated driver.” Sure, Peter could hang around with other married folk — I bet that would be exciting!
Let me try to put this as plainly as I can, and let’s be really honest here, let’s really look at marriage for a second. I’ll get personal, for a moment. I have an incredible marriage and a fantastic kid, but there is no question that my life was much more story-worthy when I was single. Was I happier? Absolutely not. Was my life a better story from a drama sense? Ummmm, yeah. It had many more twists and turns and theater and was a bit of a mess. Now let me say, not everyone, but for most: When people get married, they tend to settle down — life slows down and you gain different responsibilities, grown-up responsibilities, boring responsibilities. You go out to dinner less, see fewer movies, your social life is curtailed and revolves, as it should, around your significant other. In short, life hands you a mini van. While marriage makes for an okay story, there is less drama in a (healthy) marriage than in a single relationship. That’s one of the many reason we get married — we want stability, we want comfort, we want kids, etc., etc. No one gets married because they want more drama in their life.
(If you want to read the Q & A in its entirety, check it out here.)
Now, Joe Q thinks that there are more stories he can tell with a single Spider-man. Wow. Really. That just screams to me that he isn’t very imaginative. I don’t care about his explanations. I don’t care “how” Spider-man got married, how rushed it seemed or what led to the decision. It happened and Spider-man was better for it. Peter grew up (just a bit) and got married. I find Quesada’s quotes about marriage to be insulting. Marriages (good or bad) hold plenty of drama even for those of us who have not been bitten by radioactive spiders.
He goes on to make the argument that “married Peter” is less relatable than “single Peter” and that they want to continue to draw in each new generation of fans. I contend that Marvel Adventures: Spider-man (a line geared toward the younger crowd) and Ultimate Spider-man (set in an alternate universe with a younger Peter) fulfill that goal. There are two viable alternatives for people who do not want to read about a happily married superhero. I, however, am now left with a 30-something-year-old hero who rides a bike to work and lives with his aunt (like a loser) who (gulp!) calls him “Tiger,” a pet name commonly used by his wife. Ugh. I would rather have seen MJ die is some tragic way than have she and Pete make a deal with the devil to save someone who, on a good day, could go at any minute. Folks, it’s just bad storytelling – no matter how hard Joe Q tries to weasel out of it.
I, for one, will show my disproval by refraining from purchasing any more Spider-man titles. Unless this stupid show of frat boy disdain for marriage is erased and continuity righted, I’m done. As far as I’m concerned, Spider-man died at the hands of Joe Quesada and any Marvel staffer foolish enough to believe this is for the best. They had the power – but used it irresponsibly.
As a writer, I pray that I am never so unjust to the characters entrusted to my care.
J
[EDIT] After posting this, I had another thought. Joe Q goes on and on about the next generation of readers. Does he really want to send the message that a married man has less fun - or is somehow less relevant or interesting - than a single twerp who lives with his bonesack of an aunt? How healthy is that?
J. Patrick Lemarr @ January 3, 2008