Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 21
  1. #1
    Ultimate Member Mister Mets's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    18,912

    Default Rick Remender's rejected 2009 Spider-Man pitch

    On twitter, Rick Remender (X-Force, Uncanny Avengers, Venom) shared a pitch for a Spider-Man story that Marvel ultimately rejected. It featured Spider-Man against a group of psychotic bug-based villains who got their powers from the same radiation he did.

    It's interesting to see what runs we could have had.

    Part of the problem could have been timing. This was during Brand New Day, so it didn't necessarily fit Marvel's approach at the time (at that point, they were focusing on classic villains with the Gauntlet; this story might not mesh well with other co-writers.)
    Sincerely,
    Thomas Mets

  2. #2
    BANNED
    Join Date
    Dec 2018
    Posts
    9,358

    Default

    Remender's rejected pitch proves that one of the biggest claims about BND was a lie. The justification given at the time about OMD and BND was that this would provide inspiration and a springboard for creators to do more creative stuff and bring in new ideas...but Remender's pitch which seemed set up to go there was rejected.

    So all that was being enforced was a rigid editorial mandate about playing with "the toys in the box", which exposes the propaganda around that time for what it is.

    My guess is that Remender's pitch was rejected for its more science-fiction premise, and the heightened association of Spider-Man with insects...when Peter is supposed to be the "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man" and not a symbol of actual insects and fears related to that highly disgusting part of the animal kingdom. Likewise, it might have seemed a bit too similar to the Spider-Totem for some people.

  3. #3
    Better than YOU! Alan2099's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    7,420

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Revolutionary_Jack View Post
    Remender's rejected pitch proves that one of the biggest claims about BND was a lie. The justification given at the time about OMD and BND was that this would provide inspiration and a springboard for creators to do more creative stuff and bring in new ideas...but Remender's pitch which seemed set up to go there was rejected.

    So all that was being enforced was a rigid editorial mandate about playing with "the toys in the box", which exposes the propaganda around that time for what it is.

    My guess is that Remender's pitch was rejected for its more science-fiction premise, and the heightened association of Spider-Man with insects...when Peter is supposed to be the "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man" and not a symbol of actual insects and fears related to that highly disgusting part of the animal kingdom. Likewise, it might have seemed a bit too similar to the Spider-Totem for some people.
    Rejecting a pitch because they think it's the wrong direction or doesn't fit in with what they want to do has absolutely nothing to do with OMD. Stuff gets rejected all the time. Just because somebody says they want new ideas doesn't mean they'll take anything you give them.

    You really need to stop trying to blame everything on OMD. It gets old.

    Also, I read the title as a rejeted Spider-man 2099 pitch and got confused when I didn't see any mention of him.

  4. #4

    Default

    still could happen today. never know, I guess.

  5. #5
    Moderator Frontier's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2014
    Posts
    115,027

    Default

    That reads as a Remender pitch, although I don't think he'd be a good fit for Spidey on a consistent basis unless they gave him a niche satellite title.

  6. #6
    Benefactor / Malefactor H-E-D's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2015
    Posts
    3,452

    Default

    This is very, very Remender. Doesn't sound like it would have been a good tonal fit for Spidey. And the whole "other irradiated bugs" thing feels a lot like when everybody was following Geoff Johns' lead with the Rainbow Lanterns.

  7. #7
    Formerly Assassin Spider Huntsman Spider's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    New Jersey, U.S.A.
    Posts
    21,237

    Default

    It could have been a good idea, particularly given Mark Millar's Marvel Knights Spider-Man where it was asserted that many, if not most, of the classic supervillains stemmed from a long-running conspiracy by corrupt actors in business and government to distract the then-nascent superhero population from their own (greater) crimes against society and humanity. Given that, the spider that bit Peter Parker could have easily been tied back to that conspiracy as one such experiment in creating supervillains, only it got loose, bit some random teenager (or teenagers, if you count Cindy Moon/Silk), and then came Spider-Man, the greatest hero of the Marvel Universe. Of course, if that was the case, who's to say that spider was the only such experimental subject? It would have been a great way to tie together and expand (a lot of) the animal-based members of Spider-Man's rogues gallery without necessarily invoking mystic animal totems, not that I disliked that particular idea. Alas.
    The spider is always on the hunt.

  8. #8
    Moderator Frontier's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2014
    Posts
    115,027

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by H-E-D View Post
    This is very, very Remender. Doesn't sound like it would have been a good tonal fit for Spidey. And the whole "other irradiated bugs" thing feels a lot like when everybody was following Geoff Johns' lead with the Rainbow Lanterns.
    To be honest "enemies born from a similar origin" is a pretty time-honored storytelling convention.

  9. #9
    Formerly Assassin Spider Huntsman Spider's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    New Jersey, U.S.A.
    Posts
    21,237

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Frontier View Post
    To be honest "enemies born from a similar origin" is a pretty time-honored storytelling convention.
    Exactly. It adds resonance, especially if you consider the villain as representing the Jungian shadow archetype of the hero, the person the hero could have been or become under different circumstances or if the hero had made different choices in life.
    The spider is always on the hunt.

  10. #10
    Fantastic Member Hugo Strange's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2019
    Posts
    337

    Default

    It reminds me of Silk.

  11. #11
    Better than YOU! Alan2099's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    7,420

    Default

    It could have been a good idea, particularly given Mark Millar's Marvel Knights Spider-Man where it was asserted that many, if not most, of the classic supervillains stemmed from a long-running conspiracy by corrupt actors in business and government to distract the then-nascent superhero population from their own (greater) crimes against society and humanity.
    I always thought that idea was really forced and stupid. I'm glad nobody has ever really decided to follow up on it.

  12. #12
    Ultimate Member Mister Mets's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    18,912

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Alan2099 View Post
    Rejecting a pitch because they think it's the wrong direction or doesn't fit in with what they want to do has absolutely nothing to do with OMD. Stuff gets rejected all the time. Just because somebody says they want new ideas doesn't mean they'll take anything you give them.

    You really need to stop trying to blame everything on OMD. It gets old.

    Also, I read the title as a rejeted Spider-man 2099 pitch and got confused when I didn't see any mention of him.
    I realized that after I made the title.

    I'd also note that this pitch doesn't have much to do with Peter Parker's marital status.

    The logistical requirement is that you need space to tell a long-term story with new villains, which isn't always a good fit for Marvel's plans with Spider-Man. You're not always going to have 25 or so issues to focus on four new interconnected villains who have been shut-ins and haven't been operating behind the scenes. The story itself needs to be seeded, to set up why Peter would be interested in his origins.
    Sincerely,
    Thomas Mets

  13. #13
    BANNED
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    7,499

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Mister Mets View Post
    On twitter, Rick Remender (X-Force, Uncanny Avengers, Venom) shared a pitch for a Spider-Man story that Marvel ultimately rejected. It featured Spider-Man against a group of psychotic bug-based villains who got their powers from the same radiation he did.
    When Remender was working for Marvel, I always thought he'd be great on ASM.

    This pitch doesn't particularly wow me but it's just a pitch and by the time it got worked through and fined tuned I'm sure it would have made for a cool run.

    What I really wish Remender would share is what he would have done with Sam Wilson Captain America and the whole Hydra infiltrating the MU that he had set up before his departure. I loved what Spencer did with it but obviously he took everything in a far different direction than Remender planned and I bet Remender's plans would have been equally cool in their own right.

  14. #14
    Ultimate Member Mister Mets's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    18,912

    Default

    Remender had also pitched a Rocket Racer series with frequent collaborator and Walking Dead co-creator Tony Moore.

    https://twitter.com/Remender/status/1243643039253323776
    Sincerely,
    Thomas Mets

  15. #15
    Moderator Frontier's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2014
    Posts
    115,027

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Prof. Warren View Post
    When Remender was working for Marvel, I always thought he'd be great on ASM.

    This pitch doesn't particularly wow me but it's just a pitch and by the time it got worked through and fined tuned I'm sure it would have made for a cool run.

    What I really wish Remender would share is what he would have done with Sam Wilson Captain America and the whole Hydra infiltrating the MU that he had set up before his departure. I loved what Spencer did with it but obviously he took everything in a far different direction than Remender planned and I bet Remender's plans would have been equally cool in their own right.
    I'm not sure if Remender would've been a good fit for ASm. Again, he seems more the type to be at home in a satellite title where he can really lean into his style and sensibilities then the main Spider-Man book.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •