Marvel Action Spider-Man Interview

[Frontier]

Newsarama has an interview with Delilah S. Dawson, the writer for the upcoming Marvel Action Spider-Man book from IDW.

Newsarama: Delilah, tell us about the Peter Parker at the center of Marvel Action: Spider-Man. Which versions of the character are you drawing from?

Delilah S. Dawson: I'm ultimately drawing from the heart of Spidey: Peter is sweet and good-hearted, socially awkward, a little disorganized, and very nerdy. Although he has come to grips with his powers and responsibility, he is starting to feel alone and a little insecure in regards to his secret identity. Paying it forward to the next crop of Spideys and finding kinship with them is a big deal for him.
Credit: IDW

Nrama: Peter Parker isn’t the only Spider hero in this story. You’ve got Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy swinging along too. How do you bring them all together?

Dawson: I looked at the lore for Gwen and Miles and considered what they might be like in this moment - high school freshmen, newly discovering their powers and trying to figure out how they now fit into the world. All three kids converge in a newspaper internship program for which the 'prize' is the chance to interview Tony Stark. Since he's one of the only superheroes with an un-secret identity, all three Spideys are desperate to meet him.

Nrama: What kind of format will your stories take? Are these one-and-done tales?

Dawson: It's all about arcs. Each issue has its own little story that contributes to a bigger story, all building in excitement. With the complexity of the Spideys meeting and learning to work together, one-and-done just doesn't give us the depth we need to follow their friendship.

Nrama: One of the biggest aspects of Spider-Man’s world is his rogues gallery of villains. Which fearsome foes do you have coming up in Marvel Action: Spider-Man?

Dawson: Let's just say that his first foe is one of my favorites - and that you shouldn't mess with lizard DNA!
Credit: IDW

Nrama: You’re working with artist Fico Ossio on Marvel Action: Spider-Man. What makes Fico the ideal artist for this book?

Dawson: Fico is amazing! The dynamic energy he brings to every page is incredible, and I adore the way he captures the kids' unique facial expressions. I especially love saying, "Please make this monster as weird as you can!" and seeing what he comes up with. Because, yes, there will be monsters!

Nrama: Now that you’re in the Marvel Universe, are there any specific corners of it you’re hoping to explore?

Dawson: It's hard to think beyond Spidey right now. This is truly a dream project!

Nrama: What’s your favorite thing about writing Spider-Man?

Dawson: I feel a lot of kinship with this version of Peter. I was nerdy and awkward and badly bullied in middle school, but by sophomore year of high school, I had embraced my dorkiness and found my friends. I also love giving today's kids an entry point to the world of Spider-Man comics - and comics in general. And I especially love writing Spidey's groan-worthy banter and sardonic meta-commentary.
Credit: IDW

Nrama: Spider-Man is one of the most popular superheroes in the world right now. What makes Peter Parker, Miles Morales, and Gwen Stacy the heroes we need in 2018?

Dawson: We're living in a world where it's easy to be apathetic and assume that problems are either too big for one person to matter or too scary to get involved in. Each of these Spidey kids learns to trust, to see their differences as strengths, and to work together to help fix the problems they see in their city. They actively choose to do good, and I feel like that's a great message for kids today. Stop and help someone who needs it. Talk to a stranger. Reach out. We can all make a difference.

[Huntsman Spider]

Sounds like she's coming from a good place. Gonna be looking forward to seeing what she brings to Spider-Man, and desperately hoping Anya gets a chance to appear and complete the Marvel's Spider-Man quartet.

[Frontier]

Sounds like she's coming from a good place. Gonna be looking forward to seeing what she brings to Spider-Man, and desperately hoping Anya gets a chance to appear and complete the Marvel's Spider-Man quartet.

Hopefully she can do a better job of balancing all the Spider-Characters together then the cartoon has by this point (and it doesn't even have four active Spider-Heroes yet).

Oh, and I guess having everybody work at the Bugle is the new "make everybody super smart and put them into the same school" .

[Huntsman Spider]

Hopefully she can do a better job of balancing all the Spider-Characters together then the cartoon has by this point (and it doesn't even have four active Spider-Heroes yet).

Oh, and I guess having everybody work at the Bugle is the new "make everybody super smart and put them into the same school" .

The Bugle at least is rooted in the classic Spider-Man mythos.

[Frontier]

The Bugle at least is rooted in the classic Spider-Man mythos.

True. Just does seem kind of silly to have Miles and Gwen go into journalism just to justify them being around Peter.

[Huntsman Spider]

True. Just does seem kind of silly to have Miles and Gwen go into journalism just to justify them being around Peter.

Hmm, maybe, but then Gwen was canonically a science major in ESU, so she at least has more justification for being in Horizon High in the TV series.

[Frontier]

Hmm, maybe, but then Gwen was canonically a science major in ESU, so she at least has more justification for being in Horizon High in the TV series.

Although canonically she was never shown to have that much of an interest in science, other adaptions just latched onto that aspect to make her more science-focused.

[Digifiend]

And to flesh her out. The ASM movies being a good example.

Ironically, that doesn't apply for the primary comic Spider-Gwen. She's a musician instead, which Marvel Rising was faithful to. And instead of taking photos to the Bugle like Peter, she just works in a fast food restaurant (Dollar Dog, the place Bodega Bandit is constantly robbing). Didn't even make her webshooters, which were created by the Wasp.

[John Ossie]

Interesting. I'll check it out when I get the chance.

[Huntsman Spider]

And to flesh her out. The ASM movies being a good example.

Ironically, that doesn't apply for the primary comic Spider-Gwen. She's a musician instead, which Marvel Rising was faithful to. And instead of taking photos to the Bugle like Peter, she just works in a fast food restaurant (Dollar Dog, the place Bodega Bandit is constantly robbing). Didn't even make her webshooters, which were created by the Wasp.

And the Wasp's web-shooters had a pretty ingenious design compared to Peter's, where instead of loading cartridges of web-fluid that could jam, the shooters just strained moisture from the air into webbing. Shame Janet herself didn't show up, even when Gwen was on trial after revealing her identity to the public through J. Jonah Jameson. You'd think she might have a thing or two to say about how Gwen was doing.