Spider-Man: Life Story By Chip Zdarsky & Mark Bagley

[Batman Begins 2005]

I'll give this a go as I really liked most of Chip Zdarsky's PP: TSSM especially #6 and #310.

[Prof. Warren]

Zdarksy is great, one of my current favorites, and I love Bagley but I'll probably take a pass on this - or at least wait and get it in trade.

Doesn't seem like something I need to follow on a monthly basis and I'd actually rather see how it all pans out before I commit to it.

[Inversed]

I don't usually make these calls, but I think this story is gonna be something really special. Like, on the same level as Spider-Man: Blue and Spider-Man/Human Torch in terms of defining who and what Spider-Man is.

[WebSlingWonder]

I don't usually make these calls, but I think this story is gonna be something really special. Like, on the same level as Spider-Man: Blue and Spider-Man/Human Torch in terms of defining who and what Spider-Man is.

I was thinking that exact same thing!! This is one for the ages. And with the extra page space to tell the story, it's worth it.

[WebLurker]

I've only seen reviews of those movies, I like the part in 2 where he stalks her and she's hella cool with it.

Not just cool with it, she seems to think it's cute and touching. It's really, really bad on all levels (and the rest of the movie isn't anything that great, either).

You know Peter and Mary Jane got engaged and married in September 1987, 25 years and a month after AF#15. And KLH appeared in the same 25th Anniversary year. So they should be 40 years old when they get married in Life Story if that were the real-time case.

Huh. If that's what happens, I'll be really curious how that changes the story.

[Frontier]

Not just cool with it, she seems to think it's cute and touching. It's really, really bad on all levels (and the rest of the movie isn't anything that great, either).

The old "Stalking is love" trope .

[Lee]

I'm a bit disappointed that Mark Bagley isn't drawing the costume the way it looked in 1966 - no underarm webs or anything. It could have been fun to see a different version of the costume each issue.

Why is Peter like the Lee-Romita version of Peter but Gwen is now "Science Nerd Emma Gwen"? That makes no sense. It's selective and unrepresentative.

Gwen was in the same chemistry class as Peter and Harry. It stands to reason that she'd have a knack for science, even if it's not something the comics of the 1960s delved into much. It's not like this preview has even shown her to be a genius or something, just that she cares about actually passing the class.

Basically 1966-1967 was the most important 14 month stretch in the history of Spider-Man. Those first Romita issues were far more commercially successful than Ditko's, you had more permanent features introduced in that then any time before and after.

Which 14 months of '66-'67 are you counting?

If it's Romita's first 14 issues, the new permanent features are Rhino, Shocker, Kingpin, Robbie Robertson, and as a half-new feature, Mary Jane. All solid additions to the series, but surely a 14 month stretch that introduces J Jonah Jameson, the Daily Bugle, Betty Brant, Peter as a photographer, spider sense, Chameleon, Vulture, Doctor Octopus, Sandman, Curt Connors, the Lizard, Electro, spider tracers and "your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man" has it beat? Amazing Spider-Man was bi-monthly to start with, so if we extend it to 14 issues to even the playing field, then Mysterio and Green Goblin make the cut as well.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

Which 14 months of '66-'67 are you counting?

Ditko left the title in July 1966. And in the next 14 month stretch saw the following stuff happen one-after-the-other: Green Goblin unmasked as Noman Osborn after unmasking Spider-Man before, the first time any villain did that, Peter finally gets himself a peer-age appropriate supporting cast: Harry Osborn, Gwen Stacy, Flash Thompson (gone from bully, to sorta cordial). Mary Jane Watson as designed by John Romita makes her grand debut after being teased by Lee-Ditko in many appearances. She becomes the breakout character. The Peter-Gwen-Mary Jane love triangle. The introduction of Rhino and the Kingpin, two of the longest lasting post-Ditko rogues. Spider-Man No More, Issue #50, a classic trope in Spidey mythos, ultimately adapted into ''Spider-Man 2''. And of course if you go to ASM #51, you have the first appearance of Joe "Robbie" Robertson, the first major black character in Spider-Man comics. Continue on to #57 and you have Captain George Stacy.

And of course you have the first episode of the 1967 Spider-Man cartoon show up in that time along with the great classic theme song which is adapted for the entire franchise.

The Romita elements I mentioned above are the most frequently referred and adapted and permanent additions and it was also in sales terms a major leap over the Ditko years.

[NC_Yankee]

Ditko left the title in July 1966. And in the next 14 month stretch saw the following stuff happen one-after-the-other: Green Goblin unmasked as Noman Osborn after unmasking Spider-Man before, the first time any villain did that, Peter finally gets himself a peer-age appropriate supporting cast: Harry Osborn, Gwen Stacy, Flash Thompson (gone from bully, to sorta cordial). Mary Jane Watson as designed by John Romita makes her grand debut after being teased by Lee-Ditko in many appearances. She becomes the breakout character. The Peter-Gwen-Mary Jane love triangle. The introduction of Rhino and the Kingpin, two of the longest lasting post-Ditko rogues. Spider-Man No More, Issue #50, a classic trope in Spidey mythos, ultimately adapted into ''Spider-Man 2''. And of course if you go to ASM #51, you have the first appearance of Joe "Robbie" Robertson, the first major black character in Spider-Man comics. Continue on to #57 and you have Captain George Stacy.

And of course you have the first episode of the 1967 Spider-Man cartoon show up in that time along with the great classic theme song which is adapted for the entire franchise.

The Romita elements I mentioned above are the most frequently referred and adapted and permanent additions and it was also in sales terms a major leap over the Ditko years.

I would add ASM 31-33 ( Master Planner Saga) to the Ditko list. Those issues are always referred to when discussing the Best Spider-Man Comics EVER. Ditko in my opinion wins, but it is very close.

[Lee]

Peter finally gets himself a peer-age appropriate supporting cast: Harry Osborn, Gwen Stacy, Flash Thompson (gone from bully, to sorta cordial).

Harry and Gwen were well established by the time Romita came along, and bully or not, Flash Thompson was part of the supporting cast from day one (along with Liz and Betty, also teenage characters). Most adaptations of Flash Thompson use him in an antagonistic role.

The Peter-Gwen-Mary Jane love triangle.

It's probably the most remembered love triangle in the series' history, but the basic love triangle premise had been explored before with Betty and Liz.

Spider-Man No More, Issue #50, a classic trope in Spidey mythos, ultimately adapted into ''Spider-Man 2''.

The title, cover and splash page are all-time classics, but Peter contemplating ending his Spider-Man career and Jonah gloating that Spider-Man is over had already been done in #18. Spider-Man 2 also incorporated the mental block power loss element from Annual #1.

The Romita elements I mentioned above are the most frequently referred and adapted and permanent additions and it was also in sales terms a major leap over the Ditko years.

Does sales/circulation data even exist prior to 1966? Fantastic Four #1 onwards was a period of growth for Marvel in general, and the cartoon shows certainly helped sales as well.

It was a good stretch of issues, and a significant one for the series, but you're underestimating just how much of Spider-Man's DNA was established in its first year.

[Snoop Dogg]

Romita's run is more popular but considering that it's about twice as long as Ditko's and only introduced three major villains and a handful of critical additions to the already established supporting cast while Ditko's setting and themes are the backbone of most adaptations, plus uh all of the stuff about Spider-Man, plus 80% of the A-List rogues, his first year or so is the most important.

[PCN24454]

Romita's run is more popular but considering that it's about twice as long as Ditko's and only introduced three major villains and a handful of critical additions to the already established supporting cast while Ditko's setting and themes are the backbone of most adaptations, plus uh all of the stuff about Spider-Man, plus 80% of the A-List rogues, his first year or so is the most important.

I never liked that explanation because as Ditko’s successor, he would be expected to continue on from Ditko. Meaning he it would be harder for him to make his own villains.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

Romita's run is more popular but considering that it's about twice as long as Ditko's and only introduced three major villains and a handful of critical additions to the already established supporting cast while Ditko's setting and themes are the backbone of most adaptations, plus uh all of the stuff about Spider-Man, plus 80% of the A-List rogues, his first year or so is the most important.

I am not making this into a Ditko v. Romita dance-off. Merely saying that the 14 months after Ditko stepped down and Romita took over were very important in defining Spider-Man. I personally prefer the Ditko era myself. But just because I think it's great, that doesn't mean I think it's been as influential.

And in any case...it's highly debatable how much Ditko forms the backbone of new adaptations. The Ditko era was largely focused on the Daily Bugle with very little in high school. Peter's first romance, Betty Brant, is never even alluded to anymore. Like people think Liz Allan is an early love interest or that Liz and Betty were a legit love triangle. But it wasn't. Peter and Liz Allan never even dated once in the entire history of Spider-Man. There's far more high school in Untold Tales of Spider-Man than in Lee-Ditko's work. And when Bendis came along with USM, he explicitly said that he based his entire run on John Romita Sr.'s era. Which is why he put MJ, Gwen, Harry into high school with Peter, made Peter this good looking boy band leader type. Ultimate Spider-Man is of course the most influential Spider-Man comics of the 21st Century.

Until Spectacular Spider-Man, every cartoon, no exception, had Peter in college. Right from the 1967 series. High School Peter is the rarer deal and you didn't have a sorta faithful Ditko era adaptation until Greg Weisman, and even he borrowed from Ultimate, from Romita, and from other eras.

The characterizations by Romita Sr. in the case of Gwen and Harry have entirely overwritten the ones Ditko wrote.

[WebLurker]

The old "Stalking is love" trope .

It needs to die. Wish they hadn't put that bit in the movie, given that the scene in question was actually okay up til that point.

[Kevinroc]

SPIDER-MAN: LIFE STORY #4 (of 6)
CHIP ZDARSKY (W) • MARK BAGLEY (A)
Cover by CHIP ZDARSKY
Variant cover by Kaare Andrews
THE REAL-TIME LIFE STORY OF SPIDER-MAN CONTINUES!
Spider-Man’s life enters the 1990s! The COLD WAR is no longer cold as PETER PARKER returns to a world gone MAD! But will he let that madness infect HIM and his family?
40 PGS./Rated T+ …$4.99