Lesser known retcons you don’t like

[ngroove]

Okay, this is not so much a retcon, but an update of a retcon.

When I started into Spider-Man when I was young in 1995, it was in the midst of the jumbling confusion called the "Clone Saga". In which Peter Parker may not be the real Peter Parker, but Ben Reilly was, complete with a new Spider-Costume.

I was therefore, confused in catching up, so I took solace in Untold Tales of Spider-Man. Classic Spider-Man, battling Classic Spider-Villains, in Classic story style.

Not only did I get to know Peter Parker's youth, complete with Aunt May's wheatcakes, got to "grow up" just a little with his kinda-but-not-really friends: Jason Ionello, Sally Avril, and Midtown High football player Tiny McKeever. Watch their hijinks, from walking down the halls of Midtown High with the "In-Crowd", aka Flash Thompson, to their pranks to get Spider-Man's attention in the middle of action. Smiled at Tiny's gradual faith in Peter as a result of him tutoring him in arithmetic, cried at Sally's death, watched Jason's sinking depression from it, leading to even further dangerous pranks for attention, and getting himself back up after.

Now, a couple decades later, my time, and years later, Spider-Man time, a few years back, there was Flash Thompson's Birthday party; guests and cameos and Easter Eggs galore! And among them, Jason Ionello and Tiny McKeever. Good to see them made it into the present alright, but seemingly as losers?

I suppose, not everyone is destinied for greatness, I'd assume which would only be entitled to some of Midtown High's graduation class, but come on, I kinda grew up with those guys!

[HypnoHustler]

Another thread reminded me I really hate Sandman being retconned back to a villain. Decades of character development undone because of a “bAcK tO bAsIcS” mandate. *sigh*

[PCN24454]

Another thread reminded me I really hate Sandman being retconned back to a villain. Decades of character development undone because of a “bAcK tO bAsIcS” mandate. *sigh*

Define “retcon” because I remember it being established that he was brainwashed.

[HypnoHustler]

Define “retcon” because I remember it being established that he was brainwashed.

Well, first Byrne pretended that Sandman was breaking the fourth wall and lying to readers when he had any thought bubble about being a good guy over the previous two decades, which was just a bizarre rationale no one liked. And then since everyone complained about that they came up with the hackneyed brainwashing crap. In any event, his change of heart from bad to good was retconned and he was turned bad again. I think “brainwashing” as a plot device counts as a retcon as much as any dumb plot twist that undoes past continuity, such as “magic erased our memory” or “he was actually in Europe and not dead.”

[exile001]

Every single thing about Miles Warren travelling to Wundagore and working with the High Evolutionary is complete and utter garbage. It betrays the original clone saga, it doesn't stand at all with any of the character's motives or experiences up to that point, and it was utterly unnecessary to suddenly decide he didn't actually clone Gwen...

...Until THAT was retconned because the second Clone Saga required that the retcon be retconned because the first retcon doesn't work with the new clone saga. At least that sentence was fun to write.

[Huntsman Spider]

Every single thing about Miles Warren travelling to Wundagore and working with the High Evolutionary is complete and utter garbage. It betrays the original clone saga, it doesn't stand at all with any of the character's motives or experiences up to that point, and it was utterly unnecessary to suddenly decide he didn't actually clone Gwen...

...Until THAT was retconned because the second Clone Saga required that the retcon be retconned because the first retcon doesn't work with the new clone saga. At least that sentence was fun to write.

At least working with or studying under the High Evolutionary provides a believable path for a seemingly regular college professor to have the knowledge and resources to clone human beings, however imperfect that process turned out to be.

[HypnoHustler]

At least working with or studying under the High Evolutionary provides a believable path for a seemingly regular college professor to have the knowledge and resources to clone human beings, however imperfect that process turned out to be.

Much crazier things have happened in comics than a college professor making a successful human clone. As for resources... he’s the Jackal, easy to say some of his funds and equipment were stolen.

[boots]

Every single thing about Miles Warren travelling to Wundagore and working with the High Evolutionary is complete and utter garbage. It betrays the original clone saga, it doesn't stand at all with any of the character's motives or experiences up to that point, and it was utterly unnecessary to suddenly decide he didn't actually clone Gwen...

...Until THAT was retconned because the second Clone Saga required that the retcon be retconned because the first retcon doesn't work with the new clone saga. At least that sentence was fun to write.

imagine a story where every retcon gets undone one after the other. i wonder what that would look like?

[Lukmendes]

At least working with or studying under the High Evolutionary provides a believable path for a seemingly regular college professor to have the knowledge and resources to clone human beings, however imperfect that process turned out to be.

I don't find it that far fetched considering that Chameleon could do radio waves to talk with Spidey, and Peter himself could do an anti magnetic inverter, or whatever other **** that was basically just "science", if Peter can do **** that goes outside of what he studies, why can't Miles do **** with what he does study?

[boots]

I don't find it that far fetched considering that Chameleon could do radio waves to talk with Spidey, and Peter himself could do an anti magnetic inverter, or whatever other **** that was basically just "science", if Peter can do **** that goes outside of what he studies, why can't Miles do **** with what he does study?

hellavu lot of polymaths walking the marvel streets

[exile001]

imagine a story where every retcon gets undone one after the other. i wonder what that would look like?

retconception! I'd read it.

[Uncanny Mutie]

He always just seems like a dumb criminal they picked up though. Speech patterns didn’t indicate he was Russian and he didn’t seem smart enough to learn an American accent.

LOL, is that how accents work? You have to be "smart enough" to lose one? After a certain age, most people NEVER lose their native accent. Doesn't mean they're not smart, though.

Albert Einstein was fluent in English, but maintained a thick German accent his entire life. I doubt anyone would say he wasn't a genius.

[shooshoomanjoe]

Spidey's parents being SHIELD agents and having a sister.

[PCN24454]

Spidey's parents being SHIELD agents and having a sister.

Yeah!

They were actually CIA Agents!!!

[Huntsman Spider]

Much crazier things have happened in comics than a college professor making a successful human clone. As for resources... he’s the Jackal, easy to say some of his funds and equipment were stolen.

I don't find it that far fetched considering that Chameleon could do radio waves to talk with Spidey, and Peter himself could do an anti magnetic inverter, or whatever other **** that was basically just "science", if Peter can do **** that goes outside of what he studies, why can't Miles do **** with what he does study?

hellavu lot of polymaths walking the marvel streets

I concede your points, and considering that Warren was being unwittingly backed by Norman Osborn all along . . .