Originally Posted by
manymade1
With the decade coming to an end, I'm curious to know where the 2010's will stand in regards to previous decades.
For me, from worst to best:
6. 90's - Eh, I mean there was some good, I guess with Todd McFarlane's art really solidifying and defining the 90's, but this was just a bad era, and the only decade where I think there was more bad than good for the character. Clone Saga, Maximum Carnage, McFarlane's solo run, etc.
5. 00's - Definitely a noticeable step up from the 90's, although the quality of stories was pretty half and half. The decade started off pretty strong with JMS's run and BMB doing some innovative stuff with USM; As the decade went on, though, things started getting choppy. The 2nd half of JMS's run gave us two of Spidey's worst stories, with Sin's Past and OMD; BMB's USM really started losing steam; The Brand New Day streak wasn't terrible but we really didn't get anything noteworthy, which is shocking considering how long that era was. Overall, not a terrible decade but far from great.
4. 10's - I'll precede this by saying I haven't read Zdarksy or Spencer's runs, which I hear are great. This decade was pretty much made by Slott, and Slott's run is pretty divisive, for good reason. The run definitely had some great moments, with stories like Big Time, Ends of the Earth, No One Dies; Then you get to Superior, which though some will argue had some great writing, the decision was definitely out there. The biggest problem was mainly that Slott's run went on way too long. He wrote practically 80% of the stories, this decade. This decade definitely had more good than bad, but it also had some pretty noticeable bad moments.
3. 70's - Very noticeable step up from the previous three entries. The 70's was just a blast for the character. Writers had a lot of fun utilizing the character and putting him up against his colorful cast of villains. Besides Amazing, we saw Peter in Marvel Team-Up and Spectacular. The stories were a bit more mature, with The Night Gwen Stacy Died marking a shift, but this was before the cynicism of the late 80's/90's; the tone was optimistic but in a way where the stories could be enjoyed by everyone. The only thing really holding this decade back is the fact that it didn't really do anything notable, outside of the Night Gwen Stacy Died. There weren't any huge status quo shifts, although that's arguably what made the time so fun. Overall, a really good decade but not a very memorable one.
2. 80's - Oh boy, was this a time. Roger Stern's legendary run is by far the best collection of stories besides the original Lee comics. This decade was very innovative; the writers took some real big risks, adding to the status quo and shaking up Peter's life. Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut, the Wedding, Kraven's Last Hunt, the introduction of Venom and Hobgoblin. The stories were even more mature than the 70's but without going the dark and edgy route of the 90's. Spidey was still an optimistic superhero, first and foremost. I would argue that Stern's run has aged even better than the Lee/Ditko/Romita comics (More on that in the next paragraph, though), and Michelinie and McFarlane's run was nothing to sneeze at. A really good and memorable decade, with some of the best Spider-Man stories and some of the best comic stories, period.
1. 60's - I mean, do I really have to explain myself? Spider-Man is pretty much still defined by the stories from this period, moreso than any other hero that debuted in the silver age. The idea of an "Everyman" superhero seems so common, nowadays, but was a pretty novel concept during this time. While some would argue that the stories are dated, I would argue that these stories are jsut as relatable now, as they were meant to be back in the day. This is thee decade for the character.