Why doesn't Marvel just retcon Sin's Pasts already?

[Jman27]

wait fuckin WHAT

yeah 850 it was a big deal here

[Snoop Dogg]

Me: Only a fool would bring up Sin's Past, as it adds nothing of interest to the continuity

Also Me: OMG the cojones on this man! No fear! KING! WE STAN! SPENCER XO XO XO

[CrimsonEchidna]

Am I the only one who doesn't mind Sins Past? Sure the story is crazy but so are a lot of comic stories.

The reference to it in 850 was unsettling but also a highlight for me and I appreciate that Spencer brought it up and didn't try to ignore it like everyone else.

Honestly I find the story more convoluted than anything else. I feel like an easy way to clean it up would be just to retcon it to being that Gabriel and Sarah were accelerated clones using Norman and Gwen's DNA. The whole Norman an Gwen having an affair was just unneeded.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

I don't mind Sins' Past when used as subtext, as Spencer used it in #850. As subtext, i.e. background stuff that is not intended to actually be addressed in page in text, it adds baggage and spice, without actually disturbing the emotional stuff.

The thing about subtext is that with few exceptions it works best when it's unspoken and left unsaid.

[Snoop Dogg]

i just had a 5 star meal off of the angry tweets about this

nick spencer truly is back, my brave hero

i can complain about the art and the structure but the king don't miss and i will see this run through to the goddamn end

imagine this much joy coming from sin's past, no mere human could have done that

[Scott Taylor]

The latest reference to Sins Past is pretty low key and vague enough to where Norman's statement could be taken multiple ways (though I am kind of surprised Spider-Gwen didn't deck him right then and there). I don't see a reason to wake the dead corpse of Sin's Past, let it lie.

[Celgress]

Because people get worked over about it, which Marvel writers correlate to engagement (And I guess they are not entirely wrong)

Pretty much this.

I have no further comment except that I think the practice of "trolling fans" in such a fashion by those in the Comic Book Industry is despicable.

Edit - Sorry for venting but as a member of two fandoms (the other is Pro Wrestling in which fans are dismissed as "marks") in which fans are often disrespected, or even downright hated, by those in positions of power I sometimes get unduly upset about the situation.

[Celgress]

That is correct. If you name the worst Spider-Man stories: Clone Saga, Year One, OMD/BND, Silk, The Other, Shed and of course, Sins Past, they only bother the hard core fans, who remember them. The 12 year old who watches the cartoon, prefers Ghost Spider Gwen to Original Gwen ( or even MJ) and buys the toys generally do not care about stories ( like Sins Past) that happened before they were born.

This is a valid point.

[Prime]

In the latest Amazing Spider-Man, it seems they had a reference to that god forsaken storyline
And I just have to say...why? No one likes this story and why not retcon it if they acknowledge it. I consider it non canon and just waiting until the next writer retcons it

I'm actually quite mad that Gwen though Peter would be ok with being a cuck.

[Ozymandias]

Marvel has two ways to go now: 1. Deal with Sins Past and retcon it. That would force the writer to create a messy storyline in which everything was either invented by Osborn to mess with Peter (so why would Gwen tell MJ fake things? Did Osborn create children clones? Why?) or Gwen was hypnotized or raped by Osborn (they still would have had sex but it would make more sense maybe). / 2. Completely ignore the storyline and pretend it ever existed.
See, the problem with Sins Past is that it's hardly retconnable. How can you explain Gwen confessing to MJ or the letter she wrote to Peter? The original storyline by Straczynski is terrible and offensive, but it was sadly well thought (except for the fact that Gwen hid her pregnancy. Again, how?). The only ways I see to retcon it are the ones I mentioned at the beginning, but they would be ridiculous. So, that's why Marvel likes to pretend it never happened. I think that they should simply erase the story from new printings of Straczynski saga and don't mention it in new Handbooks.

It can be done, it's a question of will.

[FFJamie94]

At this point, it's a 1 year old story, so far removed from anything current (outside of a reference in #850).
I don't think the comic is nearly as destructive as OMD an it wasn't a mess like the Clone Saga, for the most part, outside of a few references and a couple of arcs, it's not really been brought up.

It's very easy to ignore, and yes, I too would like to see it retconned, but at this point, it's more effort than it's worth. Only a niche section of the fanbase really care that it exists, and Marvel would simply rather move on than just bring up bad story arcs.
It happened, and a writer could come sooner or later and say it no longer happened, but it will always be there, retcon or not.

[Lucas 35]

Was the story also quoted in Dark Avengers, or is this a very old reference?

[Triniking1234]

That's some good pages.

Also they don't need to bring up Sins Past since they already got rid of the baggage. Nick only uses it in #850 to make Norman stand out more but I doubt we'll see anymore of that plot for a while.

[NC_Yankee]

That's some good pages.

Also they don't need to bring up Sins Past since they already got rid of the baggage. Nick only uses it in #850 to make Norman stand out more but I doubt we'll see anymore of that plot for a while.

There was no need to make Osborn stand out anymore then before. Countless examples ( like ASM 121) speak volumes to how bad he is. The only way this story works well is if Norman ends up having to kill Harry and OMD is erased ( the OMD part I doubt actually happens though).

[federicodettofred]

It can be done, it's a question of will.

Yeah, that topic is fascinating but it would be completely crazy to reveal Gwen was alive all along. Just have Norman clone her into twins (he's fascinated about having heirs with a link to Peter Parker because he started to see him as the perfect enemy) and then kill her to trigger Peter. The whole "Gwen wasn't killed, it was just a clone" is nuts. Or have him rape her (so you can explain her confessions to MJ as a lie because of shame). That would be gross, but more in character.