Zendaya's "MJ": Future as a Comics Character?

[Toxin45]

her full name is Michelle Jones Watson making her a variant of Mary Jane in the MCU now.

[Mister Mets]

Did you miss that "Michelle Jones" is a variant of Mary Jane Watson?

Is the important thing to have a love interest named MJ?

We really haven't established much that she shares with the original Mary Jane, but not with other female characters.

To be fair, movies can take radical departures. The Joker was supposed to have an anonymous past, until an origin movie made a billion dollars and got Joaquin Phoenix an Oscar. Though he was still a serial killer in clown makeup.

Gay boys need someone to look up to too. There's far more female role models in super hero movies than gay ones, if the welfare of children is our primary concern, then I'd argue we need more prominent gay characters.
Also, I think a gay male MJ who had that classic MJ personality would be closer to the spirit of who MJ is than just having a young woman with a completely different personality.
If the Spider-Verse can have a cartoon pig Spidey and it's accepted, I can't see the problem with a queer Spidery in the multiverse.

While there is a need for more gay heroes, women are fifty percent of the population, so there should be more female characters.

There are some complicated messages in reimagining a female character as a gay man.

[Kevinroc]

Is the important thing to have a love interest named MJ?

We really haven't established much that she shares with the original Mary Jane, but not with other female characters.

To be fair, movies can take radical departures. The Joker was supposed to have an anonymous past, until an origin movie made a billion dollars and got Joaquin Phoenix an Oscar. Though he was still a serial killer in clown makeup.

MJ is the iconic Spider-Man love interest. If a team making a Spider-Man project wants people to take the love interest seriously, they'll have MJ in it, and change things about her to fit the narrative they are telling. This is why the Insomniac game has MJ as a reporter instead of just using Betty Brant.

[Jman27]

MJ is the iconic Spider-Man love interest. If a team making a Spider-Man project wants people to take the love interest seriously, they'll have MJ in it, and change things about her to fit the narrative they are telling. This is why the Insomniac game has MJ as a reporter instead of just using Betty Brant.

and she was super annoying as a result

[Prime]

Did you miss that "Michelle Jones" is a variant of Mary Jane Watson?

I think so. Didn't you guys notice the "MJ Watson" from the NWH movie?

[Zeitgeist]

MJ is the iconic Spider-Man love interest. If a team making a Spider-Man project wants people to take the love interest seriously, they'll have MJ in it, and change things about her to fit the narrative they are telling. This is why the Insomniac game has MJ as a reporter instead of just using Betty Brant.

I don't think it's something as set in stone as you're making out. The Amazing Spider-Man films were completely devoid of a MJ, and if I recall it was Gwen Stacy and Liz Allen who were the primary love interests in the Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon (though I never saw the later S2 eps so who knows).

[Frontier]

I don't think it's something as set in stone as you're making out. The Amazing Spider-Man films were completely devoid of a MJ, and if I recall it was Gwen Stacy and Liz Allen who were the primary love interests in the Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon (though I never saw the later S2 eps so who knows).

MJ was a fairly major presence in Spec even if she wasn't immediately dating Peter but the creators were pretty clear what the intended endgame was. Her introduction episodes literally ended on spider-shaped hearts.

MJ was supposed to be in the ASM films but they cut her out to focus on Emma Stone's Gwen...who was given more of an MJ-like role in Peter's life.

[Lukmendes]

I don't think it's something as set in stone as you're making out. The Amazing Spider-Man films were completely devoid of a MJ, and if I recall it was Gwen Stacy and Liz Allen who were the primary love interests in the Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon (though I never saw the later S2 eps so who knows).

ASM movie picked Gwen and gave her a lot of MJ's traits.

I would barely call Liz a love interest for Peter in particular, the entire relationship was just Peter being a ridiculously neglectful boyfriend, since we only ever see him running off on her, basically like Debra.

And now that made me realize that two of Spidey's adaptations that have a black washed Liz pick stuff from Debra, Spectacular by having Peter be super neglectful, and Spidey Home 3 by having magazine covers mentioning her talking shit about Spidey, that's, pretty specific lol.

Either way, both of those would have MJ with a more prominent role eventually, but were cancelled before that happened.

[Kevinroc]

I don't think it's something as set in stone as you're making out. The Amazing Spider-Man films were completely devoid of a MJ, and if I recall it was Gwen Stacy and Liz Allen who were the primary love interests in the Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon (though I never saw the later S2 eps so who knows).

Spectacular was absolutely going for the slowburn with Peter and MJ, trying to mimic what the comics did with them.

The Amazing Spider-Man films absolutely planned on introducing MJ. She was cut from ASM 2 but was absolutely planned for ASM 3 to mimic the comics having Peter move on after losing Gwen.

Both projects were cancelled before they got that far.

The thing is that Gwen has now been reshaped into being her own super hero. Her days as Peter's doomed girlfriend are over. (And her days as Peter's girlfriend in general are also over. Nobody outside of shippers wants Peter dating a superhero.)

[Confuzzled]

And now that made me realize that two of Spidey's adaptations that have a black washed Liz

She was Latina in Spectacular!

[Lukmendes]

She was Latina in Spectacular!

Right, maybe I should binge watch Spectacular a 5th or 6th time to not forget such details .

[OptimusPrime114]

Maybe I’m the only one with this idea, but since MJ’s full name is Michelle Jones Watson, why not have her be introduced in the comics as Mary Jane’s long-lost half-sister? Maybe it’s possible Philip Watson had an affair behind Mary Jane’s mom’s back and Michelle was the result of a one night stand. We already know Philip isn’t exactly father of the year in the Watson household, so why not take his assholery all the way?

[NC_Yankee]

Maybe I’m the only one with this idea, but since MJ’s full name is Michelle Jones Watson, why not have her be introduced in the comics as Mary Jane’s long-lost half-sister? Maybe it’s possible Philip Watson had an affair behind Mary Jane’s mom’s back and Michelle was the result of a one night stand. We already know Philip isn’t exactly father of the year in the Watson household, so why not take his assholery all the way?

That could actually work. Here is my question besides being a love interest for someone what exactly would Zendaya do in the 616 Universe? The closest comparison is Theresa. Is she actually Peter’s sister and equally important what role ( beyond SHIELD and spying) will she play in Peter’s life ( if any) going forward?

[Kevinroc]

Maybe I’m the only one with this idea, but since MJ’s full name is Michelle Jones Watson, why not have her be introduced in the comics as Mary Jane’s long-lost half-sister? Maybe it’s possible Philip Watson had an affair behind Mary Jane’s mom’s back and Michelle was the result of a one night stand. We already know Philip isn’t exactly father of the year in the Watson household, so why not take his assholery all the way?

The whole point of them changing the name was to surprise audiences that Zendaya was cast as "MJ". You do this, and you instantly invalidate her playing the iconic Spider-Man love interest. Terrible idea.

[OptimusPrime114]

The whole point of them changing the name was to surprise audiences that Zendaya was cast as "MJ". You do this, and you instantly invalidate her playing the iconic Spider-Man love interest. Terrible idea.

A simple "I disagree with this idea" would have sufficed.