The Problem With Spider-Man Comics Today

[Celgress]

An excellent but heartbreakingly accurate analysis of the problems plaguing modern 616 Spidey -

[Lukmendes]

Does it say anything that hasn't been parroted in this forum a billion times since OMD? Lol.

[Kevinroc]

Does it say anything that hasn't been parroted in this forum a billion times since OMD? Lol.

Not really. But in their defense, it's not like Marvel's said anything new in the last 15 years or so, lol.

(The problem with Spider-Man comics is they are creatively stagnant.)

[Kaitou D. Kid]

Not really. But in their defense, it's not like Marvel's said anything new in the last 15 years or so, lol.

(The problem with Spider-Man comics is they are creatively stagnant.)

The problems since OMD have been the same, so it's totally justified for fans to respond with the same counter-arguments.

[Kevinroc]

The problems since OMD have been the same, so it's totally justified for fans to respond with the same counter-arguments.

I don't disagree. The problem is Spider-Man is essentially "too big to fail" (for whatever that means in the comic book industry) so nothing is going to change.

[Lukmendes]

Not really. But in their defense, it's not like Marvel's said anything new in the last 15 years or so, lol.

Hey now, don't be like that, they said once or twice that Spidey sucks because he doesn't respect women like Otto "I dated women while pretending to not Peter and masturbate his memories when he had sex with MJ" Octavius does.

(The problem with Spider-Man comics is they are creatively stagnant.)

That is underselling it, since super-hero comic books from Marvel and DC are like this lol.

Short version of the huge current problems is just, they don't respect Spidey and his world, something being creatively stagnant can be boring while it tries to respect the characters involved, like RYV, but ASM doesn't have even that.

Pretty sure that's a parroted point anyways, minus the RYV bit.

spoilers:

And now I'm wondering if Matt Rat will come around and say RYV isn't boring .

end of spoilers

I don't disagree. The problem is Spider-Man is essentially "too big to fail" (for whatever that means in the comic book industry) so nothing is going to change.

[Kaitou D. Kid]

I don't disagree. The problem is Spider-Man is essentially "too big to fail" (for whatever that means in the comic book industry) so nothing is going to change.

Great choice of words. That's exactly what it is, sadly (Marvel Comics in general, but the Amazing Spider-Man book especially).

[Matt Rat]

Hey now, don't be like that, they said once or twice that Spidey sucks because he doesn't respect women like Otto "I dated women while pretending to not Peter and masturbate his memories when he had sex with MJ" Octavius does.



That is underselling it, since super-hero comic books from Marvel and DC are like this lol.

Short version of the huge current problems is just, they don't respect Spidey and his world, something being creatively stagnant can be boring while it tries to respect the characters involved, like RYV, but ASM doesn't have even that.

Pretty sure that's a parroted point anyways, minus the RYV bit.

spoilers:

And now I'm wondering if Matt Rat will come around and say RYV isn't boring .

end of spoilers

#


spoilers:

You called? I can see the issue some could have with it, the family were a little TOO functional, a 'lot more like the Waltons and a lot less like The Simpsons'. to quote Mr. Bush, but I was never bored by it

end of spoilers

[HypnoHustler]

IMO, they have two options… let Spidey finally age like he was doing until the 1990s and achieve new milestones, like being married again, having a baby and *shock* maybe even enter his 30s… this will open up new avenues for fresh storylines…. or reboot the whole Spidey line and start over fresh (kind of like Ultimate, but for 616). This zombie Simpsons approach of just recycling a bunch of stock storylines that give the illusion of change but never actually change anything makes the comics depressingly meaningless. Like I’m watching someone stuck in a never ending cartoon. Which I think Spencer joked about at one point.

[Alex_Of_X]

Not really. But in their defense, it's not like Marvel's said anything new in the last 15 years or so, lol.

(The problem with Spider-Man comics is they are creatively stagnant.)

I think I half-agree with you here.

Spidey's kind of special among big 2 superheroes in that Peter has had a strong development vector from the get-go (high-schooler->college student->dropout->married man->soon-to-be-dad). Spider-Dad was the next logical step, but Marvel, naturally, wanted their best-seller to stay evergreen so they methodically brought him back to a pre-1987 unmarried man. And that in itself was pretty hard--MJ's not a Batman's girlfriend of the hour who you can quietly shuffle off, she's a reader favorite in her own right.

Current Spidey now feels much like many other marvel protags--Tony Stark or Steve Rogers. They date and flirt, but the personal drama is a bit weightless cause it doesn't really stick long term. They are evergreen, ever-young. And barring narrative interruptions (Old Man Steve, AI Tony) they're staying that way.

Now the narrative vector is pointing to the next milestone, that being "Spidey and MJ get back together." That's the North star, and in teasing it out they're keeping us long-term fans interested. It can be very frustrating, especially since we've had them married for a while, so "Back together" doesn't feel like a major goal. But it's the best one we got so far.

And you best believe that if Marvel wanted the marriage back, it would happen in like 6 issues lmao. Look how quickly DC got Pre-Crisis Superman back and married with a kid.

[Jman27]

An excellent but heartbreakingly accurate analysis of the problems plaguing modern 616 Spidey -

Nice video nothing that hasn’t been said her before. But yeah this is the first time I hearing the voice of the editorial of marvel Jesus that’s bad. Well eventually they will be replaced with someone who grew up with a Peter that was married to Mj and would want to replicate that. But overall 616 Peter Parker isn’t that dude anymore

[Matt Rat]

overall 616 Peter Parker isn’t that dude anymore

Peter can be that guy anytime Marvel deem proper. Hell, in November we're getting that guy back for five months.

[Morgoth]

The problem is that the character is controlled by a whole bunch of people who act only on the principle "the character should be the way we remember him from our childhood, everything else is wrong, if you don't agree with us, you can go to hell."
That's the problem. They're not writing comics for fans, they're writing for themselves. Unfortunately, Spider-Man is too big for sales to start drastically declining, so, they're gladly using that.

[Majesty]

The problem is that Peter isn't allowed to do anything new or stuff that's happened in Alt Universes that isn't brought into the 616.

SHAKE THINGS UP!! Have him grow to the age of 35 and act like it. Make Peter/MJ/Felicia a committed relationship. Have Mayday be born. Have her learn and grow from her own mistakes and be the representative of what young Peter was instead of always resetting Peter to young Peter despite being in his 30s.

Essentially the biggest problem in Spider-Man comics is they repeat formulas till those formulas get bland, and then they do something "big" and then reset things back. Things that always have an intriguing start, and then eventually folds into itself.

If you're going to do something, don't do the same circle of things. Peter and Felicia are together? Okay, commit to that. Do something different than what was going on before. Commit to them being serious with one another both in costume and OUT of costume. Don't treat it like a distraction or fishook. Commit! Peter and Mary Jane are together? Okay commit to that, actually let them start a family so you don't keep getting to 'reset things'. You're hinting at Peter, Felicia, MJ being a thing ever since Jean/Wolverine/Scott became a thing? Alright commit to that! Work with all three dynamics in a committal way, showing how all the characters have grown and how that both blends with their hero lives and their non-hero lives. Have Mayday be born. Have Felicity be born. Start building them up to be part of a Young Avengers team or something going forward, and let them be the ones that share the traits of a Young Peter or young character on the come up and have the heroes that are experienced help them through and grow.

Instead of Making Spider-Man a grown man whom is a seasoned hero in Spider-Man #30 and then a manchild who acts like an 18 year old in Spider-man #35. Make Spider-Man a grown man whom is a seasoned hero in Spider-Man #30 and still a grown man whom is a seasoned hero in Spider-Man #35 and save the kid stuff for the actual kid, like Mayday. Have Mayday represent the "Peter we all grew up with" with some perks and identity of her own. If the writers are so nostalgic for the "Peter they all grew up with" then take that time and energy into a 616 Mayday and translate those emotions into that, and see if it reaches this generation the way it reached them. Think of everything Into The Spider-verse did right with Miles and Peter. Now imagine a comic like that with Peter and Mayday before she gets her own 616 solo series. Connect someone to Peter that people and kids are going to relate to and connect with and let that be where you want to do these "Spider-Man makes mistake" stories instead of having Peter repeat the same "Responsibility" mistake over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and-

[Kevinroc]

Joe Kelly is doing a mini arc after Dark Web.

I want to know what happened at the end of Nick Spencer's run that Marvel has completely retreated to bringing back BND writers to take control of ASM?