Mary Jane Watson-Parker Appreciation 2023

[CaptainUniverse]

Marvel just looks incredibly inept in this whole thing. Relying on gimmicks like rare variant covers in order to sell issues of Amazing Spider-Man.

https://bleedingcool.com/comics/prin...cond-printing/

This quote from the responses really sums up what is going on.

If you have to rely on gimmicks like this to sell Spider-Man, you are doing a terrible job.

My LCS only gets enough issues of Wells' ASM to get the 25 Ratio variants and even those usually end up going unsold along with the extra copies that walk-ins didn't purchase.

[Xenon]

The backlash with fridging Kamala certainly isn't a vocal minority, and the negative attention is causing more than a few casual fans to ask "what else is happening with Marvel editorial right now?!" leading to memes with Paul, folks saying Spider-Man has been cuckold, and other headscratchers. There's a spotlight on them that's not your typical fanboy and fangirl outrage.

You ask the general audience "who is Spider-Man's true love?" and even my grandmother will say it's MJ. She is the "Lois" to Peter's "Clark". I love Felicia and Gwen, but objectively for the vast, VAST majority of casual fans, it's MJ and every single alternative love interest is grouped in "other". Mary Jane is literally the second most well-known recurring support character next to Aunt May, by a mile.

And Marvel editorial seems to both resent it and also capitalize on her popularity. They're doing a terrible job of half-measures.

They said Peter's relationship with MJ was holding them back. If this is their idea of improvement, I'd prefer she hold him back.

Seriously, they need held back.

The thing is, creatives often resents restrictions, but the truth is that restrictions are often how some of the greatest things are made. The example that comes to mind immediately to me is Silent Hill 2. If's a survival horror game from the early PS2 era that is considered a masterpiece by those who love the genre. The PS2 was powerful, but it was still a limited machine, and the designers had to deal with its technical limitations. One of the ways they dealt with those limitations was by making the town of Silent Hill foggy. This would obscure your long range vision and hence, allow the game to run better since it limited the draw distance. But in turn it made the town incredibly spooky, since you couldn't see very far and didn't know what was out there. This idea was thoroughly reinforced a few years ago when they released HD remasters of Silent Hill 2 and 3 and....removed the fog. It wasn't needed on a technical level anymore. But in doing so, they ruined teh game's atmosphere.

Restrictions are good, people.

Marvel just looks incredibly inept in this whole thing. Relying on gimmicks like rare variant covers in order to sell issues of Amazing Spider-Man.

https://bleedingcool.com/comics/prin...cond-printing/

This quote from the responses really sums up what is going on.



If you have to rely on gimmicks like this to sell Spider-Man, you are doing a terrible job.

I really really hope this is actually the case and not just our copium. It's had at least five variants for every single issue, with many issues having many more than that (also like 80% of the issues have an MJ variant, which I find ironic). While it wouldn't solve the problem because the issues are still being bought from marvel, it at least should lead to retailers objecting.

[Spidey5640]

I'm sure this has been thrown out there in this thread or some other but I see all this being part of the long game to get Pete and MJ back together. The way I see it is that Wells or Marvel in general beleive, probably based on the overwhelmingingly postive response to Renew Your Vows that Pete and MJ will work best with MJ having superpowers, meaning she becomes Jackpot. Think about it:
1. They have now laid the groundwork with how she got her powers, and how they work.
2. They even established her denying that she's a superhero which will be part of the overall plot forcing her to have her own "With great power..." moment.
3. The kids have now been shown not to be her biological kids which makes it an easy move to reunite them with their biological parents somewhere down the road.
4. As the kids are really the thing that probably holds Paul and MJ together, removing them dooms their relationship and/or make Paul expendable, which again could lead to MJ's Great power moment..or Marvel could decide to keep the kids in the picture, off Paul and have Pete and MJ as a family, with an easy off-ramp of removing the kids if that plotline doesn't work very well.
5. MJ and Felicia's relationship has been solidified where Felicia probably wouldn't have an issue down the road if MJ and Pete are reunited, as MJ has certainly given Felicia the okay to pursue Pete now, a relationship that everyone seems to see as temporary.
6. Likewise MJ and Felicia have powers that make them a formable team.

This is going to come down to a big story arc where MJ fails to use her powers, Paul probably take a dirt nap as a result and she, like Pete vow it will never happen again. Pete can certainingly relate to this and recognizes he has to accept her with powers as MJ did him. They then become a couple again and fight crime with an occassional assist from Felicia. I can almost see the "Spiderman and Jackpot" cover for the 5 issue mini to kick things off..

[CaptainUniverse]

[Rzerox21xx]

You ever had a dream where you interact with fictional characters even cartoons, anime and comics. Well i had one where I met Peter and MJ spill the beans about OMD and they were pissed, but insteads of Mephisto they going to turn their grievances on Quesada, Breevort and other Marvel editors higher ups. lol

[CaptainUniverse]

You ever had a dream where you interact with fictional characters even cartoons, anime and comics. Well i had one where I met Peter and MJ spill the beans about OMD and they were pissed, but insteads of Mephisto they going to turn their grievances on Quesada, Breevort and other Marvel editors higher ups. lol

No fair, I wanna meet Peter and MJ too!

[Xenon]

I'm sure this has been thrown out there in this thread or some other but I see all this being part of the long game to get Pete and MJ back together. The way I see it is that Wells or Marvel in general beleive, probably based on the overwhelmingingly postive response to Renew Your Vows that Pete and MJ will work best with MJ having superpowers, meaning she becomes Jackpot. Think about it:
1. They have now laid the groundwork with how she got her powers, and how they work.
2. They even established her denying that she's a superhero which will be part of the overall plot forcing her to have her own "With great power..." moment.
3. The kids have now been shown not to be her biological kids which makes it an easy move to reunite them with their biological parents somewhere down the road.
4. As the kids are really the thing that probably holds Paul and MJ together, removing them dooms their relationship and/or make Paul expendable, which again could lead to MJ's Great power moment..or Marvel could decide to keep the kids in the picture, off Paul and have Pete and MJ as a family, with an easy off-ramp of removing the kids if that plotline doesn't work very well.
5. MJ and Felicia's relationship has been solidified where Felicia probably wouldn't have an issue down the road if MJ and Pete are reunited, as MJ has certainly given Felicia the okay to pursue Pete now, a relationship that everyone seems to see as temporary.
6. Likewise MJ and Felicia have powers that make them a formable team.

This is going to come down to a big story arc where MJ fails to use her powers, Paul probably take a dirt nap as a result and she, like Pete vow it will never happen again. Pete can certainingly relate to this and recognizes he has to accept her with powers as MJ did him. They then become a couple again and fight crime with an occassional assist from Felicia. I can almost see the "Spiderman and Jackpot" cover for the 5 issue mini to kick things off..

That's a very positive outlook though oneI can't really get behind. If anything I would guess the powers are going to last no longer than Paul does (since we know he survives 26).

[CaptainUniverse]

Sigh...less than two weeks now until ATSV!

[Garlador]

I'm sure this has been thrown out there in this thread or some other but I see all this being part of the long game to get Pete and MJ back together. The way I see it is that Wells or Marvel in general beleive, probably based on the overwhelmingingly postive response to Renew Your Vows that Pete and MJ will work best with MJ having superpowers, meaning she becomes Jackpot. Think about it:
1. They have now laid the groundwork with how she got her powers, and how they work.
2. They even established her denying that she's a superhero which will be part of the overall plot forcing her to have her own "With great power..." moment.
3. The kids have now been shown not to be her biological kids which makes it an easy move to reunite them with their biological parents somewhere down the road.
4. As the kids are really the thing that probably holds Paul and MJ together, removing them dooms their relationship and/or make Paul expendable, which again could lead to MJ's Great power moment..or Marvel could decide to keep the kids in the picture, off Paul and have Pete and MJ as a family, with an easy off-ramp of removing the kids if that plotline doesn't work very well.
5. MJ and Felicia's relationship has been solidified where Felicia probably wouldn't have an issue down the road if MJ and Pete are reunited, as MJ has certainly given Felicia the okay to pursue Pete now, a relationship that everyone seems to see as temporary.
6. Likewise MJ and Felicia have powers that make them a formable team.

This is going to come down to a big story arc where MJ fails to use her powers, Paul probably take a dirt nap as a result and she, like Pete vow it will never happen again. Pete can certainingly relate to this and recognizes he has to accept her with powers as MJ did him. They then become a couple again and fight crime with an occassional assist from Felicia. I can almost see the "Spiderman and Jackpot" cover for the 5 issue mini to kick things off..

This is the most optimistic outlook I’ve seen so far. It would almost redeem the current mess, even. I would still absolutely hate every last moment of what I’ve read so far to get to this point, but if they can do their “Jack Sparrow barely makes it to port in a sinking ship” moment, I’ll be very impressed.

[Xenon]

This is the most optimistic outlook I’ve seen so far. It would almost redeem the current mess, even. I would still absolutely hate every last moment of what I’ve read so far to get to this point, but if they can do their “Jack Sparrow barely makes it to port in a sinking ship” moment, I’ll be very impressed.

This is where I'm at with the run. If the have any sense at all this story will actually lift up the two of them by the end, but it seems like its going to be a shitty ride to get there, and I'll probably be getting off until we do, lol.

[Majesty]

When I think back to my youth, there was always one panel that made me burst out laughing and still does. (Aside from Peter doing acrobatics to escape through a window in an emotional moment with Mary Jane).

But the moment that sticks with me is a moment between Black Cat and Mary Jane. For some reason Black Cat calling Mary Jane "Molly Jo" and her bursting down the door in the next room screaming that name for some reason still makes me laugh to this day.

[Kevinroc]

When I think back to my youth, there was always one panel that made me burst out laughing and still does. (Aside from Peter doing acrobatics to escape through a window in an emotional moment with Mary Jane).

But the moment that sticks with me is a moment between Black Cat and Mary Jane. For some reason Black Cat calling Mary Jane "Molly Jo" and her bursting down the door in the next room screaming that name for some reason still makes me laugh to this day.

Like "Mary Jane". "Molly" is a drug reference. Unlike Stan with Mary Jane, I would be very surprised if the writer of this comic didn't know that.

[CaptainUniverse]

What is this from?

[Kevinroc]

What is this from?

I believe that was from the first issue of Tom Taylor's Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.

[CaptainUniverse]

I believe that was from the first issue of Tom Taylor's Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.

I'll have to check that out. Thanks!