If you were in charge of the comics (non Spider-marriage edition)...

[Alex_Of_X]

Why would Peter still be a photographer?

I mean, why not, tho? Guy certainly has experience in the field; and I don't thing he hates the craft outright.

Hmm...makes me want an ASM run by writer-photographer Gerry Duggan

[Huntsman Spider]

If I was in charge, what I would do;
Lets say by some miracle, the stars align and I become not only Writer of Amazing Spider-Man, but I get free reign on what to do with the Character, here's what I would do.
Issue One
This one would be your typical "Spider-Man" in action story. The first few pages tell the audience what it's like being Spider-Man as he stops a robber. We see a young boy look up to Spider-Man as Spider-Man looks back down on him, relived at saving the day once again and being a Hero to the City (someone who children can look up to).
We then bring in a villain like Shocker, someone who can create an interesting book, but not enough to fill out a major arc. Maybe this plot runs for two issues, we can get a cliffhanger where we think Spider-Man is in trouble, but he comes around in the end and saves the day.
For the first 10 issues or so, we just have minor but fun adventures while building up the supporting cast. Maybe we get an issue where Jonah is at the Bank and Rhino attacks, and we get a buddy action issue where Jonah and Spider-Man team up. Maybe even have an Aunt May team-Up where Someone has stolen money from the Shelter she helps at and it's up to her and Spidey to get it back. Small adventures that allow the supporting cast room to breath but also allow Spider-Man to win in the action. Playing to their strengths (maybe May just slaps a criminal so hard, he gets knocked out as he was about to attack Spider-Man, something silly like that). In the background however, the Jackal is back, and we get some scenes with Norman Osborne. It's setting up something, but what that is won't be revealed yet.

Instead issues 11-14 (or 15) will be the first big arc, one that puts in place one of the themes in the run. A new Villain is introduced, (I haven't got a name or any ideas for powers), he fights Spider-Man and is of course, beaten in the end. The new villain gets unmasked and it's just some guy. He gets taken away. At the end of the issue we learn who he is, he is the Kid we saw in issue 1, but this time, we see it from his point of view. He isn't looking up at Spider-Man, Spider-Man is looking down at him.

Then we get an arc or two which are again, smaller but this time there is a rather somber tone. Rather than the fun hijinks and whacky team-ups, Spider-Man is fighting more aggressive villains alone. Maybe there's a three part arc where he fights Ock (or maybe even Lizard in a tragic horror story).

Issues 20-25 will be the next big arc, the cap off to the Norman and Jackal plots. As it turns out the Norman we've seen since the Clone Saga is in fact a clone. The real Norman is dead and the one that's been alive is just the Jackal's secret scheme. He blames Norman for the death of Gwen as much as he blames Spider-Man, and bitter at how he never got to kill Norman himself, he cloned him and watched as the two tore each other's lives apart. Norman will keep dying and being brought back, never knowing the circumstances of the previous one's death.
In a fit of rage and psychotic anger, Norman prepares to kill Jackal once and for all. But is stopped by Spider-Man. The two battle and the glider kills Norman like it did back in ASM 121, and he turns to dust.
Elsewhere, a new Norman wakes, the knowledge that Spider-Man has beaten him once again and he plans his revenge.

Issue 26 is a quiet issue, serving as a loose epilogue of the previous arc where Jackal is taken to Ryker's. Here, we are given a therapy session of our new villain. We see the events of issue 1 played out from his point of view.
Needing money, his Dad ended up as a small time petty crook. One day, on his way Home from School, he saw his Dad rob a Bank, and Spider-Man came to save the day. From that point on, his Dad got six months in Jail and his family life fell apart. Kicked out for not being able to pay rent, he spent some time in May's Homeless Shelter. He eventually got kicked out of School for not turning up.
However, he was smart, very smart, and he built himself his own suit using materials he would find in the aftermath of big battles. He swore vengeance on Spider-Man for tearing apart his life.

The rest of the run would play out with smaller arcs mixed in with the build up to the return of the Green Goblin and the return of the new villain. Maybe there's an arc where there's a riot at Ryker's and the street level Characters go in to stop them, in the meantime our new Villain (I'm just going to refer to him as Agent X from now on) escapes and the Jackal also escapes. We get an arc where Spider-Man finds out who Agent X is, and that he is one of the many People whose lives where ruined by him.

The final arc will see the plot threads come together. The Green Goblin returns, no knowledge that he is a clone. He prepares to kill Spider-Man once and for all. At the same time, our new Character is also planning his assault on Spider-Man. During his time at Ryker's, Agent X and Jackal had struck up a friendship, with the Jackal learning Agent X has a personal vendetta against Spider-Man. He planned for the Green Goblin to return and for Agent X to strike at the same time. However, what he didn't count on was that both Agent X and Green Goblin want to kill Spider-Man themselves, leading to a three way battle between them.
The battle gets to a point where Spider-Man tells GG that he is a clone created by the Jackal so he can die. This awakens the memory of him waking up in a lab, believing it was his lab. Spider-Man pleads to not let the Jackal win and to be his own Person.
GG goes after the Jackal and Spider-Man tries to stop him, but Agent X gets in the way. They fight until Agent X learns that GG is going to kill the Jackal, his friend.
They go to stop GG where Agent X tries to tackle him, but GG is too strong. In the end, Spider-Man tells him that he doesn't have to live his life as the GG or as Norman, that he has his own life and he can be whoever he wants to be. That where he comes from doesn't define him and that a clone can be just as human as himself. That although its our pasts that make us who we are, who we are is dependant on how we deal with that.
GG takes off his mask, and decides to not kill the Jackal, but the Jackal kills him instead.
Agent X, seeing as how he saw Spider-Man try to save his "friend", sees that he was wrong, and sees that he was just as manipulated as Norman was. He fights the Jackal and helps Spider-Man clear the devastation he helped cause. He decides to live his life as a Hero, one born out of trying to do the right thing.

We get two epilogues, one has Peter go to visit a random criminal he put away in an earlier issue (the team up with May) ,and try to find out more about him and listen to him.
In the other, we have Norman wake up in a dark lab, angry because he was beaten by Spider-Man again...

Supporting Cast
Obviously May and Jonah will have a major role in this era. May being the emotional foil to Jonah's fun anger. Their arcs will also have their own themes. May tries to help People because she could have been in that position before, and she instead has a sympathetic feel for them. She doesn't want things to get violent, but she will protect those around her if she feels it's necessary.
Jonah's arc will pit him being stuck in what's the right thing. He sees the World around him changing, seeing every event from the birth of the Fantastic Four until now. It will see him seeing that he wasn't always right, believing Spider-Man to be a menace when does indeed help People. It will see him for how much he has grown.
If Marvel would allow it, I'll have MJ and Peter being dating, possibly living together. MJ however feels the external force of Spider-Man does indeed get in the way of their relationship. That she loves Peter because she gets to see him under the mask, someone who is just as afraid as she is of losing him as he is of losing her. Their rocky relationship is down to her not being able if she can handle it, and she loves that he is Spider-Man, but sometimes the nature of it scares her. They want to be together, but every time she feels herself getting close, the spider pulls her away. But she also doesn't know if she would love him if he wasn't Spider-Man. Does the idea of her dating a hero thrill her or scare her? Her arc will explore these internal questions and doubts she has about herself.
As for Peter himself, he'll have a stable job. I like the idea of him working at the Baxter Building, it gives him a chance to stretch those scientific muscles, plus it ties into ASM #1 where he wanted to join the Fantastic Four.

Will Spider-Man be part of the greater Universe?
The answer to this is of course, yes. With him working at the Baxter Building, Reed will be a sort of secondary supporting Character. Someone who turns up every now and then to give off his Prescence.
Other characters will appear in the battle of Ryker's and maybe there's a few cameos at the end with the destruction of New York. Agent X's costume itself is a mixture of different suits he picked up along the way, whether it be Iron Man's or Sentinels. Everything comes together to create a Character who is at their core, the heart of the Marvel Universe.
Agent X himself is inspired by a Character from a completely forgotten comic in which a member of SCUDS takes stuff from fights in New York as he plans some vengeance on Spider-Man. The issue is Spider-Man Unlimited #14).

Anyway that's my plan.
Again, if the stars align and I get that call, well... now you know how it goes...

This is just about perfect, at least in terms of actually having something to say as opposed to just repeating the beats or motions of his classic stories with a few twists here and there. Kind of gives me the same energy as Chip Zdarsky's Daredevil.

[Kaitou D. Kid]

If you were in charge of the Spider-Man comics, what would you like to see?

My main thing I want is to get another Spider-Man who is competent, mature, and feels like he isn't being written as a 16-year old in an adult body. In other words, a Peter more akin to JMS or to the Peters from ITSV.

I also want us to go back to Peter being a teacher, since (1) he was great at it and (2) lets you do more social commentary. I would like to see Peter encounter alienated young men that get duped by demagogues like Jordan Peterson and Andrew Tate, and essentially deradicalize them by being the father figure/mentor that they crave. He can do this as either Peter or Spider-Man - maybe as Spider-Man, he encounters young men being recruited by HYDRA and has to figure out ways to deradicalize them.

Speaking of Peter changing people for the better, I would like him and Normie to bond a bit. Everyone expects Normie to one day be a Goblin... Why not challenge that? Have Liz drop off Normie at Peter's place for like a week while she attends a business trip, and have him and Peter bond during that time. Peter can reassure him that he doesn't have to become a villain like his father and grandfather, and Normie would feel he found the positive male role model he was missing from his life. And then we can say Peter reformed Normie the way Dick Grayson reformed Damian.

Now that Spider-Man has been around 10+ years in the Marvel Universe and inspired a bunch of legacy heroes like Miles, the world's perception of him has to change. Polls come out showing Spider-Man is now one of the most liked heroes in New York, and maybe the most liked superhero among those under 20. The Bugle and the police will still hate him, but the Bugle narrative going forward will be "It's irresponsible for someone like that to not unmask himself and become an Avenger." And then people start disliking him again, but for a totally different reason this time.

Also, whether you address OMD or not, I would like more stories that go after preconceived notions of getting older. You can technically do that without undoing OMD. And by doing it, you'd be helping plant more seeds for the eventual undoing of OMD (not a cheat answer btw ).


What type of writers and artists would you seek out?

The only strong opinion I have on this is that I don't want any BND writers ever again - regardless of whether or not you undo OMD.

Besides that, not sure who I'd pick. I say ask Zdarsky again, but he'll probably say no (again).

Don't have strong feelings on the artist either, but my favorite new artist right now is Ryan Ottley. I say bring him back for more.


What books would you publish?

I would go back to ASM having one issue a month, but there being 2-3 satellite books at the same time. That way it doesn't feel like one writer's dictatorship the way it has since 2011.


What approach would you take to villains?

I like Sandman and Rhino being reformed, so I would use them as anti-heroes.

I would make Norman (as Green Goblin) the official "dark trickster" of the Marvel Universe. The Avengers can be his version of the Sinister Six, which further makes him a dark image of Peter. And just like how Peter quips at bad guys and beats them with his wits, Norman would do the same but with the superhero community. Making Goblin even more of a perverse image of Spider-Man than he already is.

Also, I would bring MCU Spider-Man to 616... kinda. I would have Norman would adopt a 15-year old white kid with spider powers, give him access to all the tech he wants, and essentially groom him into becoming a pro-corporate Spider-Man that perverts the image of the "friendly neighborhood" Spider-Man. Here is the catch, though... he would be Miles' archenemy, not Peter's. He could be a good archenemy for Miles because of how many surface similarities the new Spidey would have with Peter, therefore forcing Miles to confront his own insecurities.


Should the book connect to what's going on in the rest of the Marvel Universe?

If it makes sense and there's an interesting story to tell, sure. For all its flaws, I liked Spider-Man in Civil War. Actually, part of my dislike for OMD is that Dark Reign would have been better with a pre-OMD Spider-Man. It would have been WAY cooler if Peter was still on the run while Norman was became the king of the Marvel Universe. And then you could have Peter be the one to take him down and trigger the "Heroic Age"... and maybe he would lose his marriage or memories of the marriage in the process, but at least you would get a satisfying end to the pre-OMD continuity. I'm going on a tangent, point is... Feel free to connect Spidey to the wider MU if it's cool and makes sense.


How often would there be guest-starrs?

I like the "traditional" approach of having a guest star every 10-15 issues as opposed to, say, every 5 issues. But it would vary depending on what specific stories I have in mind as I'm writing.


What would you like to see in the supporting cast?

I know you said I can't undo OMD, but I would still have Peter and MJ as a non-married couple. If I can get away with them living together, I would do that too. If not, them just being together is fine.

I would also steal from the movie I Love You, Man with Paul Rudd and Jason Segel, and have Peter get a new best friend. Here is why: First, I feel like Peter's hasn't had a close guy friend in ASM comics for a while now. And I mean a truly close guy friend... someone as close as he is to Johnny or Ganke is to Miles. Second, I feel like it's pretty relatable for an older person who is out of school. Most people I know, most guys especially, dealt with this at some point.

And look, Johnny is great, but Johnny as Peter's best friend has one problem: He can't regularly show up in ASM because he isn't an ordinary civilian. Johnny is like that best bud you can only see once a month... You know you guys are close, and you wish you could get together more often... but it's not gonna happen due to how different your lives are. So Peter should get another best friend like Johnny, but one he can see regularly and that can interact with his supporting cast regularly.

I think the best candidate for that is, IMO, Randy Robertson. He is already in Peter's circle, has Johnny's sense of humor, but also... as a social worker and activist who dislikes the Bugle... I feel Randy is someone who would really understand what Spider-Man is about. Moreso than Flash and Harry ever did.

Anyway, the story I would do is that Randy finds out Peter is Spider-Man, and feels hurt that Peter didn't tell him all these years. Peter then would realize Randy was someone he could have opened up to and starts doing it more. And going forward, they have a bond more like Peter and Johnny's. When MJ and Aunt May aren't around, Randy can be the third person Peter can confide in. Just a thought.

[Majesty]

That's a fair point. Ultimate Spider-Man was smart to lean into his scientific and technological genius by having him work on The Daily Bugle's online infrastructure instead. Could have him do something similar in the mainline continuity, where he's either working for Robbie Robertson at The Daily Bugle firming up the newspaper's website and increasing its online reach via social media and such, or doing much the same for J. Jonah Jameson at Threats and Menaces. He could even serve as the chief cybersecurity personnel for the Bugle or TNM.

This was essentially the idea. Kind of a way to modernize the traits people are familiar with and making it equivalent to nowadays.

[Kaitou D. Kid]

That's a fair point. Ultimate Spider-Man was smart to lean into his scientific and technological genius by having him work on The Daily Bugle's online infrastructure instead. Could have him do something similar in the mainline continuity, where he's either working for Robbie Robertson at The Daily Bugle firming up the newspaper's website and increasing its online reach via social media and such, or doing much the same for J. Jonah Jameson at Threats and Menaces. He could even serve as the chief cybersecurity personnel for the Bugle or TNM.

This was essentially the idea. Kind of a way to modernize the traits people are familiar with and making it equivalent to nowadays.

I think the problem with Ultimate's explanation is that (1) it doesn't give Peter an excuse to go out as Spider-Man if there is a villain on a rampage and (2) it's not believable in an world where there are 40 year olds who grew up with the internet. Maybe it made sense in 2000 when the only ones familiar with the internet were 15-20 year olds, so Peter could get that job, but now it feels dated.

Ironically, photography is more relevant than ever with all the selfies, lol. Peter essentially makes a living taking pictures of himself no different than some Instagram influencer. Another example of how Ultimate wasn't really more modern or realistic than 616.

[Daibhidh]

One thing that I wonder is why hasn't anyone ever used Philip Watson, MJ's father, as a villain since the marriage? It's not like having an semi-oedipal relationship to a villain is off brand for Peter.

[Malachi]

And because there are so many threads about whether to bring back the marriage, whether Peter & MJ should reconcile, and so forth, we really don't need to hash that out here. Let's pretend the Editor-in-Chief has a clear vision that you won't be able to override. If you want to say what your preferences on that are, it's fine to mention once but this is more about the other decisions.

What type of writers and artists would you seek out?
Writers that believe in the importance of characterization. Artists are not so important for me that I have any special requests.

What books would you publish?
One book for Peter, One for Miles. Teamup if the economy allows it, doesn't have to be a ongoing as it can be volumes when the interest exists. Other then that if a character can support an ongoing let them have it, otherwise do a family title if enough can't sustain ongoings.

What approach would you take to villains?
Be sparse with the biggest ones and try to differeniate why they are villians and why they are unique. No greatest hits run. Sandman seems to have run out of stories to tell as a viallian, no need to keep him as one just becasue. He worked as a more grey character with Silver Sable.

Should the book connect to what's going on in the rest of the Marvel Universe?
If the writers want to. No real embargos one witch characters they can't use and so on.

How often would there be guest-starrs?
Se the answer to the last question.

What would you like to see in the supporting cast?
There are so many great and established characters in the Bugle so it would be a waste to not use them and the easiset answer is to tie Peters life into that workplace, so probably have him work for them. Plus all the problems with maintaining a newspapper these days the story potentiel is there. Long term though Peter probably needs another job seeing how that industry is morphing.
Whoever he dates should be treated with respect and no shock stories to write out characters. Work with the sandbox and treat the toys like important and expensive toys that you have an vested interest in maintaining and using.

Witch ties it back into your MJ clause. If one is in charge of Spider-man there can be no such definitive answer on what MJ should be or not to be because such a policy would rot the office and make your job impossible. The biggest problem one would need to correct if charge of the Spider-man brand is to get rid of such confining restrictions.

Now I can understand if you don't want people ranting about this and this with the marriage but if someone is to be in charge of the spider-man brand there can be no restrictions like OMD and other editorial mandates. Because with those in effect you aren't truly in charge of the brand.

If the you as a person in charge and the writers under you don't want to use any character then let it be fine. As long as the characters are treated with respect. What is important is that the readers feel like anything can happen and that they want to pick up the next issue because anything is possible. Be it marriage to MJ, Kids with Felicia or something else.

[PCN24454]

One thing that I wonder is why hasn't anyone ever used Philip Watson, MJ's father, as a villain since the marriage? It's not like having an semi-oedipal relationship to a villain is off brand for Peter.

That’s precisely why Mr. Watson should never ever be used as a supervillain let alone ever show up again. Nothing good would come out of it.

[FFJamie94]

This is just about perfect, at least in terms of actually having something to say as opposed to just repeating the beats or motions of his classic stories with a few twists here and there. Kind of gives me the same energy as Chip Zdarsky's Daredevil.

I've always wanted to read a story where we see the consequences of Spider-Man's actions. I feel that for as much as I love Spider-Man, we don't see a lot on the ripple effect of him "Saving the Day".
We see the lives he touches, but there must be some who feel torn apart by him.
But then, obviously, because this is Peter Parker, he learns from it. That responsibility isn't just about doing the right thing, it's about keeping it the right way.

Obviously, if this was an indie book, I'd go in a completely different direction, but for a Spider-Man book, I kind of want it be a love letter while also looking at the flaws of his own system.
I get many People won't want to read it, but we're 60 years into this Character's history, I'd like to read a loving deconstruction.

[Huntsman Spider]

I think the problem with Ultimate's explanation is that (1) it doesn't give Peter an excuse to go out as Spider-Man if there is a villain on a rampage and (2) it's not believable in an world where there are 40 year olds who grew up with the internet. Maybe it made sense in 2000 when the only ones familiar with the internet were 15-20 year olds, so Peter could get that job, but now it feels dated.

Ironically, photography is more relevant than ever with all the selfies, lol. Peter essentially makes a living taking pictures of himself no different than some Instagram influencer. Another example of how Ultimate wasn't really more modern or realistic than 616.

Fair points there. I do like your ideas, though, especially your deconstruction/takedown of how Spider-Man was depicted in the MCU up to No Way Home.

I've always wanted to read a story where we see the consequences of Spider-Man's actions. I feel that for as much as I love Spider-Man, we don't see a lot on the ripple effect of him "Saving the Day".
We see the lives he touches, but there must be some who feel torn apart by him.
But then, obviously, because this is Peter Parker, he learns from it. That responsibility isn't just about doing the right thing, it's about keeping it the right way.

Obviously, if this was an indie book, I'd go in a completely different direction, but for a Spider-Man book, I kind of want it be a love letter while also looking at the flaws of his own system.
I get many People won't want to read it, but we're 60 years into this Character's history, I'd like to read a loving deconstruction.

Yeah, a loving deconstruction, or at least one that segues into a reconstruction, of Spider-Man would be great. Funny enough, speaking of deconstruction, that did seem to be kind of the idea behind Nick Spencer's Spider-Man, somewhat harshly reassessing how well Spider-Man lived up to the credo passed on from Uncle Ben that "with great power, there must also come great responsibility," mainly citing what went down in the Parker Industries era and how he handled the situation with Norman Osborn, the Green Goblin, leading to Gwen Stacy's murder and Harry Osborn's descent into madness and eventual death. Might have culminated in taking on the greatest betrayal of that credo, namely One More Day, but we all know what came of that, sadly.

One thing that I wonder is why hasn't anyone ever used Philip Watson, MJ's father, as a villain since the marriage? It's not like having an semi-oedipal relationship to a villain is off brand for Peter.

That’s precisely why Mr. Watson should never ever be used as a supervillain let alone ever show up again. Nothing good would come out of it.

Didn't Philip Watson die after Mary Jane reconciled with him near the beginning of the Clone Saga?

[Jman27]

One thing that I wonder is why hasn't anyone ever used Philip Watson, MJ's father, as a villain since the marriage? It's not like having an semi-oedipal relationship to a villain is off brand for Peter.

he has no reason to be a villain

[Mister Mets]

he has no reason to be a villain

He allowed his other daughter to take the fall for him when he broke the law.

[Jman27]

He allowed his other daughter to take the fall for him when he broke the law.

yeah then he learn the errors of his way and fess up for the crime. What other reason would he have for being a villain

[Huntsman Spider]

He allowed his other daughter to take the fall for him when he broke the law.

A fair point there, though again, I do recall Mary Jane reconciling with him upon his impending death around the time the 90s Clone Saga was first kicking off.

[Daibhidh]

he has no reason to be a villain

He was a villain, though. He hit his daughter as a child, and then sued his wife for slander when she left him because of that. He stole a book and got his daughter to take the fall. Positing that if someone who did that got powers they would use them for evil is not a wild stretch. Then his younger daughter instead of letting her sister take the fall like he told her to betrayed him to the police (as he would see it).

While I like to believe nobody is beyond redemption, reconciliation with people like that tends to last only as long as it suits them.