Is Spencer's AMS worth reading or not?

[Lee]

I would definitely recommend the first half (up until #41) and the later King's Ransom story.

I think the big issue when it comes to recommending stories from this run is that so much of it revolves around the Kindred mystery. If you only read part of the run, that major element goes unresolved. But if you read the full run then you get a resolution that's disappointing, messy and not worth the approximately 100 issues of build-up.

[Arsenal]

The story can be a bit messy at times and there are some rough patches but, overall, I enjoyed the ride and it's a run I'll definitely reread again in the future.

[Krec99]

It’s a mess the whole build up of kindred and the twist doesn’t pay off you can see editorial was at play in this run .

[Jekyll]

It's definitely better than the garbage that is currently on the shelves.

[Tuck]

It’s a mess the whole build up of kindred and the twist doesn’t pay off you can see editorial was at play in this run .

I'm kind of curious what the original plan was. Early on, Kindred gets really upset that Peter re-revealed himself to Felicia . . . which doesn't make sense for how the story played out.

[Daibhidh]

I'm kind of curious what the original plan was. Early on, Kindred gets really upset that Peter re-revealed himself to Felicia . . . which doesn't make sense for how the story played out.

spoilers:

It sort of makes sense for Harry given that early in Michelinie's run Felicia dated Flash, who is part of Harry and Peter's friendship group. Most of the other early appearances of Kindred make a lot more sense as Harry. (At one point I saw it suggested that Kindred was a demonically corrupted Gwen. That would probably be even worse received than Sins Past, but actually would fit everything Kindred says in the story.)

end of spoilers

[Tuck]

spoilers:

It sort of makes sense for Harry given that early in Michelinie's run Felicia dated Flash, who is part of Harry and Peter's friendship group. Most of the other early appearances of Kindred make a lot more sense as Harry. (At one point I saw it suggested that Kindred was a demonically corrupted Gwen. That would probably be even worse received than Sins Past, but actually would fit everything Kindred says in the story.)

end of spoilers

Eh, that's a bit of a stretch. Especially with how Flash/Felicia played out. It sounded very personal for Kindred.

[Krec99]

I'm kind of curious what the original plan was. Early on, Kindred gets really upset that Peter re-revealed himself to Felicia . . . which doesn't make sense for how the story played out.

Kindred was Harry how he had the corpses around the dinner table that was classic Harry
The Gotcha quote Harry was in ambulance remembering how Peter let him die a hero
I agree with the Felicia stuff there was so much going on
.

[Aura Blaize]

Overall I thought it was a good run that was hampered by editorial at the end and it SHOWS. Especially compared to the drivel that we've had since.

[Xenon]

I'm kind of curious what the original plan was. Early on, Kindred gets really upset that Peter re-revealed himself to Felicia . . . which doesn't make sense for how the story played out.

i think he was mad because re-revealing himself repaired his relationship with Felicia, which once again caused him to not suffer the consequences of his actions. Like this was a woman he was supposed to love that did love him and he robbed her of her memory of him without so much as an explanation. From Kindred's perspective, the problem seemed to be that Peter was never truly taking responsibility for his actions. Felicia forgiving him and just being his buddy again doesn't make him suffer for his bad choices.

This is a little bold, but my guess is that Spencer was building to a ASM 900 wedding. Like his run ended at 875, but it was obviously rushed. So my guess is that around that time and maybe a little later Kindred makes Peter and Mary Jane remember the deal with Mephisto, then you have them deal with that fall out for dozne issues, then you hae Peter propose again and you get the big wedding for 900. It sounds a little optimistic, perhaps, but there's little doubt Kindred was about One More Day originally (maybe the Sins Past stuff was in there as well but not the main focus, given how he does have Norman reference it when he's in the boat with Spider-Gwen). I can't imagine he intended to DEAL with OMD without actually dealing with it all the way. But when he was cut short, Marvel disallowed him undoing OMD since someone else was going to have to write the followup. Stupid, but plausible given their stated position.

So basically what I'm saying is, **** substack. This is all their fault.

[clonegeek]

i think he was mad because re-revealing himself repaired his relationship with Felicia, which once again caused him to not suffer the consequences of his actions. Like this was a woman he was supposed to love that did love him and he robbed her of her memory of him without so much as an explanation. From Kindred's perspective, the problem seemed to be that Peter was never truly taking responsibility for his actions. Felicia forgiving him and just being his buddy again doesn't make him suffer for his bad choices.

This is a little bold, but my guess is that Spencer was building to a ASM 900 wedding. Like his run ended at 875, but it was obviously rushed. So my guess is that around that time and maybe a little later Kindred makes Peter and Mary Jane remember the deal with Mephisto, then you have them deal with that fall out for dozne issues, then you hae Peter propose again and you get the big wedding for 900. It sounds a little optimistic, perhaps, but there's little doubt Kindred was about One More Day originally (maybe the Sins Past stuff was in there as well but not the main focus, given how he does have Norman reference it when he's in the boat with Spider-Gwen). I can't imagine he intended to DEAL with OMD without actually dealing with it all the way. But when he was cut short, Marvel disallowed him undoing OMD since someone else was going to have to write the followup. Stupid, but plausible given their stated position.

So basically what I'm saying is, **** substack. This is all their fault.

I wonder if Marvel is saving undoing OMD for ASM 1000

[RJT]

I wonder if Marvel is saving undoing OMD for ASM 1000

I see posts like this all the time, and I guarantee you, Marvel is not saving anything for Amazing 1000. At the pace the book is coming out, that is about four years away. If they really think that undoing OMD is a good idea and a wedding issue would be a sales blockbuster they'd do it right now. They would not wait for years to hit a certain number. They'd make up a number and put it out right now. Last summer they published "Amazing Fantasy 1000" and there is literally no way you could conceivably argue that there have been a thousand issues of Amazing Fantasy. They'd make it a special mini-series and hype it to the moon. They'd add all the annuals and point-whatever issues and the seventeen issues of Peter Porker and claim that makes it Amazing 1000 and put it out in September.
Nick Lowe has been Spider-Man editor for almost a decade now, and sales must be doing okay since he's still there, but he has no guarantee that he'll have that job a month from now let alone four years from now. There is no way he'd be sitting on a plan for a huge-selling comic for four years. Marvel's a business and deals with financial quarters. They want that money now. If Marvel found out Nick Lowe was sitting on a way for them to make money so he could put it in an arbitrary number in 2027, they would fire him and promote somebody else and have them do it now.

[PCN24454]

Whenever MJ is on the page Spencer's run sings.
When she isn't on the page it's mixed. Let's see: I'm not a fan of the premise of the first story, but Spencer does it about as well as could reasonably be expected. Otherwise, I'd agree that the run works for the first twenty five plus issues until MJ is packed off to California and her own series (*). Then the run gets mixed up with a couple of crossover events - a Carnage event and a 2099 relaunch - which aren't good for it and it feels as if it's spinning its wheels. After that, it finally addresses the run's Big Bad who has been Lurking Ominously since issue one. I actually liked those issues up to a point, but I can see why other people wouldn't. Issue 60 is MJ-centric and a highlight. But otherwise, after 55 the run is trying to tie up all the threads it has set running in a rush. The finale is a mess, not helped by retconning the earlier reveal about the Big Bad in a way that is only forgiveable because it retcons Sins Past. It has good bits, such as the conclusion of Boomerang's character arc. The celebration of Peter and MJ's relationship in the final issue feels earned.

The run is trying to confront OMD and its legacy, which I think is brave, but in my view OMD is just too toxic to confront directly like that.

(*) I think MJ's own series is badly flawed: I remember about two things from it, one good, a cute moment between Peter and MJ, and one bad.

That’s honestly because she doesn’t do anything. She was only there to look pretty.

[Venomsaurus]

That’s honestly because she doesn’t do anything. She was only there to look pretty.

Did we read the same comic? So you're just ignoring how important Peter makes it clear MJ is to him in the very first issue. Her going to see the Look-Ups. Peter planning to propose to her. Her amazing moment in issue 4 when she convinces him he needs to be Spider-man as much as Peter Parker. Or her great hero moment in issue 25.

But yeah, she was just there to look pretty. Sure.

[Xenon]

I wonder if Marvel is saving undoing OMD for ASM 1000

This has been my theory for some time. Maybe not a concrete plan but an idea. Like they know they're going to do it so tell all the awful single stories they can until we get to the lead up.

That said I think we'll get them back together before they get married. I think before Spencer they could have stalled a bit longer but especially now there's just no where left to go. My confidence in OMD's eventual undoing (which is taking longer than I thought but Slott kept extending his run0 has always been based on the fact that they want to tell good stories and there's just no good romance stories under OMD. It's also more unbelivable to have them get back together and break up time and time again. At some point you expect them to stick. And you can see the shift in thinking from even early Slott to late Slott. Early Slott is either foolishly making fun of PEter's love life or using MJ as a tease before yanking the rug out from under them. Middle Slott has her dating a random person to keep her away...but he also writes RYV. Late Slott doesn't get them together but he's outright using her as the love interest, he's just having it not work out. Spencer, of course, not being tied to BND and OMD, just puts them together because of course. But even Wells in his character assassination story that this is is using Mary Jane as the primary love interest. The story he's telling is about them NOT being together. But she is nonetheless the big focus of that part of his life. At some point you have to pay it off. The story demands it and everyone can see it.

I see posts like this all the time, and I guarantee you, Marvel is not saving anything for Amazing 1000. At the pace the book is coming out, that is about four years away. If they really think that undoing OMD is a good idea and a wedding issue would be a sales blockbuster they'd do it right now. They would not wait for years to hit a certain number. They'd make up a number and put it out right now. Last summer they published "Amazing Fantasy 1000" and there is literally no way you could conceivably argue that there have been a thousand issues of Amazing Fantasy. They'd make it a special mini-series and hype it to the moon. They'd add all the annuals and point-whatever issues and the seventeen issues of Peter Porker and claim that makes it Amazing 1000 and put it out in September.
Nick Lowe has been Spider-Man editor for almost a decade now, and sales must be doing okay since he's still there, but he has no guarantee that he'll have that job a month from now let alone four years from now. There is no way he'd be sitting on a plan for a huge-selling comic for four years. Marvel's a business and deals with financial quarters. They want that money now. If Marvel found out Nick Lowe was sitting on a way for them to make money so he could put it in an arbitrary number in 2027, they would fire him and promote somebody else and have them do it now.

i mean, as I've pointed out several times, sales dropped 30-50% after OMD. They've made stupid ideological moves before. I'd also point out at the current pace it's less than three years. ASM comes out twice a month, last issue was 822. 13 issues til the end of the year, which brings us to 935. 2024 brings us to 959. 2025 to 984. So 1000 would be roughly around August 2026, which I suspect they will try to hit as it's also ASM's anniversary month.

I don't think your argument is completely wrong, but they are in the story business, and as such I think they're content to take their time and set it up, even if that was the plan. Yeah Lowe doesn't know how long he'll be there (hopefully not long) but that sort of franchise long planning is still a part of the job. And having a plan for the future is a good way to KEEP your job in those sorts of roles (Heck it's how Slott kept the ASM job for so long).
That said, the argument against it being 1000 is that well, it'll be a huge selling issue on its own. As will 1000. No need to double up.