Originally Posted by
Gnarlly
I guess it depends on your definition of "success," as everyone's definition may be a little bit different.
Does "success" mean a high-paying job, lots of money in the bank, a nice big house, expensive cars, toys and gadgets, the ability to date supermodels, being able to do whatever you want (and perhaps having the ego to go along with that)? If so, then perhaps Tony Stark/Iron Man is the model of "success" in the Marvel world (Bruce Wayne/Batman in the DC world).
Or does "success" mean knowing wrong vs. right, having a clean conscious with your decision/indecisions, having the ability and willingness to make personal sacrifices to help others, putting others before yourself (selflessness and without ego), having family and friends that care about you and making sacrifices for their well-being? If so, then perhaps Peter Parker/Spider-Man is a model of "success."
With the popularity and success of Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man and Avengers films, the "successful" Iron Man seems to have taken over as the face of Marvel entertainment these days. That's a little sad for me given that Spidey has pretty much been Marvel's flagship character since the 1960's.
Peter Parker's success as a character is primarily because he is a common man (an "everyman" character) that gained super powers. He was not born into wealth (Tony Stark/Bruce Wayne), or even born on another planet for that matter (Clark Kent/Superman). That is what makes him so special, and why comic fans latched onto him so readily. Kids could identify with the nerdy science geek who got picked on, or the more simple guy riding around on a moped and taking pictures for a newspaper to make ends meet. Marvel has tried to keep him "down on his luck" and take away some of his "successes" over the years so that the "common man" can still identify with him. Yes, he did "successfully" date and marry a supermodel, but Marvel of course had to rectify that and take his marriage away . . . (save that discussion for another thread). And while the current storyline has Peter heading a big company, I don't see that storyline lasting too long; if it did, and Marvel tries to turn Peter Parker into Tony Stark, then the "everyman" concept of Peter Parker will be lost and Marvel will lose readership.
Peter Parker will continue to achieve "success," but those successful accomplishments will continue to be stripped from him to keep him "down on his luck" and identifiable to the "common man." They don't call it the "Parker Luck" for nothing.