The Foundational Weirdness of Steve Ditko

[Mister Mets]

Matt Wilson of the Comics Alliance has a piece on Ditko.

Awkwardness was a key component of Ditko’s Spidey. It’s easy to overlook because Ditko co-created him, but Ditko’s Spider-Man was weird. He appeared on-panel in impossible, contorted positions. Peter Parker wore huge glasses and bad sweater-vests.

And it wasn’t just him. Aunt May looked like she would crumble into dust any second. Doc Ock looked like a goblin. J. Jonah Jameson had a full-on Hitler mustache, and the Osborns had hair that looked like an optical illusion. Ditko was unafraid to make characters in his superhero comic look a little repulsive, an idea future artists would tamp down on or full-on reject for quite a few years after Ditko left the book.

Ditko’s Spider-Man was also a clear underdog. Though he’d get more muscular in the decades to come, Ditko’s Spider-Man vacillated between being an athletic, but still fairly small superhero, and being an out-and-out beanpole. He was visibly smaller than most of the other kids he went to high school with, let alone the villains he fought and the other superheroes he occasionally rubbed elbows with.

It is interesting how Spider-Man was very different from the usual superhero under Ditko, and then kinda got more typical under Romita (which is also when the book became Marvel's bestseller.)

[Scott Taylor]

I've always wondered about that Hitler 'stache on JJJ. At the time, WW II was pretty fresh in people's minds and that style just seems like it had to be some kind of a political statement, maybe about the press. Seems over the top and extremely unsubtle if it was just to signify JJJ as a villain.

[oldschool]

Looking back, the difference in the look of the title could not have been more different than it was between Ditko and JR SR. It's commonly accepted that JR SR, coming as he did from a background in romantic comics, made every character instantly more conventionally attractive and Spidey more muscular and overall heroic looking. But it is also interesting to note that Ditko's Peter Parker bore more than a passing resemblance to Ditko himself: slight, bespectacled, nebbishy looking---these were all traits they shared and of course later on in the title's history, especially in his final year on the book, Ditko took over the plotting almost entirely and had his Ayn Rand-informed sensibilities dominating the book. One has to wonder what Spidey's fate would have been had Ditko stayed on the title longer than he did; it's hard to argue with the Bible those first 38 issues were but would Spidey have evolved into Marvel's flagship title without the more mainstream appeal JR SR brought to it?

[David Walton]

I've often said that Romita Jr.'s Spider-Man run is the Ghostbusters 2 to Ditko's original. And I don't mean that in a bad way, because I actually prefer the sequel.

Yeah, I'm that guy.

Sure, it's not as bold as the first, but Venkman has better quips, Vigo the Carpathian was a scarier villain with a creepier plot, and the supporting cast got more opportunities to shine.

During the Lee/Romita Sr. run, Spider-Man gets funnier, the Green Goblin became a much bigger threat to Peter than he'd ever been, and the Bugle cast was fleshed out brilliantly (with some nice additions to boot). When you think about Peter's chemistry with 'the gang,' it's all Lee/Romita Sr. Otherwise we'd have a Peter Parker who makes Tony Stark go, "What an ass!"

The first 38 issues of Spider-Man aren't the Bible, they're the Old Testament, and if Ditko is an angry god, Romita Sr. is our savior.

[Johnatellodi]

I've often said that Romita Jr.'s Spider-Man run is the Ghostbusters 2 to Ditko's original. And I don't mean that in a bad way, because I actually prefer the sequel.

Yeah, I'm that guy.

Sure, it's not as bold as the first, but Venkman has better quips, Vigo the Carpathian was a scarier villain with a creepier plot, and the supporting cast got more opportunities to shine.

During the Lee/Romita Sr. run, Spider-Man gets funnier, the Green Goblin became a much bigger threat to Peter than he'd ever been, and the Bugle cast was fleshed out brilliantly (with some nice additions to boot). When you think about Peter's chemistry with 'the gang,' it's all Lee/Romita Sr. Otherwise we'd have a Peter Parker who makes Tony Stark go, "What an ass!"

The first 38 issues of Spider-Man aren't the Bible, they're the Old Testament, and if Ditko is an angry god, Romita Sr. is our savior.

Wait, did this actually happen? Sounds funny.

[David Walton]

Wait, did this actually happen? Sounds funny.

It's never happened to my knowledge, but if Peter kept interacting with his cast as Ditko envisioned him, then yeah, even Tony Stark would be shocked by Peter's lack of basic social skills.

[BlitheringToot]

Personally, I prefer Ditko's run to JRSR's. There's something wonderful about that quirky, almost ugly art style that works so well with the tone of the stories. I like Romita's run, though not as much as Ross Andru's or Gil Kane's, but Ditko's run was easily my favorite of Spidey's early days.

[Mister Mets]

Looking back, the difference in the look of the title could not have been more different than it was between Ditko and JR SR. It's commonly accepted that JR SR, coming as he did from a background in romantic comics, made every character instantly more conventionally attractive and Spidey more muscular and overall heroic looking. But it is also interesting to note that Ditko's Peter Parker bore more than a passing resemblance to Ditko himself: slight, bespectacled, nebbishy looking---these were all traits they shared and of course later on in the title's history, especially in his final year on the book, Ditko took over the plotting almost entirely and had his Ayn Rand-informed sensibilities dominating the book. One has to wonder what Spidey's fate would have been had Ditko stayed on the title longer than he did; it's hard to argue with the Bible those first 38 issues were but would Spidey have evolved into Marvel's flagship title without the more mainstream appeal JR SR brought to it?

It might have been like Thor, well-regarded with some major runs but not the Marvel flagship. One further problem for Marvel would have been how the book would survive when it was time for a new artist. It's probably easier for an artist to ape Romita than Ditko. Romita was better at his style than anyone else, but it was also something others could use as a template. There are fewer who would do Ditko competently.

[Scott Taylor]

There was certainly something very unique and hard to duplicate with Ditko's style. Several artists over the years have tried to bring back that early feel, for throwback issues or what have you, but it never quite reaches the mark.

[David Walton]

There was certainly something very unique and hard to duplicate with Ditko's style. Several artists over the years have tried to bring back that early feel, for throwback issues or what have you, but it never quite reaches the mark.

Oh, I don't know. I thought McFarlane and Larsen did a great job of mashing up Ditko's 'foundational weirdness' with more mainstream sensibilities.

Of course, I'm not arguing that they have the exact same quality as Ditko, just that they incorporated his vibe into the Romita Sr. mold and gave us something fresh.

[oldschool]

Oh, I don't know. I thought McFarlane and Larsen did a great job of mashing up Ditko's 'foundational weirdness' with more mainstream sensibilities.

Of course, I'm not arguing that they have the exact same quality as Ditko, just that they incorporated his vibe into the Romita Sr. mold and gave us something fresh.

That's a fair assessment though it is worth nothing that they only captured the "foundational weirdness" when it came to Spidey's contorted poses and not when it came to civilians who rarely looked more attractive. (Peter and MJ both resembled Hollywood royalty during this era as did other supporting cast members). Though it was a relatively small sample size, I always found Marcos Martin's work to share more DNA with Ditko's.

[Scott Taylor]

McFarlane and Larsen definitely brought on the spirit of Ditko, with regard to Spider-Man, especially in telling a story with just the art. Torment couldn't have been such a success otherwise. But yah, I don't miss the big hair MJ style or the style of just about any other supporting character. Funny, I thought McFarlane's style worked way better for the Hulk than it did for Spider-Man.

[Pav]

The first 38 issues of Spider-Man aren't the Bible, they're the Old Testament, and if Ditko is an angry god, Romita Sr. is our savior.

This is an amazing analogy!

For whatever it's worth, one of the things I'd want to do if I was ever allowed to write Spidey comics is explore the differences between Ditko!Spidey and Romita!Spidey - characterization, relation to themes, etc.

-Pav, who thinks Spidey clones are super useful...

[Flash Gordon]

I prefer the Ditko Spider-Man where Peter is kind of strange and a little creepy and everything is kind of hyper real and bizarre.

[oldschool]

I prefer the Ditko Spider-Man where Peter is kind of strange and a little creepy and everything is kind of hyper real and bizarre.

Yeah and what's more is to try and relate to just how it must've felt to be find those early issues on a spinner rack in the early 1960's! Much like hearing Elvis or The Beatles for the first time, it is hard for us to relate to just how different and revelatory it must have been for someone back then….