OMD, 10 Years Later--Was It Worth It?

[Scott Taylor]

Being a believer that the end does not justify the means ... no. Marvel can do better. The journey to get to a particular destination matters.

It wouldn't bother me so much if OMD wasn't a seminal story. The marriage happened, as did the married years. Marvel still publishes GNs from that time. OMD explains how that all went away and got us to the new timeline, so its always going to be important.

[Metamorphosis]

However, as of right now, I think we have the best compromise possible for "married Spidey" fans if Marvel wants to enforce a marriage ban, something we couldn't say a few years ago.

The current RYV book is a great piece of work, but there will always be a sense that it "doesn't count" because it's not the main universe.

On the other side of that coin, Marvel already had their desperately-important young, unmarried Peter Parker Spider-Man in the Ultimate universe, so why was the need so vital to alter the 616 in such a vile way?

[UnknownEntity]

The current RYV book is a great piece of work, but there will always be a sense that it "doesn't count" because it's not the main universe.

On the other side of that coin, Marvel already had their desperately-important young, unmarried Peter Parker Spider-Man in the Ultimate universe, so why was the need so vital to alter the 616 in such a vile way?

Pretty much because of the same reason you stated about RYV. Because it wasn't the main canon.

RYV is excellent. I love everything about it, even its faults because then I can see what can improve. And with Marvel's current state of event craze, I am also glad its an AU and apart from the rest of the MU clusterf*ck.

But at the same time, if this series gets cancelled it'll meet the same fate as Spider Girl and yes like you said, it'll be like if it doesn't count. Which is why I propose a MERGE between RYV and the current 616 Spider Man. To me, RYV is the manifestation of the Spider Marriage in Mephisto's grasp. If Peter and MJ's unconditional millennial love was so great that even the devil Mephisto wanted it, surely its powerful enough to become its own reality.

[MetalWoman]

However, historically, the MCU has taken a lot from the Ultimate comics, and Ultimate Spider-Man is one of the most anti-OMD comics Marvel has ever published, so there is a distinct possibility that MCU Spidey will be nothing like post-OMD Spider-Man.

What do you mean by Ultimate Spider-Man being one of the most anti-OMD comics? I thought the goal of OMD was to get rid of the marriage to make Peter seem younger, and Ultimate Spidey was still in high school. Hell, I always figured OMD would have returned Peter to a high school kid if editorial thought it was at all possible.

[Metamorphosis]

Pretty much because of the same reason you stated about RYV. Because it wasn't the main canon.

RYV is excellent. I love everything about it, even its faults because then I can see what can improve. And with Marvel's current state of event craze, I am also glad its an AU and apart from the rest of the MU clusterf*ck.

But at the same time, if this series gets cancelled it'll meet the same fate as Spider Girl and yes like you said, it'll be like if it doesn't count. Which is why I propose a MERGE between RYV and the current 616 Spider Man. To me, RYV is the manifestation of the Spider Marriage in Mephisto's grasp. If Peter and MJ's unconditional millennial love was so great that even the devil Mephisto wanted it, surely its powerful enough to become its own reality.

Sales on Ultimate Spider-Man, which once outsold the 616, had started to stall and flag by the time of OMD. But Marvel really had the best of both worlds to play around in at that point: the young, single Peter Parker of Ultimate that Marvel espouses is imperative to the character, and the experienced, older Peter / Spider-Man of the 616 that readers had grown up alongside and who's main title was still on a creative roll thanks to JMS.

[UnknownEntity]

What do you mean by Ultimate Spider-Man being one of the most anti-OMD comics? I thought the goal of OMD was to get rid of the marriage to make Peter seem younger, and Ultimate Spidey was still in high school. Hell, I always figured OMD would have returned Peter to a high school kid if editorial thought it was at all possible.

Making Peter a teenager after being an adult for more than fifty years of his entire history is the worst thing you can do to Spider Man next to One More Day's pact with the devil. High school is but a small and brief period of time in any individual's life.

If Spidey was meant for that, then Stan Lee would never have aged him past his high school years, but he did because he wasn't meant to stay in a particular period indefinitely. He is a character that grows and evolves. But now, he is just Marvel's Peter Pan.

[UnknownEntity]

Sales on Ultimate Spider-Man, which once outsold the 616, had started to stall and flag by the time of OMD. But Marvel really had the best of both worlds to play around in at that point: the young, single Peter Parker of Ultimate that Marvel espouses is imperative to the character, and the experienced, older Peter / Spider-Man of the 616 that readers had grown up alongside and who's main title was still on a creative roll thanks to JMS.

I am aware of this and share the same thoughts. They had their single Spidey and their married Spidey who had developed naturally in that direction. And yet they weren't complacent with this and ruined both of these Spider Men.

[The Mary Janes]

Quite possibly the biggest mistake Marvel has ever done. Right up there with 'Sin's Past', and with the creation of Miles Morales coming in second.

[JTait]

It's difficult to say without knowing what the alternative would have been. The story itself was horrible, and ASM has been a bit of a mixed bag since, with some great stories and quite a few average ones.

I do agree with others that Spider-Man needed some sort of shake up, and I tend to prefer a single Spidey so I have voted yes, albeit with a few caveats.

[AmazingFantasy]

IMO no, it was not. I like a good amount of post-OMD Spider-Man stories, some of my favorites being from said era as a matter of fact, but as has been pointed out, a lot of them could've simply have happened with a married Peter. I don't think that a single Peter was used all that well either, after all the effort to get rid of the marriage. Lastly, well, Peter and MJ are just a great pair. LOL

[Spencermalley935]

It really wasn't worth it at all and did nothing to improve the series. MJ was a more interesting character than any one of the cardboard cutouts that Peter has dated since OMD and she always will be.

Quoted for truth

[Animehunter]

No no no no no

[The Mary Janes]

IMO no, it was not. I like a good amount of post-OMD Spider-Man stories, some of my favorites being from said era as a matter of fact, but as has been pointed out, a lot of them could've simply have happened with a married Peter. I don't think that a single Peter was used all that well either, after all the effort to get rid of the marriage. Lastly, well, Peter and MJ are just a great pair. LOL

The only thing single-Peter has been used for is either shoving him with another woman playfully which doesn't build anywhere, or to simply remind us that Mary Jane is gone from his life. Like, what was even the fucking point?

[Spencermalley935]

I'm gonna say absolutely not. There is literally nothing that has happened since then that the marriage would have interfered with.

[plasticman101]

I think It was the best thing in the world..so my answer is an emphatic YES it was worth every penny ! he had great "marriage" stories, don't get me wrong there. but Spider-man back then was going through a time period where superman was married .Quesada saw peter going through the same "marriage stories". Possibly MJ getting kidnapped or hurt every other issue,which would turn out to be verbatim boring issues!. OMD was used so they would get around the morality of divorce. the way Marvel went about the story was a huge ..UGH! but the end result is worth it. EX: spider-man joining the FF, superior spider-man, spider-island! Dan Slott has given us some fantastic issues of spider-man (sans,CC meh) and he even pushed for the RYV book that's currently being published so be greatful for that! he even said that it's not out of the question that MJ & pete date in the future...