Parallel Lives and Mary Jane

[Masked Guy]

I pretty much agree. It's still very well written despite the slight continuity errors.

That's why the retcon doesn't bother me as much as it does some other people.

[Starrius]

That's why the retcon doesn't bother me as much as it does some other people.

It doesn't bother me either.

[Lee]

I hate it. It doesn't make sense in the context of the original stories and it cheapens Mary Jane's character.

[Masked Guy]

I hate it. It doesn't make sense in the context of the original stories and it cheapens Mary Jane's character.

I would have preferred Mary Jane finding out on her own later on as opposed to simply seeing him emerge from his bedroom window in costume at the very beginning.

[Lee]

I would have preferred Mary Jane finding out on her own later on as opposed to simply seeing him emerge from his bedroom window in costume at the very beginning.

That's clearly what DeFalco and Frenz had in mind - that MJ had slowly put the pieces together after years of observation. She was smart enough to figure it out on her own.

[Masked Guy]

That's clearly what DeFalco and Frenz had in mind - that MJ had slowly put the pieces together after years of observation. She was smart enough to figure it out on her own.

I usually love Conway's writing and thought Parallel Lives was a great story overall, but Mary Jane knowing Peter's secret from the start just seemed unnecessary.

[Starrius]

I usually love Conway's writing and thought Parallel Lives was a great story overall, but Mary Jane knowing Peter's secret from the start just seemed unnecessary.

I agree with all.

[WeirdSpider]

Best retcon ever and it only contradicts a couple of stories. It's pretty harmless and not really a big deal.
One More Day on the other hand contradicts over 20+ years of stories and has damaged the brand forever.

[Starrius]

That's clearly what DeFalco and Frenz had in mind - that MJ had slowly put the pieces together after years of observation. She was smart enough to figure it out on her own.

When do you think it would have been a good time for Mary Jane to find out that Peter is Spider-Man?

[nose norton]

When do you think it would have been a good time for Mary Jane to find out that Peter is Spider-Man?

No particular date was given, other than it was somewhere between Wolfman and Stern's run, when she was considering leaving NY. This was done with the clear purpose of avoiding continuity conflicts. In fact, t's not until The Black Cat shows up, that she gets 100% confirmation.

[Starrius]

No particular date was given, other than it was somewhere between Wolfman and Stern's run, when she was considering leaving NY. This was done with the clear purpose of avoiding continuity conflicts. In fact, t's not until The Black Cat shows up, that she gets 100% confirmation.

My question was not about a given date.

My question was about what would have been a good potential time for her to find out that Peter is Spider-Man.

[nose norton]

My question was not about a given date.

My question was about what would have been a good potential time for her to find out that Peter is Spider-Man.

Same answer applies.

[Mister Mets]

In another thread, I was asked why I'm okay with One More Day, but not Parallel Lives.

My point is that it seems ridiculous to me that someone could get upset about them retconning MJ's knowledge of knowing Peter was Spidey but yet be perfectly fine with Marvel totally retconning 20 years of marriage history between Peter and MJ...I just don't get that. I mean...if your fine with them retconning the marriage while aren't you fine with them retconning MJ's history?

Whatever your opinion of Parallel Lives, it changed the context of quite a few scenes when Mary Jane knew that Peter Parker was Spider-Man in every interaction she had with him, or with a member of his supporting cast. You might think the new context is more interesting, but it wasn't intended by the original writers. It suggests that earlier scenes could not be taken at face value.

Parallel Lives makes it unambiguously clear that MJ learned on the night Uncle Ben was killed, which means she was aware of his secret in every appearance.

MJ knowing that Peter Parker was Spider-Man changes the broad strokes of their relationship. MJ knowing that Peter Parker was Spider-Man affects why she chose to hang out with him. In every interaction, she knows that he's really a famous superhero.

One More Day doesn't pretend that everything in older comics happened exactly the way it did on the page post-retcon. It suggests the broad strokes are the same, but that some conversations could have gone differently, etc. Parallel Lives suggests that every scene with Peter and MJ from Amazing Spider-Man #42-257 occurred with MJ knowing his secret identity, even if it doesn't make a whole lot of sense in every single scene that she would act a particular way knowing that Peter Parker was Spider-Man.

There is also the question of tradeoffs. One More Day erased the marriage and made Peter single again. We could debate about whether it was a good move (and we have. A lot. So so often.) but it was consequential. The revelation that Mary Jane knew that Peter was Spider-Man since before her first appearance has rarely been referenced, so there's very little gain in retroactively making her act like a weirdo in earlier appearances. I'm not going to disagree that One More Day retcons a lot of comics, including some that are good and well-regarded. If you think the marriage wasn't the best long-term approach for the comics, and that killing off MJ or having her and Peter divorce weren't good options, the only way to undo the marriage was through some kind of massive retcon. It changed the books going forward.

Parallel Lives didn't have much of an effect on the books going forward. Hell, it was widely considered to be out of continuity until Busiek referenced it in Untold Tales of Spider-Man. We have also never seen anyone explore Mary Jane's perspective from the issues affected by Parallel Lives (IE- what it was like to be a supporting character who knew Peter's secret).

[Confuzzled]

Parallel Lives and its retcon are brilliant. It only adds to MJ's characterization and gives readers a fascinating new perspective on her appearances and interactions in older issues. There were inevitably bound to be a few glaring continuity errors, but as WeirdSpider said, they are tame and pretty easy to overlook.

[Timmyb52]

In another thread, I was asked why I'm okay with One More Day, but not Parallel Lives.



Whatever your opinion of Parallel Lives, it changed the context of quite a few scenes when Mary Jane knew that Peter Parker was Spider-Man in every interaction she had with him, or with a member of his supporting cast. You might think the new context is more interesting, but it wasn't intended by the original writers. It suggests that earlier scenes could not be taken at face value.

Parallel Lives makes it unambiguously clear that MJ learned on the night Uncle Ben was killed, which means she was aware of his secret in every appearance.

MJ knowing that Peter Parker was Spider-Man changes the broad strokes of their relationship. MJ knowing that Peter Parker was Spider-Man affects why she chose to hang out with him. In every interaction, she knows that he's really a famous superhero.

One More Day doesn't pretend that everything in older comics happened exactly the way it did on the page post-retcon. It suggests the broad strokes are the same, but that some conversations could have gone differently, etc. Parallel Lives suggests that every scene with Peter and MJ from Amazing Spider-Man #42-257 occurred with MJ knowing his secret identity, even if it doesn't make a whole lot of sense in every single scene that she would act a particular way knowing that Peter Parker was Spider-Man.

There is also the question of tradeoffs. One More Day erased the marriage and made Peter single again. We could debate about whether it was a good move (and we have. A lot. So so often.) but it was consequential. The revelation that Mary Jane knew that Peter was Spider-Man since before her first appearance has rarely been referenced, so there's very little gain in retroactively making her act like a weirdo in earlier appearances. I'm not going to disagree that One More Day retcons a lot of comics, including some that are good and well-regarded. If you think the marriage wasn't the best long-term approach for the comics, and that killing off MJ or having her and Peter divorce weren't good options, the only way to undo the marriage was through some kind of massive retcon. It changed the books going forward.

Parallel Lives didn't have much of an effect on the books going forward. Hell, it was widely considered to be out of continuity until Busiek referenced it in Untold Tales of Spider-Man. We have also never seen anyone explore Mary Jane's perspective from the issues affected by Parallel Lives (IE- what it was like to be a supporting character who knew Peter's secret).

So...your telling me that in your honest opinion that Parrallel Lives is a worse retcon than OMD and OMIT and changed things way more than those stories?That ditching the marriage to MJ and 20 years of comic history and continuity was a better trade off than MJ knowing Peter was Spidey since the beginning? I'm sorry...I have to disagree with that and think Parrallel Lives added to MJ's character and back story. OMD and OMIT used a lame Deus Ex Machina plot device to force the marriage and it's history out of 20 years of continuity just so Peter could date an endless amount of women. So...I'm sorry but Parrallel Lives is tame in comparison.