[Spoilers] Spiderman: One More Day...

[horacethegrey]

[EDIT- On another note, I seem to recall reading Joe Q. saying that one of the reasons they got rid of the webshooters initially was because he felt the stories of Pete running out of web fluid were played out, and now here he is saying how he thinks having that be a possibility in stories again is great.]

Quesada always backpedals whenever one of his brilliant ideas for Spider-Man are rejected by the fans. He thought Sins Past was a great story right until longtime Spidey fans cried foul and objected to Gwen Stacy being portrayed as a ho. He also patted himself in the back when The Other became such a big sales smash, only to admit his mistake in approving the story in the first place after fans utterly rejected the idea of a mutated Spidey.

 

[Klaus]

He's gone on record several times as saying that, as badly as he didn't like the marriage, he felt that having Spidey as either a divorcee or a widower would be even worse. (And, on the divorce angle, I have to agree if only on the basis that Spidey's mantra is "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility" and him divorcing MJ seems to fly in the face of him being so dedicated and devoted and responsible. Of course, there are two people in any relationship, it's true, but I still don't like the divorce angle. The death angle even less.)

In any event, I think the whole thing stinks on ice- I think it's absolutely stupid that people feel they are hamstrung by the whole marriage (JMS did a great job of it). Getting rid of it, and in such a contrived fashion as this, was pretty ridiculous. Heck, bringing back Aunt May in the first place was pretty ludicrous, but this is just awful.

We'll see how it all turns out.

[EDIT- On another note, I seem to recall reading Joe Q. saying that one of the reasons they got rid of the webshooters initially was because he felt the stories of Pete running out of web fluid were played out, and now here he is saying how he thinks having that be a possibility in stories again is great.]

Re: Divorce: Peter wouldn't have to divorce MJ, *she* could divorce *him*. She could reach the end of her rope after being targeted one too many times (or maybe her parents are targeted, or whatnot), and thinks the best thing for her family (and for Peter, too) is to remove one of Peter's weaknesses, which is worrying about his family being targeted.

MJ: As long as I'm your wife, by your side, I'll be a target. And you know it. And when you start worrying if I'm safe, you'll be distracted. And that could kill you.

PP: But, MJ...

MJ: I love you too much to see you die on my account. So I'd rather leave now. You'll always have a place in my heart, Peter, but I have to think of...

PP: ... of what?

MJ: Nevermind. I have to go. Goodbye, Peter.

PP: ...


Later on, we see MJ in a cab heading for the airport, touching her belly.

MJ (thinking): ... I have to think of our daughter, Peter.

MJ (smiling): ... I think I'll call you May.

 

[Felon]

Then there is no threat posed to spiderman in those flashbacks since the audience knows he has to live through them. Granted the threat of permanent death to a marvel cash cow does not exist in the first place….

Worked fine for Legends of the Dark Knight. Damn fine.

 

[Felon]

Does he remember he and MJ were married/in love? If not, he gets to fool around again with no consequences and no angst. (I seem to remember an earlier statement when the whole 'One More Day' thing was 'just a suposition': one major reason he hated the marriage was that it meant they could never again show Peter with another woman other than MJ without Peter being hated for it). I could see Quesada thinking that might be a good thing.

Spidey may have a happy delusion, but we, the readers, know the bad guy won.

 

[The Grumpy Celt]

Worked fine for Legends of the Dark Knight. Damn fine.

Workin' pretty well for Batman (and Superman) Confidential too.

A death or divorce would have been better.

 

[Relique du Madde]

Re: Divorce: Peter wouldn't have to divorce MJ, *she* could divorce *him*. She could reach the end of her rope after being targeted one too many times (or maybe her parents are targeted, or whatnot), and thinks the best thing for her family (and for Peter, too) is to remove one of Peter's weaknesses, which is worrying about his family being targeted.

Considering Aunt May was shot I don't see why they didn't go that route. I mean that would have been a much cleaner story and hell, if they wanted Aunt May to have survived Peter could have always asked Wolverine to bring Elixer over to heal her (Assuming that the exents of OMD occurred between Quest for Majik and Messiah CompleX).

 

[Cthulhudrew]

Later on, we see MJ in a cab heading for the airport, touching her belly.

MJ (thinking): ... I have to think of our daughter, Peter.

MJ (smiling): ... I think I'll call you May.

See- now that would be even crappier than just having her divorce him, IMO. Having her run away to have Peter's baby in secret, and keeping him out of his daughter's life? Talk about a horrible way to end the marriage.

In any event, I did acknowledge that yes, there are two people in a marriage and she could call it quits, but that pretty much ruins her as any kind of recurring character in his life. If she's walking away to protect him from his enemies, then she's either got to be gone completely, or else you've got this constant "I love you, but I can't be with you" melodrama going on ad nauseum.

Really, what's the problem with them being married? Of the 45 years the character has been around, the two have been married for 20- and yet he's still going strong (arguably, stronger than ever, what with the successes of the film franchise).

 

[Felon]

See- now that would be even crappier than just having her divorce him, IMO. Having her run away to have Peter's baby in secret, and keeping him out of his daughter's life? Talk about a horrible way to end the marriage.

Yeah, I gotta think that having his wife leave him would be just as much of a distraction as his wife being around. It's not as if there aren't people in the real who get married and have kids despite leading dangerous lives.

Of course, Spidey should never have revealed his identity. That accomplished nothing positive. I didn't read Civil War, but I can't imagine what would constitute a good rationale for that action. It's not like the Registration Act requires you to make your identity public.

And think about it, guys. The dissolution of the marriage is a smokescreen for the real reason for OMD. The marriage happened before the current powers were in office, so they can say that's a bad idea and needs fixing. What they can't own up to is that it was a bad idea for Spidey to pull his mask off in a press conference, because that's a mistake they own utterly. I think we're falling for their deception.

Really, what's the problem with them being married? Of the 45 years the character has been around, the two have been married for 20- and yet he's still going strong (arguably, stronger than ever, what with the successes of the film franchise).

I think it's the same problem that a lot of mainstream fiction has: there's a perception that UST (Unresolved Sexual Tension) is a lot more exciting than RST (Resolved Sexual Tension). For those who aren't aware, those are widely used terms used in fandom. Think of shows like Cheers, Moonlighting, and Northern Exposure, where the interest in the show plummeted once the sexual tension was resolved. Or the X-Files, where the chemistry is hinted at just enough to maintain fan interest, but never amounts to anything. Or think of a show like Friends, which employed a successful formula where relationships are consummated, then broken, then consummated, then broken, repeat and rinse until the series finale. Of course, this is all the bread-n'-butter of daytime soaps.

So that's it in a nutshell. Letting the character date again gives writers all kinds of opportunities to rehash soap-opera plots. Build up a relationship, have it fall apart despite the characters' best efforts, put that relationship on the back-burner and introduce another love interest. Just never let anything ever actually get resolution, because--as Joe would put it--we need the character to be fresh and new for the next gen of readers.

 

[Klaus]

See- now that would be even crappier than just having her divorce him, IMO. Having her run away to have Peter's baby in secret, and keeping him out of his daughter's life? Talk about a horrible way to end the marriage.

In any event, I did acknowledge that yes, there are two people in a marriage and she could call it quits, but that pretty much ruins her as any kind of recurring character in his life. If she's walking away to protect him from his enemies, then she's either got to be gone completely, or else you've got this constant "I love you, but I can't be with you" melodrama going on ad nauseum.

Really, what's the problem with them being married? Of the 45 years the character has been around, the two have been married for 20- and yet he's still going strong (arguably, stronger than ever, what with the successes of the film franchise).

Hey, I was just coming up with that stuff out of thin air! That's where the editor comes in and say "y'know, let's keep that one for later".



As for MJ being gone: so what? Let her be gone for a while. If villains know Peter is Spidey and learn that Peter had a nasty divorce, they'll likely conclude that MJ is no longer a target. Ex-wives rarely are.

And then, in one story, Spidey has to go to the West Coast to fight some baddie, and bumps into MJ, etc.

The point is, Spiderman comics don't have (and shouldn't) revolve around MJ. She's a *supporting* character, not a main one. It's not like Superman comics revolve around Lois, even after 12 years of marriage. She shows up in two pages, probably helping Clark cope/understand something, and then it's off to superheroing.

 

[Ghostwind]

Has anyone considered that this retcon of Spidey has also done away with the ramifications of his identity being revealed? Nobody knows anymore since his whole history has been reset.