Active Topics | Member List | Search | Help | Register | Login
The John Byrne Forum
Byrne Robotics > The John Byrne Forum << Prev Page of 76 Next >>
Topic: Title Change: Spider-Man Thread (Now with New Costume) (Topic Closed Topic Closed) Post ReplyPost New Topic
Author
Message
Andrew W. Farago
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 19 July 2005
Location: United States
Posts: 4079
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 5:20pm | IP Logged | 1  

Why has the issue of Peter Parker's virginity even
been spelled out in the comics? It's been implied
that he'd slept around a bit in the comics, probably
with Black Cat in the 1980s and Mary Jane in the
1970s, but it was never explicitly stated anywhere,
and it didn't need to be. If you wanted to read sex
into the relationships, you could, but if you wanted to
think that he was holding out for marriage, you could
read it that way, too. Officially establishing his sexual
relationships in the context of a story seems too
much like they're quantifying things for the next
Marvel Universe handbook (or, in DC Comics, Who's
Doing Who in the DC Universe).

Putting all of this into what should be an all-ages
book is really wrong-headed to begin with, and it's
baffling that editorial and the publishers let this one
go through. Spider-Man's one of the most
recognizable kid-friendly characters in the world, and
any story pitched that starts out with, "Guess which
two characters got it on?" should be shot right down.

*****

On Daredevil: Born Again, Frank Miller revived a
character who hadn't played a major role in the book
for more than a decade, so I'd hardly say he was
destroying a vital component of the series. Inventing
a new character for that role wouldn't have made
sense, either, just like it wouldn't have made sense
for Foggy Nelson to suddenly turn evil and try to
destroy Matt Murdock's life.

Nothing Miller did couldn't be (and wasn't ) undone
eventually, and Karen redeemed herself and went
from being a forgotten element of DD's past to
becoming a vital and important supporting character
again (even more than she'd been in the past,
actually). In the years following Born Again, Matt
reclaimed his law license, built a new home and
eventually took down the Kingpin (multiple times).
The end of that series provided a nice clean start for
the next creative team, and led into one of my all-time
favorite runs on any title, too (Ann Nocenti/John
Romita Jr./Al Williamson, for those keeping score at
home).

Back to Top profile | search | www e-mail
 
Rob Hewitt
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 11 May 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 10182
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 5:23pm | IP Logged | 2  

Frank Miller revived a
character who hadn't played a major role in the book
for more than a decade,

***

That argument has been used a lot as a reason for lots of changes to characters, big characters or small.  Usually, it gets a bad response.

Back to Top profile | search e-mail
 
Andrew W. Farago
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 19 July 2005
Location: United States
Posts: 4079
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 5:34pm | IP Logged | 3  

Rob hit upon another point that I remember
discussing back when Sins Past was first
published, which was exactly how much bad stuff the
Green Goblin had to do to maintain his position as
Spider-Man's greatest villain. I'm still holding
grudges against people who never paid back the
$20 they borrowed from me in college; if a guy kills
my steady girlfriend, that's pretty much enough to put
him on the "never forgive this guy/don't send him a
Christmas card list" for life. The idea that every few
years, Osborn's got to add another horrific crime
against Peter Parker to stay on his bad side is
ridiculous.

Hell, why not reveal that Electro is the father of
Gwen's kids so you can make him more of a
personal threat to Spider-Man? The Green Goblin's
already done everything short of actually killing
Spider-Man, so why add one more to the list?
Back to Top profile | search | www e-mail
 
Rob Hewitt
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 11 May 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 10182
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 5:37pm | IP Logged | 4  

And to think, when I was a kid, I thought Doc Ock was his greatest villain!
Back to Top profile | search e-mail
 
Mike Bunge
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 10 June 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 1335
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 5:41pm | IP Logged | 5  

"And to think, when I was a kid, I thought Doc Ock was his greatest villain!"

 

Damn straight!  Otto Octavius is badass #1 in Spider-Man's world!

Mike 

Back to Top profile | search
 
Thomas Mets
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 05 September 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 898
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 5:48pm | IP Logged | 6  

For me, the key difference between "Born Again" and "Sins Past" is that Born Again is my favorite Marvel comic book, and "Sins Past" is at best a decent story.



Does anyone have a theory about why so many readers seem to hate Aunt May so much? Why they were okay with her being written out of the book (killed or otherwise)? I have long believed that readers don't appreciate nagging parental figures in their own lives so they don't want Peter to have one. Am I missing something?
********************************************************** *******************
I like John Byrne's "They're sick f***s" theory.



Back to Top profile | search
 
Brian Kirk
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 02 November 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 1243
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 6:12pm | IP Logged | 7  

"Hell, why not reveal that Electro is the father of
Gwen's kids so you can make him more of a
personal threat to Spider-Man?"

Cool!  Then instead of being super-strong they'd be super-electric!  How about J. Jonah Jameson being the father...?  "Parker..!  Dad wants more photos of Spider-Man!!"

 

 

Back to Top profile | search | www
 
Joe Boster
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 29 April 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 3160
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 6:45pm | IP Logged | 8  

OK just Read Iron Man 5 (why? Desire to watch a bloody train wreck I suppose). Now Tony generates the Gold part of his armor from inside the hollows of his bones. And can see though satelites.  Iron Man on the inside and out Tony says. We also get a the orgin retold where he brutally kills everyone in the Camp. And has armor already has repulsors. Sure it's a dream/remebering the past sequence. But what are the chances in today's M* that is will not be taken as the literal origin? Pretty slim.

OK Rant over. I feel better. Iron Man Still is the biggest turd I've read in quite some time.
Back to Top profile | search e-mail
 
Andrew W. Farago
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 19 July 2005
Location: United States
Posts: 4079
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 7:16pm | IP Logged | 9  

Iron Man's been through so many goofy changes
over the years that they've lost any impact, anyway.
Secret ID exposed, then not; Iron Man betrays the
Avengers, then doesn't, then becomes a teenager;
paralyzed, then not; alcoholic, then not, then
alcoholic, then not; kicked out of the Avengers, then
not; Secretary of Defense, then not; heart condition,
then not...the status quo changes so frequently with
the character that there isn't really a baseline version
of the character to deviate from.

Iron Man magically putting on his costume by
thinking about it's already been done (and
abandoned) with Steel, Guy Gardner, War Machine,
Spider-Man and probably a dozen others, so I doubt
it'll outlast Warren Ellis by more than a story arc or
two, anyway.
Back to Top profile | search | www e-mail
 
Joe Zhang
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 16 April 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 12857
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 7:28pm | IP Logged | 10  

"Now Tony generates the Gold part of his armor from inside the hollows of his bones."

Why? (Besides the obvious reason that it's NuMarvel.)
Back to Top profile | search e-mail
 
James C. Taylor
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar

Joined: 16 April 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 4705
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 8:44pm | IP Logged | 11  

I personally would rather carry around a briefcase of armor then have someone replace my very necessary bone marrow with goo that oozes out of my pores and solidifies into armor with built in cybernetic circuitry.

Being serious, having to figure out how your character is going to change identities in certain situations is half the fun, or at least it used to be. Remember the cover where Tony was thrown off a plane trying desperately to assemble his Iron Man armor before he hit the ground? That's comics.
Back to Top profile | search | www
 
Wayne Osborne
Byrne Robotics Member
Avatar
Manhunter

Joined: 16 April 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 3817
Posted: 06 January 2006 at 11:55pm | IP Logged | 12  

Regarding Iron Man and this bone-marrow armor, you guys are
shittin' me, right?

WO
Back to Top profile | search
 

<< Prev Page of 76 Next >>
  Post ReplyPost New Topic
Printable version Printable version

Forum Jump
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot create polls in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum

 Active Topics | Member List | Search | Help | Register | Login