Look, there really is nothing new under the sun--including this debate. I can tell you this same debate has been raging at Marvel for years. "What can we do about Spider-Man?" The thing is no one in editorial (or any part of the overall publishing group) is really talking about the books, or the characters. Really. All they care about are SALES. Spider-Man has been around for a real long time. In that time there have been lots of good, and lots of bad(yes...I'm looking at YOU CLONE SAGA!) stories. Do they kill a franchise--no they don't.

And here is the the thing about Big Events, Publishing Stunts, X-Overs, etc...--THEY SELL comic books! People keep buying...sales get a boost...so they keep happening. The current administration at Marvel heaped all kinds of criticism upon the previous regime about all the same things... and then turned right around and did the same thing. Why? Because theyneeded to sell comics, and make their annual budgets.

Clones... Skrulls.. cosmic reboots... theyt are all just comic books devices attempting to get sales up. Sometimes they work... sometimes not.

I really believe people do not continue to buy a comic book, year after year--no matter how well written-- period. You have core readers, and those that visit for a while. Those visitors are usually attracted to some special event. You keep them around for awhile... and then they walk/straggle/drift away...rarely(in my opinion, and the Clone Saga may have been an acception) are they DRIVEN away.

My two cents.

Howard

Thanks, Howard.  Since I am only paying "a penny for your thoughts" it looks like I just made a penny.  Feel free to use Paypal.

(I hope I am not working too hard at this feeble joke)

Howard Mackie:

QUOTE: And here is the the thing about Big Events, Publishing Stunts, X-Overs, etc...--THEY SELL comic books! People keep buying...sales get a boost...so they keep happening. The current administration at Marvel heaped all kinds of criticism upon the previous regime about all the same things... and then turned right around and did the same thing. Why? Because theyneeded to sell comics, and make their annual budgets. Clones... Skrulls.. cosmic reboots... theyt are all just comic books devices attempting to get sales up. Sometimes they work... sometimes not.

Mr. Mackie, you deserve a statue. How many times have I heard about "those awful Nineties!" (Aunt May mode) from those readers who love the same stuff (produced today) and from those authors who WRITE this stuff.
I call it the "calendar syndrome". It turns out that an avent is good or bad because the year of release.

Howard, you really must get over the Clone Saga. Trust me, since then,
there have been FAR WORSE Spider-Man stories produced. (I'm looking at
you, SINS PAST!)

+++++++

F***, yeah!

Remember that time when Spider-Man started dressing like Iron Man, Jr. and joined the Avengers as Tony Stark's houseboy?

<<Howard, you really must get over the Clone Saga. Trust me, since then,
there have been FAR WORSE Spider-Man stories produced. (I'm looking at
you, SINS PAST!)>>

Oh, I am SOOO over it, but I have laughed with Ralph Macchio about the stuff that has gone on since, and how it makes revisit the CLONE SAGA and say,"Wow! It really COULD have been worse!"

Howard