PeterDavid.net

Unfortunately, I haven't read any of the Romance Redux issues yet. I've been planning to, so maybe your participation will be the impetus to get me to follow through. It sounds like a great idea.

I read more than a few romance comics as a kid. I got into comics through reading my older sister's comics. She had a few Superman and Batman titles, but mostly she read Archie, Richie Rich, and various romance and horror comics. I wonder if I ever read the story you rewrote?

Writer's Block 2006 is also out, which looks intriguing. I'll let you know what I think about FNSM after I pick it up this weekend.

I picked up the three Romance Redux comics that are out but haven't go to them to yet. F'n Spider-Man, on the other hand... S P O I L E R W A R N I N G... I had to wiki Mr. 2211 to see who he was. While there isn't much info there, I at least know now that he's from the SM/SM2099 one-shot which I reread sometime last year. Isn't this the kind of stunt that "caused" readers to abandon and refuse to read Captain Marvel? I keed. This story could have some good ramifications in Spider-Land.

I've never been a fan of Whiney-Pants, so as long as you keep those thought balloons to minimum, I'll continue to enjoy F'n Spidey.

Part of me is like, "Oh no, not another dead character brought back to life..." But the way you tell it, it's interesting, of course. Liked the chat room joke, too. :)

Actually, I really do worry that bringing in a Spidey 2099 villain will drive readers away. I loved it, as I was a huge Spidey 2099 fan and I love alternate/future time stuff. That was an interesting take on Uncle Ben living--it reminded me of What If (Vol. 1) #46.

Speaking of Spidey 2099 and future stories, PAD, have you kept up with Exiles? What with Miguel in the group and the Maestro getting his neck broken for the "first time", it is seems like a PAD-centric book.

Eric

I really enjoyed FNSM a lot. When I saw that Uncle Ben was coming back, I trusted you. You don't dick the readers over for no reason, I have faith that if you are going to do something with Uncle Ben, it will be something interesting and worth doing.

I thought this was a really fun issue. What I really find interesting is how great it reveals Aunt May to be. Uncle Ben gets so much credit for making Peter into the upstanding guy he is, but this shows that Aunt May, who actually continued to raise him, had a lot to do with it. Ben is there with him, and Peter becomes a bastard. I like it.

And while I am not sure exactly where you are going with this, I am pretty confident that it's NOT going to end with Ben AOK living in Avengers Tower with May. So I look forward to it.

I'm just wondering if the Uncle Ben thing was your idea or an editorial decision. Either way, I'm dying to see where it goes. At least I can trust you not to make it trite and cheesy.

so far I've only read the first couple of pages of FNSM. Awesome gag about having chat rooms with anonymity! Thanks for coming back to Spidey!

I enjoyed FNSM but my reaction at the end was "Oh yuck, time travel."

Holy crap...

I just finished reading "Patsy loved Satan". I laughed out loud so many times while reading it, it was really fabulous. Hilarious, and by far my favourite one of all the Redux stories so far. (I think my previous favourite was the "Diner Demon" one a few issues ago.)

I hope you do a ton more rewrites for that series, I'm really enjoying it. And I hope to see more longer stories (like this one) and more Patsy walker as well. There were a lot of books fo her, weren't there? It would be funny to see.

Anyway, you did a great, dead-on story there. A perfect blend of mocking the art and inserting a ludicrous plot. I think my favourite part was her turning everyone into heads. Although the bits about Ann Husselman were also great.

Keep up the good redux.

great issue! liked the uncle ben story, and the idea that the change of the single event would change peter parker so much. my son and i were confused by how uncle ben got from his world/time line (reminds me of infinite crisis) to current continuity, but i imagine that will be revealed next issue. side note - so glad ringo is back, love his art. can't wait for next issue with the battle with hobgoblin, and the interaction between peter parker/uncle ben/aunt may. Thanks PAD!

Uncle Ben gets so much credit for making Peter into the upstanding guy he is, but this shows that Aunt May, who actually continued to raise him, had a lot to do with it. Ben is there with him, and Peter becomes a bastard.

Presumably the way Peter turned out in the "Ben lives" timeline also had something to do with the fact that Aunt May's death was accidental, not the result of an act that Peter could have prevented if he'd only had a greater sense of responsbility to others.

(Hope the HTML tagging is right; the Preview function wasn't working for me.)

But I can't help wondering how many readers will actually get that bringing the light reference?

I picked up both FNSM and Marvel Romance Redux this week. I haven't had time to read either of them yet (considering I graduated from law school TODAY! Yay!).

I wanted to chime in and highly recommend the Marvel Romance Redux series of one shots. They look like romance comics, but they are so funny that I laughed out loud in the store just reading some of the gags. One of the one-shots featured a story called "Too Smart to Date." "Look at her! She's thinking again!" :-)

I'm sure PAD's story is fantastic...just thumbing through it caused fits of laughter in the store. Can't wait to read it! :-)

With the revealing of ben last month even I was weary of where you were going with this, but you took it in a way that I wasn't expecting and that was extrodinarily refreshing.

Speaking of spidey are you in a position to give us your thoughts on quesada's ranting over on newsarama about mary jane ruining the franchise?

"Patsy Loves Hedy"

Now there's a title I would buy.

:)

I really enjoyed where you went with Uncle Ben in FNSM, it definately didn't feel as cheap as it could have and wasn't what most people expected (Mysterio, a robot, a clone, a skrull, a life model decoy, an actor hired by Norman Osborne to mess with Peter....okay so there are a lot of ways to duplicate a person in the Marvel Universe...).

What If (the original) was always one of my favorite series growing up so this was kind of a double treat.

I just have one problem with it and it's so minor it's ridiculous- Javris just doesn't look right next to May. Visually the way he's being drawn he looks like half her age and he's not. Maybe you could reveal he secretly colors his hair? All that time with Tony Stark is bound to make somebody vain.

I too had missgivings about the return of Uncle Ben. I was willing to give you the benefit of the doubt. You earned it. The story was engaging without feeling contirved. Well done sir, well done.

"Speaking of spidey are you in a position to give us your thoughts on quesada's ranting over on newsarama about mary jane ruining the franchise?"

He hasn't spoken contrary to anything Marvel has done since Quesada and Jemas called him out back with the U-Decide debacle, so . . . probably not.

I loved the Patsy & Hedy story. I have faint memories of looking at some of my older sister's P&H comics before I had really begun reading Marvel titles (and at that time, they were mostly the monster stuff) and thinking it was a slightly more grown-up version of Betty and Veronica.

Hmmm. You did your take on Lois and Lana as they were in the '60s in one of your last issues of SUPERGIRL. Now you've given us a unique look at Patsy and Hedy. (Maybe not that unique, given Patsy's eventual romance with Damon Hellstrom.) It might be fun if Archie would let you do Betty and Veronica sometime. (That came out sounding naughtier than I intended.) It might almost be enough for me to pick up Archie again, even after the way they treated Dan DeCarlo.

"Actually, I really do worry that bringing in a Spidey 2099 villain will drive readers away. "

So far, it doesn't seem like there should be a problem. Anyone who isn't familiar with 2099 would just look at this character and say "Oh, a villain from the future, like Kang."

Wait, are you saying that people will be jerks to each other if they can say things anonymously? That is the most boneheaded idea I ever heard! And to all you morons out there kissing up to him, I just got to tell the lot of you !$%^! off. Maybe if you spent less time trolling around comic message boards, you could go out and get yourself an imaginary girlfriend.

(The previous comments are said in jest, and should not be taken seriously by anyone without a sense a humor. I'm talking to you, bozo!).

Brian, who are you replying to?

I know you probably can't answer this, but any word on when we can expect the classic costume back.
Because I am just dying to get into FNSM. I didn't jump in at the beginning because of the whole The Other business (if you had written all of the FNSM issue involved in that, I might have considered it at least) ... then I skipped the next few because I didn't have any interest in the wrestling storyline (and at that point, since I wasn't already 'in', it wasn't a big deal just to continue to wait). But now you're into the whole Civil War business and with the new costume ... I just want to read a good Peter Parker/Spider-Man comic. And with the new costume ... well, it just isn't Spider-Man to me. If it was definite the new costume was absolutely permanent, well, then I'd just have no choice but get on board (even though I don't really like it much ... frankly, to be honest ... the best ever Spider-Man costume, when you get down to it, was the symbiote [in terms of design] .. but that got ruined by the whole Venom bit). However, since it clearly just a temporary suit (ditched once Peter comes to his senses and abandons Tony because he'll realize he is compromising his own standards by backing Tony's position), I just don't feel like tossing my money into the jar to follow this stuff.
I need a good mainstream Spider-Man title in the mix though. Ultimate Spider-Man is a solid read and I enjoy it for what it is (it isn't mainstream Marvel universe though ... and certainly not the Peter Parker I've been reading for the past couple of decades ... still quality stuff though). And Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane is a GREAT title ... one I'm enjoying the hell out of ... but it is basically like Ultimate Spidey ... outside of the regular continuum.
I bailed on Straczynski following the abomination that was "Sins Past". I already had a few issues with where he was going with the character. I won't deny he is trying to be creative (with the totemic origins) ... and I admit the idea has its merits ... I've just never cared for that type of 'fated' design. So I was already a bit on the fence, and then "Sins Past" just demolished it and tossed me completely across the harbor. So I've been sans mainstream Spider-Man since that time and waiting for an opportunity to jump back in. FNSM seemed like the perfect solution ... until that was ruined by The Other cross-over that took you out of the picture for issues 2 and 3 (just a bad bad bad bad bad bad bad design by editorial --- honestly --- how could they think that was a good idea to launch a new title like that??? It is already tough enough to launch new titles ... and then they go and do something like that). They cut me out of the picture early ... which makes it easy to stay out and pick my spot. Well, I'm still waiting. I'm starting to think that maybe by the time 'that spot' arrives, you'll be finishing your run and leaving the book.
Which makes me not the least bit happy.
So, I'm waiting for appropriate time when the Peter Parker I recognize is back on the scene. You know the guy. Makes lots of jokes, runs into plenty of spots of bad luck, wears a red and blue costume, has a great wife (which is basically the ONLY thing that has really gone right for him in an extended sense, apparently much to the annoyance of JoeQ), has a great rogues gallery, and is still one of the most identifiable 'human' heroes (yes, even with the knockout red-head wife, JoeQ).
Should I mention that "This Man, This Frog" is one of my favorite Spider-Man stories? You probably cringe at that (being so long ago and early in the career). It was hilarious though.
[I will add that "The Commuter Cometh" wasn't as pleasing --- the 'humor' seemed more forced. --- I lift him up, then bring him right back down.]
Anyway, I'm serious when I say I want to get into FNSM. BUt I'm not going to support something I just don't agree with. I am long since past buying comments just to keep the collection intact. Believe me, that went away a long time ago (and I've got the 'holes' in my collection to prove it). I buy comics to READ. READ and ENJOY. And if the elements are not there for me to enjoy ... then I'm not going to waste my time and money. I'm not saying that I wouldn't enjoy your work on FNSM right now were I to pick up an issue. I generally enjoy your work (I'm reading X-Factor at the moment, and aside from Wolverine: Origins, that is the only X-based comic I get --- and it is godd stuff by the way), but I just refuse to jump in at this point when the Peter Parker who is appearing isn't the Peter Parker isn't the 'real' Peter Parker (the Parker I've followed for 20+ years wouldn't have dropped his lot in with Tony's side ... even moreso if he knows Captain America stands opposite, because he idolizes him to some degree -- and that is a fact represented in the pages of issues in previous years).

oops.
botched a line badly there (few other errors ... but the one line was really bad).
said -- I am long since past buying comments just to keep the collection intact.
should have been -- I am long since past buying COMICS just to keep the collection intact.

I really enjoyed the Marvel Romance Redux story, especially the X-Factor plug. There were lots of great lines: "Boy that car might be sporty, but the exhaust system's for crap." Do you know if this series is selling well? I love it and hope it goes on forever. Marvel doesn't have to pay for new art, so it must be cheaper to produce than a regular comic.

Jason, I wasn't replying to any particular poster. My post was in reference to the "chat-room" gag in FNSM #8.

"I had to wiki Mr. 2211 to see who he was. While there isn't much info there, I at least know now that he's from the SM/SM2099 one-shot which I reread sometime last year. Isn't this the kind of stunt that "caused" readers to abandon and refuse to read Captain Marvel"

You know what? I've heard this comment from several people, and it is DRIVING ME UP THE GODDAMN WALL.

"Exiles" does a multi-part storyline involving Justice, Spider-Man 2099, and FUTURE IMPERFECT, for God's sake, right down to re-creating the panel where the Maestro snaps the Hulk's neck. If I did that, it would be slammed as self-indulgent, derivative, and more of what I did "wrong" on Captain Marvel, but somebody ELSE does an overview of my greatest hits and people GET JAZZED.

I mean, what the HELL?

PAD

F'n Spidey was a great read! Saw the set-up for the internet communication coming and was almost surprised that you didn't leave it with the ambiguous reference. A fun scene in a solid chapter of a solid story that I am looking forward to see play out. *As opposed to the wrong man at the wrong time in the wrong place.*

Dear Peter, have you ever thought about some happy pills or something? What on earth is there to get upset about? I don't think the 2099 deal during CM had anything to do with readers dropping the book and as for this Hobgoblin character, I thought he was new since that one-shot is probably pretty dang obscure.

The post you quote didn't even sound altogether excited about Exiles, did it? And I believe Exiles is actively dropping in sales due to the drawn-out story and the unfamiliarness of many with the universes portrayed, so if anything it's just experiencing the same kinds of ups and downs any of your books experience. Sure, they're using elements that are "yours", but that is automatically less self-indulgent than when you're the one writing it. Exiles is fanboyish, sharing excitement about a project from the past. When you bring back characters, it can be seen by some as "he doesn't have any new ideas". I never see it like that, heck, I like when writers continue using their past storylines to build on, it's one of my favorite traits in both you and Fabian Nicieza. The thing is, to some building on someone else's work is respectful while riffing on one's own work can be seen as a weak way out of telling new stories. Is that really something to get upset about? Different strokes and all that.

There are many, many people who seem to praise you and follow your work no matter what (I do the latter in most cases but not the former). Concentrate on them and don't drive yourself "up the goddamn wall".

By the way, my girlfriend (once-and-future wife) gave me "Future Imperfect" for our third anniversary together, and I rather enjoyed rereading it after so many years. Good stuff. No wonder I thought that panel of the neck-snapping was familiar in Exiles! (and it even fits in continuity, sort of, since you have the Maestro mentioning in FI that he's had experience with a snapped neck before, if I remember well). She's not so fond of your writing but I'll get her into Fallen Angel this summer, I think :)

Heh, I wonder how many elements of Heroes Reborn: The Return, also written by you, Bedard will use in the final leg of the Worlds Tour (yes, it's called World Tour, see if I care about writing stupidity, it's a Worlds Tour, dammit! :D)

All the best,

--Peter (who's not hiding, see :p)

What on earth is there to get upset about? I don't think the 2099 deal during CM had anything to do with readers dropping the book ...

While we don't think this, plenty of folks did and mentioned it loudly and often.

Unfortunately, the local comic shop didn't appear to have any copies of Romance Redux or I would have given it a look.

As for F'N Spider-Man, I liked the alternate timeline thing. While the whole Ben living thing has been the subject of an issue of "What If...?" or two, it's interesting to think of things from a perspective of "what if it wasn't the crook that killed ?" It doesn't seem a stretch that even if Ben beat Peter over the head with that "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility" schtick, their initial concern would be the "responsibility" of paying the bills and keeping food on the table. From there, without May as a moral compass and the guilt from the "not stopping the burglar" thing, it's easy to see where the fame and the fortune would get to Spidey's head.

As for Hobby 2211, I don't see what the hubbub's about. The guy had one appearance of maybe five pages (give or take... My copy of the one-shot in question is safely ensconsed in my long-boxes). Yeah, PAD used him before, but for as briefly as he appeared, he may as well be a new character and thus shouldn't distract readers with purported "continuity baggage."

Likewise, I didn't really see what the issue was that readers supposedly grumbled about regarding the "Time and Time Again" arc in Captain Marvel. I think that for the role he played in the story, he had all the exposition he needed: he's a future version of Spider-Man. His appearance didn't seem so mired in previous continuity that it detracted from the story.

As for the whole "Worlds Tour" thing in Exiles and the appearance of S-Man 2099 therein, I remain entirely uninterested. I think it's largely because after PAD departed the monthly adventures of Miguel O'Hara, that the stories began to suck quite mightily. I have not read a good Spider-Man 2099 story that was written by someone other than PAD, so I'm not inclined to risk three bucks to see someone else take a stab (and a hack, and a mangle) at the character.

OK (cracks knuckles) here we go:

First, Marvel Romance Redux:

1. This is less a question for you, Pete, than for the editorial staff, but where's the love for John Lustig? I mean, if this guy didn't invent the genre with Last Kiss, he certainly made it his bitch. I find it hard to believe that anyone can do a book like this and not at least give him some sort of Emeritus credit.

2. "Patsy Loves Satan." Funny, funny, FUNNY! My favorite bit -- the bit I cherished the most out of them all (and I loved every snarky joke in it) was the final set of captions, where you clue us in on what was happening in the origional story. So often with the afore-mentioned Last Kiss and Marvel's recent knocksoffs -- er homages -- I find myself wondering what these stories were in the first place. Even with no dialogue, they seem completely demented.

3. I look foward to your continued participation in this book. As funny as the earlier two entries were, "Patsy Loves Satan" took the cake.

Second, FNSM

Uncle Ben? Really? That seems a little heavy. But, you know, I'm curious to see how it turns out.

PAD said: "If I did that, it would be slammed as self-indulgent, derivative, and more of what I did "wrong" on Captain Marvel, but somebody ELSE does an overview of my greatest hits and people GET JAZZED."

That was actually the storyline that got me to START buying Captain Marvel. I absolutely loved the explanation for the "brick" in Future Imperfect. terrifically done. I bought every issue after that, and most of the back issues as well.

"Exiles" does a multi-part storyline involving Justice, Spider-Man 2099, and FUTURE IMPERFECT, for God's sake, right down to re-creating the panel where the Maestro snaps the Hulk's neck. If I did that, it would be slammed as self-indulgent, derivative, and more of what I did "wrong" on Captain Marvel, but somebody ELSE does an overview of my greatest hits and people GET JAZZED.

Single-word assessments such as "self-indulgent" and "derivative" aren't very helpful. Frankly, I think you ought to ignore them. On the other hand, if someone comes to you with something more specific, ("These first six pages of Hulk are wordless!"), you have more to work with.

I like Hobby 2211. He's nifty. He doesn't quite have the presence and impact as, say, the original Hobby, but he's still nifty. But what I really care about is Uncle Ben. I wonder if he will die, or if he will return to his own reality, and if he does, whether or not he will be able to turn that Peter Parker into the Spider-man he should have been.

The story also continues playing with the idea of whether or not Peter was fated to be Spider-man. In Uncle Ben's reality, the science and/or magic of Peter's powers is rendered moot. The radioactive spider bite was just one insignificant part of what makes Peter Parker who he is, and it's almost pathetic that people have been getting so wrapped up in the details that they are ignoring this simple truth: That it doesn't really matter whether it was science or magic, coincidence or fate. Spider-man is Spider-man and he will always be Spider-man. Why? Because no amount of science, magic, coincidence, or fate (or even clones) will change the fact that it is Peter Parker wearing the mask. Not even a different mask can change that. So there ya go.

There's a Fallen Angel #6 preview up at newsarama.

http://www.newsarama.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1962790

Wow. The first few pages were great (and the rest was too). I was sucked right in, confused and yet following it at the same time. Very well written.

I think there is no way Uncle Ben's return is permanent. Yet it is a great plot point. So I was not worried about how you would handle it. Now that I know (and least some of it), I must say it really fits.

This was a very, very good Spidey story. The conclusion will tell whether it is great. I didn't like the way Ben was totally ineffective in Peter's life, but since he comes from an alternate earth, you have more room to play with it. That said, I do like how it highlights the important role Aunt May has played.

Side issue: I don't expect you, PAD, to respond about Mary Jane. But I like the decision to have them married. I reject the idea that it is impossible to write good stories about a married couple. I understand it does limit things, but I think it opens up other options that are not there. So Joe Quesada is wrong when he says Peter being married does not give him any options that Peter being single does not. The idea of being true to someone in the tough times and of the commitment to be there NO MATTER WHAT that can come with marriage is not the same as in dating.

Frankly, I hate the tease and soap opera of the days when Peter was dating the chick of the month (yes, a slight exaggeration, but you get my point). It is fine if you are after only the 13 year old audience (which seems to be Joe's focus), but not for at least one reader.

Which brings me back to PAD. PAD gets it. His handling of Peter and Mary Jane is great. As is JMS. It treats the marriage as what it is--a growing, evolving relationship and commitment. One that will go through rough times.

That is my two cents worth.

Iowa Jim

About the marriage....

I dunno. I think Quesada gets a bum rap on his statements.

The thing is that with marriage (and by extension, family), the stakes get higher and the outcomes get uglier. If Peter has to pass up work to fight Doc Ock, it's a lot less crucial when it's only his butt that gets tossed out the door if he can't make rent payments. When it's his butt AND his wife's, it's a lot less fun, and things get a lot more desperate. And the desperation only increases if an offspring is involved.

Not sure if a Spiderman book can really trade on that type of desperation....

First off - FNSM #8 was an excellent read! The perfect way to bring Uncle Ben around for a visit without undoing his death, one of the pivotal events in Marvel history - a point which you enforced through the first part of this issue, PAD.

Also, the Maestro and Captain Marvel being brought up in this thread led me to a question. Do you receive royalties for the Captain Marvel reprint which comes with the Marvel Legends Maestro figure? (Actually, for all I know you have comics packed with other Legends, as well, but [besides the ionic Wonder Man I picked up in Toys R Us because I knew it was the rare variant] Maestro's the first Legends figure I've actually bought.) I would hope it would work the same as any other reprint, but I wondered if being a toy pack-in affected things.