Yes, the Internet is rife with people stating their outrage about One More Day. And all of it is pretty much deserved. But since I get my comics one a month and just received the final installment now. So, you'll have to listen to me rant about it now. I'll try to be pithy.
These will be in random order. So there. More commentary will be coming in my column at Broken Frontier on Tuesday.
- I really want to buy several copies of all the issues and send them off to the 700 Club and other religious right organizations. Seriously, Spider-Man made a deal with a devil. If Marvel is going to be that stupid, they should be called on it. I secretly think Joe Quesada wanted that. Because there is no such thing as bad publicity.
- And Joe Quesada can't have both ways. Mephisto might be an "intradimensional being", but if looks like the devil, acts like the devil and you are treating him like the devil, that's how he will look to an outsider.
- This is going to sound harsh, but do you think the powers that be are angry that Benazir Butto got assassinated? Because if she didn't we might have had another slow news day like the one they had with the Death of Captain America. Because this event seems like one Joe really wanted national attention for.
- I bet they were ticked that the writer's guild were on strike. They would have gotten at least one mention on the Colbert Report if it was on.
- Is Peter and Mary Jane's marriage really worth that much? I mean, Aunt May gets to be well, his secret identity comes back and, to top it off, he gets his best friend back. That seems like a great deal!
- As much as I support Amazing Spider-Girl getting promoted, could Joe Quesada be snarkier when he advised people complaining about the disolution of the Parker's marriage to go check it out. (He said it here)
- Joe Quesada is getting lambasted for this. But lets face facts. It looks like he pushed this through based on what he personally believed than what was really needed. He gave no concern about what the fans think. It appears he gave no concern for how this would affect Marvel's continuity. So, some lambasting is deserved.
- I like JMS's version of his discussion with someone at Marvel about his qualms with the ending posted at Newsarama. He was savvy enough to know that no fan worth his salt wouldn't be satisfied with "It's magic, we don't have to explain it." I mean, the fact that there was someone at Marvel who actually thought that would fly scares the hell out of me.
- Joe's explanation that everything that has happened still happened isn't much better. Harry Osborn was dead for 13 years. When he died, he was married with a kid. Now. he alive with a hot girlfriend (whose name is not Liz Allen). That's not exactly how it was. People are going to wonder about that.
- Why do they have to be wheatcakes? Has anyone out there actually had a wheatcake?
- A single Peter Parker might open up to more stories. But a married Peter Parker lasted 20 years. That's a lot of stories. It seemed the married Peter had no want for stories.
- And if a single Peter is such a great well spring for stories, why, based the preview images they supplied to MySpace, does it seem that Dan Slott simply picked out the most recognizable cliches from all the Essential Spider-Man's lying around the office. We have the "can't pay the rent" cliche, the "can't find a job" cliche, the "being romantically attracted to someone Harry is dating" cliche, the "these pictures look like you plastered your camera to the wall" cliche, and the ever-classic "Spider-Man is a menace" cliche. Oh, there are plenty of good stories to be told. They've just all been told before.
- I heard they were debating about bring Gwen Stacy back. They should have. That would make the any love triangle that much more interesting. But her death is still the most sacrosanct event of the Spidey mythos. The wedding can be done away with, but Gwen stays dead, dead, dead.
- There are a bunch of great plots that can come out of this: Aunt May gets hit by a bus as Mephisto puts a truly Faustian twist on his deal. Tony Stark realizes that he can't remember Spidey's identity and sets out to find out what it is. But what we'll probably get is Harry as the Goblin again at some point.
- I'd imagine Marvel wants fans to wonder what MJ whispered to Mephisto. Was it bringing Harry back? Or establishing that goofy Jackpot identity for her.
Essentially, I think this whole thing is pointless. But what Joe Q wants, Joe Q gets. But Joe Q won't always be EIC. So this change most likely will only last as long as he is at Marvel. When he leaves, the next EIC will remarry them when he needs a big event.
Mary Jane whispered the same thing Bill Murray whispered in LOST IN TRANSLATION.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, though I am predominantly a DC reader, Marvel's missteps (CIVIL WAR, OMD) have been such a turn off that I just can't read there stuff anymore. I'm finishing Whedon's run on ASTOUNDING X-MEN (1 issue left and he's been pretty much left alone from the editorial fiats) and all I'll be reading is POWERS.