Spidey and MJ Save The World (Amazing Spider-Man #672 spoilers)

[stillanerd]

Ever since "One More Day," it seems like Marvel has done everything they can to diminish Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson as a couple, and not just in ret-conning their previous marital status and giving Peter various other love interests to pursue. But then along comes the finale to "Spider-Island" to suddenly remind us why fans loved these two as a couple in the first place.

First of all, we get an explanation as to why MJ seemed to be the last one in New York to develop Spider-powers:



So...yeah. Peter's fear that he may have given Carlie a "Spidey Transmitted Disease" as a result of "sharing a toothbrush" (among other things) back in Amazing Spider-Man #667? Turns out it he had the right idea, albeit a different girl with different results.

Anyway, Spidey and his clone Kaine team-up against The Queen (who now has transformed into a giant 28-story half-woman, half-spider creature) only for the Queen to swat Spidey away like...well, a bug. And who comes in for the save?



Spidey's plan? To use Doc Ock's miniature octo-bots (the one's from Amazing Spider-Man #600) to administer the Anti-Venom cure to all those infected with the "Spider-Island virus." So he and MJ go up to the Empire State Building to better broadcast the signal, leading to this moment:



Due to everyone being cured, the Queen is weakened, allowing Kaine to deliver the killing blow. The day is saved, and what do Peter and MJ do the celebrate? They snuggle!



And if that weren't enough, Peter seems to have completely forgotten all about Carlie Cooper. You know, the woman who is supposed to be his actual girlfriend? :-P

Okay, maybe this doesn't necessarily mean Peter and MJ will get back together again right away, but it sure seems things are moving in that direction, do they not?

Comments

[funbox]

YESSSSSSS!!! But it does make me wonder how Slott will handle the break up of Carlie if she is still alive. Even for her current representation I don't wish the fate MJ had to be put on her...

[stillanerd]

The preview for Amazing Spider-Man #673 shows that Carlie is indeed still alive...albeit in a rather compromising and potentially embarrassing predicament. :-D

[shadowpsykie]

you mean this? :D

http://i.newsarama.com/images/asm1999673_int_lr_0001.jpg

god its hilarious... all the aritrary things that stay... bionic arm... Headband, beard loss :D

also LOVE hercules being all "AH nakedness! i LOVE nakedness!" also notice he said PEOPLE, not WOmen :D

[stillanerd]

you mean this? :D

Yep. :-D

[shadowpsykie]

am i the only one who see's Clint... ummm... he seems to be not looking at t'challa's face....

[leikomgwtfbbq]

I like how everyone is more confused by what stayed or went while they were giant spiders, than by being giant spiders in the first place, and they're just examining who lost what rather than freaking out over waking up naked in strange places. "So we were giant spiders. Huh. I lost my rockin' beard, but Misty kept her headband! That's not fair!"

[kenwyn89]

why... why does she still have her *glasses* on?!?!!!!

Unless it's so we know it's her. Pfft.

Actually..

[steverodgers5]

There was a moment where some random guy questioned why he still had his glasses, wondering if he'd somehow been a spider with glasses on! LOL!

I guess that's what writers call, 'hanging a lampshade on it..'

Re: Actually..

[sindra]

God I wish more writers did that. In today's age, genre savviness should be a common thing.

Motto..

[steverodgers5]

But Slott's writing, (for the most part,) has always had a savy, lightness of touch to it. His Spiderman Human Torch series was sublime!

Re: Actually..

[jlbarnett]

trust me there's a ton of writers who do it. I've gotten to the point where it just makes me roll my eyes and go "okay, you're so clever, now move onto somehting that matters"

Re: Actually..

[meowshi]

Being jaded was never my style.

Re: Actually..

[jlbarnett]

I'm just sick of the joke is all. I think it happened in Young Justice

[shadowpsykie]

i really hope this does mean they will get back together... i hope this does NOT mean they are going to try and pawn her off on Kaine....

I know she will probably lose the powers... but i REALLY want her to keep them... and i REALLY want her to be the new Scarlet Spider, and keep it from Peter.... she really did kick ass as a Hero and it feels like SUCH a tease if they take that from her...

[his_spiffynesss]

Yeah, Pete and MJ are snuggling up on top of some building while Carlie is stuck naked and embarrassed in Central Park.

Who's the love interest now?

[sherkahn]

Carlie and Pete are done very soon, as Felecia becomes his love interest.

But I think be keeping secrets from Carlie and "holding her back" when she had spidey-powers Carlie will dump Pete.

And then the universe begins to right itself....

[stillanerd]

...as Felecia becomes his love interest.

Or Felicia becomes Daredevil's.

But yeah, I get the feeling Peter and Carlie are going to break-up in the upcoming issue. And in hindsight, there's been quite a few indications things have been heading in that direction for some time.

[theredhood]

Felicia can't date hornhead! He's like Marvel's Kyle Rayner, what with the doom crotch and all! I don't want her to die!

[biod]

DOOM CROTCH

[sir_mikael]

Did someone say DOOM CROTCH?

[stillanerd]

Oh, I wouldn't worry about Black Cat. She's such a firm fixture in the Marvel Universe at this point that she, undoubtedly, has a "Daredevil Doom Crotch immunity." :-D

[liliaeth]

Plus iwth her history of having bad luck powers, she might actually turn Matt's curse against himself.

[jaybee3]

Rather Felicia, than Carlie, at least then I can believe it.

[cypherfdp]

If you're going to force Carlie as the perfect ultimate girlfriend, be consistent at the very least. Went from center of the universe to being completely ignored rather quickly.

[his_spiffynesss]

It does seem like Carlie has disappeared from Pete's life pretty quickly. I guess once the backlash on the character started building they had to do something.

[cyberghostface]

Kind of surprised if that's the case, given that the response to any backlash since OMD has been a big "fuck you" and an extra helping of salt on the wound.

[his_spiffynesss]

Haven't the numbers for Spidey been going down steadily? Maybe it's reached the "it's a dog" point and they just have to do something.

[cyberghostface]

Perhaps, but just ousting Carlie (and I don't see her leaving just yet) would be the equivalent of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. It's the same thing with Big Time--it pretty much went "It's safe now, you can come back! We're going to have a consistent creative team! Everything's different now! Etc, etc!" and no one returned.

Nothing short of a complete creative overhaul and restoration of the former status quo is going to bring back all the falling readers. But Steve Wacker and co. have been stubborn in saying that the marriage won't be coming back, and if they readership starts to fall, they'll just find different ways to boost readership.

Word on the street is that it was none other than Bendis who said to them that the only way they'll get those readers back is by restoring the Spider-Marriage, this was years ago so it looks like it fell on deaf ears.

[jaybee3]

Not only do I not think that the marriage won't return (outside of Stan's newspaper strip) as long as Joe Queseda and Steve Wacker are still around but MJ/Peter won't get "together" (except as a tease like here) as long as the current Powers That Be are in charge. That would be admitting they made a mistake. And when it comes to both Marvel and DC thats something they almost never do (Dan Didio still defends Countdown and Amazons Attack!)

It's almost a Hal Jordan situation IMO. By the time Green Lantern:Rebirth came around the only person of the old guard from the 90s who had been involved with the destruction of Hal and the creation of Emerald Twilight from the DC Brass/Editorial was Paul Levitz (who was soon retired) and Mike Carlin (who was phased out of DC not long after). Everyone else (Denny O'Neil, Kevin Dooley and the late Archie Goodwin) were gone and Didio and Johns who grew up with Hal brought him back.

That's probably what's going to end up happening with Peter/MJ. When the next generational shift happens at Marvel we'll see some changes (or possibly a reboot).

[fifthie]

You're probably right and it's a shame since Marvel's now apparently willing to just go ahead and put out comics that only work if you assume that every person reading them is going to mentally cross out "ex-girlfriend" and scribble in "wife", but it still won't just come out and admit that it's fucking stupid for Pete and MJ to not be married.

[sailorlibra]

Ughhhh, why are you two so cute?

[drmcninja]

There's a reason people are so unhappy with Carlie. Well, there are a lot of reasons, but one of them is that Pete and MJ are a nigh-perfect couple that Marvel broke up for shock value. Very few relationships can match theirs when they're written well.

[jaybee3]

These few pages with Peter/MJ are more believable to me than anything with Peter/Carlie (which Slott has done quite a bit with) and even MJ/Whatshisname Carr (which Slott also came up with). There should be a lesson there for Marvel - but I don't think they'll listen.

After OMD and BND and everything Joe Q, Wacker, Slott and others have said to fans who have complained I'm going to go that this (Peter/MJ) is a fake-out.

[q99]

I wouldn't call them 'nigh-perfect', but they are *fun* :)

[liliaeth]

yeah, if they were perfect, they wouldn't feel so real and itneresting*g*

[jlbarnett]

I dunno. Marvel's been very "we're doing what WE want with Spidey!' so I don't see how they can get them back together.

[cyberghostface]

Yeah, this isn't the first time they've put out the carrot on a stick.

[stillanerd]

Oh, it's another carrot on a stick, to be sure. It's just that this particular carrot seems to be far easier to get off the line, so to speak.

[long_silence]

... she developed an immunity from the spider-virus because of her years with Peter?

[stillanerd]

Yes. Think Spider-Man: Reign, only with less harmful results.

[his_spiffynesss]

Sooo....we can take it that MJ swallows?

[theredhood]

And just when we thought she couldn't get more perfect!

[wtfomfg2]

And so, once again, the day is saved thanks to....SPIDER-SPERM!

I think I would have really enjoyed this story..

[steverodgers5]

If the artwork had only matched the scripts. But alas, it was pretty far from it..
Shame..As otherwiise it would have been the first half decent cross-over in ages!

P.S Is it just me, or did Peter's crowning moment of glory here, remind anyone else of that Christopher Eccleston Doctor Who episode where he shouts out, "Just this once...Everybody lives!"

Re: I think I would have really enjoyed this story..

[sir_mikael]

I thought of the same thing. Except The Doctor didn't have a funny looking helmet. :P

Re: I think I would have really enjoyed this story..

[steverodgers5]

No, just a daft old face, as he called it in his very last scene..(Sniff!)
Wish we could have had a little bit more of the 9th Doctor. I was just beginning to really like him, when of course it became time for him to go! :(

[blackruzsa]

Damn, I hope so. You know, the fact that they are so in sync... it just screams 'get back', like all this was just a little bump in the road. Maybe they'll be all like "just because magic says so doesn't mean they can't go back" or something.

///// Yeah I'm being optimistic, so sue me.

[kevinroc]

I requested somebody post these scans so thanks for that.

Thematically this "event" is actually a very personal story examining the relationship between Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson. The last issue and these scans in particular really drive this story as being a deeply personal one.

Is it a massive "ship tease?" Absolutely. Will they get back together? Not right now. But comics being what they are, they will eventually get back together.

(And they'll break up later and then get back together.)

[stillanerd]

I requested somebody post these scans so thanks for that.

You're welcome. :-)

[big_daddy_d]

I'm posting this after just reading those first panels as I must stop and declare *ahem* Spider-Nookie does wonders! :D

[big_daddy_d]

I remember there was a series of short stories in one of the Spidey books called Mr. and Mrs. Spider-Man...all I could think about is how great a title that would be for this issue.

[pyrotwilight]

In Web of Spider-Man of Amazing Spider-Man Family, one of those.

Twas a prequel to Spider-Girl/MC2 supposedly.

[skalja]

Well, it took almost four years, but a post-OMD writer finally captured the good parts of pre-marriage Spidey romance, and not just the illogical, sexist, and head-deskingly dated parts. That two-page spread was perfect.

But yeah, the way Peter just forgot about Carlie is bizarre and out of character. This is Peter Parker we're talking about; if he doesn't have time to worry about the people he loves, he's worrying about not having time to worry.

[fifthie]

a post-OMD writer finally captured the good parts of pre-marriage Spidey romance

Which as it turns out are the parts that are exactly the same as during-marriage Spidey romance.

[skalja]

Well there is a dash of added wistfulness, but the recipe is the same.

[fifthie]

Yup.

Shame that dash of wistfulness makes the whole thing taste like shit.

[fifthie]

Maybe they could swap that out in the recipe with a sprinkling of "devilretconmagicdivorcing these characters was stupid so it didn't happen and they're both just married to each other again"

[theredhood]

He did worry about the person he loves though; MJ is right there. We weren't supposed to believe he actually cared about Carlie, right? I thought that Mephisto did all that nonsense.

[starwolf_oakley]

I think MJ should keep the powers and get her own series as the new Scarlet Spider.
That way we can have our cake but the cake isn't constantly saying how great Carlie Cooper is for Peter.

[fifthie]

At the point where Marvel's putting out comics that are only coherent if you cross out "ex-girlfriend" and fill in "wife" it's really just time to cut the shit and have these two be married again.

[an_idol_mind]

And here's the big trouble with how Carlie has been written.

We've had issue after issue after issue of people telling us about how great Carlie is and how she's the perfect person for Peter, but it's all easily and effortlessly overshadowed by just that last panel.

Carlie is missing consistency as a character. More importantly, she's missing the organic part of character development where she is actually presented as a realistic, interesting, and likable character rather than just a composite that the creative team thought fans would find cool because they are for some reason desperate to shill this character.

[akodo_rokku]

The reason's obvious: she's their boss' pet. Y'know, the guy who signs their paychecks? She's even named after his daughter.

[biod]

That smile when he says he's going to save everybody just killed me. THAT is the Spider-Man I love. Now, can we please get back to him?

[eyz]

Great! Can we have Pete and MJ put together for good now? :P

[miramira]

I must not get my hopes up, I must not get my hopes up, I must no... omgsqueethey'resocutetogether!

[liara_shadowsong]

Badass MJ! Yay! :D