Amazing Spider-Man #31

[lordultimus]

Comments

[windleopard2]

That seems more of an issue with editorial than Spencer.

[cyberghostface]

That was the rumor but Bleeding Cool looked into it and it was always Spencer’s proposal for the most part.

https://bleedingcool.com/comics/did-amazing-spider-man-74-really-end-the-way-nick-spencer-intended/

[zachbeacon]

Yeah, the fandom at large seems to treat Spencer like they did JMS; they get all the credit for the good stuff and the bad stuff was all editorial's fault.

[cyberghostface]

Because in the case of JMS it was editorial’s fault. OMD was 100% Joe Quesada’s midlife crisis. JMS didn’t even want his name on it.

[zachbeacon]

From everything I've seen, JMS's problem with OMD is that it didn't regress Peter far enough.

Either way Joe Q would have got his unmarried Spider-Man.

[cyberghostface]

It was always Joe’s plan. JMS didn’t agree with the idea of erasing the marriage period; he was the one who fought to bring it back. He says right here he loved the marriage and loved writing Peter and MJ together.

https://youtu.be/68Ch3rrDH4k

Even if JMS got the version that he preferred he was still playing company man and it would still be Quesada’s decision.

JMS’s problem wasn’t that it didn’t regress Peter enough but that the “it’s magic, we don’t have to explain it” made no sense.

[zachbeacon]

JMS clearly wanted them married but he was happy to go along with editorial in sabotaging future creative teams. His main issue was with the execution (both that they didn't use the script that throws away everything after Amazing #100 and Joe Q's "it’s magic, we don’t have to explain it” stance)


https://www.spidermancrawlspace.com/2021/04/omd-the-jms-cut-part-1/


(Most of those original links are long since dead so you'll have to settle for a compilation)


And it's wild that he was that passionate about Aunt May when he wrote her so badly. Remember when she just forgot Otto was Doc Ock?

[cyberghostface]

“JMS clearly wanted them married but he was happy to go along with editorial in sabotaging future creative teams.”

I’m not sure what the problem is here? He’s made it clear that editorial is calling the shots and it’s his job to follow them regardless of how he feels. What else should he have done? Why does he bear any responsibility for Quesada’s midlife crisis?

“And it's wild that he was that passionate about Aunt May when he wrote her so badly. Remember when she just forgot Otto was Doc Ock?”

He didn’t…? Also his writing of May with her discovering who Peter was and becoming an active role in his superhero life was easily among the best takes on her character.

[zachbeacon]

He was the outgoing writer. He could have said "no" and bailed as soon as the idea was brought up. What are they going to do, fire him?

He didn't try to distance himself until after they rejected his proposal to revert things back to the Silver Age.

He's quit mid-story on every other high-profile comic he's ever done and it hasn't hurt his career.
.




I agree that May knowing is the right move but DeMatteis, Bendis, and Jenkins all handled it better.

[cyberghostface]

“ He was the outgoing writer. He could have said "no" and bailed as soon as the idea was brought up. What are they going to do, fire him?”

Because he was being a professional. Why should he blamed for something that everyone knows was Quesada’s idea? You were saying “JMS gets credit for the good stuff and the bad stuff is blamed on editorial” as if that’s somehow being unfair to Quesada.

Also JMS didn’t want to revert everything *back* to the Silver Age. The idea was the changes would start there and ripple back to the present.

[zachbeacon]

“Because he was being a professional.”

Fantastic Four, Thor, Superman, Wonder Woman

I hope whoever takes over for him on Captain America when he leaves mid-story is good. At the very least, the unfinished Marvel runs introduced me to Kieron Gillen and gave us all a little more Dwayne McDuffie.


“somehow being unfair to Quesada”

What part of anything I’ve said suggests Joe Q should be let off the hook? The blame needs to be shared.

[cyberghostface]

I can’t speak for every single time but JMS was dealing with a number of scheduling issues as well as health issues with his eyes in the mid 2000s which lead to him not being able to work on as much comics.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/j-michael-straczynski-retiring-comics-916703/amp/

“ What part of anything I’ve said suggests Joe Q should be let off the hook? The blame needs to be shared.”

Why does JMS need to share even an *iota* of the blame when you know full well it was Quesada enforcing his vendettas 100% and JMS’ version wasn’t even what got published?

[zachbeacon]

I didn't know about the health issues. That's terrible.

It certainly causes me to reevaluate some statements he made at the time.