Do you think the Marriage of MJ and Peter Parker should return?

Yes. It's silly that most comic book characters can't be in a relationship for the long periods of time without writers/publishers screwing it up.

It should never have ended,the reasons why they keep returning and breaking up always sounds forced.

I'm just going to repeat what I posted in another thread.

The notion that marriage or long term relationships stagnates the characters or the potential creative longevity of stories is a fallacy.

Professional competent writers with the right mindset and skill set, can accomplish good stories regardless of the character's relationship status. Marvel's print division need to stop with all the excuses, because that's all it is - excuses.

it's persistent stubborness from people with a very narrow and limited view of what makes Spider-Man appealing to new generations that keeps it from coming back, however, as Cap says in Civil War "people have agendas, and agendas change", eventually it will be brought back in by people who were fans of it.

Peter and MJ thrive as a married couple to this day in the daily strip, whether that's because the strip writers operate outside of Marvel's jurisdiction or maybe Marvel themselves like to keep it around in a place which poses no relevance or threat to their long-term plans is not clear, but outside of one blip in 2009 where they tried making Peter single there, it's never been out of print for any long stretch of time and we're likely looking at the marriage entering it's 30th year in 2017, and should it do so, it will mean OMD did not acheive much of anything except kick a popular ideas "downstairs" rather than be rid of it completely.

No.

@kcomicfan: you want to say why?

He doesn't like Mary Jane or the idea of married superheroes, he's the same with Superman

Speaking of that @kcomicfan, I notice you don't post much in the Superman section anymore, is it because of Rebirth?

I don't really like Mary Jane Watson and the idea of superheroes being married.

Yes, the direction DC is going in with Superman doesn't really appeal to me, so I have nothing new to add to that conversation.

Fair enough mate. I'm looking forward to it, but I actually don't think it's going to be a permanent status quoe either, just a gimmick to lead us into the anniversary issue of Action Comics in a couple of years.

@zariusii@kcomicfan: Okay then, that's understandable. Sorry bout the thing with Rebirth. I mean, I look forward to it but I can understand why you and others wont. I appreciate you guys giving me an explanation.

It's a wonderful idea and they should really follow through with it. Probably not going to happen since Dan Slott is on the run. Alas, when will reading Spider-Man feel like reading Spider-Man again?

Just before Renew Your Vows came out, someone on Scans Daily last year claimed Slott had actually tried pitching ideas for the return of the marriage several times at the company and RYV was approved only because of the nature of Secret Wars. I don't know whether that source is credible since Slott tends to outright lie and flip-flop on several subjects pertaining to Spidey, but at the moment the story he's sticking with is that he's simply not allowed to use the marriage, and neither is anyone that will replace him as writer. Peter and MJ will probably be back together one day, but dating is the extent of what Marvel will permit for the moment.

This is probably why Slott is being allowed to stay on the book long past his sell-by date, because the next big writer may want to make use of Peter and MJ as a couple, and Slott just happens to be the one writer who doesn't want to utilize her in the more familiar manner we're used to, seeing as he is'nt allowed to marry them off again.

But, again, with the marriage a regular fixture in the daily strip even now, I think Marvel are aware ridding themselves of it completely causes more harm than good, they want to keep hope alive, and more importantly, they want to keep that older fanbase around, so they'll do little things here and there to keep them happy (or sane) without trying to compromise their current plans and output.

Time will tell what 2017, and the 30th anniversary of the marriage, will bring.

Agendas change.

Love how Marvel's print division rave on about diversity in comics but discriminate against marriage - hypocrites!

@magnetic_eye: And yet like 3 other heroes have babies, and in the past, they prided the SpiderMan wedding as a big play. Books on the history of marvel raved about it constantly.

Looks like we just gotta take over the print division somehow....

Should never have ended in the first place.

LOL, a coup d'état of Marvel's print division would be sweet. Just for starters, get rid of Perlmutter, Quesada, Slott, Lowe & Brevoort.

http://www.cosmicbooknews.com/content/kevin-feiges-battle-against-ike-perlmutter-came-head-during-captain-america-civil-war

@magnetic_eye said:

Disney is one day just goanna bust in with a spray bottle and be all like "NO! NO! BAD MARVEL! That's it! I'm just taking over!"

@knightwriteri: I love this!!!

One More Day was one of the worst Marvel stories of all time. It ranks up there with Ultimatum and Ultimates 3 as worst stories ever. That said, I think Spider-Man works best as a young guy with no marital responsibilities. Once he gets married, he goes from the young guy to that old married guy very quickly in the readers mind.

I really don't see a married 28 - 30 year old guy as old. How does getting married make one old? I don't get it. Neither do I see it as a problem in the reader's mind. Whether married or unmarried, a stagnation of stories occurs when writers get lazy or simply don't care.

Marital responsibilities aside, I would much sooner see Peter portrayed as a mature adult as he has been since the 70's, than the immature infantile writing that has gripped ASM the last 9 years.

If Marvel's print division ever decide to bring the marriage back, I would hope it be done gradually and respectfully through the courtship of a long term relationship. I don't and never will understand the aversion to marriage in comic books when everything else seems to be okay in the name of diversity. It stinks to high heaven of hypocrisy.

It's now pretty average to see people getting married out of college or in their 20s which Peter is and most start having kids around 25. So I never really see Peter of being aged in this aspect if the writers portray it well. Perhaps they should look into how new young couples interact...they kinda are what I think of Peter and MJ, a couple who try to be adults and will constantly make mistakes and have complications but learn to make it work. Its how you portray them that makes them young....also Peter Parker doing dad puns would be hysterical and so in character.

I love the marraige but I can understand that you think he should stay unmarried because of his youth. I know some people hate it but they went about it in the worst way which we all agree on. Going against Peter's and MJ's character is awful.They are so many ways they could have ended the marriage that would have been more acceptable. Yeah a lot of us wouldn't like it but we wouldn't be causing lynch mobs.

Why not have the One Above All appear again and to save Aunt May, make her 5 years younger so she will be strong enough to survive the incident? That would in turn make Peter, MJ and their story go 5 years in the past so they aren't married anymore but feel the strong bond and are probably getting serious in dating. It would be kinda like OAA granted them a chance to change their future and in turn, leading them to the happy ending. Harry would be alive again and even Ben Reilley. And all the heroes could suddenly get confused stating "wierd...for some reason I thought of you as older....or at least taller" like they can kinda remember him being older. Peter has nostalgic moments at points and thus alters his decisions either for better or worse. And it doesn't destroy the romance between the two so us die hard fans of the Marriage would be granted assurance that they will be married but far in the future.

Not the most amazing option but better than selling your marriage and baby to Satan.

@magnetic_eye: I wouldn't want to go through a long courtship between Peter and MJ to get the marriage back. A long-term build is not necessary for the two, they already know one another inside and out and should technically still be married anyway. People complain about how the marriage was rushed in both the main books and the newspaper strip, but I never looked at that as anything but two very good friends realizing they did'nt need to do things conventionally, they already had the history and loved each other enough. I'd much sooner have them remember the original timeline and somehow restore it so they move forward with all of their established maritial history intact...their quest should be restoring their child to the land of the living after they aborted it from reality. Parenthood is the next step for Peter, not just simply retreading ground we've already covered.

Having read the daily strip for about seven years (where he's still married to MJ), the pair of them have never come across as old, kindly don't speak for me or others please.

Hell even when Peter shows some visible age in Spider-Girl, he proves he can still teach a reader like me new things about how to act like a responsible parent with a lot of vitality and energy.

And let's not forget how Batman is a consistent sales winner for DC despite being...y'know, a single father.

I can't believe I used to buy into Marvel's propaganda about spider-man needing to be young but we should all be aware by now that Marvel's talk about youth is a PSEUDO-obsession it's all BS to cover their actual desire Peter being free to sleep with whoever they feel like at a given moment. Because remember when OMD hit Marvel was already publishing multiple AU's with a young Peter.

If anything they've poisoned my attitude toward/enjoyment of new young takes on the character which is a shame since the first ultimate spiderman paperback was what brought me into comics fifteen years ago.

@zariusii: I actually started reading the Sunday Strip by your suggestion and it really is fun. Yeah it's not the more realistic Spider-Man that I wish could have the marriage but its Stan Lee's work and it has some fun stories and adventures in there. They are still heavily young and it shows with their banter and actions.

I read all of the MC2 SpiderGirl run and found it great! I am going to say the only biiiig negative I had was that Peter was aged alot within MC2 which is strange because he's supposed to be way younger than Tony Stark and Tony almost looks the same in it (Peter was probably in his late 30s so why does he have that one white slip of hair I will never know)

But the Spider-Girl series prooves we didn't need him to be young to enjoy it. Spider-Girl is the longest running comic with a female main character Marvel has ever printed...EVER PRINTED! It also proved we were fine with him having a kid. We just want writers that know how to properly write this.

Also, Jessica Jones, a girl who had a crush on him in high school, same age, has a kid. Jessica Drew, roughly around the same age, has a kid. Harry, his best friend, college roommate, definitely same age, has a kid and apparently is going to have a second one. Gwen Stacy, love interest in his early years in college apparently had twins (and I wish they'd just announce those kids were clones since its a real awful thing to do with her character) SO WHY CAN'T PETER HAVE HIS?!?!

I never understood when Marvel said they can't let Peter have kids cause that wouldn't be popular, WHEN THE GAWDAMN BATMAN has one biological son (and a daughter? they always changed that) and several adopted kids and it's one of the best selling comic series. Everyone knows Batman, everyone wants to be Batman, Batman is a symbol of how cool comics can be....and he is a single father as you said.

@knightwriteri: Yeah they had a ton of young Spideys hopping around, and we have a teenage one in 616 now so they got no excuses now.

I mean, a lot of fans didn't get into Spider-Man only because he was young, we got into him because of who he was, his villains and his personality. As a kid, I literally thought he kinda started his Spider-Man hero career as an adult since my only introduction was the Spider-Man Cartoon and he was always drawn like he was 29. I didn't care one bit, he was cool to me because of his powers, the baddies, friends and his personality.

I later on found out he was SpiderMan since he was 15 and was shocked. I wanted to learn more about his past immediately. Like a kid, with no experience, wasn't a sidekick, no one to teach him, had to learn to be a hero all on his own? I ended up later in life finding the older comics and indulging in the first comics ever created of him.

Adult Peter being an Adult made me want to go back and learn all about his childhood and read the comics from the beginning, shouldn't that be what Marvel tries to do? Make something so enjoyable, we want to read the story from the beginning?

@itsaworld: And now DC are going one step better and are set to embrace Superman in the role of a proud parent, as the version from the post-crisis continuity is being made the mainstream universe's representative of the character, with his son co-headlining a book later in the year with Bruce's son, and his marriage to Lois is being brought to the forefront once again also. It's everything we desired from the RYV stunt and certainly the bold shot in the arm the Super-Franchise needs. Time will tell if it's a success, but I wish them all the luck in the world with it.

You're also right in that Peter having a history is what we truly treasured, that there was a story that stretched well beyond our own years and we were caught smack dab in the midst of it growing stronger with each passing year...nowadays all we experience is that history being rewritten or defecated on, and the character experiencing an identity crisis. Man or Man-Boy?

I get what you're saying, I really do. Perhaps a long-term build up may not be necessary. I just don't want to see Marvel do a rushed flip flop and then suddenly like magic, everything is restored. We've already seen the opposite of that happen with the demon deal where everything was taken away.

I would like to see a plausible gradual build up of events, a story of substance leading towards the marriage restoration with Pete & MJ remembering the original timeline. And then off course parenthood, as a natural progression.

Most importantly is having a talented and credible writer to pull it off, to weave a tale that will make me believe in this character again.

Great points. I was ten years old when I first started reading Spider-Man and the fact he was an adult didn't bother me at all. He was the coolest super hero and the stories and art was all I really cared about.

Even when I hit my teen years, I didn't need Spider-Man to be a teenager for me to relate to him.

In my case, as a ten year old getting into Amazing Spider-Man comics, the fact that there were at least 11 years of back-stories to read, made comic book collecting even more exciting and enjoyable.

By the time One More Day came out Peter had been with MJ longer than he had been single. I would love the marriage to be back but I don't want the whole starting a relationship thing because I already read that. Every bit of Peter struggling with relationships is literailly just rehashing things for decades ago and as an older reader I've already read that.

listen, joe q does not want a married spiderman. slott has nothing to do with it. you guys can hate slott all you want to, but i love ryv's. i don't understand why joe q hate a married spiderman. mj was as big a part to the spidey mythos as anyone.

@christianrapper: Yeah, lets just bring back the marriage like it never went away. And if anyone asks 'but what about all the things that happened when they werent married' we can use good ol Quesada logic and state MAAAAAGIIIIIIIIC. They could also pull a Spider-Man Comic Strip where Peter wakes up and realises it was all a dream...a horrible dream he has just woken up from.

But in seriousness, bringing back the marriage would be a huge hit. They wouldn't just make it one issue, they'd make it a whole dang event! And we'd buy every comic!!!

Think about the hundreads of ways they could restore the marriage!

@muhabba: Naw, we totally understand that Slott is on our side about getting Peter and MJ back together, but it doesn't excuse his writing. Don't get me wrong, he tends to be a great writer, but as of now, he isn't doing a great job at all. SpiderMan charcaters aren't acting like themselves, decisions are made that would never happen, spidecar (i can't get over that), and yes, he wants the marriage back but if he can't have it, he is going to not let them be together at all. I was furious how he teased us with the notion that MJ and Peter were going to be dating again only to be "NOPE! HAHA! DOC OCK TAKES OVER" and never brings her back. It's really too painful to read.

Plus, I hear Joe Q doesn't have any part in the Spiderman team, but the other editors and publishers agree with what he did and want to keep Peter single...for some dumb reason.

i think i remember reading before BND that joe was spiderman fan and he preferred peter single. he definitely said that it aged peter and that he wasn't a fan of it for that reason. i wish peter could have kept his other powers and job teaching instead of going back to being a reporter again. i actually love slotts run now. i love the fact that peter is finally doing something. i really hope they don't BND that and have him going back to some crappy street leveler. they seem to be positioning peter into being a major player in the marvel universe.

@christianrapper: I always found this to be a false assumption. A character ages with how the storyteller writes them. One great example of proof we can have a hero married and perhaps with kids is Goku from Dragon Ball. Started at 14 years old, now married with kids and is even a grandfather at points. Having a family never was a burden or the end of his career or aged him. He was still goku going on a brand new adventure.

I dunno about him being positioned as a major player...he always seemed to be that to me...at least with his heroics. Its just that the career they gave him isn't suited for him....I feel his best role is as a teacher...but he could go one step beyond....like why isnt he teaching the future generation of heroes how to become heroes? Be their teacher in some sorta school or grouping like SHIELD or even a program done by the avengers. Professor/sensei/teacher for these kids. People love when he interacts with the young heroes because he is their symbol they strive to be.

He isnt CEO material, that's Tony's MO or Norman Osborn's. Most stories in the past warned him of what happens if he becomes a powerhouse in a company and this whole saga seems to be ignoring this. Yes he should be doing awesome science stuff or theories or doing something more than taking dang selfies all day, but we don't need to loose what he is when doing it. I'd rather see him working under another compay if need be as a scientist but he isnt supposed to be the Bruce Wayne of Marvel so they shouldn't push it this far....

But you know what I always thought would be fun for Slott to pull? Otto returns, given a new body (peter clone body?) and comes forward as the real head of Parker Industries and thus Peter steps down as CEO but becomes the head scientist. Think of all the fun that would be. Peter's new boss is the man who mind screwed him, one of his biggest baddies and he now has to take orders from him. There could even be so many comments from Peter wondering who is the worst boss, JJ or Otto. ANd Otto knows Peter is Spiderman so leaving would not be an option.

Its suspected that Slott plans to burn the whole thing down after his run ends...but no one can be sure.

I thought it was believable, logical, and added depth. Yes

peter stepping down will make no sense. it makes no sense to step down and become the head researcher in the company that you used to own. peter must be ceo material. he took a failing company and turned it into a international power house. he can do more good as a ceo the he ever can as spiderman...minus those saving the world arcs. if he had not gotten bit, he still would have become head of his own tech based company. he is a genius. it makes sense for him to use his genius. it makes no sense for a guy with a 250 iq to be just a researcher. he needs to be able to use his mind.

Didn't Quesada go through a marriage break up just prior to OMD? Heartbreak and bitterness may have influenced his decision. His reasoning that a married Spider-Man ages the character is ridiculous.

I don't believe us guys hate Slott. We don't know him personally. Speaking for myself though, I do confess that I hate the way he writes Spider-Man. I think there's a big difference between personally hating someone, to hating their style of writing.

RYV was a refreshing change, it was good to see Pete & MJ together, but IMO it was still a mediocre story with a lame villain. I also generally dislike alternate dystopian universes.

As an older reader myself, I tend to see any re-establishment, reconnection of a friendship and relationship as something fresh and new in the hands of a competent writer. Same with a reconciliation of the marriage. It wouldn't be something I had already read decades ago. I honestly think a good writer could write a compelling saga heralding a return to form for ASM as long as it doesn't drag on for too long.

In terms of how, I wouldn't want to see the same "Mephisto" demon magic that removed the marriage, suddenly be used to instantly reinstate it. Marvel would be using the same dumb tactics of "magic" happens without explanation if they went down that route. It should be removed by a greater impenetrable force, against whom Mephisto wouldn't stand a chance.

Peter is routinely shown to be in over his head in the posistion he's currently in, being manipulated and stabbed in the back by many of his employers while he remains ignorant to it, and when he is'nt, he lets them stay on the pay-roll (his last girlfriend, despite her nearly killing him) or fires them later for reasons other than what could have had them out the door originally (Sanjani), not to mention he's operating with a doctorate he did'nt earn, essentially making Ock the rightful heir to PI and making the reader root for him to take down Peter's empire because he had'nt earned it.

The more people try to defend this CEO garbage, the more they come across as the type who don't really think it through and are just happy to see him make millions and be in a cushy position, not factoring in that his victories are hollow and empty because the one light in his life, MJ, is missing

Peter being street level is what makes him appealing, he was the hero that could be you. Being a genius is'nt all it's cracked up to be, in fact embracing that element has never been more boring for the character. Not all of us can be corporate bigwigs, but we can be photographers, researchers, teachers, and forensic scientists, that's the sort of area, helping solve the little problems, that gives Peter his unique touch. Now? He's out of touch, as are his writers.

remember that peter is learning on the job as a ceo. even dock ock nearly destroyed the company. i am glad that peter is going through some growing pains as a ceo. peter parker the character is what made him interesting to me. not all of us can be corporate big wigs, you are right. however, none of us can be genius super heroes who got bit by a radio active spider. i don't buy this spidey is not relatable anymore thing because he has his own company. that's like hating your friend because he got a promotion or became really successful. he is still peter, and it shows. i am glad that peter is facing more global threats. peter parker has been through heck. it's time for him to have some success. it took massive PIS to keep him as a photographer for all these years.

No offense to anyone but you're really kidding yourselves if you think Slott's ever wanted the marriage back Mary Jane is an established character and as such an obstacle to him getting royalty checks from Carlie Cooper and other characters he's made to fill that niche and he's said plenty of derrogatory things towards MJ. He says it's pointless for them to be in a relationship if they're not married and that's true but he's mainly used that as an excuse to have Peter and MJ repeat the same 1980's character arcs again and again and again without actually becoming a couple making the characters much more boring and tired not to mention intentionally reinforcing the myth that they are an on again off again couple as that makes it easier to break them up again if they actually are reunited.

RYV was good it was Slott's best work but I highly doubt he pushed for it like he claims if he did only as a new writing experience to keep him from getting bored writing Peter instead of doc ock as spiderman. And if Slott had any fondness for the marriage certainly he would have found room to give Peter and MJ one isolated moment as a couple outside the context of operating as his original character Annie's parents he didn't and that speaks volumes.

I do want a big event that leads to a cosmic retcon where Peter and MJ team up to save the omniverse from Mephisto and TOAA undoes OMD it's only fair and it's not like there's anything in the mephistoverse worth saving. And I'm sorry their relationship doesn't need to be rebuilt that would be a waste of time no one wants to see Peter and MJ didn't need to rebuild their relationship before the marriage because they were already such close friends. It would just be repetive ooc nonsense like slott gives us.

• Peter is routinely shown to be in over his head in the posistion he's currently in, being manipulated and stabbed in the back by many of his employers while he remains ignorant to it

And at the same time Peter is also shown to be a capable CEO, who can run a business. Peter was stabbed in the back twice, and the first time he worked out that he was stabbed in the back.

• and when he is'nt, he lets them stay on the pay-roll (his last girlfriend, despite her nearly killing him)

Peter kept his ex-girlfriend on the payroll so she could spy on Scorpio.

• not to mention he's operating with a doctorate he did'nt earn

Peter can't exactly give his doctorate back, what would he say "Sorry, but I have to give my doctorate back because it was earned by Doctor Octopus when he transferred his mind into my body"

• essentially making Ock the rightful heir to PI and making the reader root for him to take down Peter's empire because he had'nt earned it.

That makes you root for Doc Ock. Kindly, can you not speak for everyone.

• The more people try to defend this CEO garbage, the more they come across as the type who don't really think it through and are just happy to see him make millions and be in a cushy position, not factoring in that his victories are hollow and empty because the one light in his life, MJ, is missing

When you say things like this, you come across as someone who can't understand the basic concept of personal preference. Our line of thinking regarding Peter as a CEO has been explained to you multiple times. But because you don't like that, you are choosing to believe that it never happened.

• Peter being street level is what makes him appealing, he was the hero that could be you. Being a genius is'nt all it's cracked up to be, in fact embracing that element has never been more boring for the character. Not all of us can be corporate bigwigs, but we can be photographers, researchers, teachers, and forensic scientists, that's the sort of area, helping solve the little problems, that gives Peter his unique touch. Now? He's out of touch, as are his writers.

This is what makes Peter appealing to you. Again, can you please remember that you don't speak for everyone.

And neither do you speak for everyone. You have your personal preference, other people have theirs. Please refrain from sounding like a hypocrite, because you definitely don't speak for everyone with your opinions.

As much as I loved the marriage and MJ I was ok with it ending just not the way it ending.

I just want Slott's run to come to an end. He doesn't understand the character and if he does that just makes it worse that he's not writing the character as the character.

I can't remember the last time I've gone this long not supporting the book with my wallet.

Yes. Let them marry and have kids. It makes room for stories for an older audience.

^^^^^ SAME ^^^^^

I think it's interesting that in the 60's Marvel's core audience were predominantly college students and young adults.

These days it seems that some writers are just targeting a much younger demographic.

I never said that I speak for everyone and my comment in no way makes it seem like I am trying to speak for everyone. The fact that you are trying to lecture me on personal preference is rich.

The “Our” I was referring to in my post is people who defend the fact that Peter is the CEO his own company, I even put the quote I was referencing above my argument .

Fair enough, but Zariusii is entitled to have his own opinion, regardless of whether you agree with him or not. Was the above quote you were referencing a little condescending? Perhaps, but so was your reply.

Please explain your perception of me trying to lecture you on personal preference as rich? You have your personal preference of the character and that's fine. But surely you have to understand that people who don't like it will openly scrutinize and criticize any published Spider-Man work, even opposing fan viewpoints on a Spider-Man thread. The point of these forums is to do it in a civil manner.

I have always stated my dislike for Slott's writing style, and my personal preference of the character extends prior to Quesada's or Slott's involvement.

Kcomic always comes across as feeling personally offended whenever somebody criticises the stuff he enjoys, as if calling someone easily pleased equates to them being stupid. It doesn't. I have many friends who admit to being easily pleased with eyesores like Batman v Superman for instance. I'll even be the first to admit I'm easily pleased by the newspaper strip because it gives me the Peter Parker I recognize and enjoy (street level hero, ordinary job, and married to a headstrong, loyal and capable MJ)

If we all agreed with each other, the world would be a boring place and art as a subjective medium would be greatly diminished.

I never said that Zariusii isn't entitled to his own opinion, my point is Zariusii shouldn't try to act like his opinion is the opinion of all or most of the fanbase. My reply was condescending because I needed to make a point that Zariusii deliberately ignores anything that contradicts his viewpoint.

I know that you have your own personal preferences, but you clearly have disdain for people who likes Slott's Spider-Man. You have made this clear in multiple threads and when you unjustifiably flagged my Spider-Man posts. So, it is rich that you are trying to lecture me on personal preference.

It is also funny that every time I openly scrutinize and criticize Mary Jane Watson or the Spider-Marriage, you're one of the first people to reply.