tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post5974275688034776227..comments2024-03-19T10:41:35.976-05:00Comments on Bronze Age Babies: Guest Review - The Amazing Spider-Man: Parallel LivesDoughttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-15542774095489085172015-06-03T19:22:14.873-05:002015-06-03T19:22:14.873-05:00The Mary Jane we know and love is purely a Gerry C...The Mary Jane we know and love is purely a Gerry Conway creation. She emerged in the Epilogue of ASM # 122. Conway developed her in a humane and dynamic way - Len Wein continued the excellent portrayal. So, it is fitting that Conway's Parallel Lives is the definitive story. It is in Parallel Lives that we are given the Mary Jane we keep in our hearts and yearn for.<br /><br />As a pertinent note: I just finished reading Renew Your Vows. It just hit the comic shops today. It is issue # 1 of what may be a restoration of the Peter/MJ marriage. But whether that turns out to be true or not - one thing is certain. Renew Your Vows offers a nostalgic dose of the Mary Jane we long for. Dan Slott has delivered what we've been screaming for. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-44229895176390626792015-06-01T21:48:32.133-05:002015-06-01T21:48:32.133-05:00I can dig it Mike W! Like many fans I was ambivale...I can dig it Mike W! Like many fans I was ambivalent about the idea of MJ knowing that Petey was Spidey from the very start. However, after seeing this review it looks like Conway crafted such a well written tale here that I can see how some fans are in favour of it. This story adds a depth to MJ's character that we never saw during the early phase of Spidey's career, at least immediately post Bronze Age. The story of a sensitive (hah there's that word again!) emotionally scarred person hiding behind a party girl persona really fleshes out MJ, and it's this which always led me to think that MJ was the only one for Peter.<br /><br />As for their marriage, I personally didn't think it was such a disaster like my ol' buddy William but hey that's just me. The storyline where Mephisto magically 'uncouples' them to borrow a term from Gwyneth Paltrow somehow disturbed me more than their marriage.<br /><br />All in all, another fine review Mike W! Keep 'em coming!<br /><br /><br />- Mike 'I knew Superman was Clark Kent all along!' from Trinidad & Tobago.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-9305583673138927112015-06-01T20:54:57.277-05:002015-06-01T20:54:57.277-05:00Really, really solid synopsis and review, Mike W. ...Really, really solid synopsis and review, Mike W. I'm not sure how it is that I don't have this GN-- except, now that I think of it, most of this story was touched upon to some degree in the monthly titles as well, so as not to leave those readers out of the important continuity loop, I imagine. And I know I couldn't afford too many GN's at that point.<br /><br />I HATED the "MJ always knew" retcon at the time, for many of the same reasons stated by others above. There's no question that it was done with care and love and certainly respect for the characters, and with as much surgical precision as possible, but nothing this major can ever escape the "everything you thought you knew is a lie" shadow. It just can't. BUT-- I did come to accept it well enough over the course of time, especially since I'm one of the (possibly minority of?) folks who truly loved the fact the Pete and MJ got married. I completely, COMPLETELY recognize and understand why it posed such a huge problem for so many long-time fans. . . but I am unapologetic about the fact that I want to see the characters I love grow and change the way anyone does. I think the problem is that it just stumped the writers and the editors on how to maintain the popular sad sack/underdog persona of Spidey's as he embarked on a young adult husband existence. It was certainly new ground, when you think of it, but no one seemed willing to really go in that direction. The problem, of course, is that when you're married and in love, a huge amount of entertaining neuroses just seem to vaporize. . .<br /><br />But again, I was fine with that.<br /><br />HBHumanbellynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-71266283152330344852015-06-01T13:42:49.140-05:002015-06-01T13:42:49.140-05:00Thanks for the comments, everyone!
@William: I k...Thanks for the comments, everyone! <br /><br />@William: I know what you mean about re-reading old issues and the thought bubbles not making sense in this new context. I think there are certain scenes where MJ's knowledge works (like Amazing #43, where SHE suggests they go check out the Rhino), but there are times when it doesn't work at all (like when Pete had the flu and accidentally told everyone his secret ID). As for retcons, I like them if they add to the story without taking anything away...if they slide seamlessly between old stories. I still like this particular retcon (even though it isn't seamless) because I like MJ in general, so I'm predisposed to like anything that gives her more character.<br /><br />@Martinex1: It's been a while since I read that issue of Amazing (maybe Osvaldo can confirm this), but I think the whole "MJ-actually-seeing-Peter-climb-out-the-window-the-night-Uncle-Ben-died" thing was made up just for this Graphic Novel, as was a lot of the detail about MJ's past; I think Conway read a bunch of Spidey stories (the 60s stuff, the DeFalco issue, the Michelinie issues right after Peter proposed) and filled in the gaps with new material.<br /><br />Mike WilsonAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-74999324903238896682015-06-01T12:05:13.685-05:002015-06-01T12:05:13.685-05:00I never read "Parallel Lives" but now I ...I never read "Parallel Lives" but now I wish I had. Like others I am a big MJ fan and think she adds a lot to Peter's character through her interaction and balance of his personality. But I was also a Gwen fan. In some of the older comics that my cousin had shared with me were numerous ASM issues, and Gwen was always present (on a date, or at the Coffee Bean, or visiting with her father). It took me a while to adjust to MJ but I liked her enthusiasm for life, her struggling actress days, and the depth of personality hidden behind the happy go lucky veneer.<br /><br />When I read that she always knew Peter was Spider Man, I never knew she actually saw him. I assumed she "knew" like all true friends and spouses know things. That after months of interacting and observing and conversing...she knew. I never took it that she "saw". Was that clear in ASM and I interpreted it differently and have succumbed to my bad memory? Or was that new to this story specifically?<br /><br />Alex Saviuk is underrated. He doesn't get much recognition. But he was a solid and consistent storyteller and I felt he kept characters on model. It was fun here seeing different eras under his pencil.<br /><br />Mike W., this was another great and thorough review. I like how you dig into the depth of the scenes, the art, and the character development. Martinex1noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-5707067758080121292015-06-01T10:10:52.532-05:002015-06-01T10:10:52.532-05:00I love MJ knowing all along and the issue where sh...I love MJ knowing all along and the issue where she tells him her whole REAL life story as they walk in the park is one of my all-time favorite issues of ASM. I wrote a little about it <a href="https://themiddlespaces.wordpress.com/2012/05/30/all-my-pasts-remembered/" rel="nofollow">here</a> in a post called "All My Pasts Remembered."<br /><br />Despite having occasionally regularly purchased Spider-Man comics in the contemporary era, for me the ideal Spider-Man arc ends w/ the marriage. Afterwards I like to think of Spidey semi-retiring - MJ gives birth to May (Spider-Girl in the MC2 universe) and eventually Peter passes the Spider-torch on to her, or in-between he'd train Miles Morales to be his replacement (which is now something that could happen since universes have collided).<br /><br />Anyway, I bought a reprint of Parallel Lives which came out in 2012 and really liked it.Dr. Oyolahttp://themiddlespaces.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-46760365932526128172015-06-01T09:34:40.468-05:002015-06-01T09:34:40.468-05:00Very well done (and thorough) review Mike. I have ...Very well done (and thorough) review Mike. I have been a huge Spider-Man junkie most of my life, and I was one of those who was wholeheartedly against the Peter/MJ marriage from the very beginning. I felt it was a huge mistake, because it fundamentally changed the entire tone and direction of the character. After the marriage, Spider-Man just wasn't the same book anymore. It had a totally different vibe. Some people viewed that as a good thing, but I did not. I was a big big Spider-Man fan for most of my life because I liked Spider-Man the way he was. There was absolutely no reason whatsoever to so radically change the character like that. I'm a big believer in the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" philosophy.<br /><br />I have nothing against Mary Jane (in fact I like her a lot), and she could have stayed Peter's steady girlfriend for as long as they wanted, but having them get married pretty much ruined Spider-Man for me. It just changed the whole dynamic of everything and for me the magic was gone. I kept reading the books, but I never enjoyed any of them as much as I once did.<br /><br />And as for "Parallel Lives", I own the Graphic Novel but this is one I never cared for. Not because it was a bad story, or badly written, or badly drawn but because it was a RET-CON. And if there is one plot device I can't stand, it is the ret-con. For good or bad, I just so much hate the whole "Everything you thought you knew was wrong" thing. I find the practice to be a huge betrayal of the reader's trust.<br /><br />If in 1984 (which is when MJ originally reveals this knowledge to Peter) Marvel suddenly wanted MJ to know that Peter is Spider-Man, then go ahead and have her find out somehow, but don't go back and try to make us believe that she knew it all along, since day one. That is just stupid!! And it totally changes the premise of dozens of previous (well written) stories. So that when you go back 10 or 15 years and read an old issue with MJ in it, you are now expected to believe that she new Peter's secret identity all that time. Even though, as a reader, we were privy to her private thoughts, and she never once indicated that she knew that information. ARRRG!Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16988016825582035390noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-64529510409827514582015-06-01T09:20:12.465-05:002015-06-01T09:20:12.465-05:00And Mike W. strikes again! Great review of a book ...And Mike W. strikes again! Great review of a book I've always been curious about. I like the idea of MJ always knowing that Pete is Spidey, so now I *really* want to read this one.<br />I have to say, like you, I've always been a big fan of MJ. I started reading comics in the mid-'70s, after Gwen's death, and I always just assumed that MJ was Pete's one-and-only, i.e., the one he'd always end up with, kind of like Superman and Lois. And I've never been bothered by the marriage, just the opposite in fact. I would say the only mistake made by the various Spider-man writers (and Marvel editorial I guess) from the mid-'80s onward was to make MJ an apparently rather successful actress and model. One of the impressions I always got before that (don't know why, really) was that MJ was actually just barely getting by (probably taking small roles in off-Broadway theater and TV commercials, and modelling for department store catalogs, etc.) and just putting on a happy-go-lucky facade for all of her friends and acquaintances. This would actually fit into the sort of dual aspects of her personality that Conway presented here.<br />Anyway, I'll just say that I particularly agree with every single word in your last paragraph - couldn't have expressed it better myself!Edo Bosnarnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-92111330306323183062015-06-01T09:08:28.851-05:002015-06-01T09:08:28.851-05:00Excellent review, Mike W.! Very in-depth and compr...Excellent review, Mike W.! Very in-depth and comprehensive look at a fascinating book. As you noted, Conway and Saviuk borrow from numerous sources, including Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz' Amazing Spiderman 259. Interestingly, "Parallel Lives" seems to have inspired other tales itself. Kurt Busiek borrows heavily from some of the dialogue you featured above (in Untold Tales of Spiderman 16). <br /><br />Like you, Mike, I feel that MJ's discovery of Peter's double life gave depth and sympathy to her character. Looking back on her history as portrayed in the comics, MJ has been the beneficiary of a large and dramatic amount of back story. She is truly one of the most intriguing characters in comics; especially as a supporting character! Gwen,by comparison, never got the coverage MJ did. One must wonder how Gwen would have developed over more time; your observations on her portrayal are spot on.<br /><br />Redartzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08221459636234713619noreply@blogger.com