Tony Stark's offer to Spider-Man!

[Gordon Smith]

In the fairly & generally dreadful Invincible Iron Man #7, there occurs a conversation between Tony Stark and Spider-Man which grabbed my attention. To wit, Tony thinks it is stupid of Spider-Man not to have patented his web-fluid to make oodles of cash, and tries to persuade him to throw in with Stark so he can get rich. Does anyone find Tony's offer to be little more than a thinly-disguised bribe to Spider-Man? Am I the only person who thinks that offering money to someone so they will switch sides over what boils down to a difference in political opinion is well, kind of nauseating? Would an offer like this coming from Reed Richards or Danny Rand be a bit easier for Spider-Man to accept?

[Patrick Hultquist]

I haven't seen that, but it does address one of my complaints about the mechanical webshooters. To wit; if Peter Parker has that technology at his disposal, why hasn't he made money off of it? And why hasn't he provided it to law-enforcement agencies?
It's my opinion that the organic webshooters made much more sense.

[Rev. Calibos]

In the fairly generally dreadful Invincible Iron Man #7, there occurs a conversation between Tony Stark and Spider-Man which grabbed my attention. To wit, Tony thinks it is stupid of Spider-Man not to have patented his web-fluid to make oodles of cash, and tries to persuade him to throw in with Stark so he can get rich. Does anyone find Tony's offer to be little more than a thinly-disguised bribe to Spider-Man? Am I the only person who thinks that offering money to someone so they will switch sides over what boils down to a difference in political opinion is well, kind of nauseating? Would an offer like this coming from Reed Richards or Danny rand be a bit easier for Spider-Man to accept?


I didn't get that from it.

Looking at what was said I got the impression that Stark, who relies so heavily on $$$ to get stuff done as Iron Man, was puzzled that here he sees an established hero, perhaps equally brilliant, who's not taking full advantage of the invention of the web fluid.

You have to consider the fact that the Maria Stark foundation has been keeping the Avengers afloat from day one, so to Tony money is a vital component to their particular line of work.

So in swoops Spider-man who feels that patenting his fluid would be morally questionable and feels that it's better to just use it to combat crime as Spiderman despite the cost in chemicals and resources and the time it takes to whip up a batch every other day.

Tony, so used to having the money there, is just having difficulty wrapping his hear around the notion that 'Hey, you don't have to have a few billion dollars lying around to be a hero. Some folks can do it on a shoe string, or in Spidey's case a web line.'

[spiderman_rj]

in the 80s i believe during either mcfarlane or eric larson, peter makes himself the same question but disconsider it cos the batch he does dissolves in 1-2 hours,and to make it last longer affect the properties of fluid,so that's why at least then,he didnt patented it.

[MythicBrawn]

I remember a Spider-Man comic from some time ago, probably Marvel Team-Up, where Spidey was taken hostage for his webbing. The kidnapper had seen Spidey using his webbing to block bullets and wanted him to give up the formula. The kidnapper had a son that was a police officer who died from being shot and thought Spidey's webbing would be the perfect solution. Spidey was unwilling so the guy was simply going to take the webbing and reverse-engineer it. Needless to say, Spidey escaped and only he knows the formula.

I say all that to say that the idea had been explored somewhat in the MU before. If you think about it many of the hero/villain inventions could make anyone of them uber-rich. Why they don't is simply left to comic logic. Peter never would have had to scramble for money all those years if he simply monopolized on his inventions (webbing, web-shooters, utility belt). Maybe not so much the utility belt, but it's possible.

[StoneGold]

I don't know if you can call it a bribe exactly, as it's not like Tony's really getting anything in particular out of the situation. That's like saying your job bribes you to work for them. You can look at it that way, but it takes a twisted POV to really make it work. Same deal here. You can call it a bribe if you really want to, but that's really not the spirit of the action.

[Gordon Smith]

Making a monetary offer to a guy you are theoretically supposed to be arresting as a lawbreaker so he will switch sides and publicly support your way of doing things even if it means turning on all his old friends and former teammates just doesn't strike me as anything other than a bribe. Given the total context of the situation, I think this is an inherently corrupt transaction.

[Gordon Smith]

I don't know if you can call it a bribe exactly, as it's not like Tony's really getting anything in particular out of the situation. That's like saying your job bribes you to work for them. You can look at it that way, but it takes a twisted POV to really make it work. Same deal here. You can call it a bribe if you really want to, but that's really not the spirit of the action.

If Tony goes into business with Peter to help him find commercial applications for the web-fluid, there's bound to be something financial in it for Stark. Law-enforcement types just aren't supposed to go into business with the people that they are chasing. Cops go to jail in the real world when they do that kind of thing.

[Magneto Rocks]

Making a monetary offer to a guy you are theoretically supposed to be arresting as a lawbreaker so he will switch sides and publicly support your way of doing things even if it means turning on all his old friends and former teammates just doesn't strike me as anything other than a bribe. Given the total context of the situation, I think this is an inherently corrupt transaction.

It isn't a bribe because that's not what Tony's doing. He wants Peter to shift for lots of reasons which he outlined. It's less "Change sides and I'll give you millions!" and more "Uh... you do realise if you weren't currently a fugitive, you are able to get millions?"

But mostly, it's not even that- it's mostly just a commentary on how differently Peter and Tony operate. Tony genuinely doesn't understand why Peter wouldn't patent it and then use the money to further his crime-fighting, and Peter doesn't see the advantage of the money but sees all the disadvantages of his web-shooters being publically avilable. Neither's really right or wrong, just different ways of doing business.

Trying to read it as some sort of corrupt bribe is stretching more than a little.

[sparta28090]

In the comic "The Last Avenger's Story" It refers that Peter did in fact sell the formula to 3m.

But you know how those future storylines are, they may as well call them "What if?"

[James Conniff]

In the fairly & generally dreadful Invincible Iron Man #7, there occurs a conversation between Tony Stark and Spider-Man which grabbed my attention. To wit, Tony thinks it is stupid of Spider-Man not to have patented his web-fluid to make oodles of cash, and tries to persuade him to throw in with Stark so he can get rich. Does anyone find Tony's offer to be little more than a thinly-disguised bribe to Spider-Man? Am I the only person who thinks that offering money to someone so they will switch sides over what boils down to a difference in political opinion is well, kind of nauseating? Would an offer like this coming from Reed Richards or Danny Rand be a bit easier for Spider-Man to accept?

I think this was more along the lines of Tony wondering why Spidey wouldn't want to make a ton of cash. But Tony understood at the end. Peter would have to take off his mask and use his civilian identity to get the parents which would pretty much establish that he is spider-man, and would in turn put peoples lives in danger.

[XPac]

In the fairly & generally dreadful Invincible Iron Man #7, there occurs a conversation between Tony Stark and Spider-Man which grabbed my attention. To wit, Tony thinks it is stupid of Spider-Man not to have patented his web-fluid to make oodles of cash, and tries to persuade him to throw in with Stark so he can get rich. Does anyone find Tony's offer to be little more than a thinly-disguised bribe to Spider-Man? Am I the only person who thinks that offering money to someone so they will switch sides over what boils down to a difference in political opinion is well, kind of nauseating? Would an offer like this coming from Reed Richards or Danny Rand be a bit easier for Spider-Man to accept?

I think there are layers to it.

I think to some degree it's an attempt to get Spidey back on his side on his terms.

But I also think it was an honest comment about Spidey not applying his intelligence in a manner that could help him get ahead. Tony is a business man, so he looks at things in those terms.

[jackolover]

I didn't get that from it.

Looking at what was said I got the impression that Stark, who relies so heavily on $$$ to get stuff done as Iron Man, was puzzled that here he sees an established hero, perhaps equally brilliant, who's not taking full advantage of the invention of the web fluid.

You have to consider the fact that the Maria Stark foundation has been keeping the Avengers afloat from day one, so to Tony money is a vital component to their particular line of work.

So in swoops Spider-man who feels that patenting his fluid would be morally questionable and feels that it's better to just use it to combat crime as Spiderman despite the cost in chemicals and resources and the time it takes to whip up a batch every other day.

Tony, so used to having the money there, is just having difficulty wrapping his hear around the notion that 'Hey, you don't have to have a few billion dollars lying around to be a hero. Some folks can do it on a shoe string, or in Spidey's case a web line.'

That's my take on it too. It felt like Tony was saying Spidey was letting a resource like this go to waste, and, that if Spidey did take up the merchandising on his web fluid, Spidey would have to go out of the vigilante game, by the way, to do it.

Spidey was like, I'm not interested in the money. All I'm doing is keeping people safe.

And that there is the difference between the Anti-regs and the Pro-regs. One side doesn't have any real attachment to the money side of life, and only do the heroing for the adventure. The other side is elitist wealthy, and they plan their lives around the use and manipulation of money.

Spidey didn't see that web fluid had any monetary value. Tony sees things as monetary value and assets. It's like the Ant and the grasshopper. Tony is the ant, and Peter is the grasshopper.

It really shows up the philosophical difference between two mind sets

[jackolover]

Making a monetary offer to a guy you are theoretically supposed to be arresting as a lawbreaker so he will switch sides and publicly support your way of doing things even if it means turning on all his old friends and former teammates just doesn't strike me as anything other than a bribe. Given the total context of the situation, I think this is an inherently corrupt transaction.

It's funny how now, Peter won't do what Tony asks him to do, (like unmask in public). But Tony tried that same temptation all over again. Why did Peter say no this time? Because the first time worked out so badly? I think there is too much of a rift between Peter and Tony on a trust level, now. Funny though, that Peter remained to assist Tony Stark, even when Tony was pushing Peter to go away. I think the open cheque on Aunt Mays medical bills was an influence? And if it was, how come only Peter remembers that and does Tony remember that Aunt May was sick and now she's miraculously well?

[XPac]

It's funny how now, Peter won't do what Tony asks him to do, (like unmask in public). But Tony tried that same temptation all over again. Why did Peter say no this time? Because the first time worked out so badly? I think there is too much of a rift between Peter and Tony on a trust level, now. Funny though, that Peter remained to assist Tony Stark, even when Tony was pushing Peter to go away. I think the open cheque on Aunt Mays medical bills was an influence? And if it was, how come only Peter remembers that and does Tony remember that Aunt May was sick and now she's miraculously well?

I do think that Peter was trying to get back into Tony's good graces to some degree. Or at least that's the vibe I got. I seemed to want to be buddies with Tony again, albeit in his own annoying manner. Why is a matter of opinion.. but I definately don't think there are any bad feelings on his part.

In regards to Tony attempting to get Peter to unmask... CW was a one time thing where Peter naively thought him unmasking would help the superhero community in general. He basically drank Tony's Kook Aid... but that was a one time thing in a time of crisis, and I don't think Peter would do anything like that again.

[Monty_Cristo]

somebody's reaching

[GHalecki]

I remember a Spider-Man comic from some time ago, probably Marvel Team-Up, where Spidey was taken hostage for his webbing. The kidnapper had seen Spidey using his webbing to block bullets and wanted him to give up the formula. The kidnapper had a son that was a police officer who died from being shot and thought Spidey's webbing would be the perfect solution. Spidey was unwilling so the guy was simply going to take the webbing and reverse-engineer it. Needless to say, Spidey escaped and only he knows the formula.

I say all that to say that the idea had been explored somewhat in the MU before. If you think about it many of the hero/villain inventions could make anyone of them uber-rich. Why they don't is simply left to comic logic. Peter never would have had to scramble for money all those years if he simply monopolized on his inventions (webbing, web-shooters, utility belt). Maybe not so much the utility belt, but it's possible.


Yep. It was a MTU issue, but I don't know the number off hand. It co-starred Wonder Man, and they fought the Mauler.

I am sometimes embarassed that I have all of this locked in my brain, yet can rarely remember where I put my keys.

[XPac]

I remember a Spider-Man comic from some time ago, probably Marvel Team-Up, where Spidey was taken hostage for his webbing. The kidnapper had seen Spidey using his webbing to block bullets and wanted him to give up the formula. The kidnapper had a son that was a police officer who died from being shot and thought Spidey's webbing would be the perfect solution. Spidey was unwilling so the guy was simply going to take the webbing and reverse-engineer it. Needless to say, Spidey escaped and only he knows the formula.

I say all that to say that the idea had been explored somewhat in the MU before. If you think about it many of the hero/villain inventions could make anyone of them uber-rich. Why they don't is simply left to comic logic. Peter never would have had to scramble for money all those years if he simply monopolized on his inventions (webbing, web-shooters, utility belt). Maybe not so much the utility belt, but it's possible.

Course, if Peter did make it public that he created this web fluid, it would be pretty easy for anyone to figure out Peter was Spider-Man. And we all know where that leads.

I think one can argue Peter should have done this after he publically revealed himself in CW. The cat is out of the bag anyways... might as well get some credit for your scientific accomplishments and earn a few extra bucks on the side. But that window has obviously passed.

[jackolover]

Course, if Peter did make it public that he created this web fluid, it would be pretty easy for anyone to figure out Peter was Spider-Man. And we all know where that leads.

I think one can argue Peter should have done this after he publically revealed himself in CW. The cat is out of the bag anyways... might as well get some credit for your scientific accomplishments and earn a few extra bucks on the side. But that window has obviously passed.

And that's the rub. If Tony succeeds in convincing Spider-Man to abide by the dictates of society, and use the systems, like taking out a TM on his web fluid, then arranging for manufacturing plants and employees, it would put paid to the Spider-Man character. Tony must realise this, because Spider-Man would have to reveal his identity for banks to loan him credit, pay tax, or even set up a company, unless he has a dummy front syphoning profits to him as a ghost stockholder. Did Ezechiel operate so that the law knew his company were all the Spider Clan? I very much think the Spider Clan were an invisible organisation. Spider-Man should have fronted this organisation and been a much more sucessful person. However, that would have forced Peter to forfiet all contacts with the coffee shop brigade, and Peter has thrived on those social groups, not the jet set.