Why would Marvel's new Editor in Chief want to bring back the Spider-marriage?

[Mister Mets]

The criticism's been made that Joe Quesada got rid of Spider-Man's marriage, just due to his personal preference on the matter. There's sometimes the assumption that the next Editor in Chief of Marvel can bring back the marriage for the same reason.

Agree or disagree with him, Quesada did articulate his motivations for preferring Spider-Man to be single. So presumably any future EIC will have to articulate the benefits for reversing the decision, and make a case for it being a good idea

So what reasons could he or she give? How would the Spider-Man comics benefit by the restoration of the marriage? What does it provide the writers? How could it contribute to increased sales?

Note- Why Marvel's next EIC would want to keep Spider-Man a bachelor is a topic for another thread.

[B. Kuwanger]

I picture some guy at Marvel that smiles and hits all the clubs with Joe Q, but when he sits alone bobs his head, grits his teeth, and counts down the time until they're up for Joe's position. The thing is they could give a million reasons for bringing it back, just as Joe Q found himself able to to about getting rid of it in millions of paragraphs in millions of articles.

I think the question is more "how many people would drop the book if the marriage came back, and how many would pick it back up?" You hear about how A-list characters can only be messed with so much, but this is a subject that divides a LOT of the fandom.

[BlackToe]

He/She wont. I think its a pipe dream. Considering most, if not all of Marvel editing staff/writers, including execs AND Dan Buckley (the head honcho publisher for Marvel comics) agree that Spider-man should not be married to MJ.

[Scott Taylor]

I don't think they have to bring back the marriage so much as convince us that they admit it was wrong to do the Civil War reveal and OMD. Fix that, and they win most of the boycotters back.

To answer the question, there is no real reason other than fan outcry. The marriage is more or less irrelevant to Spider-Man as a character. I guess it also depends on sales and the shareholders, if they feel that the marriage was a good thing and are ambivalent about the new editorial direction. If the past is any kind of example, we won't see another radical change like Civil War or OMD for a few years.

[Hertz]

The criticism's been made that Joe Quesada got rid of Spider-Man's marriage, just due to his personal preference on the matter. There's sometimes the assumption that the next Editor in Chief of Marvel can bring back the marriage for the same reason.

Agree or disagree with him, Quesada did articulate his motivations for preferring Spider-Man to be single. So presumably any future EIC will have to articulate the benefits for reversing the decision, and make a case for it being a good idea

So what reasons could he or she give? How would the Spider-Man comics benefit by the restoration of the marriage? What does it provide the writers? How could it contribute to increased sales?

First off, if Joe Quesada hadn't been so adamant in expressing his dislike of that status quo, then one could take him at his word that it was done in the best interest of the franchise (as opposed to just b/c he didn't like it).

(Just for Mister Mets' average reader out there, everything after this point is speculation, opinion and nothing more, unless stated otherwise by the author of this post.)

Secondly, as to the reasoning the new EIC could give for undoing it, they could argue that Joe Q brought about the new status quo for his own selfish reasons and abused his position to do it. Furthermore, in pushing his agenda, he drove away a significant amount of the customer base, not just from this book, but from Marvel in general.

The comic itself (re)gains a character that allows for and is easier to have a deeper emotional attachment to than other supporting characters. The writers are provided with territory that, despite its longevity, hasn't really been explored/put through its paces, unlike the single status quo. The transition has to be handled well. If done well, the book would maintain most (I'll define most here as meaning 75-80%) of its current readership and bring back the vast majority (90-97%) of those that left the book b/c of the last transition/new status quo. But, this would have to be followed up by good writing (and art) by a couple/group of writers of the caliber of Johns, Fraction (probably have him as part of the group if he wants in), or Brubaker. No previous Spidey writers for a couple of years until the group has established themselves.

(End of opinion/speculation)

Any how, I'm kinda losing my train of thought so, I'll leave it at this and will reserve the right to adjust/add on to the opinions in supplemental posts.

[carabas]

Best and most obvious reason: the new direction just is not terribly popular. Sure, it comes out three times per month, but really, this is the fewest number of people to buy Amazing Spider-Man in almost ten years.

[Leocomix]

First, the marriage would lose hard-won new or returned readers just as he did the first time. Second it's doubtful that any readers would come back. Based on figures, one cannot see if tehre are boycotters, ASM dropped in the same range as Green lantern and Captain America and most comics. There is a long experience at DC with LSH of what happens with you mess too much with something. Speaking of LSH I liked it up to and including Five years later but it had gone as far as it could and had to be rebooted. They tried twice to reboot it tothe beginning and then Johns rebooted it back to Crisis. LSH was the first series with a stress on continuity and that's where fans first learned it was a deadend.

[kalel219]

First, the marriage would lose hard-won new or returned readers just as he did the first time. Second it's doubtful that any readers would come back. Based on figures, one cannot see if tehre are boycotters, ASM dropped in the same range as Green lantern and Captain America and most comics. There is a long experience at DC with LSH of what happens with you mess too much with something. Speaking of LSH I liked it up to and including Five years later but it had gone as far as it could and had to be rebooted. They tried twice to reboot it tothe beginning and then Johns rebooted it back to Crisis. LSH was the first series with a stress on continuity and that's where fans first learned it was a deadend.

I would come back, hell bring back MJ as a main character and i'm back.

[Jim Thompson]

The criticism's been made that Joe Quesada got rid of Spider-Man's marriage, just due to his personal preference on the matter. There's sometimes the assumption that the next Editor in Chief of Marvel can bring back the marriage for the same reason.

Agree or disagree with him, Quesada did articulate his motivations for preferring Spider-Man to be single. So presumably any future EIC will have to articulate the benefits for reversing the decision, and make a case for it being a good idea

So what reasons could he or she give? How would the Spider-Man comics benefit by the restoration of the marriage? What does it provide the writers? How could it contribute to increased sales?

One of the main reasons I'd give is one that's been brought up here many times -- marriage represents part of the slow, natural growth for the character, exploring another part of the concept of growing up and what kinds of new responsibilities one encounters as that happens. Even with the marriage having been around for 20+ years, there is a lot of unexplored territory there, material which could easily, I think, see the character through another 30 to 40 years.

[Leocomix]

I would come back, hell bring back MJ as a main character and i'm back.

So are you going to buy the romance title with MJ?
Are you currently buying anything with her?

[David Walton]

Two good reasons.

1. To revitalize sales. Keep in mind we're probably talking at least five to ten years in the future, and by that point sales will have inevitably declined irregardless of quality. It's the age old cycle in comics. People will tire of the new status quo and Spider-Man will need another boost. The marriage will be seen as the "back to basics" approach! And then somewhere down the line, fans will start clamoring for a divorce or something along those lines to shake up the new old classic retro en vogue status quo yet again.

2. By then, you're likely to have a lot of comics creators who grew up reading a married Spidey and prefer that status quo. Because when it comes down to it, the marriage is largely a matter of personal preference. The arguments are, like politics, mostly ideologues working backwards to justify their biases....actually, preferences is a better word than biases because I don't think someone's preference is a negative thing.

[Chiasm]

The criticism's been made that Joe Quesada got rid of Spider-Man's marriage, just due to his personal preference on the matter. There's sometimes the assumption that the next Editor in Chief of Marvel can bring back the marriage for the same reason.

Agree or disagree with him, Quesada did articulate his motivations for preferring Spider-Man to be single. So presumably any future EIC will have to articulate the benefits for reversing the decision, and make a case for it being a good idea

So what reasons could he or she give? How would the Spider-Man comics benefit by the restoration of the marriage? What does it provide the writers? How could it contribute to increased sales?

Its not the getting rid of the marriage that bothered me, it was how they did it by essentially rebooting the series and making so much of what came before irrelevant.

I've never been one to buy the whole premise of not being able to tell enough stories with a married Spidey because a good writer will write good stories and a bad writer will write bad ones. The marriage doesn't help nor prohibit either. And a year long fugitive Spidey arc could have been great if they hadn't gone into OMD instead.

Restoring the marriage would mean my 400 issue or so Spidey collection would be relevant again because try as I might I can't wrap my head around how so many of these stories could have possibly happened with things the way they are now.

And I think they could restore it while still getting their single Spidey. I think we all expect MJ to return circa issue #600 and to get some big OMD / BND reveals. The rest of the world can still believe that they were never married but let Peter / MJ know it but be unable to be it anymore and have this cause them to split.

[Mister Mets]

He/She wont. I think its a pipe dream. Considering most, if not all of Marvel editing staff/writers, including execs AND Dan Buckley (the head honcho publisher for Marvel comics) agree that Spider-man should not be married to MJ.

If that is the case, I'd like to see how people think it could happen.

First off, if Joe Quesada hadn't been so adamant in expressing his dislike of that status quo, then one could take him at his word that it was done in the best interest of the franchise (as opposed to just b/c he didn't like it).

(Just for Mister Mets' average reader out there, everything after this point is speculation, opinion and nothing more, unless stated otherwise by the author of this post.)

Secondly, as to the reasoning the new EIC could give for undoing it, they could argue that Joe Q brought about the new status quo for his own selfish reasons and abused his position to do it. Furthermore, in pushing his agenda, he drove away a significant amount of the customer base, not just from this book, but from Marvel in general.

I don't think the next EIC (or the one that follows, in case Mark Waid or Steve Wacker or Tom Brevoort is the next Editor in Chief) could just argue that Quesada brought about the new status quo for his own selfish reasons, because he wasn't the only one, or the first, to argue that the marriage was a bad move for Spider-Man. They'd have to give concrete reasons for the development at least internally, just like Quesada gave publicly.

The comic itself (re)gains a character that allows for and is easier to have a deeper emotional attachment to than other supporting characters. The writers are provided with territory that, despite its longevity, hasn't really been explored/put through its paces, unlike the single status quo. The transition has to be handled well. If done well, the book would maintain most (I'll define most here as meaning 75-80%) of its current readership and bring back the vast majority (90-97%) of those that left the book b/c of the last transition/new status quo. But, this would have to be followed up by good writing (and art) by a couple/group of writers of the caliber of Johns, Fraction (probably have him as part of the group if he wants in), or Brubaker. No previous Spidey writers for a couple of years until the group has established themselves.

(End of opinion/speculation)

Any how, I'm kinda losing my train of thought so, I'll leave it at this and will reserve the right to adjust/add on to the opinions in supplemental posts.

How have the storytelling opportunities behind a single Peter Parker been exhausted when they haven't for a married Peter Parker?

And any reason for your numbers regarding how many readers you'll keep/ lose? I'm sure Marvel lost readers, due to One More Day, but why do you believe an overwhelming majority would return if you bring back the marriage, and replace the current writers. Whether Marvel could get Fraction, Johns and Brubaker is also a different story.

[Mister Mets]

Best and most obvious reason: the new direction just is not terribly popular. Sure, it comes out three times per month, but really, this is the fewest number of people to buy Amazing Spider-Man in almost ten years.

That's probably because you're including a six+ year run by a star writer and the shift to a thrice-monthly format (which makes the book more expensive to follow.)

It's still selling better per issue than it was under Mackie before JMS took over, and under Defalco before the 1999 relaunch. And this is before you consider Marvel's reprint programs, which allows the company to reach more readers and make more money.

Two good reasons.

1. To revitalize sales. Keep in mind we're probably talking at least five to ten years in the future, and by that point sales will have inevitably declined irregardless of quality. It's the age old cycle in comics. People will tire of the new status quo and Spider-Man will need another boost. The marriage will be seen as the "back to basics" approach! And then somewhere down the line, fans will start clamoring for a divorce or something along those lines to shake up the new old classic retro en vogue status quo yet again.

2. By then, you're likely to have a lot of comics creators who grew up reading a married Spidey and prefer that status quo. Because when it comes down to it, the marriage is largely a matter of personal preference. The arguments are, like politics, mostly ideologues working backwards to justify their biases....actually, preferences is a better word than biases because I don't think someone's preference is a negative thing.

1- Do you think fans would be able to handle another shift from a married Spider-Man to a single Spider-Man a decade or two from now?

2- Wouldn't it get way too cyclical, as those writers get replaced by those who grew up reading Ultimate Spider-Man, or Brand New Day?

I don't think they have to bring back the marriage so much as convince us that they admit it was wrong to do the Civil War reveal and OMD. Fix that, and they win most of the boycotters back.

To answer the question, there is no real reason other than fan outcry. The marriage is more or less irrelevant to Spider-Man as a character. I guess it also depends on sales and the shareholders, if they feel that the marriage was a good thing and are ambivalent about the new editorial direction. If the past is any kind of example, we won't see another radical change like Civil War or OMD for a few years.

How would the EIC convince people he was opposed to OMD and the Civil War reveal without actually doing anything about it?

[David Walton]

1- Do you think fans would be able to handle another shift from a married Spider-Man to a single Spider-Man a decade or two from now?

I think fans can handle virtually any transition as long as the book is still about Spider-Man. As much as the anti-marriage fans complain, quite a few "suffered" through the title for the twenty years he was married. And as much a lot of us have a soft spot for the marriage, we can still read the title and judge its merits on other criteria.

2- Wouldn't it get way too cyclical, as those writers get replaced by those who grew up reading Ultimate Spider-Man, or Brand New Day?

You mean cyclical like the return of Harry Osborn and the "is he bonkers or isn't he?" plotline, or more like the endless on again/off again dating cycle?

If you have a problem with cycles, you haven't got the stomach for superheroes. Even Daredevil returned to his carefree swashbuckling roots for a while with Kesel, which infuriated some who thought Miller's version was definitive and others greeted it as a nice change of pace. It's just the nature of the beast.