#people do this with the Spidey editors too and like. again they do not control the scripts the writers hand in.

[brw]

Allowing comic book creators to access social media was a mistake. Not even because anyone has done anything, I just think fans knowing Tom Brevoort's opinions has made people absolutely unhinged over a man who is objectively not doing half the shit they say he's doing.

He is the group editor. He is not writing the comics. He is not telling the story here. He is simply facilitating the stories the writers already want to tell. He is making sure that if Laura shows up in say, Exceptional X-Men, it will not contradict anything done in NYX or in her upcoming solo series. He is simply making sure the stories told are coherent, and that the creatives on board are all meeting their deadlines. He's making sure that if an artist has to leave for whatever reason, another one is ready to take the reigns. His overall contributions to the actual narrative of From The Ashes is minor. He could be the biggest Krakoa fan in the world and the overall narrative of From The Ashes would not change because he is not writing the story, he is simply making sure all the books don't contradict each other and are able to be what their writers and artists want them to be. That man is not enemy number one, he is ultimately Some Guy whose job it is to make sure nobody puts Wolverine in X-Force when he's meant to be in Uncanny X-Men. You do not need to scour his twitter, old Tumblr and substack to glean every little detail of the man's life and opinions.

[kudosmyhero]

The Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 1) #58: To Kill a Spider-Man!

Read Date: January 15, 2023 Cover Date: March 1968 ● Writer: Stan Lee ● Penciler: John Romita ◦ Don Heck ● Inker: Mike Esposito ● Colorist: {uncredited} ● Letterer: Sam Rosen ● Editor: Stan Lee ●

**HERE BE SPOILERS: Skip ahead to the fan art/podcast to avoid spoilers

Reactions As I Read: ● yesssss, Mecha JJJ is back, y'all! ● Ka-Zar has lost his nipples but gained a Spider-Man! ● aww, Zabu got left behind again. Kitty might start taking that personally ● Bondi Beach: Ka-Zar Edition #IYKYK ● the shock of hitting the water cured Spidey's amnesia ● (pg 3) Professor Smythe is on the phone for JJJ ● Smythe has improved his method to "completely crush the web-spinner" and "this time--it can't fail!" ● meanwhile, Col. Jameson has his orders to go overseas, so he can't stay behind to help Captain Stacy clear Spider-Man ● (pg 4) Gwen and Harry are with Aunt May in the hospital. (Gwen actually looks like a normal person here, and not the long-lashed, wide-eyed, ever-smiling sex kitten she's usually drawn as)

● (pg 5) Spider-Man has relayed his story (off panel) to Ka-Zar, and somehow living in the jungle makes Ka-Zar a lie detector, so he believes Spidey ● (why do so many people have white irises? It's creepy!) ● warning roar of Zabu below ● Zabu was running amok because he couldn't find Ka-Zar. K steps in before the police can shoot kitty and destroys some cops' guns in the process ● (pg 6) now Ka-Zar is on a rampage (and someone says that K's estate in England has enough money to settle for damages) ● finally Ka-Zar and Zabu leave ● (pg 7) Spidey remembers Aunt May and needs to get to her fast, but he's out of web fluid ● first he has to go back to his apartment to change clothes ● JJJ goes to Smythe's to see what he has to show ● (pg 8) the Invincible Spider Slayer

● JJJ says, "Nobody's talking about murdering him! I just want him captured, see?" / Smythe says, "I just took poetic license, Mr. Jameson! Spider Slayer sounds so much more dramatic." I mean… he ain't wrong. ● (pg 9) aww, Col. Jameson came to say goodbye to his dad before he ships out, but JJJ is out of the office. Kinda sad that they'll miss each other. ● (pg 10) Spider-Man is feeling too woozy to wall crawl all the way across town and decides he needs a ride; he hops onto the top of a bus; it's slow, but it gives him a chance to rest ● but someone in a building above sees him and starts shouting for police ● (pg 11) the Spider Slayer is on the move, and Smythe and JJJ follow it in Smythe's car ● Spidey gets to his apartment, tries to call May (no answer, of course), starts undressing for bed, then his Spidey-sense starts tingling like mad ● (pg 12) he looks outside and sees the Spider Slayer walking up the wall. Mecha JJJ says, "We got him dead to rights… burglarizing someone's apartment!" ● (pg 14) Smythe and JJJ fumble over the controls. Smythe tries to hit Spidey with a deadly ray, which alarms JJJ ● (pg 16) the robot follows Spidey into a garage; Spidey tricks Mecha Smythe into shooting out the main support beams with the laser ● Spidey gets out and the robot is trapped under the rubble, but Spidey doesn't think it'll hold it long. He takes off to find Smythe's lab ● heh, Spidey looks up Smythe's address in the phone book ● (pg 17) but he doesn't know Smythe's first name, and there are a couple dozen listed in the phone book ● but apparently the word "scientist" is listed after the name, so Spidey has found the right one ● (pg 18) the robot catches up to him at Smythe's lab, and now the controls aren't working ● (pg 19) Smythe increases the power to the absolute maximum ● all the spiders in Smythe's lab made the robot short circuit ● JJJ angrily throws Smythe out of his office ● Spidey goes back home, still can't get hold of Aunt May ● goes out to find her, runs into Ka-zar and Zabu ● 👏👏👏

Synopsis: Having defeated Spider-Man in battle, Ka-Zar takes Spider-Man to the rooftops to learn the truth about why Jameson hired him to capture the wall-crawler. When Spider-Man revives, he finds that his memory has been restored, and so he tells the whole story. Ka-Zar believes Spider-Man but soon departs when Zabu is threatened by police officers in the area, Spider-Man slinks away during this altercation between the police and Ka-Zar.

Meanwhile, Spencer Smythe has contacted J. Jonah Jameson because he has created a new Spider-Slayer robot for Jameson to use in his quest to capture Spider-Man. They send the robot out, which tracks Spider-Man down to his apartment where he is about to change back into Peter Parker. When he notices the robot, he battles it across the city. When Jameson proves unable to capture Spider-Man, Smythe takes control and sends the robot after Spider-Man determined to kill the wall-crawler. This is more than what Jameson wanted and calls Smythe on the fact that he intends to kill Spider-Man for his own revenge, instead of turning him over to the police. However, Spider-Man manages to defeat the robot by luring it to a spider exhibit where it's spider-detecting device overloads and causes the robot to explode. With yet another failure with one of his Spider-Slayer robots, Smythe is thrown out of Jameson's office.

Spider-Man returns to his apartment where he changes back to Peter Parker, on his way out to find out what happened to Aunt May in his absence. On his way out the door he bumps into Ka-Zar and Zabu, Ka-Zar tells the young man not to be afraid that they are only on an evening stroll.

(https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Amazing_Spider-Man_Vol_1_58)

Fan Art: J. Jonah Jameson by Hognatius

Accompanying Podcast: ● Swinging Through Spider-Man - episode 58

● Let's Read Spider-Man - episode 35

[hellzyeahthewebwieldingavenger]

ASM v5 #39/840 Thoughts

I actually disliked this.

The art was good. There were some funny bits. I liked the continuity nods. I liked Jonah getting into podcasting.

And that was all.

The thing I hated most here was Peter’s portrayal. He comes off as dumb and obtuse when he begins the podcast. His words were obviously going to provoke Jonah and he should’ve known that.

And then he was framed poorly for his past actions. Sure he made mistakes in the past but as he said, he was younger back then. Equally, whilst he wasn’t young, Jonah seriously crossed the line in Web #13 (referenced in this issue), prompting Spidey to threaten him. Peter was in the wrong and admitted that.

Jonah’s other jabs though are totally unearned. It’s in character for Jonah to make those jabs but I got the impression that it was reflecting Spencer’s own POV not just Jonah’s own.

The story frames Jonah’s early efforts as being a sincere effort to hold Spidey accountable and a logical suspicion born of his secrecy compared to the public heroes or the members of teams or schools.

This isn’t accurate because Jonah’s campaign against Spidey began when he had merely stopped Uncle Ben’s killer and was otherwise just a masked entertainer. It was born of jealousy and a desire to have his own son appreciated instead. Jonah has also held disdain for most other heroes not just Spider-Man as the story incorrectly claims. The X-Men after all have been feared and hated traditionally. The story brings up Spidey’s time with the Avengers but ignores how Jonah smeared them when Spidey joined. The story also claims Peter was fired from the Avengers in Superior Spider-Man. Which is true but he REJOINED them after that, leaving a second time later on. The story frames it as the Avengers fired him when Otto was in control and then never took him back thereafter.*

The story claims Spidey’s poor public relations are the reason half of the heroes dislike him following Fisk proclaiming them buddies. Honestly, as much as I like Spencer’s run, this really never made sense. Most of those heroes know Spidey personally and so would know he’d never be buddies with Fisk. Even Daredevil, despite no longer knowing Peter’s identity, would know better. So it’s a false thing to hinge a critique upon.

Similarly the idea of Peter never responding publicaly to Jonah’s critiques is unfair. Jonah was never going to listen. He wasn’t reasonable, he was libelous and had a HUGE vendetta against Spidey. Peter was a wanted vigilante who’d already had public opinion turned against him, not to mention he was desperate to support aunt May in the immediate aftermath of Ben’s death. Spencer claiming Spidey is in the wrong here is just incredibly unfair given the context. By the time Peter began to antagonize Jameson he’d met the man and could plainly see he had an agenda he wasn’t going to be swayed from. With no other outlet for cash (other papers asked way too many questions) Peter was stuck with Jonah. His antagonizing him was not necessarily warranted, but it also wasn’t going to make the situation worse for him. He knew Jonah had an axe to grind and that that was NEVER going to change.

Until Zdarsky’s run of course. Let’s talk about that. I hate Zdarsky’s run. I hate the issue he had Peter make the big reveal. I’ve spoken about that before. And as such I hate it’s reference here and the continual problem of Jonah not remembering the events of Civil War. This is especially frustrating when we consider that Spencer had Felicia regain her memories pre-mindwipe in ASM v5 #10. Yet he’s maintained Jonah’s lack of knowledge, including their confrontation back in FNSM v1 #23.

The issue also claims Peter doesn’t have a support network because he refuses to let Jonah help his PR efforts. But this is BS because we’ve seen he still has super hero buddies in and out of Spencer’s run.

Finally, I continue to be unimpressed by Chance and the Foreigner. They just seem thrown into the plot to provide some action and otherwise are completely unconnected to the central story. I like both villains but they are running their own little subplot that doesn’t seem to have anything to do with anything right now. I’m just not keen on reading that in ASM.

I can’t in good faith recommend this issue.

*Zdarsky also has Jonah claim everyone would’ve figured out Otto was an imposter if Peter had better communicated with people earlier in his career. This is again unfair because Peter had great reasons for maintaining privacy and more importantly Otto was aggressively unsubtle. Everyone SHOULD have been able to learn the truth and contrivance alone prevented it.

P.S. WTF was with that weird editorial box. PPTSSM vol. 6 #3??????

The editor got the numbers backwards. It’s Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man volume 3 #6!

That’s just sloppy.

[hellzyeahwebwieldingreviews]

Untold Tales of Spider-Man 11: Poison in the Soul – by Glenn Greenberg

Ultimately a good story

Markie Macchio and Ralphie Bernardo have visions of moving to Mexico or the Caribbean to open a bar and captain a fishing boat respectively. They rob a jewelry store in service to their dreams, only to run into Spider-Man and find themselves webbed up, awaiting the police. A stolen ring, found by Spidey in Ralphie’s pocket, reminds him that he has just asked Mary Jane to marry him and has not yet gotten an answer.

The next day, Harry Osborn calls him to tell him about Marty Schultz, who was Pete’s lab partner in a couple of ESU Freshman classes. Pete recalls that Marty called him recently and they set up a lunch date but a need for Spidey prevented the meeting. Now, Harry tells Pete that Marty is dead… a suicide who left a note saying he couldn’t get rid of the poison in his soul. Hearing this, Peter berates himself for standing Marty up. “If I hadn’t been adventuring, I could’ve been there for Marty, I could have helped him through whatever was troubling him. He’d still be alive!” But he also realizes that, if he hadn’t been Spidey that day, all of the people he rescued from a burning building would be dead. “But what about Marty?” he thinks, “Couldn’t he have been there for Marty, as well?” Pete sighs heavily. There is no answer for this.

The next day, Peter goes to Brevoort Funeral Parlor but, riddled with guilt, can’t bring himself to go inside. He wanders to the Daily Bugle where J. Jonah Jameson tells him that the Shocker has broken jail. JJJ demands “photos I can use for my front page!” Spidey finds the Shocker fighting police in the intersection of Broadway and Nineteenth Street. After a short battle, the Shocker uses his vibro-blasts on a building, sending “large chunks of rubble and broken bricks” to the street. Spidey pushes the “dozens of people standing there” to safety allowing the Shocker to blast him from behind. The rubble buries the web-slinger and the Shocker escapes, though Spidey tags him with a spider-tracer. A cop who doesn’t buy into Jameson’s editorials (“That crank?” he says, “He’s just a loudmouthed blowhard looking for attention.”) pulls Spidey from the rubble. Wondering why the Shocker didn’t stick around to finish him off, Spidey follows, searching for his spider-tracer’s signal.

Spidey locates the signal at Forest Hills Cemetery, prompting recollections of Uncle Ben and Gwen Stacy…and Marty Schultz. Remembering that Marty was going to be buried in this cemetery, Spidey locates the grave and pays his respects. The guilt strikes him again and he feels “as if it’s all seeped through me, right down to the core of my soul.” Spidey thinks he understands what Marty meant by poison in the soul…”I’m sure feeling that way now”… but he decides “you took the coward’s way out, Marty…Death is never a solution, no matter what problems have to be overcome.” Suddenly, the Shocker strikes, enraged that Spidey is standing over Marty’s grave. He reveals that Marty was his kid brother and that he escaped jail because the authorities wouldn’t let him attend Marty’s funeral. The Shocker’s own guilt over letting Marty down fills him with his own “poison in the soul.” Feeling sympathy for his opponent, Spidey polishes the Shocker off quickly, then lectures him on his squandered talent and potential. “You have the chance to embrace the future,” he says, “It’s a chance your brother threw away. What’s it going to be for you, Schultz, the future… or a dead end?”

The Shocker decides to go straight after serving his sentence. Spidey lets him pay his last respects to Marty before taking him away. “I still don’t know what the poison in your soul was, Marty,” thinks Spidey, “Probably no one knows, or ever will. But what I do know is that the guilt and anguish that I felt over your death-the poison in my own soul-is gone now. I’m not sure if your brother will really be able to reform. That’s for the future to decide. But right now, at this very moment, all is right with the world, and the future looks bright. And moments like this are so rare, so few and far between, that I can’t help but cherish it.”

Several days later, Spidey stands on top of the Brooklyn Bridge. He’s been thinking about Gwen Stacy lately, particularly since MJ has turned down his marriage proposal. Part of him wishes he could live in the past and avoid the hurts like Mary Jane’s refusal but he knows he must choose the future over the past. “I’ll always love you, Gwen, and I’ll always remember you. But the future is calling, and I have to go meet it head-on. I think that’s what you would have wanted me to do.” Spidey web-slings through the city knowing, “with tomorrow, there was a chance for hope, for opportunity, and maybe, just maybe, for happiness.”

The drawbacks of this story are:

The name dropping of 90s Spidey editors 

The thugs at the start getting way too much page space devoted to them considering how insignificant they were

Greenberg arguably going too far with Peter’s sense of guilt

Everything else with the story works fine, unless you want to hold it in contempt for defying canon (wouldn’t Spidey have mentioned Shocker’s attempt to reform at some point?) but by this instalment that’s rather moot.

I’ve said before how each story in this anthology both takes place during a particular era of Spidey and tries to represent a component of his (then existing) mythology. 

In hindsight the prior story about Fancy Dan is probably touching upon the crime noir elements in Spidey’s mythos whilst this story is about both Peter’s sense of guilt and never say die attitude. 

it uses Peter’s desire to marry MJ and the aftermath of Gwen’s death as the vehicle to explore this. Whilst listening to the story I was prepared to hold the story in contempt for giving so little attention to MJ herself as I thought Peter’s proposal was intended to be the crux of the story but in reality that wasn’t what this story was trying to be about in the first place. As such I don’t mind that being something paid so little attention.

I was also ready to call out greenberg’s handling of Peter’s guilt, the idea that he feels like Marty’s death was his fault at all and his desire to run away from the funeral was at best overwrought and at worst out of character.

Thankfully Greenberg stuck the landing and had Spidey realise (refreshingly all on his own) that Marty’s death wasn’t on him, that he was likely going to take his own life no matter what. 

I can’t say for sure if this was Greenberg’s intention but I think the story illustrates what I have often said about Peter’s guilt. It’s not that he is inherently and perennially guilty but rather his kneejerk reaction to dealing with a crisis, especially death, is to assume guilt onto himself so he feels in control but deep down he doesn’t believe it/eventually he gets over it.*

As for the Shocker this is definitely one of the best Shocker stories of all time but also might be THE best in terms of characterization for him and depth. 

The story also drives home a great aspect of the character that wasn’t exactly explored on panel in the 1970s, Spidey’s ‘never say die’ attitude. We never got to explore Peter’s feelings about trying to find love again after Gwen’s death but you had to figure he did it because he knew there was hope and he wasn’t one to surrender to darkness. If he was he’d have been crushed long ago.

So having Spidey have his hopes for his personal life (and retroactively Shocker’s too) crushed by MJ’s rejection but persevere in spite of it was ultimately very dramatic and spoke to the heroic nature of the character.

*A great bit of writing by Greenberg was the moment Peter acknowledged that had he been there fore Marty people might’ve died in a fire. This then led into an intriguing moment where Peter hears a voice in his mind and realizes it belongs not to himself but to ‘Spider-Man’. 

[wall-krawler]

Chapter 2- Casual Sunday

New York City. Some would argue that this place was the best city in the world. Sure it has a lovely historical attraction but that wasn’t the heart of city. It was the people, they’re the ones who made New York mean something. Without them there wouldn’t be a city. At least, not one worth protecting.

Spider-Man thought about the people as he frantically typed on the computer, making sure not to overthink as the timer above him continued to countdown. It was one of those moments.

“You’re too late Spider-Man! You won’t be able to stop what I’ve already started in time.” Spencer Smythe gloated from the top floor, leaning against the railing as he watched the hero try to stop his plans.

Despite the tense situation Spider-Man was still able to still let out a chuckle. “Haven’t you noticed by now that you always say that right before I stop your plans?” He types faster, watching the commands and schematics glow from the computer screen. The ticking clock didn’t make concentrating easier though.

3 minutes left

Spencer continues to ramble on, ignoring the hero’s comment. “Jameson will pay for making me look like a failure. After today the only headline we’ll be reading about is his demise.”

2 minutes left. Cue the evil laughter.

The floors in front of Spider-Man began to slowly open as the timer neared its remaining minutes. Steam hissed as a rather large object emerged from below, towering over him. With wide eyes he watched as the ceiling to the lab also opened up, giving him a good look at the blue skies above. It was a beautiful day today.

“Don’t do this Smythe! You’ll kill hundreds of innocent people!” Spider-Man yelled, now seeming more worried as he stared at the giant robotic spider that stood before him. An object that big was meant for only one thing. Destruction.

“They’re Just as guilty as Jameson! Everyone at the Bugle played a role in running my legacy, destroying my name. They’ll all pay.” The countdown turned red as it reached its last minute.

‘Jeez where does the time go?’ Spider-Man thought while coming up with a backup plan on the fly. No matter how much he pleaded Smythe wouldn’t stop the countdown. There wouldn’t even be enough time if he did have a change of heart. Which only left one option.

Abandoning the keyboard Spider-Man uses the computer as a platform, jumping off of it to leap towards the robotic spider. As he landed he could hear Smythe’s laughing and the timer going off, which soon was joined by rockets activating. The spider itself began to hover as its thrusters propelled it and Spider-Man upwards.

“Ta-Ta Spider-Man!” The evil inventor waved as his spider rocket sailed off, taking his enemy away as well. He wasn’t worried in the slightest. There was no way his plans could be foiled now.

🕷🕷🕷🕷

The force of the wind caused Spider-Man’s suit to ripple and his grip to loosen slightly. His masks lenses were the only thing keeping his eyes open as he clung to the rocket. It was obvious from the start that Smythe wanted Jamison to pay but Spider-Man had no idea he was willing to kill to do it. With something this large he could only guess what the target was. The Daily Bugle, the company that released career ending information about him to the public.

“I hate robots!” Spider-Man yelled out as he pushed against the wind resistance to climb towards the robots head. The fact that it resembled the spider he wore on his suit somewhat ticked him off. Somehow he just knew things would bite him in the butt later in the day.

He however quickened his pace when he saw the city up ahead. Again, probably only a few minutes before things turned really bad. Once at the head he used his full strength to pummel it. Cocking his right arm back as he clung with his left, he’d strike at the glowing eyes. The metal of the robot would only crease upon impact, taking the powerful blows with no affect.

Civilians now would begin looking up to see a spider shaped rocket sailing through the air, just slightly above the skyscrapers. Gasps would travel throughout the bundled groups while others would immediately start filming, getting a good look of their hero repeatedly punching the head.

🕷🕷🕷🕷

J. Jonah Jameson was sitting at his desk lazily listening to an editor give pretty decent article topics they should cover. But the big man himself didn’t do decent or simple. Everything had to be-

“-Exciting! The news has to be huge or no one will want to even pickup the damn thing!” Jameson exclaimed suddenly. It was very difficult to tell if he was angry or just very expressive when it came to being excited. “I want something BIG on the front page, you hear me!?”

The editor sighs and nods, knowing that there was no point in trying to change Jameson’s mind. “Yes sir...”

He sulks out of the office as Jameson smirks and crams a cigar into his mouth. He told everyone it helped him relax, which was a good enough reason to keep people from saying anything about it. A little smoke was a price they were willing to pay if it kept Jameson from exploding. But even as he turned around to look out his sky view the internal confusion began to rise as he saw something in the distance. The explosive anger didn’t start to boil until he realized Spider-Man was on it. “What’s that skinny wall crawler doing?!”

🕷🕷🕷🕷

Back on the robot Spider-Man was giving it all he had, smashing his now aching fists against the head with nothing but determination. But the metal seemed to be too thick to punch through. There wasn’t enough time. People were going to die if he didn’t come up with something.

It wasn’t until that moment that it clicked. Smythe’s inventories worked based on their sight, which is why the rocket even had eyes to begin with. Blinding them would only cause it to fly downwards but if he could force its line of sight upwards. “It’ll fly upwards!” Spider-Man said with sudden realization.

Clenching his fists he lets out one last calm breath before using his middle and ring fingers to press down on the palms of his hands. A small hissing noise can be heard before two sticky lines of webbing shoot out to latch onto the sides of the spiders head. Spider-Man rises into a full stand and starts pulling upwards, letting out a yell as he strained his body. His feet slightly cave into the metal as he continued to pull, slowly moving the head from forward to upwards.

With eyes squinting from exerting his own strength Spider-Man caught a glimpse of J. Jonah Jameson’s outraged expression just as the robot began to tilt upwards. It was working!

The people below started to cheer as they saw the robots body badly miss the buildings and begin heading upwards and away, saving a bunch of people from casualties. “Go Spider-Man!”

Super hearing allowed those encouraging words to reach the hero as he averted the giant death trap from harming anyone. His body screamed out in pain but his heart and mind relaxed as everything seemed to me looking up. That is, until they started to fly past the city and head straight for the waters. “Ah crap..”

🕷🕷🕷🕷

About an hour later Damage Control was fishing the robot out from the Central Park Reservoir while the fire fighters watered down the few tree that burst into flames after the thing blew up. Property damage always ended up in the equation when it came to saving lives. But at least this time is was manageable.

Spider-Man was lucky enough to bolt before the robot went up in flames, saving his butt along with a few bystanders who were a little too close.

From a nearby rooftop Spider-Man watched the aftermath of everything, glad that no one besides him actually got hurt. Crazy to say this but he was even glad Jameson and the Daily Bugle were safe yet again. Sure the white haired lunatic ranted about how terrible he was for the city but Spidey Just had a soft spot for the old man. And yet still, everything always came back to bite him later.

“Whew, another casual Sunday for your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.” He chuckled to himself, stretching out his stiff shoulders before jumping off to start swinging.

Sure, Smythe escaped and would probably come back (just like the other crazy villains) to fight another day but there will always be a hero to stop them. Because this city was worth fighting for no matter how dangerous the job got. New York would always have their one and only Spectacular Spider-Man!

🕸🕸🕸🕸

[dotsonabrahamsen63-blog]

Remembering Stan Lee: The Amazing Origin Story Of The Marvel Comics Scribe

Remembering Stan Lee: The Amazing Origin Story Of The Marvel Comics Scribe

Strangely enough, Lee said he would cast himself as the opposite of all that in his own imagination, drawing a comparison to the cynical, Stan Lee Thank You For The Memories Shirt uncompromising newspaper editor J. Jonah Jameson. “I’m very frustrated that by the time they made the movie I was too old to play the role,” Lee said. “I modeled him after me. He was dumb and loudmouthed and opinionated. Of all the characters he helped create, Peter Parker remained his favorite. “In a way Spider-Man is more special than the others,” he said. What made him Lee’s favorite? “Nothing ever goes right for Peter. I think for most people in the world, nothing ever goes right. He hates people he’s never seen — people he’s never known — with equal intensity — with equal venom. “Now, we’re not trying to say it’s unreasonable for one human being to bug another. But, although anyone has the right to dislike another individual, it’s totally irrational, patently insane to condemn an entire race — to despise an entire nation — to vilify an entire religion. Sooner or later, we must learn to judge each other on our own merits. Sooner or later, if man is ever to be worthy of his destiny, we must fill our hearts with tolerance. For then, and only then, will we be truly worthy of the concept that man was created in the image of God ― a God who calls us ALL ― His children. 2.99. Available in North America and Europe. Oscorp Search & Destroy Pack - In The Amazing Spider-Manvideo game, Spider-Man has his own smartphone to help navigate around Manhattan, locate missions and challenges and fight crime. With this pack, Spider-Man's smartphone will feature two mini-games inspired by classic arcade fun. 2.99. Available in North America and Europe. Lizard Rampage Pack - The notorious Lizard is on the loose again in Manhattan! Take on the role of Dr. Connors' terrifying alter ego in a race against time. Go berserk through the streets using his devastating stomp attack and tail swipe to defeat Oscorp guards and earn mega points.

Lee knew his work was different, proudly noting that stories were drawn out over several issues not to make money but to better develop characters, situations and themes. He didn’t neglect his villains, either. One, the Moleman, went bad when he was ostracized because of his appearance, Lee wrote, adding it was “almost unheard of in a comic book” to explain why a character was what he was. Lee’s direct influence faded in the 1970s as he gave up some of his editorial duties at Marvel. But with his trademark white mustache and tinted sunglasses, he was the industry’s most recognizable figure. The Amazing Spider-Man is getting a whole bunch of DLC today, including a few different packs that will have you playing as people other than the titular wall-crawler. The Lizard Rampage pack will open up a level where you play as the Lizard, along with a new Spidey suit to wear. 49.99 on Steam, including complete integration with Steam achievements. A Nintendo 3DS demo is also now available in the Nintendo eShop. Rhino Challenge Pack - Take control of the massive, genetically engineered villain Rhino and rampage around Manhattan in an exclusive gameplay challenge of pure destruction! As Rhino, players will be able to unleash his formidable powers to destroy anything and everything in his path in a timed event full of speed, combo streaks, and of course, a ton of things to break! The Associated Press in a 2006 interview. Lee considered the comic-book medium an art form and he was prolific: By some accounts, he came up with a new comic book every day for 10 years. He hit his stride in the 1960s when he brought the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, Spider-Man, Iron Man and numerous others to life. His heroes, meanwhile, were a far cry from virtuous do-gooders such as rival DC Comics' Superman. The Fantastic Four fought with each other. Spider-Man was goaded into superhero work by his alter ego, Peter Parker, who suffered from unrequited crushes, money problems and dandruff.

XXX in the world of comic books were awesome. I happen to think they’re not exactly what a lot of people think but I don’t doubt their size and endurance. I knew him since 1970, worked for him a few times, talked with him at length and fielded an awful lot of phone calls from him asking me questions about comic books he worked on. He really did have a bad memory, if not when he first started telling people he had a bad memory, then certainly later on as he turned more and more into the Stan Lee character he’d created for himself. That’s all I’m going to write now. That’s where it begins and ends with me. To those of us who have been so deeply affected by the humanity of his imagination, the understanding of reaching beyond our potential and the necessity of tapping into our immeasurable imaginations, we thank you and are forever indebted. Rest In Peace Dear Stan. You made our time here a better one. What a man. What a life. When I first broke into Hollywood, he welcomed me with open arms and some very sage advice I’ll forever take to heart. A true icon who impacted generations around the world. Rest in love, my friend. I have to say I am deeply touched by the passing of Stan Lee… I always looked forward to seeing his cameo parts in all his great movies. 1 - Maybe you haven’t noticed, but there is a spiritual quality in all the Stan Lee movies… always the good guys win. Eventually, not always right away, but eventually. And his movies most of the time ended on an upbeat thought… that allowed us to ponder our existence. 2 - Stan Lee was also a man who could have been a musician but he was not good at music at all.

Legendary Marvel Comics co-creator Stan Lee — famous for giving the world beloved superheroes including Spider-Man, Iron Man and the Incredible Hulk — died Monday. According to TMZ, Lee suffered a number of illnesses over the last year, including pneumonia. His daughter J.C. told the site, “My father loved all of his fans. Lee was born Stanley Martin Lieber to Romanian-born Jewish immigrants in New York City, spending much of his early life in Washington Heights. He returned to Timely Comics in 1945 and married wife Joan two years later. In 1950, Timely Comics publisher Martin Goodman tasked Lee with creating a new superhero team to rival DC Comics’ Justice League. “Let’s lay it right on the line. Bigotry and racism are among the deadliest social ills plaguing the world today. But, unlike a team of costumed super-villains, they can’t be halted with a punch in the snoot, or a zap from a ray gun. The only way to destroy them is to expose them — to reveal them for the insidious evils they really are. The bigot is an unreasoning hater — one who hates blindly, fanatically, indiscriminately. If his hang-up is black men, he hates ALL black men. If a redhead once offended him, he hates ALL redheads. If some foreigner beat him to a job, he’s down on ALL foreigners. Stan Lee, the comic book mastermind who changed the landscape of the superhero genre, has died at age 95. Lee revolutionized the comic world by creating Marvel Comics superheroes such as Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four and The Incredible Hulk. An attorney for Lee's daughter, J.C. Lee, said the creative dynamo who revolutionized the comic world by introducing human frailties in superheroes such as Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four and The Incredible Hulk, was declared dead Monday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. In a statement to Fox News Shane Duffy, CEO of Stan Lee’s POW! I think everybody loves things that are bigger than life. I think of them as fairy tales for grown-ups," he told The Associated Press in a 2006 interview. "We all grew up with giants and ogres and witches. Well, you get a little bit older and you're too old to read fairy tales.

How long would this superhero movie thing last? He didn’t know. He was glad to be along for the ride. Happy to see the old characters he helped create being brought to life onscreen. We began talking about the origin of Spider-Man, born in 1962 after a string of other successes had made Stan Lee a powerhouse scribe at Marvel Comics. He had started working there when he was 17. Back then, Marvel Comics was known as Timely Comics, and he was known as Stanley Lieber, son of Jewish Romanian immigrants from the Bronx. His dream was to become a writer. But before any of that could happen, he earned cash by working a series of small jobs. As a theater usher, his first claim to fame was tripping and falling while showing Eleanor Roosevelt to her seat. “Are you all right, young man? Remember, this was six years before Iron Man and the launch of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The films were not yet interconnected, not that there were many to string together. Stan Lee cameos were not yet a phenomenon. He had played a beachside hotdog vendor in the X-Men film. That was it. (“You missed me?” he teased. “I was like the lead of the movie! ] idea was, I was selling sunglasses in Times Square and I was talking to this little girl, showing her a pair of glasses as Peter Parker walks by,” Lee recounted in his gruff, nasally voice. Think about the incredible characters that derived from the mind of this man. Iron Man, the X-Men, Thor, Daredevil and Dr. Strange. These are characters everyone knows and loves. Look at this list of Stan Lee's creations and think about which ones have gone onto success in other media as well as had very successful runs in comics. Every single one of them almost. Granted, a lot of that success is due to the efforts and contributions of those writers and artists who developed the characters through the years. But Stan Lee's fingerprint is on each and every one of them and will always be seen and felt. Can you name one single creator in comics that has contributed as much in terms of longevity, creativity and uniqueness? You can't because there are none. There are plenty of creators that have made great contributions and have written or drawn amazing characters and stories. But none can say they changed the face of the industry quite like Stan Lee can. No matter what happens from this day forward; no matter what superstar creators land at the Big Two. Stan Lee, Marvel Comics' own living legend, stands head and shoulders above the rest. LOS ANGELES (AP) — Stan Lee, the creative dynamo who revolutionized the comic book and helped make billions for Hollywood by introducing human frailties in Marvel superheroes such as Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four and the Incredible Hulk, died Monday. Lee was declared dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, according to Kirk Schenck, an attorney for Lee’s daughter, J.C. As the top writer at Marvel Comics and later as its publisher, Lee was widely considered the architect of the contemporary comic book. He revived the industry in the 1960s by offering the costumes and action craved by younger readers while insisting on sophisticated plots, college-level dialogue, satire, science fiction, even philosophy.

[emeraldnebula]

Thoughts on the comic book industry, Part 4

Having talked about how the comic book industry is still clinging to creative and marketing tactics that are at least 2½ decades out of date, there's really only one other place to go with this line of rambling. And in the age of social media, it's the most self-evident of all.

Not only is the comics industry stuck decades in the past, but it's hopelessly out of touch with reality, both creatively and politically.

It goes beyond being unwilling to look outside the box from a business standpoint. That's bad enough on its own, but it's a by-product of the creative side of the equation. Creatively, the major publishers are not only stubbornly devoted to outdated and stagnant methods from decades past, but they're stubbornly devoted to their own pet ideas at the exclusion of all else. It doesn't matter how unpopular their ideas are even from the beginning, it doesn't matter how poorly their pet directions sell, it doesn't matter how much the vast majority of fans object to those bad ideas. It's what the company wants, therefore it's inherently good and to hell with anything else. If the audience makes it clear they don't like the company's pet ideas, that's just all the more reason for the major publishers to cram it down the readers' throats. If the readers don't like where the major publishers are going with their products, the publishers aren't above bullying, insulting, and pressuring readers into caving in and supporting them regardless.

Now keep in mind, I'm not talking about the kind of fans who scream bloody murder over an old costume design being updated sans trunks, or who throw screaming hissy fits over creatively stale and burned out creative teams being replaced with fresh blood. I'm not talking about the kind of fans who cry havoc and protest when a franchise needs to be rebooted, or just needs some freshening up. Those are the kind of fans DC and Marvel actually WANTS, and largely caters to. I'm talking about DC and Marvel actively alienating, insulting, and belittling the vast majority of what once was/should be their readership – the fans who truly love the characters and object when the major publishers actively crap all over their characters, betray everything the characters stand for, pull event-gimmicks and stunts that are just purely hateful and serve no real creative purpose, and actively reject and disregard legitimate criticism. Little by little, DC and Marvel have whittled their readerships down to the tiny, selfish minority whose tastes mirror that of the companies. And in no small part has it contributed to the downfall of the industry.

This isn't a new thing by any means. Even as far back as the Iron Age, DC and Marvel were dismissive of anybody who objected to their pet directions. Batman fans for years had objected in the letter columns to Catwoman being retconned by Frank Miller as a hooker, as well as to Batman's increasing devolution from a heroic man of honor to a paranoid, hostile asshole. DC repeatedly disregarded those concerns, insisting that Miller's conception of the characters was canon and would not be changed. (And once Miller's go-to editor Bob Schreck took over as Bat-editor and brought Miller back to DC, everything Batman fans had been objecting to got ramped up a thousandfold.) The Superman books were levied with complaints about Lois Lane's abusive behavior toward Superman before and during their Iron Age marriage, as well as nonstop objections to Lois' '90s-era loverboy Jeb Friedman. DC blew off those complaints as sexist backlash to a "strong woman," even though comic book creators had similar complaints about the direction of the books. Even before "One More Day/Brand New Day" used a satanic pact to end Spider-Man's marriage to Mary Jane Watson, the '90s-era Clone Saga was conceived primarily to force Spider-Man back into bachelorhood, even if it meant claiming the Spidey people knew for years was a clone and the real deal was AWOL. The Green Lantern books respoded to fan concerns about the Parallax-possessed Hal Jordan being reduced to a one-note crazy bad guy...by doing just that and asking fans if they were pleased with the results. And so on.

Jump forward to the 2000s, and what do we have? Stephanie Brown/Spoiler seemingly tortured to death in the Batman books for no real reason, and the writer responsible, Bill Willingham, bragging about how much he alienated the fandom and how "golden" it is to turn your fandom against you. Marvel editor Tom Brevoort claiming on message forums that angering and alienating your readership translates to better sales, because a happy fandom makes your sales too "soft." (Never mind how blatantly untrue that is, especially since the '90s comic boom ended.) The aforementioned "One More Day/Brand New Day," where Joe Quesada and Dan Slott not only went out of their way to insult, bully, and disregard anyone who dared disagree with their vision, but also opened one of the "Brand New Day" issues with a character ordering the readers to "just shut the fuck up and give me your money!" Cry for Justice/Rise of Arsenal, where backlash to the ruination of Green Arrow and Black Canary's relationship was met with a sales pitch for a new Gail Simone Birds of Prey book and where complaints over the needless deaths in the story were dismissed with excuses that DC could have killed off even more Green Arrow characters. The current situation with Marvel's SJW-leaning comics, where anyone who voices objections to bad far-left propaganda and blatant mouthpiece characters is hit with every politically charged insult in the book. Or DC's "Rebirth," where anyone who voices disagreement with DC's current direction dismissed for being "fake fans" or being mocked for calling out how nonsensical and malicious the company's pet ideas are.

Do you see where this is going? Where it's been going for the last couple decades? Over and over again, the major publishers have made a point of ignoring legitimate criticism and feedback, disrespecting a readership they badly need, and insisting on pursuing what they personally want no matter how much it fails ansd how much it drives readers away. The idea that what they're doing is wrong, or at the very least misguided, is utterly foreign to them. If sales are plunging, they don't take it as a sign that they're screwing up or that what they're doing no longer works. They take it as a sign that they're shedding undesirables and that what's remaining are the true believers. They'd rather have total control and a shrinking minority of ass-kissers whose tastes mirror their own than to make the effort to appeal to a broad audience. And for what? Deservedly bad reputations. A dying industry for which history will ultimately blame them. Franchises that have been rendered toxic, or at the very least laughable.

And what's worse, the Big 2 absolutely refuse to learn from their mistakes, instead doubling and tripling down on them. If an idea is conceived and executed in bad faith and it deservedly fails, DC and Marvel don't recognize it as such. They view it as the readers being too stupid to know what's good for them and dial it up to 11. If they lose readers with their bad decisions, they view that lost readership and that lost money as being fair weather phonies. And if readers speak up as to why they're giving up on the books, if they're lucky and don't get insulted or mocked, they'll get a sales pitch for DC and Marvel's other wares. Again, this isn't a new thing. During "Knightfall," when a fan wrote in expressing how he felt Superman's death and Batman's impending spinal injury (a leaked plot point early on) felt like cheap gimmicks, what was the response he got? A sales pitch for The Flash, Legion of Super-Heroes, and DC's Vertigo line. No reassurance that Batman's temporary paralysis would be purely a test of character, no explantion that "Knightfall" was intended to be an examination of what it truly meant to be Batman, just a cheap attempt to cajole an unhappy fan into buying books he may not want.

The prevailing mindset of the last 26 years – if not longer – is twofold. On the one hand, there's the idea that if the characters' lives are made to be endlessly tragic and miserable, the readers can feel better about their own lives. In fact, a DC editor (Kevin Dooley, if I recall) said just that in response to a fan who wrote in about his dislike of the abritrary tragedy that had piled onto Aquaman leading into the Peter David revamp. On the other hand – and this one's arguably the more pervasive – there's the idea that if you make certain characters outright selfish assholes who always get their way no matter how unrealistic it is or how many people they have to stomp along the way, the reader will be inspired and empowered by them. Again, this shows just how out of touch the Big 2 are. Nobody saw anything inspiring about Spider-Man's deal with Mephisto. They saw it for the selfish, short-sighted, cowardly act it was. Lois Lane has been regarded as a hostile and unlikable character for decades, and her reputation only worsened when DC made her a "strong" (re: abusive) woman. Batman's degeneration into a insufferable, arrogant Marty Stu figure was harshly criticized even as far back as the late '80s, with people writing in begging for his heroism and humanity to be restored. And the meanspirited treatment of Superman, Green Arrow, Arsenal, the Green Lanterns, Aquaman, and others hasn't made the vast majority of fans feel better about themselves. It's angered them. It's made them feel betrayed. People go to art forms like comics, movies, TV, theatre, and radio drama for escape. They want to take a break from the bad stuff in their lives. They don't want to go from their regular troubles and see something even worse play out before them. Again, out of touch. The publishers are only playing to a tiny minority that's more or less in total agreement with them.

Now, you could argue that during the '90s, the big comic book boom more or less gave DC and Marvel the freedom they needed to pull off this kind of crap. Event-gimmicks and shock value being big sellers at the time and all. But 26 or more years later, what's the excuse? The industry is bleeding readers not just by locking itself decades in the past, but also by actively driving away anyone who isn't of the exact same tastes as the Big 2 or isn't a social media ass-kisser. Bad press doesn't equal big sales anymore. Aside from the odd milestone issue and maybe #1 issues of certain titles, people aren't buying anymore. And even at comic book conventions, talking to comic book creators past and present...they're fully aware of how far the industry has fallen, and they have their own horror stories to share about some of the bad decisions that have led to this point. But those who are still in the industry have to go along with those bad decisions simply because they've got to pay the bills. And those who aren't so active in the industry know full well that it's unwilling to change for the better.

What makes it even worse is that beyond the creative stagnation and selfishness, there's also a political bent to the way the industry carries itself. In the age of bad feminist/SJW/PC politics, comics have swung very hard in that direction, with Marvel going whole-hog into it. Many of the more prominent creators are very openly far-left, and very active in the social media mob mentality. Some, like Mark Waid, have been very open about running anybody – creator or fan – out of comics if their political leanings aren't far-left. Again, this is an industry that's wildly out of touch with reality. Not everybody shares the same political beliefs. Not everyone who's right-leaning or a centrist (my own stance) is a monster. Not every far-left talking point or goal is a good or even practical thing. Art – a even commercial form like comics – as with all things, NEEDS differing viewpoints, needs differences of opinion, needs all walks of life to be full-bodied and valid. Nope, the current comics industry wants a hive mind in all respects, politically aligned in one direction and mindlessly cheerleading whatever it is the Big 2 decide they want.

None of this is remotely viable. Aside from the major publishers going out of their way to do stuff they know the vast majority of people do not want at all, how do they expect to sustain themselves on an audience that's purely of their preferred political stance? Especially when, as social media and even the behavior of some comic book pros has shown, the far-left is just as extremist and reprehensible as the far-right? (Aside from admitting to leading purges against creators who aren't far-left, Waid also recently violated anti-trust laws to shut down an indie comic called Jawbreakers simply because its creator disagrees with Waid's/the comics industry's politics.) Speaking from personal experience, it gets really tiresome listening to comics creators you like endlessly bitching and moaning about anything even slightly center-of-left, or mindlessly spouting anti-Trump propaganda regardless of whether or not it's true. I as a fan don't like being talked down to, and I as a person don't like anyone trying to bully me into converting to their personal politics. Most people, when they read a comic, listen to music, or watch movies, TV, or plays, just want to be entertained for a little while. If you keep hammering away with bad far-left bullshit and getting mad when people don't just fall in line at your say-so? You're out of touch. You're ignoring the reality of your audience, and of day-to-day life in general. And you're alienating fans and/or potential fans in that way as well.

"But," you say, "if the Big 2 are this far gone, why not just support other publishers? Surely there's other stuff out there to devote your time to!" And that is true to a degree...but with the decline of the comics industry has also come a major atrophy of what's available out there, and how the distribution monopoly has limited the playing field in favor of the Big 2. And this will be where we go next.

[tenorsauruswes]

“Trust your intuition.”

Most of us have downloaded some type of star-chat app or follow a social media account that provides monthly (sometimes weekly) guidance based on our astrological sign. There is certainly nothing new about humans wanting a deeper connection to the greater power that we believe guides us (or in some cases, designs for us) as we travel around our sun.

I’m a Leo with my rising in Virgo and my moon in Aries. To be perfectly honest, I haven’t a clue what this means on a deep level except that I like attention and overthink things…a lot.

So often the advice I receive from virtual horoscope sites is the simple statement to “trust my intuition.” I have to say, nothing scares me more than trusting my intuition when my intuition often behaves like Peter Parker’s Spidey sense – a constant bell that things around me aren’t quite what they seem.

And yet, it is my intuition I must thank for the story I’m about to tell.

Without going into every minute detail, the summation of the end of my summer was this: after carrying around for a decade the weight of having a college professor and mentor proposition me for sex while I was still his student, I finally came forward with my story. If you’re looking for more specific information, I encourage you to read the Boston Globe article here. What people don’t know is how that story almost didn’t come out.

In September 2019, I was a local opera singer working for multiple companies in Boston as both as regular chorister and a soloist for smaller companies. I cantored for Catholic churches and had a steady 9-to-5 – what I lovingly refer to as my “muggle job.” It was in the midst of the high holidays at a temple in Needham, MA when I discovered an article on schmopera.com by editor and co-creator Jenna Simeonov that chronicled the story of a fairly-well-known American bass’ experience of sexual abuse by a guest director while the bass was a student.

I was astounded at two things: the first being that someone whose expanding career I followed on social media had a #MeToo story to tell, and second was the bravery of this man and the writer of the article in boldly exposing the truth of that moment in his life. For years I’d carried around my burden and while I did share my story with friends and colleagues throughout the ten years after my own experience of sexual misconduct by a college professor, my assumption was that I would continue to live in a world where the man who violated my trust saw no penalty for his actions. Keep in mind, this man who was my private voice teacher in Florida now worked as the President and CEO of a large arts organization in Boston. I’d been contracted multiple times throughout my years in Boston in productions where either the show either performed or rehearsed in the space that this man now controlled. My fear with telling my story wasn’t simply that I wouldn’t be believed, but that by exposing the truth, all these years later, I would become a pariah in the Boston arts community and never work on the same level again.

After a day or two of considering my options I was left with one feeling: my intuition. And it told me to write my story and share it with Jenna. I assumed one of two things would happen: 1) she would read my article and decide that my story wasn’t on the same level of behavior as other stories she’d received (I recognize how fortunate I am that my story doesn’t involve physical confrontation or violence) or 2) she would never respond.

I was completely wrong. In just over a week Schmopera published my account and people were sharing it on social media. That’s when I knew my story wasn’t finished being written.

Next is the part you don’t know.

After much debate with myself I contacted the Boston Globe. My fear was that the same actions he’d taken toward myself and others at the small school in Florida continued in his tenure in Boston – and now he was the highest-ranking person in the organization. I knew how helpless I’d felt in those moments after I received his initial anonymous email, writing, “I know I am your fantasy.” I could only imagine what the possibilities could be in Boston with him surrounded by more impressionable young men. My mind told me to count myself lucky that I’d been edified by friends and colleagues after the Schmopera article went live and not push my luck. My intuition told me to keep pushing forward.

That is when I sent the article to the Globe. And you can guess what happened next: no response. So I penned a lengthier explanation, again sharing the article to the Globe’s email hotline, and, again, no response. I figured I’d gotten too “big for my britches” as my parents would say. They were this goliath of a newspaper so they got to decide what made news and what didn’t.

It wasn’t until a discussion I’d had with a colleague who shared a Boston Globe news article regarding the same person, but this article wasn’t about inappropriate behavior. It detailed a new, controversial program he was promoting that caused uproar among people concerned that many artists would be displaced once it was implemented. While not related, it was a lead to putting my story in front of the eyes of someone already reporting on both the person and the organization.

My brain pleaded with me to slow down and not get myself deeply involved in what could potentially be a very painful, not to mention reputation-destroying, path. But my gut told me to keep going. So, I did.

I emailed the reporter Brian, and, for the first time, I felt heard. I suspect many of you won’t be surprised to read about the amount of back-and-forth there was between myself and the reporter. He was so patient and encouraging every step of the way. Yet, even with my completely open (and perhaps often naïve) cooperation to publish the entire story using mine and my offender’s name so publicly, it took multiple phone calls with Brian and another staff member at the Globe before I was able to sit down for the interview. Every step along the way I thought of people like Christine Blasey Ford and every other survivor of sexual assault we’ve heard from since the #MeToo movement began. Not that I would ever compare their experiences with my own, but I appreciate so much more now their courage. Every step Brian and I took toward publicly sharing my story I asked myself three questions:

“What are the facts?”

“Why am I doing this now?”

“What result am I searching for?”

Looking back, I think of those questions as my armor. They were what would protect me from a libel lawsuit and/or community backlash. After all, someone doesn’t become the head of such a high-ranking organization without convincing a few people you’re the best person for the job. And part of that is convincing people you are the good guy.

So, the question I ask now is, “What kept me going?” At any point I recognized that I could take my foot off the gas…or even turn the car around. No one was forcing me to expose the awful truth of what happened ten years prior. I often thought about a sign my mother had in her Sunday school room when I was a child that read, “I do not have to attend every argument I am invited into.”

Now, anyone who knows me knows this is not my talent…avoiding unnecessary arguments. If you want proof, check out my Facebook profile feed from approximately 2015-2016 (i.e. the previous contentious presidential election cycle). But while this was a moment I could walk away from, I had to ask myself if I should walk away. After all, he was more powerful, had a bigger profile, and was cunning enough to weasel his way out of retribution once before (read the Boston Globe article to understand how many times he’d showed this behavior prior to my incident).

Maybe it was the stars telling me to trust my intuition. Maybe it was the profound sense of right and wrong my parents raised me to believe in. Whatever it was, I am thankful every day for the patience and care Brian took with me to ensure that we got it right. And for my fiancé and every friend and colleague who was with me as I traversed the frightening path to coming out with my story.

Why am I sharing this experience now? Because my intuition is telling me to.

Part two of this story involves you. What story are you afraid to tell? What truth are you afraid to live? If there is any result I hope comes from these articles it is this: that one more person isn’t afraid to live in their truth.

In the Bible, John 17 reads, “Sanctify them through your truth…” The sheer number of people who reached out in person or online to express their appreciation to me would astound you. People I would have never considered would be victim to inappropriate behavior told me, some in detail, of their own experiences and trauma. Others thanked me, not alluding to any shared experience except in their eyes.

You don’t have to be ready to risk it all or to shout the truth from the highest mountaintop. But you can. And you will be believed. And you will be supported.

The most important thing: believe your horoscope and listen to your intuition.

[ask-the-phan-site]

The Slanderous Newscaster of Spider’s Death

>It’s time.

Off to New York.

This will be one heist to marvel.

We won’t have any problems with that wall crawler, will we?

Don’t worry. He might not get near enough to stop us before we do this job.

Alright, let get to it!

>Mona becomes our bus and we drive off.

>The Daily Bugle Communications building was quiet that night. J. Jonah Jameson was taking a short break for his constant ranting about Spider-Man when a call came for him.

Jameson here.

J. Jonah Jameson. This is Agent C.

Jameson: Agent Coulson, is this also about that calling card I got?

Coulson: Pretty much.

Jameson: I’ve already told you, these Phantom Thieves don’t scare me.

Coulson: I see that.

Jameson: And I know you can... And I know this is Spider-Man’s fault!

Coulson: And there it is. Thank you.

Jameson: I know it was him who sent them that request. And there’s no way a bunch of punks are going to take my heart.

??????????: If you have one to take.

Jameson: Great, you’re the last person I want to see. 

Coulson: He’s here under my request.

But if you think you’d be better off with someone like Hawkeye, I’ll leave right now.

Jameson: Finally, something we can agree on.

Coulson: It might be too late now. 

Jameson and Spider-Man: Huh?

>Right after Coulson hung up, a red wave passes over Jameson and Spider-Man. When it was over, they were now in what looked like a dark version of Air Temple Island.

Spider-Man: Yeesh. Talk about sudden seen change. This look like something out of Legend of Korra.

?????: Very observant, Spidey!

Jameson: It’s them!

???: One should be careful with their words for they might turn.

???????: You claim that you’re telling the people the truth about Spider-Man when you clearly don’t know anything at all.

?????: It’s nothing but god damn slander. The same thing we had to go through.

??????: And that’s something we don’t want another to go through.

>We step out of the shadows of the temples to show ourselves. 

Joker: Target: J. Jonah Jameson.

Accusing another for every wrongdoing in New York when you don’t have all the facts will just bring ignorance.

The truth is suppose to help others, not just you. You play with the truth as if you were its master.

Panther: It’s as they say, “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.”

Mona: But since you didn’t heed that warning, we had to come.

Noir: It’s time that you told the real truth about this.

And with that truth, you and Spider-Man and everyone in New York will truly be free.

Oracle: And that means taking your treasure.

Spider-Man: ... Did you guys prepared that speech or did you make it on the fly?

Mona: That’s a trade secret.

Jameson: And this is why I’m doing this.

Spider-Man: Huh?

Jameson: You people, with your masks and your secrets. How can anyone trust someone who never shows their face? It’s people like you why I’m like this. Now you come to say that you’ll make me change my mind like I don’t have any god-given will? I don’t think so!

>Right after saying that, two Shadows appeared on either side of Jameson. 

>The two Shadows begin attack with Lunge.

Panther: Hey, watch it!

Joker: These ones seem a little more aggressive than the previous ones.

Noir: There has to be some way to keep them down long enough to finish our mission.

Spider-Man: What about a bridle? Aren’t these things suppose to be harmless when you put a bridle over its head?

Skull: What do you think this is!? Hogwarts!?

Mona: But then again, these Kelpies are Shadows and Shadows are born from the human cognition and some of the those human probably read the series.

Queen: So it might work. Joker, what do you think?

Joker: It might be worth a try. Oracle, think you can give us a couple of bridles?

Oracle: I’ll see what I can do. Persona!

Oracle: Let’s see if you know how to make a bridle just as you made a ballista. 

Mona: Didn’t you use it to fix a ballista? How are we suppose to get a bridle without something to make it from?

Spider-Man: Would this help?

>Spider-Man uses his web shooters to make some web big enough to make two bridles.

Panther: Really? Why help us?

Spider-Man: I know I’m suppose to be stopping you guys, but I’m not fond of this either.

Oracle: That’s good to hear.

>Oracle’s Persona turns the web into two bridles which Mona managed to get over the two Shadows.

Hold Up! 

Kelpie: No! Get this thing off me! I’ll do anything, just let me go!

Joker: I already have enough Kelpies, but I could use an item.

Kelpie: Very well.

>Kelpie gives us a Life Stone and leaves with the other one.

Jameson: Idots... No matter, I’ve got more.

Spider-Man: Huh? You feeling alright, Jonah? 

Oracle: No, don’t get any closer!

>Oracle had good reason to yell. When Jameson looked at us, he and a dark expression and his eyes were now amber.

Shadow Jameson: You and your masks are the scum of the earth. You took everything from me. You are and always will be menaces. I have had it. This is J. Jonah Jameson of Daily Bugle Communications World News! And I! Hate! MASKS! I! HATE! SPIDER-MAN!

>The darkness then surround Jameson’s Shadow and he transforms.

Spider-Man: Yikes. I didn’t even know he could ride a horse.

Oracle: Just goes to show you that you learn more about a person from their cognition. And you’ll be glad to know this one’s weak to Electricity.

Skull: Then that’s my go!

Eligor: Protect me, my successor!

Queen: Is this how he sees his son?

Spider-Man: Really? I was expecting more like a wolf.

Eligor: Stop them!

Reagent: Forgive me, Spider-Man.

>Reagent uses Magaru. The rest of us didn’t take much of a hit, but Skull was knocked down.

Spider-Man: How should that be enough to knock him down?

Oracle: I’ll explain later, right now, that Rare Shadow is weak to Nucular and Psy attacks.

Queen: So me and Noir should take care of this.

Noir: I’ll handle it from here, Queen. You and Panther help Skull. Persona!

>Noir’s Persona uses Psio which was effective on Reagent.

Hold Up!

Reagent: I’m sorry, Spidy. I was only doing what my father was saying.

Spider-Man: But you don’t have to. You can help us. Your dad’s getting out of control.

Reagent: If it means convincing my father, I’ll do it. I am thou, thou art I. I will have my father understand. You are not a menace.

Eligor: You little traitor. You’ll pay for this!

>Eligor uses Double Fang. Thankfully, Reagent took the hit for us and resist.

Skull: (after recovery) I’m back! Let’s get this over with. Persona!

>Skull’s Persona uses Zionga which manages to get Eligor down.

Skull: Electro, eat your heart out!

Hold Up!

Mona: We’re getting a lot of that here.

Eligor: Damn masked brats, I’ll sue!

Joker: Been there, done that.

Skull: You tell ‘em, Joker! Spidey, wanna help us out?

Spider-Man: As much as I know I shouldn’t, but maybe this once.

Skull: Cool. Now let’s go!

Eligor: NO!

>When the attack was over, Eligor turned back into Jameson.

Reagent: You have done well, Phantom Thieves. You too, Spider-Man.

>Reagent disappears as a light came out of Jameson.

Mona: The treasure! Here it is!

>I take the treasure, which was a framed news paper clipping of the Daily Bugle. Front page.

Joker: Editor and Chief’s son goes to the stars. This is an article about your son, isn’t it?

Jameson: ... Spider-Man took his fame away.

Skull: You’re kidding. That’s why you hate him so much? Just cause Spider-Man got famous over your son? That’s just stupid!

Spider-Man: Jameson, I...

Jameson: Save it, Wall Crawler. You’ve already made my life hell, I don’t need you to make it worse. Just take the thing and leave me alone.

Joker: Jameson san, I know you’re upset that your son didn’t get attention when Spider-Man saved him, but you can’t let it eat you up. You just have accept that things happen and try to move on. If you don’t, you’ll just push people away. Even your own family.

Jameson: ...

Joker: Just return to yourself. Let things take its course.

Jameson: ... Alright. If you think it’s good for my son.

>With that, Jameson returns to his true self and we leave.

>The next day, in Time Square.

Jameson on the DBC Building: Last night, something happened. I came to a realization and I would like to say: I’m sorry, Spider-Man. I was mad that you became famous and made everyone forget my son. I let it eat me up and it had a bad effect on my son. (Starts tearing up) I was being real cruel to you. Especially when I offered that $10000 reward for your capture. Although I’ll still say some bad things in the future, I just want you to know I’m not all bad. Forgive me.

>Down on the streets, a certain couple saw the whole thing.

Now this is just weird. You think they were serious about taking his heart?

Who knows. Though I am a bit sorry for JJ. He just didn’t like how I took John from the spotlight. It just happens.

>On a roof above them.

Joker: I know how that feels.

>Suddenly, I turn to see a blue cell door. I go in and find myself in the Velvet Room.

Welcome to the Velvet Room. I’m glad you’ve come. The one who sent you that request wishes to speak to you.

>Someone enters the Velvet Room.

Joker: We did what you requested. But I do have a question. You don’t live in New York, yet you know what Jameson does each day. How?

Would you believe me if I said I saw it in a dream? 

Joker: Mostly likely.

>I give the clipping to him and we return to where we came from.