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Spider-Man swings back to normalcy
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Happily married once again!
Cooler heads appear to have prevailed over at the Spider-Man comic strip. Thank goodness someone listens to the needs of the fans, rather than the dictates of the sales-goosing mandates of the comic book company that publishes his weekly and monthly adventures.
You may have heard a few months back about a radical decision by Marvel to -snap! just like that - change a long-running Spider-Man storyline that had him married to red-headed Mary Jane Watson. While Marvel nakedly wanted to goose interest in what is arguably its flagship property, the way it was handled was just awful, in many fans' eyes. Peter Parker (Spider-Man's alter ego) and Mary Jane didn't get divorced; she didn't get killed by Electro or Mysterio or Doctor Octopus or any Spidey baddie. No, Marvel had them sign a deal wtih Devil-ish character Mephisto: To save the life of Peter's beloved Aunt May, Spidey and Mary Jane agreed that they would separate and neither would have a memory of ever being married.
Ridiculous!
And it was even more so when the folks who produce the daily Spider-Man newspaper comic strip decided to do the same. No reason, no rhyme, just a notice saying that from now on, Spider-Man and Mary Jane were no longer married or even familar with each other.
Thankfully, in another capriciously handled shift, the comic strip folks changed things back, explaining that Spider-Man had been dreaming and that fans demanded Mary Jane's return.
Memo to comic-book publishers: Fans want good, well-written stories, not cheap plot gimmicks. If you want sustained, long term reader interest, tell interesting tales, and people will follow.
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