Peter Parker and Mary Jane are married again in Marvel’s Ultimate Spider-Man. Ram V and Dan Watters collaborating on two linked new series. Tom Brevoort teases post-Krakoa X-Men line won’t shrink. All on Comic Book Club News for October 30, 2023.
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Episode Transcript:
Peter Parker and Mary Jane married again.
Ram V and Dan Watters collabo announced.
X-Men line expanding post-Krakoa.
This is Comic Book Club News for October 30, 2023.
Peter Parker And Mary Jane Married Again In Ultimate Spider-Man:
Back in 2007, Marvel broke up Peter Parker and Mary Jane due to a deal with the devil. But it turns out Mephisto’s got nothing on Jonathan Hickman. In January’s Ultimate Spider-Man, Peter and MJ will be married, once again.
Said Hickman via press release: “When we decided that we were going to do a book about an older Peter Parker becoming Spider-Man, we really wanted to lean into him starting his super hero life from a very different place than what’s traditionally expected. Peter and MJ being married is one of many decisions we made that underline this being quite a ‘different’ kind of Spider-man story.”
One — or two — of the other big differences? The couple has kids. Two of them, to be precise. Though Marvel hasn’t revealed the names of the redheaded boy and girl who are now part of their family, chances are one of them is Mayday Parker, it would be interesting if the other was Benjy Parker — essentially recreating a variation of what was called the MC2 continuity. That was a future take on Marvel that included the beloved Spider-Girl comic, as well as Avengers Next and J2, a title focusing on the Juggernaut’s son.
Regardless, as SKTCHD puts it, this is a way of Marvel having their cake and eating it, too. In the main continuity, Spider-Man and Mary Jane will never get married again (until they do). In the new Ultimate Universe, they will forever be married (until they aren’t).
Ultimate Spider-Man #1 is on sale January 10 from Marvel.
Ram V And Dan Watters Announce Two Linked Image Comics Series:
Writers Ram V and Dan Watters have sneakily announced two linked crime series in a fascinating-sounding project. Presented separately via press release, The One Hand and The Six Fingers are two sides of the same story; one following a cop chasing a notorious serial killer, the other showing how that serial killer might be innocent.
Both taking place in a future town called Neo Novena, The One Hand follows detective Ari Nasser as he chases down the “One Hand Killer,” a notorious serial he took down years earlier.
Said Ram V: “The One Hand stems from one of those 3 a.m.-frantically-looking-for-a-notebook-to-make-notes kind of ideas. It took hold of my imagination a couple of years ago and would not let go until the story was made. It is ambitious, seeking to do new things in the medium and unlike anything I’ve made before. I cannot wait for people to experience it.”
On what is in technical terms called the flippy-dippy is The Six Fingers, which follows an archaeology student, Johannes Vale, who may have committed murder in the style of the “One Hand Killer” — only he doesn’t remember it happening.
Watters added: “This book is one we’ve been boiling up for years, a true labor of love. We’re doing something with it I’ve never seen in comics before, and I think readers are going to have a hell of a time uncovering the secrets and sins buried between its bloody pages.”
The One Hand comes from Laurence Campbell, and will hit stores on February 7. The Six Fingers comes from artist Sumit Kumar and will be in stores on February 21. Both books feature colors by Lee Loughridge, letters by Aditya Bidikar, and design by Tom Muller.
X-Men Line Post-Krakoa Will Grow, Not Shrink:
We’re rapidly headed toward the end of the X-Men’s Krakoa era. And as teased in incoming editor Tom Brevoort’s latest newsletter, the line will grow, not shrink.
While answering a fan question, Brevoort reiterates that the amount of books in a line is dictated by basic profits and loss, and in order to pay for the books, they need to put out a certain number of books in any family of titles. That will be true of the upcoming X-Men books, as well.
Says Brevoort: “Those folks who were hoping that the X-Men line would go down to only 4 books are in for a world of disappointment. We maybe won’t have quite as many at the jump as the end of the outgoing era does, but it’ll still be in the neighborhood—and will likely increase as we move ahead and more stuff gets green-lit.”
Elsewhere, Brevoort notes that while he hasn’t been comprehensively reading X-Men comics to prepare for the new gig, as he’s been on Avengers books for the past 25 years, he did read a Marvel Masterworks volume from the 2000s. And for any questions he doesn’t know the answer to with X-Men, he notes that he can just check the internet. Same, Tom. Same.
For Comic Book Club News, I’m Alex Zalben. And an interesting note, 2007 was 16 years ago. You Spider-Man fans need to get over it.
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