What to do about Spider-man… He’s certainly gone through the wringer the last few years. One More Day of course caused all sorts of outrage, and rightfully so, and things have been hit or miss ever since. Speaking of hit-or-miss, we have Dan Slott, who it seems has been writing Spider-man for ages. And while he’s done good work, ever since the conclusion of the outstanding Superior Spider-man arc, it’s gone downhill. We’ve seen Slott undo his past developments with characters like Doc Ock and Norman Osborn, completely waste the high potential of Parker Industries, and instead focus on retreads of old concepts like the “totally not clones” Clone Conspiracy. So what to do? First off, it’s time for Slott to move on. For a replacement, I think Nick Spencer would fit Spidey well. As for what I’d do with the character? Here we go:
First off, the world of spider-people has grown incredibly oversaturated. I’ve limited the titles to “The Amazing Spider-Man x2” and “Spider-man’s Amazing Friends”, an anthology-type series telling stories from a rotating selections of spider-characters. I’d keep Parker Industries, but make sure to highlight what makes Parker unique from the likes of Tony Stark, and how his unique personality conflicts with gaining a global perspective as both a public figure and superhero. I’ve concocted 4 years, or “seasons” of stories, built around the line-wide Goblin War saga I crafted to tie together my fan-relaunch.
Peter Parker is on top of the world. With Parker Industries proving to only grow in success, he has access to a world of opportunity previously denied him. Chief among those opportunities is Bobby De Costa (aka Sunspot), freshly crowned richest man in the world and new leader of a reformed Hellfire Club, who is more than eager to ensure Peter’s membership. There are three major plotlines running throughout this “season”. First we find Peter struggling to balance his personal duties as a hero and his responsibilities as a CEO. There to help him out are Hobie Brown, Harry Osborn, Randy Robertson, and Mary Jane Watson, who is rekindling her old flame with Harry while feeling strangely drawn towards Peter. In the current TASM series, Slott has struggled to stay true to Peter’s personality in his new role, which is key to the story working. He has to be more Chuck Bartowski and a lot less Tony Stark. The second plotline deals with Bobby’s determination to get Peter to join the new Hellfire Club, an alliance of the world’s greatest minds to unite in building a better tomorrow. Peter, however, is cautious due to the Club’s past and Booby’s habit of employing super-criminals on parole as part of his reformation program. Among those former rogues in his employ is one Black Cat, beginning the path away from her misguided stint as a “Queenpin”. Lastly, the primary villain of this season is Roderick Kingsley, who is constructing a world-wide criminal network, with NYC the last city to fall under his sway. He will kick off a gang war that will require a street-level heroes crossover to confront, and will end with Peter assured that NYC is in good hands with Hobie as Prowler taking his place while he is away.
Key Moments:
-Peter discovers that Silver Sable is alive and has reclaimed control of her company with help from Kinglsey, whom she will bail out when his plans come crashing down, driving a wedge between her and Peter.
(Follow this story in the pages of The Wild Pack)
-Andi Benton (aka Mania) is framed for murder. Peter does his best to exonerate her, but she ultimately winds up enlisted in the Thunderbolts.
(Again, you can see her further adventures in Thunderbolts)
-As you may notice from the previous notes, TASM's status as one of the central tentpole series will be used to back up a lot of smaller books whose stories mesh well with his, like Cardiac, The Wild Pack, Thunderbolts, Beetle, etc... raising awareness for series that might otherwise not get the attention they deserve.
Season 2: After a public incident with Thomas Fireheart (aka Puma) Peter decides it’s high time to investigate the Hellfire Club, and he and Harry promptly join with the intent of exposing the dark secrets they are convinced lie within. Instead, they are impressed by the depth of Bobby’s programs. Bobby has in fact deduced Peter’s secret and requests the leadership of Spider-man on the elite missions of the Club’s espionage division, designed to be a more accountable alternative to the floundering SHIELD. Peter agrees and begins to feel right at home on missions paired up with Bobby’s top agents including Cannonball, Scorpion and Black Cat, who is striving to earn back both Spider-man’s trust and affection. Meanwhile on the home front, Joe Robertson is running for Mayor. His distrust of the Hellfire Club puts him publically at odds with Bobby, with Peter caught in the middle. As election nears, it becomes very clear that someone is sabotaging the process, culminating with Randy being kidnapped. When Hobie takes things too far in his rescue efforts, Spider-man must come home to set things right and ensure the safe electoral process.
Key Points
-The kickoff point for Peter joining the Hellfire Club undercover is an adventure involving Thomas Fireheart (Puma) breaking laws in research for the Club. It ends with Puma alongside Mania in the Thunderbolts.
-The Hellfire Club hires Gabriel Stacy. Peter is understandably uncomfortable with this, but Harry is excited to help his brother reform, though he begins to notice suspicious connections between Gabriel and Bobby’s mentor and co-leader Elisha Murdoch.
- I hadn't decided who to be behind the plotting against Joe's campaign, but thanks a ton to the commentor who pointed out Tombstone as the obvious choice! Tombstone will be the Season's "Big Bad" for sure!
Season 3: In the aftermath of the election, Peter decides he needs to spend more time on his home turf now that his partnership with Hobie has been damaged do to Hobie/Prowlers increasingly drastic measures. But his other responsibilities still call, which leaves him to seek out Miles Morales. The two Spider-men really bond for the first time, as Peter and MJ grow close, leading, amongst other divisive issues, to Harry’s frustration. The seemingly peaceful status quo is shattered when Mayor Robertson barely survives an assassination attempt. Peter goes undercover in The Raft to find out who took out the hit. Miles takes over while Peter is inside, causing Hobie to quit and go solo. While in prison, Peter befriends reforming villains Shocker and Mr. Negative, who are hoping to take part in the Hellfire Rehabilitation Program. With their help, he discovers shady dealings at the prison conducted by Elisha Murdoch! Leaving prison with his two new allies and the knowledge that the hit came from within the Club, he tells no one. Meanwhile, Harry himself discovers that Elisha Murdoch is in fact Norman Osborn’s new identity, but, wanting to believe he’s really changed, keeps this a secret as well. Everything culminates in the line-wide Goblin War event in which Norman/Elisha is revealed to have built a Shadow Council of villains within the Hellfire Club, and summons the Goblin Force to become the Goblin King. The entire Marvel universe is barely enough to stop him. By the time Norman is defeated, perhaps forever, countless friendships have been shattered and Peter returns home to a ruined NYC to rebuild.
Convinced not to let Bobby’s dream die because of his mistakes, Peter takes over the Hellfire Club and sets to work rebuilding a devastated city, country, and planet. He reconciles with Hobie and Harry, and officially begins a relationship with MJ. He finally seems to have found a way to exercise his great responsibility without being Spider-man. But before he can consider retirement, Mephisto steps in to ensure the fulfillment of his bargain tear him and MJ apart once again. As all the devastating memories flow back, Peter must call on his supernatural allies to fight his way to Hell and back. In the end, no amount of punches can beat Mephisto. All is seemingly lost until Aunt May willingly sacrifices her own life to ensure Peter’s happiness, erasing the deal and finally finding peace. As Peter and MJ grapple with this, Harry reveals that in his quest to unlock all of his father’s secrets, he learned that their child, which somehow survived the reality warping of “One More Day” is alive and well. Thus Peter must call on all his friends for one last mission to save his daughter before a mysterious villain succeeds in destroying all of Norman’s legacy, the girl along with it.
Key Notes:
-At the end of this season, Peter will step back from superheroics to tend to his family while fulfilling his need to help the world in bigger ways than he ever could as Spider-man, resting easily with Miles taking up the mantle. (Though he may be keeping around an old Scarlet Spider suit for old times sake)
-The Stacy Twins are retconned into, while still Norman’s children, a hoax to get into Peter’s head. After Goblin War, Gabriel descends into the underworld as the last remaining Goblin, causing Sarah to come out of hiding on a one-woman mission to eradicate her father’s legacy. This may not seem like a bad thing until Peter’s stolen child comes up as just another weapon on her target list for destruction.
So that's my fan-pitch for The Amazing Spider-man "Rebirth"! I hope you've enjoyed it. As I mentioned, Peter is my favorite hero, so I went through a lot of effort to correct some of the biggest missteps of past writers and craft a cohesive new status quo. I know having Peter "retire" will be controversial, but it fulfills not only Miles' arc but also allows Peter to maintain the family life he's always dreamed of without compromising his "great responsibility". As always, all comments, critiques, and general chit-chat are welcomed in the comments below!