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Wednesday, September 19, 2007 

Anti-marriage sentiments seem to be floating around in the press

The person who the following in the Telegraph Herald in Iowa (via Newsarama blog) doesn't seem to appreciate marriage:
Superheroes and marriage just don't mix. Remember the "Lois and Clark" television series starring Teri Hatcher and Dean Cain? The romantic tension between Lois Lane and Clark (Superman) Kent was one of the show's strong points.

The series prospered for several seasons. When the two finally tied the knot, the program was canceled. Marriage was Superman's ratings kryptonite!
I don't know what the exact circumstances were that led to the show's cancellation, but somehow, I'm not sure that it was because they tied the knot, and given that Rhoda's ratings flopped after she got married, I'd say it had more to do with television matters than with books.
It seems that superheroes aren't meant to walk down the aisle. Witness the union of Peter (Spider-man) Parker and Mary Jane Watson from the late 1980s.

The wedding took place in the comic books and newspaper strip simultaneously, accompanied by much fanfare. Legendary Spidey creator Stan Lee even came back to write the wedding story.
And most importantly of all, it was accepted warmly by the fans. Spidey never lost any of his popularity because of that. It was only when the Clone Saga came around that he did, as people began to get angry at the incredible disrespect for our favorite wall-crawler that was being doled out. Unfortunately, the writer continues to be contemptuous:
But now, the honeymoon might be over for the wall-crawler.

Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Joe Quesada has been talking for years about how he dislikes Spidey as a married man. After all, that mature image doesn't match up with the same carefree, bachelor Spidey seen swinging on the big screen in the Spider-man movies.

This month in the Spider-man comics, a new storyline, "One More Day" promises a major change in the Spidey saga. It looks like either his beloved Aunt May or wife Mary Jane might be exiting Peter Parker's life forever. But who will it be?

Well, they've already killed Aunt May several times (and then brought her back to life), so my bet is on Mary Jane.

Marvel Comics seems to want its Spider-Man more accessible to younger fans, and apparently a married superhero just doesn't fit.
Oh for heaven's sake, it's that whole argument again! And he must've really enjoyed writing those cruddy lines too. With the way things have been going even in DC lately, it doesn't take much to figure out that neither publisher is interested in getting younger readers to come again, but that they do like to spout much confusion about what they want or what they think anybody is interested in.
Fans have been equally divided over the 1996 marriage of Lois Lane and Clark Kent in the comics, after a courtship of nearly 60 years. The event coincided with the television wedding.
I'm sure some have been, but then, they overlook, as usual, that this is just fiction. And I think they've overlooked some of the marriages that have taken place on TV, such as in I Love Lucy and Family Ties, that never served as ratings kryptonite at all. I've been told by my parents how years ago, there was some anti-marriage sentiment in some parts of entertainment. This article appears to be a product of that very same stupidity.

What makes this whole irritating question of whether Peter and Mary Jane will break up so maddening is how Quesada and newspapers like these have been hammering away at it openly and blatantly, boomeranging back on the subject like Congress doubling back on the awful amnesty bill for illegal immigrants. But even if they'd stuck to the shadows, that still wouldn't make it any better because of how editorial mandate is clearly lurking around the corner. That's exactly why any breakup - or death of Aunt May now - would be completely stilted.

And with that, I've now got a little more to add on the onslaught of company-wide crossovers that Spidey too is a victim of lately: it was bound to happen, and why? Simple. Corporate greed, and the result of when the inmates take over the asylum. But also because Marvel zombies for some cannot think for themselves and use their common sense.

Thanks to that, this is the reason why now, after less than three years, we find ourselves hit with a barrage of almost non-stop crossovers that allow for almost no character development or independent storylines, if at all. And unless common sense finds its way in, this'll go on and on.

When are Marvel zombies going to wake up and realize the damage they're helping to do?

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  • I'm Avi Green
  • From Jerusalem, Israel
  • I was born in Pennsylvania in 1974, and moved to Israel in 1983. I also enjoyed reading a lot of comics when I was young, the first being Fantastic Four. I maintain a strong belief in the public's right to knowledge and accuracy in facts. I like to think of myself as a conservative-style version of Clark Kent. I don't expect to be perfect at the job, but I do my best.
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