I'm not going to give this arc the usual treatment, because the quicker we move onto "Brand New Day" the better. So, no rating, no summary. Here we go:
The Review
I’ll say this: I think it’s probably easier reading these issues after the fact, knowing, more or less, the direction the storyline is going to take. I understand, rationally, that the decision to undo Peter and MJ’s marriage was motivated by the understandable need, on the part of the writers and editors, to reinvigorate an almost 50-year-old character. I also concede that the idea that Peter and MJ’s love is strong enough to overcome what Mephisto does here is probably going to give the book a certain energy. But, emotionally, after reading it, it still feels hollow. I think it would’ve been infuriating having to wait for the issues to slowly reveal how the decision affects Spidey’s life, but, then again, I’m the type of guy who occasionally reads the last page of a book when the plot gets too tense to make sure everything turns out OK. Anyway, I’m glad I waited to read the series when it was well enough in the past that I can look forward to reading the cooler storylines that I know subsequently come.
The first two issues are great. It’s a moving story about grief and death. It’s one of those stories that I always cite to non-comic book readers who look down on comic books as juvenile, arguing that I actually have found over the years that I spend as much time thinking about the human condition thanks to comic books as I do thanks to “great literature.”
As such, it wasn’t a surprise when I read some interviews by JMS in which he stated that he wanted to take his name off the last two issues of the series. It’s clear -- given the import these issues have on the Spider-Man legend -- that they were written by committee. JMS’ knack with dialogue is on display and he does everything he can to keep the plot believable, but you can tell that the direction of these issues was beyond his control.
The third issue is where we go off the rails because, after all, we’re not dealing with a story about grief and death like we thought we were in the first two issues; instead, we’re dealing with a story about making a deal with the Devil. It’s in this issue where the Devil enters, stage right (and left -- sneaky Devil being two places at once).
The fourth issue is just, well, bizarre. The dissolution of Peter and MJ’s marriage comes in the middle, not at the end. It feels (and is) rushed, because, in the same issue, they’re trying to introduce the new Spider-Man status quo. I get why they did it -- because you want to hook the readers on the fun that the major upheaval you’ve initiated is going to be, before everyone jumps ship -- but Mary Jane deserved better. I’m going on record right now as “Team MJ.”
Going forward, I’ll say that I think it’s going to be hard not to obsess over the details of how Mephisto undoing the marriage of Peter and Mary Jane affects Peter’s life. I mean, I know from interviews that Joe Quesada says that Peter and Mary Jane were together but not married, but it’s probably not that easy. I mean, did they live together? For example, some of the storylines I remember best were the ones when they were living in the Bedford Towers. The Christmas issue (#314) is a great issue; they get evicted (because the guy who kidnapped Mary Jane owns the building), Spidey saves a nice lady who gives him macaroons, and Peter gets to re-learn the meaning of Christmas. But, did that happen? Did it happen, but they were living together and just unmarried?
Some changes are, of course, more obvious, like how Harry Osborn isn’t dead. Clearly, the ripples from the undoing of Peter and MJ’s marriage are spread wide, and, to be honest, I think it’s going to be more distracting than interesting to see what the effects are. (Also, everyone seems...younger. I mean, all this time, we’re supposed to believe that Peter’s still living with Aunt May? I mean, Peter got a place in the city before he married (or, I believe, was even dating) Mary Jane. So, did that happen, or has he been living with Aunt May the whole time? Anyway, again, annoying more than intriguing, I think.
The Good
1) Mary Jane’s comments to Peter at the end -- about how they’ll always love each other -- really added something to the plot. As I said above, I do have to admit that I’m looking forward to seeing how Peter and Mary Jane will eventually find one another again. Joe Quesada can pretend all he wants that it won’t happen, but it will, because, as MJ says, she’s right about these sorts of things. Again, we’re Team MJ here.
2) Straczynski does an admirable job trying to explain why Aunt May can’t be saved, invoking the “because it’s her time” defense. I’m glad he addresses it, because a lot of writers would’ve just glided over the “Hey, how come Jean Grey can come back from the dead a billion times but Aunt May has to die?” question that we were all thinking. (Yes, I know Jean’s only been dead twice and I know more about the Phoenix Force than I care to admit. But, you get my point.) But, it still does ring a little hollow. I mean, I get why Dr. Strange would tell Peter it was May’s time, being all connected to the Universe and, you know, stuff. But, we see Peter approaching people like Mr. Fantastic and Dr. Doom. They know it’s her time, too? Is life like that bad Nickleback video where we all have clocks above our head? Can they all see May’s? Otherwise, I have to believe that Mr. Fantastic would, you know, at least try to examine May before deciding, “Nope, she’s a goner."
The Bad
1) I’m not going to go on a rant about Spider-Man making a pact with the Devil, but let’s just all admit that the big “bad” here is that, well, Spider-Man made a pact with the Devil.
2) I thought Mephisto’s justification for his actions was really overblown and, as such, really detracted from the story. Calling Peter and Mary Jane’s marriage one that comes only once a millennium was really unnecessary. The story was sad and moving when it was just about two regular people who love one another having to do something extraordinary. Adding in the “God will feel pain when I dissolve your marriage” aspect seemed to cheapen their sacrifice. It’s hard to put into words why it bothered me, but I felt it was that scene, more than any other one, where Marvel was trying too hard to justify this decision. You know when you’re using the Devil as your mouthpiece to justify what you’ve done, you’re not in good company. Peter and MJ’s marriage was always interesting because, unlike any other comic I’ve read, the various writers always did an amazing job of presenting what it would be like to be an ordinary person with a husband who was a superhero or a superhero with a wife who was an ordinary person. Their marriage was always the most real of any marriage in comics, and Mephisto making it into something holy seemed to undermine that a little.
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