Welcome back, everyone! Just a quick reminder of what our goal for each and every Saturday is: Stirring the pot is the act of causing trouble for the sake of your own amusement. So we here at Comic Booked would like to formally invite you to discuss, debate, and start some shit talkin’ about the characters, the creators, and the storylines given to us from the industry we all know and love, hate, and love to hate. So let’s quit wasting time and start the mud (or web) slinging!
This Saturday’s question: Who is your favorite Spider-Man writer of all time?
Are you a classic Stan Lee fan? Do you fancy yourself a Brian Michael Bendis Spidey reader? Does reading stories like Kraven’s Last Hunt make you remember just how much you love the scripting by J. M. DeMatteis? Was it brief storylines written by Joe Kelly or Mark Waid or Zeb Wells that made you love the wall-crawler? Or do you love long-lasting fan-favorite yet controversial runs in Spider history by the likes of J. Michael Straczynski or Howard Mackie? Or did I leave someone out?
So go forth and debate! But be sure to back up your responses. Don’t be scared. And don’t give up. After all, no one likes a quitter. And you’re not a quitter, are you?
I don't know if it really counts, but, back when Ultimate Spider-man was new (and alive), I thought Bendis really killed it. Now it's clear that the reason he writes high schoolers so well is because that's how he writes every character but, back then, it was really some awesome stuff.
It totally counts. That was the closest thing to a modernized Stan Lee Spider-Man, in my opinion, that we've ever come to as the newest generation of comic readers. I loved it. And Bendis, for whatever reason and as much as I despise a lot of what he's written, still writes a good Spidey. In fact, that is the ONLY thing I enjoy in his Avengers run and subsequent event-after-event storytelling approach to his version of the Marvel Universe. Spider-Man, no matter how out of place or how depressed or screwed up, will always be funny. Unfortunately, he ruins every single other character he ever touches. Oh, well. As Bendis would say (as Spidey) after such a long-winded rant: "Oy."
Hands down, it's gotta be J. Michael Straczynski for me. Say what you will about certain shocking aspects of "Sins Past" or even "One More Day," the guy knows how to write a good story. And he was the first writer in quite a while that actually made me literally excited for each and every following issue. And quite possibly the most important part of that feat was the fact that it wasn't just for three or four or twelve issues. It was for years. I miss him. And, quite honestly, I think Marvel misses him. I mean look at it… There hasn't REALLY been a great Spider-Man writer since he left. Sure, there have been occasional "okay" stories and appearances, but for the most part, it's been crap since he left. Granted, he did sort of put Spidey writers in an awkward position, what with retconning a majority of the crappy stories out of continuity and totally confusing any and all potential new readers. But hey, it was a great jumping off point for me, so thanks for giving me a great story and an excuse to save 4 bucks each month, Joe! 🙂
Of course not putting Stan on the top, which is a given, I would have to say that since Brand New Day started we have had some great Spider-Man stories by some very talented writers but for groundbreaking and trailblazing stories you have only to look at what's going on today and that means Dan Slott. He took the concept of 'villain swapping bodies with the hero' and refused to give us the stock ending of the hero pulls out the last second save and things go back to the way they were and nothing more is said. No, with Amazing #700 he pulled the rug out from under all of us and set out on a path that wasn't explored: What If… Spider-Man LOST? The answer is the ever entertaining and exciting Superior Spider-Man.
Not that I want to take away anything from the talents that came before but Dan Slott has been doing some great things with this book not the least of which is showing the fan base exactly how important Spider-Man is to us all. The outrage and hysterics surrounding Amazing #700 and Superior #1 tell the tale better than I ever could. Even those who don't like the current phase of Spider-Man, without even seriously trying it, need to admit that if it wasn't for Slott and what he's doing now no one would really now how important the Web Slinger truly is to Comic Book Fans.
Wait… Skott likes Dan Slott? No way! 🙂