The Marvel Thread

[DrMike2000]

I think this is a pretty cool idea.
If they were saying that Spidey would get a sidekick forever, and this is how its going to be, I'd be sceptical. But its kind of a cool idea for a year or two's subplot, and it does tie into a lot of the key Spiderman themes. Power and responsibility, Peter having been a teacher, guilt over causing the accident and so on.
Its a chance for Peter Parker to grow up by being forced into the mentor role, but in a way that can naturally be reverted when they're done with it. We won't need to invoke Mephisto this time, just have Alpha walk away for good or bad at the end.

[Talavar]

DrMike hits on my problem with it: just a couple of years ago,  'One More Day' was unleashed upon the world, nullifying Peter's marriage through a literal deal with the devil.  Why?  Because having Spider-man be married made him seem too old.  Know what else makes a character seem old?  Having a teenage sidekick.  It's the willy-nilly, back and forth of the editorial decision making that's turning me off.

[Deaths Jester]

You know, when I read that it made me think about the comic Top Ten and their anti-child endagerment law about sidekicks..and the jokes that follow about the guys "kick on the side".  Creeepppppyyyyy!!!

[cmdrkoenig67]

I'm a bit perplexed by Spider-Man's sidekick's name...Is it Alpha?  Really?  I'll be really P'Oed if it is.

Dana

[Previsionary]

I'm a bit perplexed by Spider-Man's sidekick's name...Is it Alpha?  Really?  I'll be really P'Oed if it is.

Dana

Uh, why? DOes it bring you power ranger flashbacks or somethin'?

[Deaths Jester]

I'm a bit perplexed by Spider-Man's sidekick's name...Is it Alpha?  Really?  I'll be really P'Oed if it is.

Dana

Uh, why? DOes it bring you power ranger flashbacks or somethin'?

AHHHHH!!!!  Power Ranger flashbacks!!!  AHHHHHH!!!!  *kicks Prev all karate like for saying those three words.*

[JeyNyce]

If they wanted him to grow up then they should have kept him married and then let him get a sidekick.  The sidekick could have been part of the family, almost like the Bat-Family and he could go off on his own like Robin/ Nightwing did.

[deano_ue]

new issue of avsx thor gut punches a kid

jesus marvel seriously

[Previsionary]

which kid and for what reason?

Also, Peter Parker played the mentor role once... to Spider-girl... his daughter. Marvel has been a bit bipolar with Spidey post-OMD, so I'm not really surprised by any development they take with him.

[murs47]

which kid and for what reason?

Kid Gladiator...who's nearly invincible...like his daddy.

[Previsionary]

That's such a none-issue then. UE, you made me think he punched one of the Avenger Academy kids or Hope. Kid Gladiator is also an alien, so who knows how old that kid really is.

[cmdrkoenig67]

I'm concerned the "flavor of the week" kid's name is Alpha because of Alpha Flight,  my fave superhero team.  Alpha Flight gets little enough exposure and I'm afraid that Marvel will ignore them now in trying to avoid confusion with this new character (as they have in the past with characters of similar or the same name)...I just don't think it bodes well for Alpha Flight, as usual.

[DrMike2000]

Thor's a millenia-old god. 18 years old isn't a huge line to him - almost everyone's a kid in his eyes. He's older, bigger and stronger than almost everyone in the XMen.

Anyway, back to Spidey, I dont think having a sidekick necessarily ages him. Spidey can be more big brother than dad here- its not like he's going to get his butler to make Alpha dinner or adopt him as a ward, more just show him the ropes as a superpowered crimefighter.

[Podmark]

I'm intrigued by this idea. I always had a story in my head of Spidey taking on a young partner.
Like all things it all comes down to the actual story though. I hope the kid's not a little brat.

[Previsionary]

Slott is writing this story, yes? I have avg. hopes then. He seems to be doing a good job on Spidey since becoming the lead writer, so don't knock the idea until you have something actually in front of you to judge. Regardless, it's not like I'll be reading it anytime soon, which is why I'm not making a firm stance one way or another.

[Silver Shocker]

He seems to be doing a good job on Spidey since becoming the lead writer,

That's a matter of opinion. I've heard a lot of criticisms about his run/writing that I think are really valid points.  Personally, I like his run, but it's certainly not without its flaws. A lack of subtlety or nuance in the characterizations/dialogue is one.  And while I think he can spin a good superhero yarn, I don't particularly trust him to write teenagers or high school drama.

Furthermore, if someone's read his previous issues of Amazing and doesn't like it, there's a good chance they won't like the new stuff, and so they're better off passing. I mean, that's how people who don't care for Bendis treat his work, right?

so don't knock the idea until you have something actually in front of you to judge.

That's why we have the preview. So far, I think the character as presented is pretty hard to sympathize with or like, for the reason I listed above: lack of subtlety in the writing. It's all laid on so thick it's hard to take seriously. I'm still going to keep reading Amazing so I'll just have to wait and see what I think of him once he becomes "Alpha". I'm kinda hoping he's not in every arc or taking up too much focus in the plot, because if I don't like him, it really affect how much I'm able to enjoy the book from issue to issue.

[BlueBard]

If they wanted him to grow up then they should have kept him married and then let him get a sidekick.  The sidekick could have been part of the family, almost like the Bat-Family and he could go off on his own like Robin/ Nightwing did.

Ugh.  Tell me you didn't go there, Jey.

Um.  Too late -- you did.

Isn't Peter Parker's life dysfunctional enough without making it official?

[JeyNyce]

If they wanted him to grow up then they should have kept him married and then let him get a sidekick.  The sidekick could have been part of the family, almost like the Bat-Family and he could go off on his own like Robin/ Nightwing did.

Ugh.  Tell me you didn't go there, Jey.

Um.  Too late -- you did.

Isn't Peter Parker's life dysfunctional enough without making it official?

But that was the reason why Spidey was so popular.  He was a superhero with everyday problem, just like the rest of us.  I wouldn't make him dysfunctional as Bats, but it would have be interesting to see how he handles having a wife & a sidekick who he sees as a little brother/ son.

[Previsionary]

No, SS, not everyone ignores or avoids Bendis when they don't like his work, and you know this.

A 5-7 page preview isn't a lot to go on. It's just enough. A full book or arc is a better tool to judge by. With that said, again, I probably won't care in a week or two as I don't read Spidey (or any Marvel books at the moment), so I'll not have a firm stance until I run into the twerp down the line, if ever. As long as he doesn't give me a Hope Summers vibe....

[murs47]

Some details emerge. More will be revealed with SDCC right around the corner, I'm sure.

Uncanny Avengers: (oct 2012) written by [Rick ]Remender. It is going to be the new flagship marvel title and will have among others Cap, Thor, Wolvy, Rogue and Havok in it and both sides will still have some AVX tension.

Avengers (dec 2012): Bi weekly with more then 18 avengers on the team. Written by [Jonathan] Hickman with one shot stories and longer galaxy spanning multi-issue arcs

X-men: (nov 2012) hold on to your hats...... Bendis!!! about the original five x-men time-travel two the present in a pleasantville style story and who are not going to like what they see once they are in the present and will find it unacceptable. Bendis says the time travel aspect of the story is not as important as the character based drama.

[Previsionary]

Bendis should be nowhere near the O5 X-men. That's awful. I long for the time where he claimed he couldn't write X-men because he was too ignorant of them. Considering how weak the O5 were as compared to what they became, maybe he'll tone his usual tendencies even though he went to one of his time honored tropes of time hopping.

[Talavar]

Uncanny Avengers might well be good, with Remender on it, and regular Avengers might even be readable again.  I'll pass on Bendis X-men though.

[murs47]

Apparently this is Marvel's response to DC's nu52 reboot, called Marvel NOW.

More info here.

After reading the article, I get the sense that there will be no consequences for either side of the AvX event. I'm hoping that's not the case.

[MJB]

I really don't have a horse in this race, I gave up buying Marvel comics a long time ago. BUT I do want to weigh in on some of the (supposed) costume re-designs.

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=39525

From top to bottom...

Spider-Man: I'm a fan of the smaller bug eyes on the mask but this may just be Quesada's style for Spidey these days. I do miss the stripes that ran down his arms connecting his shoulder pattern to his gloves but it's not a deal breaker. I guess this brings the 616 costume closer to the animated Ultimate Spider-Man.

Hulk: He. Does. Not. Need. Armor. Moving on...

Thor: Cape-less Thor makes Meejub sad. He just looks like something out of Lord of the Rings or something now. Generic.

Cable: Not big on the red/black costume or the eye patch but I honestly could care less.

Marvel Girl: It's just the classic X-men uniform. I couldn't yawn loud or hard enough to express my emotions.

Nova: I preferred his costume from his last solo series but this isn't all that different. Color me "meh".

Iron Man: No. Just... no. The comic versions of Tony's armor have been in a steady decline since they dropped the armor design that inspired the look for the original IM movie. I do not like this new design.

Invisible Woman: Looks like her Future Foundation uniform. Fine by me.

Nick Fury Jr: I was a fan of Steve Rogers S.H.I.E.L.D. look. Having Jr. pick up the uniform is putting a good design to use.

Cyclops: Not an X-men fan by any stretch of the imagination. My views may be skew but that costume is just terrible. The John Cassady Astonishing X-men design was perfect. It was simple and really drew the focus to his visor. This much red piping really makes his power source just blend into the coloring.

Captain America: I may be one of the few that actually misses the Bucky-Cap design. Changing Caps look to fall inline with the movie version seems to be a step backward. I get that they want the character to be more recognizable to kids who watched the movie but I don't think that was a real problem. I don't hate this look. Again I'm "meh".

Wolverine: Doen't look like they changed much. Moving on.

Rocket Racoon: I'm not terribly familiar with his original costume but this is really close to the design, right? I miss his Guardians of the Galaxy red/black costume. Made him look hard core. :p

[cmdrkoenig67]

Spider-Man doesn't look bad, but Cyclops' x visor/helmet thingy is stupid beyond stupid.  I agree with MJB, Marvel Girl (is that Jean? If so, why is she calling herself Marvel Girl) wearing the original X-Men outfit is yawn-worthy (although, I find Cable being back is be yawn-inducing as well).  Thor needs swords now? Again I agree with MJB...Hulk in armor (ugh)?  I'm tired and don't even want to comment on the rest...Bleh.

Dana

[Tomato]

Rules say I can't make one word posts, but really, in this case... "Ew" just about sums up my reaction.

[Previsionary]

She calls herself Marvel girl because that's her codename, Dana... and she's from the past. Did you, like, not read the descriptions? Young man, go sit in the corner.

[Podmark]

Haven't had a chance to read any of the articles but I'm not impressed so far. New costumes look pretty ugh from this image, and Bendis on Avengers plus (more) X-Men on an Avengers team doesn't fill me with positive vibes.

Ultimately my opinion will be based on 1. Books I like continuing (ie Wolverine and the X-Men, Avengers Academy) and hopefully something being announced that I'll be really into.

[laughing paradox]

I love the idea of X-men.. well, mutants.. being in the Avengers. It makes total sense.

Yes, Scarlet Witch was a long standing mutant member of the team, but she never fought for mutant rights and acceptance. Neither did any of the other mutant Avengers. Mutants could use all the good PR they could get, which would mean getting some on the number #1 loved super-team, the Avengers. The X-men did it without much fanfare, which is something they needed. Why did they never have a publicist in the old days?

Havok and Rogue being on the Avengers, done by Remender? Sign me up! If only Havok could rock his original costume, tho..

The original X-men time traveling, tho? I'm not a fan.

[Podmark]

I'm not against mutants being on the Avengers. But what I don't like is abruptly moving characters to completely different books. It would appear to break off their ongoing plots/status quo. Take Rogue, she's going to be an Avenger now, but will she continue to appear in any X-Men books? What about her relationship with Magneto and Gambit, will these be abruptly dropped?