Spidey Memories#66

5 Comments

1. I took that as Peter not wanting MJ to be hurt by his suffering. This happens a lot with close friends. Rather than see them be dragged down, they try and drive the other out for a while, then apologize later.

   Peter and MJ always loved the other more than they loved Gwen, and this is par the course for how they often deal with personal anguish around one another. As later displayed by Wolfman and DeFalco, this innovation by Gerry Conway would rear it’s head again and again before and during the marraige.

   Mary Jane was always the mature one. I hate when people assume a “party girl” means what it means, it’s usually the best stance to take when you’re around Peter, Flash, Gwen and Harry…who are all admitedly loco. Fans grew to love MJ because she could take care of herself and levitate people’s spirits, and this put the clicnher that she was more than just a free spirit, she was an anchor.

   Oh yeah, and the UK Spider-Man annual that published this doesnt have this scene either. They had no problem keeping the “SNAP” in though

2. @Berserkfury

   You have to understand that Gwen’s corpse was barely cold at the time Peter said this. The wound was still sore so saying that MJ was the mature one here (while implying that Peter was the immature one) wouldn’t entirely be accurate imo. She stayed to comfort a friend in need. But you’re rigt, wat Peter said was way out of line.

3. I remember first reading ASM #122 with the Marvel Tales reprint version, which for some reason does not have this page. Imagine my surprise a few years later when I finally got my hands on the original and saw this page! Why they kept such a crucial page out in the reprint was beyond me. Helped me understand their relationship much, much better.

4. If you read Two Morrow’s publishing book on John Romita Sr., you’ll find out that the issues he inked for Gil Kane such as this one were pretty much redrawn from scratch. It got to the point where Romita had to better fit the script or put the characters back on model because Kane’s style is so distinct and Stan Lee wanted every character to have a classic look to them. So while these issues may say they’re pencilled by Gil Kane, it really is John Romita’s pencils and inks. As if you can’t tell already 😉

5. I find it interesting that MJ is the mature one here. What Peter said was way out of line, and she stayed to comfort him.