Sunday, October 19, 2008

At Least They Spelled My Name Right

A few weeks ago, in one of my trademark moods, I sat down and dashed off a little bit about what really got my goat about "One More Day." But instead of post it here, where my loyal audience of five or so readers would nod and move on, or on the CBR Spider-Man board, which I can only stand in small doses, I dashed it off to the Comics Buyer's Guide letter column.

Well, I got the new issue the other day, and they printed it. But they cut it up all to hell. I understand why they did it, but I think it rather gelded my point.

Fortunately, I can rectify that here.

It's been a little under a year, and I certainly haven't been quiet in enumerating my many problems with "One More Day," but I think I finally figured out what really, *really* bugs me the most about it:

The bad guys won.

Mephisto, of course, got exactly what he wanted: the removal of a deep love and commitment from God's universe (something, by the way, God has seemed awful uninterested in; love that classic comics double standard), and as a bonus, made the lives of Peter and Mary Jane measurably bleaker.

But wait, there's more: Kingpin and those jerks at the CSA, through the near-murder
of Aunt May, are indirectly responsible for this, and have exacted their proper revenge on Peter Parker for his temerity in attempting to thwart their attempts to enrich and empower themselves at the cost of human rights, lives and dignity. That'll show him.

And worst of all, the brass at Marvel, from Joe Quesada on down, have engaged in so odious a sleight-of-mind campaign that it would make Karl Rove salute, and sold this to the readership as a great thing for the character, a mending, a salvation. And, of course, found all too many willing and eager customers.

Norman Osborn is apparently engaged in yet another campaign to destroy Peter Parker as we speak (so much for that promise of "going forward"). Maybe somebody should let him know he's been beaten to the punch.

Michael ********
New York City


Tune in probably-tomorrow-and-if-not-definitely-Tuesday for my response to editor Brent Frankenhoff's response to the Reader's Digest version of my letter. Because I can, that's why.

3 comments:

Matt Algren said...

So what did they cut out? I'm guessing the last two paragraphs.

Michael said...

This is how it appears in the magazine:

"The Day Evil Won
Michael ********

"It's been a little under a year, and I certainly haven't been quiet in enumerating my many problems with "One More Day," but I think I finally figured out what really bugs me the most about it:

"The bad guys won.

"Mephisto, of course, got exactly what he wanted: the removal of a deep love and commitment from the Marvel universe and, as a bonues, he made the lives of Peter and Mary Jane measurably bleaker.

"The brass at Marvel, from Joe Quesada on down, has attempted to sell this to the readership as a great thing for the character: a mending, a salvation. and, of course, found all too many willing and eager customers.

"In "New Ways to Die," the latest story, Norman Osborn is apparently engaged in yet another campaign to destroy Peter Parker. (So much for that promise of "going forward.") Maybe somebody should let him know he's been beaten to the punch."

Matt Algren said...

What a weird edit.