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Background
There are bullies. Then, there are the people who want to be bullies, but are
too cowardly to actually take any actions. Instead, they encourage the
bullies, and feed their fire. Seymour O'Reilly is a bully wanna-be.
We first meet Seymour along with the very first appearance of Peter Parker. In
Amazing Fantasy #15, Seymour taunted Peter when he invited a group of the more
popular crowd to a science exhibit: "You stick to science, son! We'll take the
chicks!" and "See you around, bookworm!"
However, it was revealed in a flashback in Amazing Fantasy #17 that Seymour was
childhood friends with Peter Parker, attending his eleventh birthday party
along with Charlie, Sally Avril, Tiny McKeever, Jason Ionello, and Liz
Allan.
They started to drift apart in junior high as Peter showed more interest in
scholastics than social gatherings. At Midtown High School, Seymour was drawn
to the loud, funny, and energetic Flash Thompson. Since Flash took an
instant dislike to the "bookworm" Peter Parker, Seymour followed his lead.
Desiring to earn Flash's approval, Seymour (and others) turned against Peter,
belittling him at every opportunity.
In another high school flashback in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #17 while a punk
named Ernie beat up Parker, it was Seymour who shouted, "Sissy!" Never one to
scuff his knuckles, he was a coward and mean-spirited. Fellow student C. J.
Vogel showed up and distracted the others with jokes, ending Parker's torment.
In Amazing Spider-Man Vol.I #4, as Spider-Man fought the Sandman at Midtown
High, Flash cheered on his hero and Seymour, quick to support Flash, called
out, "Give 'im one for us, pal!" Later, Seymour was laughing at Flash's side
when Peter backed down from a fight.
Alongside Charlie or Jason in Amazing Spider-Man Vol.I #5, Seymour played a
part in
a prank on Peter Parker, where Flash was to impersonate Spider-Man and confront
Peter who had earlier spoken out against Spider-Man to throw off suspicion. As
Peter walked by, Seymour said, "Betcha he'll jump clean out of his skin when he
sees 'Spider-Man'! This'll be the greatest gag of the century!" Running to his
idol, Seymour called out, "Flash, hurry! Parker's walking by along Front
Street!"
As Peter prepared to box Flash in Amazing Spider-Man Vol.I #8 (and teach him a
lesson without hurting him), Seymour helped Peter put on his boxing gloves.
Seymour smirked as he was sure of the outcome of the match. He quickly ran over
to Flash and told him, "Don't end it TOO soon, Flash Boy! Give us a little
show, huh?" However, when Peter did finally throw a light punch that knocked
Flash out, Flash had been distracted by a cry about the rampaging Living Brain.
Seymour cried out, "That was a crummy thing to do, Parker! Poor Flash wasn't
even looking!"
Later when the two criminals, who had unwittingly unleashed the Living
Brain tried to escape, they tripped over Flash as he was bending over and
tying
his shoes. Flash's friends rushed in to see the two men lying unconscious, and
Seymour asked, "Great work, Flash! How'd you do it?" Seymour was as surprised
as the others when Peter showed up and accused Flash of secretly being Spider-
Man and having thrown the fight to avoid suspicion.
When Peter was distracted by his Aunt May's illness in Amazing Spider-Man
Vol.
I #9, Seymour taunted him, "S'matter, teacher's pet? Too busy to answer us
common folks?"
Seymour's first name was finally revealed in Amazing Spider-Man #17. Spider-
Man is invited to attend a meeting of the Spider-Man Fan Club - Forest Hills
Chapter at the Avenue Dinner Club. Seymour is amazed by the turnout, and
expresses his worry to Flash that Spidey may not show up. Flash first calls
him Charlie, but then says, "Bite your tongue, Seymour! He's GOT to be here!"
Why Flash calls him Charlie by mistake is either because he thought Seymour was
Charlie, the other Flash flunkie, he was using the name "Charlie" casually
like "bub" or "pal," or the Ditko drew Seymour where Charlie was supposed to
be. We'll likely never know.
Seymour showed a little more backbone next issue when arguing with Flash why
Spidey ran from a fight with the Green Goblin. Seymour had the nerve to
call
Spider-Man a "professional coward" to Flash's face.
After graduating from Midtown High, Peter Parker did not see Seymour again
until Amazing Spider-Man Annual#17 when Peter attended a high school reunion.
There, Seymour stuck a "Kick me" sign on someone's back and was punched in
return.
Seymour resurfaced again at Peter's second recorded Midtown High reunion a few
years after his previous. In Marvel Knights Spider-Man #7, Seymour and a few
others (including the unnamed Charlie and Ernie) attempted to give Peter Parker
a wedgie while the gym coach took a picture (allegedly to cheer up the ailing
Flash Thompson). When Pete hesitated, Seymour was quick to call him
a "spoilsport." But when the wedgie attack began, Parker easily held them
off. Venom (Angelo Fortunato) burst
in, seeking to make a name for himself by killing Spider-Man. Seymour was
stunned to learn that "Puny" Parker was Spider-Man. Venom grabbed his head and
broke his neck. Peter and Mary Jane testified regarding Seymour O'Reilly's
death to the police in the next issue.
Writer of Marvel Knights: Spider-Man Mark Miller came to Spider-Fan, asking for
a bully (besides Flash) from Peter's
high school days to be killed in an upcoming story. Mike Fichera, Jonathon
Couper-Smartt, Henrique Ferreira, Peter Kroon, Al Sjoerdsma, Bradley Bradley,
Steve Christensen, and Jeff Christiansen all discussed it and Mike mentioned
Seymour, who was always in the background, egging on abuse of Peter Parker.
Jeff
proclaimed "Death to Seymour!" and we came to the unanimous decision that this
cowardly jerk should meet his end...and the rest is history. At first, it was
going to be the Ernie or Jason Ionello who was to be killed in MK:SM #7, but
Seymour had it coming. Mark Millar gave him the last name O'Reilly in Marvel
Knights: Spider-Man #8. Mike suggested the last name "Flannigan." Jeff
would have chosen "Butts."
Thanks To:
This profile was completed with information used with permission from the
Appendix of Marvel Universe
website, mantained by Jeff Christiansen (Snood). If you want to find out about that
odd-ball character you've only seen once, or even about that character you haven't
ever seen, that's the site you're looking for. An impressive amount of obscure
characters await you there! |
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