To the Editor (01-Apr-2003)

 In: Letters > Editor > 2003
 Posted: 2003
 Staff: The Editor (E-Mail)
From Jenn

I've fallen in love with Peter Parker/Spider-Man, so naturally, he fills a lot of my sketchbooks. Along with my darling Spider, I also have a special place in my heart for Felicia Hardy, the Black Cat, so she has some space of her own! Felicia's better suited to him, anyway. ^_^ I thought I'd send you a couple pics for your page... These two are probably the two best of my finished, scanned, and colored work. I can probably send more along as they're finished if you're interested.

My name is Jenn, also known as "The Cat" (it's no wonder I'm a Black Cat fan, huh?)... and if you really need to include the last name, you can use Parker, since I'd rather not disclose my real one. I'm a born and bred New Yorker, and proud of it!

Hiya Jenn. Thanks heaps for the art! We've let the Fan Art updates get a little behind, and so we're featuring your art in a set of nine new contributions this month. Head over to the Fans : Art section to check out new art by Allen Freeman & Quinton Hoover, Jenn, Tony Sklepic, Stephen Doll, Brian Walline, Tom Baker, Bobbie Cole, Jack Ellenberg, and Vincent Globo.

Many thanks to you all!

From Kostas

I am an greek fan of spiderman and also an avid reader. I have been reading all core spiderman titles since 1992 and I have in my possesion more than 300 issues.The reason for this e-mail is to protest for jms's additions to the spider saga.After a wild and frustrating run of a guy named mckie I was expecting something descend.I was dissapointed.

Issue 48 is by far the worst amazing issue since the ending of the clone saga.Peter never relied on the spider. HE IS THE ONE THAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE NOT THE POWERS. HE GAINED HIS NAME BY DEFEATS AND BITTER VICTORIES and he never ever relied solely on a mystcal mumbo jumbo crap.And let me tell you something: the ONLY one who can make spidey go nuts is THE GOBLIN. A lame character like Santhra cant frustrate a guy who'se been in hell and back for more than a hundred times.You gave him 2.5 webs while all he deserves is 0.5 maximum.

Well, different people tell the Spider-Man story in different ways. I myself wouldn't be so quick just to dismiss a story because it was different.

The other thing to point out is that the story isn't over yet. Unlike Mackie, who would make things up and drop them thirty seconds later, JMS seems to have a sense of purpose.

Until I've seen where he's going with this theme, I'm just keeping my final judgement open.

Plus, his handling of Mary Jane's return has been superb, so I'm prepared to cut him some slack until I see what the finale has to hold.

From Dave

greetings...any idea of the status of the final issues of the spiderman blackcat evil that men do series???

Certainly. Current status is very, very late!

From Mike

Just out of curiosity...How have you managed to upload so many cover scans without your hosting provider putting a contract out on you? Do you host yourself, pay a large monthly charge, or have you found someone willing to donate lots of space?

Well, you know the guy who runs AOL? Turns out me and him have exactly the same blood type. Year before last, he got malaria, and both his kidneys failed. Well, a quick transplant operation, and I have unlimited bandwith for the rest of my life. Simple, really.

From JM

Can you please offer any ideas where I can buy an Amazing Fantasy #15 CGC NM way below guide?

Sure. Second star on the right, straight on 'til morning.

From BreedLove

How old is Spider-man, in the book. Mid 20s or so?

Well, he was seventeen years old in 1962, so he's getting on for sixty now.

Actually, this should be a FAQ, but the simple answer is "he's as old as he feels", or more like he's as old as the writer and artist feel he is. These days, he comes across as early thirty-something.

From Marco

Hello, here who speaks is Marco, from Pelotas, RS, BRAZIL. This site is spectacular, as well as the summaries that you do. I am a fan of the spider-man. Even so, when reading your site, I don't get to contain the anxiety, because the current titles that you are reading they arrive here with a year of delay at my country and about the dollar it is very loud, the magazines here are also, then I cannot buy everybody. For you to have an idea, a dollar is almost worth three real (Real is the name of the coin used at my country) and a book gets to cost eight real in my country. That I implore, if you have some corresponding one that speaks Portuguese or Spanish and that could do me through e-mail a brief summary of the last Ultimate Spider-Mans last four editions I would be very grateful, because I don't speak English . Excuse the letter not well writing, but my domain of the English language is very weak.

A great hug.
Marco Antnio dos Anjos

Well, I come from New Zealand, so I know what it's like to live in a third world country with a worthless currency. But I'm sorry, nobody here has the time to transcribe and summarise comics into different languages!

Now, if you were a blind ten year orphan old dying of lukemia, that might be a different story. You're not, are you?

From Berissa

my name is Berissa and I am a bussines student in Edmonton,Alberta, Canada. In order to finish my first year I have to pass the Bussines Communications course which requires a report about a super hero.

I know it sounds weird and believe me it is but I have to do it. The super hero I am writing about is Spider-man. This report will describe four of his characteristics: integrity, energy, allegiance and ingenuity. This is where I got stuck, because my knowledge about Spider-man is very limited.

I hope that you can help me there and give me some material I can work with. Any additional web sites, informations or your own opinion is welcome. Your website is great and helped me a lot.

I would appreciate if you could answer to my e-mail even if the answer is negative.

Well... two pieces of advice. Firstly, when you have to do a research and writing project, I believe that the general idea is that you perform some research, and then some writing.

Secondly, learning to correctly spell the name of any course you are studying is always a very good idea!

From Joe

Dont know who to ask......but does Spiderman ever make any guest appearances around the country?? My Grandson is crazy about him so I wanted to check if he could ever see him in person. Would appreciate any imfo on this.

Well, your best bet is probably to dress up like Black Cat, and sit on top of a gargoyle at the top of the empire state building in Manhattan!

From Nirres

i am doing a paper on the evolution of Spiderman and how he has transformed throughout the years for a college class. I was just wondering if you knew of any good sites or publications that could aid me in my research.

Not really, there aren't any good sites on the net with information on Spider-Man's history.

From DeadManInc

would like to know if u have a comicbook store and i f sell comics online. plus i would also like to know the price of the comic o ur website and on comicspriceguide.com are they the official prices that everyone has to go by or not

last but not least could u pleases give a specific way to become a comic=book artist

Yep, the prices we have are indeed official. If you sell a comic book for more, then you can be convicted for fraud. Sell one for less, and you're facing two to five years for tax evasion. Look, here's some advice. Do not go messing around with comic book prices. Half those guys buying cheap stuff on eBay get picked up at the post office when they go collect their parcels. Face it, it's just not worth the risk!

As for a comic book artist. I guess you have to draw a few comic books, then head 'round the convention scene, and sign stuff. Doesn't sound that hard to me.

From Keith

Anyway, my question relates to the wrestler Spidey faces in Amazing Fantasy 15. You have his name listed as Crusher Hogan. I can't find any other information about him. Did he appear in any other issues? If so is there anything else you can tell me about him? Like was he bitter towards SpiderMan, retire, etc.

He appears in ASM #271 (after meeting Spidey, he's a janitor at a gym), and in Tangled Web #14 (tells the story of his meeting Spidey from his point of view).

The Tangled Web story is just fantastic, although it does introduce a continuity problem regarding Hammerhead. But that's a small price to pay for a great story.

From Jon D

I noticed in your profile section on the Enforcers, you made a statment that succinctly voices the feelings I believe of old time Marvel fans everywhere; the Enforcers, a group near and dear to my heart (at least when I read the books as a kid), were, like so many great characters (the Beetle comes to mind) slowly degraded over the years from being a great villain to being the butt of easy jokes by unimaginitive Marvel writers. The worst of this came in the infamous Deadly Foes books in the FF crossover, where legions of villains deemed "losers" but the new untalented Marvel staff, were easily trounced by the FF members who didn't even bother to get up. (Har dee har har). This theme was carried on in three straight issues! To me this demonstrated how empty of ideas the House of Ideas had become.

I think this trend came from two sources; after years of seeing the characters lose time and again, the writers came to see them as losers, and two, they just didn't know what to do with characters who didn't have straight-forward godlike powers. What they don't realize (or care) is that the readers care about these characters, almost as much (sometimes more) than the heroes they face.

Will Marvel learn this? Probably not, as they no longer read their fan mail. What I want to know is, why are people still reading them? A mass boycott and the bankruptcy of Marvel would be the kindest thing for the characters that the old writers created, and that the new writers mutilate.

Anyway, just wanted to thank you for saying what a lot of us ol'time readers have been thinking for a long time. Too bad Marvel doesn't care anymore.

Hey, don't be too quick on that. The excesses of the nineties, where every comic had to be a number 1 first appearance of some new armoured vigilante fighting team, are long behind us.

The current Marvel titles are actually have a lot to offer. My two cents worth? I think that Marvel, under Joey Q, is a lot more caring about the fans than Marvel has been for many a year. Quality, and plot, are both back on the Marvel roadmap, and I for one am pretty delighted.

We're seeing the return of more quirky protaganists, with more subtle powers. Mr. Brownstone, for example. In Daredevil, Kingpin was defeated by Mr. Silke while White Tiger was defeated by a flawed legal system. Spider-Man just battled Boomerang, Scorpion, and a fairly obtuse robot. All of those stories were doing stuff without resorting to godlike powers.

Marvel has screwed up right royally many times in the past. Let's give 'em a break when they deserve it, eh?

 In: Letters > Editor > 2003
 Posted: 2003
 Staff: The Editor (E-Mail)