Welcome to our letters page. These letters are answered by Jonathan Couper, who uses them as a chance to sharpen his otherwise dull wit. If you want a serious response, your chances will be increased by posing your question, respectfully, to our Spider-Oracle.
In your bio on the Jackal, you mention that Professor Warren was Peter's biology professor at ESU. However, as I recall, Peter's science teacher back at Midtown High School was also named Warren. (I'm pretty sure he was seen way back in the origin story in Amazing Fantasy #15; don't think he was actually named until ASM #7 or 8 or so.)
It has been a very long time since I've read any of these issues; however, I seem to recall that these two teachers were either the same man or related to each other. Was this true, or am I just getting old old characters mixed up in my old old mind?
You are quite correct. Mr. Warren and Professor Warren were brothers. In fact, an issue of Untold Tales (as I recall) has Mr. Warren introducing Peter to his brother during a High School visit to Empire State.
I was wondering why you don't seem to have any listing for marvel's epic line's "trouble" title, seeign as the four main characters are named may, ben, richard, and mary. Also am I the only person who finds it a bit troubling that if the rumors are true, and these are the same mary, may, richard, and ben...why is richard a popular stud and not the scientific supersmart father we've read about in every spiderman title? Also why is the conservative aunt may played off as a frisky nympho?
There have been strong rumors that these are the same mary may ben and richard, I would just like to see a spot opened specifically for the "trouble" titles, mostly because I am curious as hell as to what you and other spiderman fans think of this. Personally, I love the title as it stands on it's own, but if it is indeed tied to Spiderman I feel it somehow taints that whole wholesomeness Spidey has been made of for forty years, granted I ove shock therapy and feel some things need to be shaken up a bit, but this , if it is indeed tied to Spidey, contradicts everything we have ever been shown about the four paternal/maternal characters, and sheds them either in a bad light or in some way that goes against the characters we have read over the years.
Ben, supposedly a stand tall man who has a bit of a rough spot is seen in trouble issue three getting his but kicked and dunked in a toilet. Richard Parker, a stand tall scince type who was always displayed as being much like Peter is seen in the trouble title as sort of a sexist asshole....It'd be kind of messed up to think that Richard, dad to Peter, was more like old school flash thompson. Heck, he even looks like Peter. I do like how May and Mary both seem to hint at why Peter loves Gwen and Mary Jane so much, they all look exactly alike. Also this would be confusing seeing as May is the pregnant one here...that'd really turn Spiderman into Jerry Springer if May were his mom and Richard was his dad, but Ben is his uncle, Mary was his actual Aunt but played his mom.!
Check out this and last month's PPP, where we do indeed review this title. I have to agree that the story really spits in the face of the classic Spidey characters. Marvel is clearly taking a dip into the modern teen-romance genre, and seems to have decided to suck a few dollars out of their Spidey fanbase to try and get things started.
Personally, I don't enjoy "Trouble" at all, and I resent being tricked into buying it. Marvel should have let the story stand and fall on its own merits (or lack thereof), and should have left Ben, Richard, Mary and May out of it altogether.
I am trying to get in touch with Mark Bagley. I am a counselor at Stripling Elementary in Gwinnett County, GA and would like hime to give a presentation to our students.
Sorry, but I'm not Mark's agent. He works for Marvel, whose website is rather difficult to find, but months of research have revealed it to be at: www.marvel.com.
However, after being fortunate enough to meet the guy at a convention last month, I can confidently say that if you do manage to get him to give a presentation, you're assured of a great success - the guy is mega-talented, very personable, and an all-round nice guy!
HI! Here comes the final version of ZER0 Dawn's fact to ya:
STORY:
In a mental hospital outside New York on Long Island, where the Scorpion is
stuck the whole night personal is killed by a mystical creature and Scorpion
disappears. Peter/Spidey, has a big discussion with M.J about his life as a
superhero. But then Scorpion robbers a bank and kills 12 people. Peter hunts
after him and after a couple of fights Spidey meets Ezekiel again. He warns
about a mystical creature called the Scorpion King which is half Scorpion half
man. It can resist fire, stabbings, and much much more. It is a count down to
the third and last fight between this new creature Ezekiel talked about in ASM
490. This Scorpion King can turn into what it self wants and is impossible to
find. Ezekiel disappears again and after a final showdown against Scorpion
(There Scorpion maybe dies, but it is not sure) Spidey prepares against The
Scorpion King and this time Spidey may not win...
Excellent! On thing I would change... maybe kill 13 people in the bank robbery instead of 12. That would be more spooky!
OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IM PANICING BECAUSE I THINK THE NEW SPIDER-MAN SERIES ON MTV GOT CANCELLED. IM WRITING THIS RIGHT AFTER 2NIGHTS EPISODE(9/12/03 AT 10:36 P.M.) IT LEFT OFF PETER THROWING HIS SPIDER-MAN COSTUME INTO THE WATER AND IT DIDN'T SHOW PREVIEWS FOR NEXT FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! PLEASE IM BEGGING U!!!!!!!! FIND OUT RIGHT AFTER U READ THIS 2 SEE IF IT WAS CANCELLED. I REALLY DONT WANT IT 2 BE CANCELLED I LIKED THE SHOW. I THINK ITS AWSOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!PLEASE FIND OUT AND E-MAIL ME BEFORE FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! P-L-E-A-S-E!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hey, calm down there. It looks like it's just the end of the first series. Of course, many of us outside the US and the UK haven't had a chance to see a single episode yet. Thank goodness for DVD release!
can you please tell me (if you know and want to tell me) when the new spider-man encyclopedia will be for sale in the stores?
We certainly can, and we certainly want to! November the 5th is the date. The book has been printed, and is currently in distribution. Recommended retail is $24.99.
I love the site and all the reviews and news, etc. I would suggest though that perhaps the emphasis on reviews be placed on more improtant titles than Spider-Man 2099 (which I doubt many people actually care about) and picture books that likewise really don't need reviewing. You guys were on the right track when Marvel Team-Up Volume 1 was being reviewed issue by issue but I notice that has stopped. What a shame! A great idea would be to take a discontinued series, like say Web Of Spider-Man, and review it right from the beginning straight on through! Now that would be cool! have Al do an issue or two a month. Wasting review space on Spider-Man 2099 may not be the best thing to do. Of course, that series may have a huge fan base but somehow I sincerely doubt it! Just a thought...
Why do we cover 2099 in our lookbacks, and not Web?
Firstly, because the reviewer themselves chooses what to review. Mike Fichera is a big fan of 2099. Myself, I love collecting kid's storybooks about Spidey, so that's what I cover. Eric loves Spidey Super Stories, Scott digs MTU, while Al loves the good old days of the 60's. Nobody has volunteered to review Web, so... no Web reviews!
Secondly, perhaps you don't recall, but Spider-Man 2099 #1 sold a million copies. Now, perhaps many people bought 10 issues each, as a (misguided) investment. But even so, you can't deny that was a very popular comic, given that most modern issues sell around the 100,000 issue mark.
One piece of good news I can offer... Scott is back with his Marvel Team-Up reviews! This month, we feature 19, 20, and 21. Now, if only we could get Eric back onto Spidey Super Stories!
Are there any small parts availible for Spider-Man 3? If so, where could I get one?
Hey, whose parts are you calling small!
Hi, after reading your review of "1602" i purchased the first issue and loved it, but i'm not sure if i love it enough to spend 3.50 an issue, could you please tell me how many issues they are planning to release, or if there is a price drop in the near future. Also, if it isnt too much trouble, do you know if it is a wekkly, bi-weekly or monthly series?
Eight issues seems to be the general consensus at SpiderFan. Not sure about the frequency, but probably monthly. No, I wouldn't expect a price drop, but we can always hope!
Hi. I'm a huge fan of Spider-Man and Ultimate Spider-Man in particular. Most likely like everyone else, I was confused by the lack of a title in issue #17. However, the other day I purchased the trade paperback third volume which includes #17. I noticed in the table of contents that the title of #17 is "Taking Advantage." It's anyone's guess why the title wasn't included in the original issue, but oh, well. I just thought you'd like to know this little tidbit of info.
Good spotting. Thanks for the info, we've updated our database to show the name for the story!
Click on that link, and tell me I'm not seeing things. www.osborn-ind.com.
Noooo!!! He's back! Quick, drop an email to that photographer at the Daily Bugle, you know, the one that gets all the Spidey pics. Maybe he can warn the web-slinger!
I am located in Miami Florida and I work for my father who is located in Kinston Jamaica. My father owns "Evans Book Distribution Ltd." and is the major distributor of children books for the entire island. We both recently saw some samples of some books at a local Miami store and would like to know if any catalogs are available with your children books of all ages.
Congratulations. You are the third person this month to think that this is the website for Paradise Books. Surprisingly, only two people imagined that we were the website for Marvel this month! But you're all wrong. We're just SpiderFan.Org, and we can't answer for either of those companies! Sorry.
But on the bright side, you have inspired a new entry in our FAQ list... entitled "No, we're not Paradise Books, so sod off and stop asking!"
Dang it! If I get one more letter that's totally unrelated to Spider-Man, I'm gonna have a mental breakdown!
On behalf of the Scouts, Leaders and Committee of Troop 8, First United Methodist Church and the Boy Scouts of America, it is my pleasure to announce that Thomas Yancey Hall has achieved the rank of Eagle Scout and will be recognized at a Court of Honor in Oct., 2003, held at the Church Recreation Center in Bradenton, Florida.
Would you please be so kind as to send Thomas a letter of greeting, along with any other items you wish to be presented to him during this very special Court of Honor?
All letters and certificates received for the Scout will be read and displayed for the guests, and then placed in a special keepsake binder and presented to the Scout.
Wibble.
just out of curiosity, who runs this site?
I dunno, but I wish they'd hurry up and finish this issue of PPP!
Dear sir
I am a year 15 year old student from Glendale High School in Australia and I have to do a project on a business and its products, services etc and I have chose Marvel as the business I would like to do a project on. I was just wondering if you knew where I could find out more information about the history of your company. If you could send me an email with the info it would really help.
Not much to say really. I set up the company a few years back as a front for smuggling black market engine parts over from Asia.
Hmm... you didn't think I had anything to do with Marvel, did you?
In regards to Peter's letter, he is totally off about that comment made about Buffy The Vampire Slayer. A Vampire Slayer was created to be be stronger than every (non-supernaturally enhanced) human in the world. That puts her in the same strength category as Spider-man. I am not biased, I am a huge fan of BOTH characters, but I am quick to point out the facts. The Slayer is stronger than almost all vampires, with the exception of old powerful or exceptionally large Vampires. Spider-man commented when he first encountered Morbius (and Blade) how strong he is. Also in the Buffy episode in season 4 "A new man", Buffy's soldier boyfriend Riley comments (after her landing a kick on him that send him flying ACROSS the room) "You're strong, like Spider-man Strong!" To which she joked that she is but she just doesn't stick to things. I was just pointing all of this out in fairness to both. Thank you.
Well, thank goodness we sorted THAT one out!