What's going on with Spider-Man comics? (Podcast)

[@Hawksmoor42]

44:00 Being aware of the writing is my biggest problem with the "What did Peter do?" "mystery" box. All the characters know what happened, yet they unnaturally dance around the specifics in any conversations that happen. It's clear that it's only because the writer isn't ready for the audience to have those specifics yet, and it sticks out like a sore thumb.

[@koushikraja331]

The most relatable superhero, everybody. Won't have a married regular life but fights against devils, demons and his own clones who went nuts!!!

[@dn22pkkdd476]

Seems reasonable

[@greggoat6570]

And he was a billionaire

[@Just_Some_Guy_with_a_Mustache]

Somewhere between worrying about Spider-Man undoing the undoing of his marriage because of the Devil-adjacent, him dealing with more clones of himself, and the sins of his enemies being blasted out by way of magical shotguns is where I thought to myself "Something's a little off, here"...

[@matt15]

I would do ungodly things for Spidey comics to just be simple stories about Pete and MJ living their lives and dealing with day to day stuff

[@JoeChillton]

The Sin Eater isn't just some psycho with drugs in his brain but now has a shotgun of magic?? K

[@NelsonMandela1million]

@@matt15 Just read comics that were made before One More Day.

[@greggoat6570]

That’s what I do!

[@richmcgee434]

@@matt15 Mephisto: "Ungodly, you say? I'll be right by with a contract for you. Say, you aren't married, by any chance? Just asking."

[@draiseg6178]

Sal= Flannel Joel= Inmate 💀

[@dlvnmedia]

Nah the material on Joel’s shirt is too nice for inmate wear - just saying

[@joedee9811]

Lol was thinking the same thing. Glad Joel’s back or at least able to chat from his cell

[@KickedBackL]

Lumber Jack Vs Convict 💀

[@ThorgisArcade]

Every time that I think about starting to read Marvel again I make sure to check what's going on with Spider-Man first, and yeah let's just say there's a reason I haven't read Marvel in three years. Great show guys.

[@mikesetzer9379]

I’m glad to see Joel back with Sal! Literally years having y’all in my ears 😅

[@MichelleAlexandria-EM]

I just want Peter to be a functioning adult for more than 5 or 6 issues like the rest of his friends. Would like to see him interact with his Hero friends like the Torch, Wolverine, etc more and bring back the FUN.

[@greggoat6570]

It’s hard to articulate to people outside of comics that 30 years ago Peter Parker was a married guy with usually a stable income and his shit mostly together just to balance it all with being a super hero, and that he has in the intervening years been completely devolved into a bumbling perpetual fuck up that also slays pussy somehow.

[@jeppyjep]

We need to bring back Renew Your Vows

[@hobbes6392]

1:05:20 this I why the current Moon Knight run is so good, a story is being told but each issue is a story in itself and we’ve had a couple of one off stories. It’s just classic old school comics and it’s just been a treat

[@sabertoothsentry1418]

Moon Knight is so good right now. I don't think I've felt a slump in it. Mackay's been proving to be a favorite for me.

[@velemamba260]

I think Sal hit the nail on the head when he talked about wanting to be able to just take a break. I don't mind changing status quos as much as he does, but I want a status quo to actually BE a status quo. I like when comics actually have stable footing and every story and run isn't trying to be the next big thing. If everyone is coming in trying to set the world on fire, then the world is always on fire. That's not good.

[@dn22pkkdd476]

1:10:53 "I'm not interested in The Mayor" *(Sitcom outro theme plays)* *(freeze frame)* *(laugh track)* *(roll credits)* *Comicpop Returns has been made possible through viewers like you!*

[@kemmdog4444]

Nice to see Joel matching his shirt with the Comic Pop Returns border.😊

[@dn22pkkdd476]

22:00 Thank You! This is the exact reason. All the creative teams on ASM we've had have been great. But when you're fighting an uphill battle against an un-movable editorial, who will fuck with your story as "punishment" there is only so much you can do. It's probably why so many writers have changed so much about Spidey's continuity recently, and most of it has stuck around, but the giant albatross of OMD means that the main character can only progress so far. Peter's world changes around him in some crazy ways, he has even made small steps in character growth. But as soon as we get any momentum in one direction, editorial comes in to shut it down, or throw a wrench in the story to keep readers in a constant state of "anger buying". Tom Breevot's old philosophy of "an angry reader is a loyal reader, whose rage will do the marketing for us" (paraphrasing) has run its course and has now become actively detrimental to the titles.

[@brendanobrien8198]

The current nightwing run by Taylor is a great example for a status quo book. It’s been 23 issues and we’re still living in the moment and loving our time with dick Grayson

[@ShatteredTrousers]

Wholeheartedly agreed! And that's the reason why Nightwing is the only monthly superhero book I buy anymore, because it gives me exactly what I have been asking for.

[@rabl3535]

He really turned it around after that period from Tom King’s Batman #55 up to his taking over which never happened

[@comixproviderftw_02]

Rek-Rap looks like Spider-Cide mixed with a Ninja Turtle

[@dn22pkkdd476]

As a fan of both those things, I am OK with this.

[@boombach1863]

It’s really cool that Joel joined us from his prison cell

[@dlvnmedia]

I have to say that Joel is looking pretty well put together this episode. I for one am glad to see it.

[@camsenses5140]

I love when they do those “Real, Live, Friday, Live Also” episodes of the Elseworlds Exchange!

[@sabertoothsentry1418]

I feel like Wells either had no idea what happened during the six months, or editorial put a stop to it and he had to scramble to find a new answer. It's taking to long to get there and the answer will never satisfy anyone.

[@matt15]

15:10 I really enjoyed Beyond, giving Peter a break, and all of the stuff about the beyond corp I really enjoyed. I was super hyped to see what they did afterwards but they definitely squandered it

[@kazual6149]

Couldn't agree more about taking breaks from a series if needed. No matter how much you enjoyed a book or for how long. If the current direction isn't your cup of tea, there's no need to force yourself to read it. There's plenty of other books out there you can spend your time reading that you'll enjoy 10x more. Doesn't have to be a big 2 book or something current. Instead of making yourself angry, use these moments to try something new.

[@ggameboy10]

I really like when mj has a solo book for a few issues. It showed that she is interesting in her own rite.

[@greggoat6570]

She’s a great character, all these writers that rail against her are just hung up on a preference for blondes and/or the fact that outgoing attractive girls like Mary Jane didn’t notice them in life.

[@thepanelbiter9915]

1:15:30 it sounds like Sal just wants simple, evergreen books. I can’t say I agree, but I too am burnt out on the state of most characters.

[@leebyram6014]

Since Norman has reformed... still odd there is no mention of his having taken peter baby by that mongrain woman. which i still think his child is alive somewhere

[@warioskapelli3100]

58:55 you know what, i could see that working considering how many times writers have teased the idea of Peter & MJ being a couple again after OMD. Heck, Dan Slott did it twice in his run. Once during Spider-Island and another during Superior.

[@daelen.cclark]

Marvel just can't let Peter grow, so the creators have to bend over backwards to keep the book interesting. (Even then, it's more than challenging for even the greatest, let alone the mediocre.)

[@thederpiestofderps]

I don't know if you guys saw this post but there's a theory running around that the guy that MJ is with is named Paul because it's referencing an old proverb talking about is it right to indebt one man to take another out of poverty. In the story where it comes from the two men are literally named Peter and Paul.

[@keenanmeyer5511]

I was watching Absolute Comics and was thinking how much I missed the Joel/Sal collabs. Glad I poked around YT lol

[@Eddysonsan]

Joel looks like an escaped convict

[@middle_pickup]

I'm soooo behind on Spider-Man (like 2012) that I don't even know what you guys are talking about, but love the show! haha

[@shinobibrogan091]

I’m actually a very new X-Men fan and I’m in love, all of the Krakoa era is super interesting and captivating to me. Even though some is less good than other parts I still love it for what it is.

[@mayotango1317]

Is sad that they make the X-men into Inhumans.

[@noahgambriel6556]

I just added Superman and action comics to my pull. That it.

[@Narutotaku93]

Sometimes I feel like I'm the only one who enjoyed what Nick Spencer was doing with Spider-Man. I would have liked to see where he would have gone with the character if he had a little more time.

[@superjlk_9538]

Most liked what he was doing. The problem was that it took way too long. A lot of his run was filler in the latter half and the conclusion wasn’t worth it because editorial stepped in

[@TevyaSmolka]

I personally liked nick spencer Spider-Man run it was really good.

[@dn22pkkdd476]

It had the same problem as Beyond. A good story, that made interesting and fun choices with the main character, introduced new antagonists, revamped a few old ones, added to the continuity without being destructive, and then the ending hits and it all goes to hell. Even Spencer's Kindred reveal felt like some of the major details that would have made it all work, were changed from the penultimate to final issue.

[@superjlk_9538]

@@dn22pkkdd476 Kindred was definitely supposed to be the original Harry and then editorial made him change it to the twins every wanted to forget about

[@flerken4233]

@@superjlk_9538 Nah my guess is that the original reveal was supposed to be a One More Day retcon, and the twins weren't there at all. So when editorial forced him to change it, he decided to retcon the 2nd worst Spider-Man story, One More Day, and Spencer himself forced them in just to push out the retcon. Which... at least he tried I guess... but man was Sinister War god awful.

[@matteverard7665]

For me, Ultimate spider-man was my first arc, and it remains one I still collect today!

[@kylecarter1599]

We didn't get the "what did Peter do?" story because of editorial and A.X.E. and Dark Web. I'm pretty sure I heard that in an interview Sal did on this channel.

[@fearvlaire5399]

Glad to see Joel back!

[@dn22pkkdd476]

Love this conversation. It's pretty balanced. And both of you actually know your shit, unlike some of the reactionary "comic yourubers", who just take an out of context panel and act like it's indicitive of the whole story. ComicPop and it's adjacent channels have put out lots of content, that is backed by a high standard of quality research and knowledge. Keep being awesome. As someone who does like the current direction of ASM (not really enjoy, just like), it could be soooo much better. I honestly understand why people would jump off the book. Having one mystery box (that was horribly botched at the last issue, despite some good moments) be followed up almost immediately by another long running mystery box is a horrible idea. And while I can argue that any hero could (and should) easily become a bad guy, Chasm seems all over the place. He has already come off a stint being evil, and then an a very short run as an anti-hero. No matter how much I kinda like the new version of Ben's character and his killer suit, it's way too soon to do it all again. Being a 90's clone saga fan, i'm hoping for some Parker Bros stability after this. But I am not optimistic that will happen for a long while. Also where the fuck is my boi Kaine?

[@Michael-tn9wp]

I was an occasional Spidey reader growing up with ASM, Spec, Web, and SP. The idea (execution?) was each book had a different focus, action, family, etc. Why not give the books such focus again? ASM is the flagship, Spec is wild, Web is family. 3 Spidey books ought to be enough, no?

[@Peecamarke]

Great vid guys, glad to have the OGs back 👍🏿

[@matiasmendoza9274]

Spider-Man on a pirate ship: New story arc by Sal 👌

[@digisplosion]

I went into the recent comics expecting the worse and I was kinda won over by the current writing. I see plenty of issues though. Rek-rap has grown on me since I saw a spoiler of him. Hes a dork and I love it

[@superjlk_9538]

I actually like the books when they don’t bring up MJ or “six months ago”. I’m tired of Peter and MJ being broken up for the sake of sales figures

[@flerken4233]

Ngl if I forget EVERYTHING that has been happening with Ben the last few years I'm actually enjoying Dark Web. Although "Chasm" is literally just OG 90s Venom. A character with an over the top personality and strange powers that hates and wants revenge on Spider-Man for a stupid reason. And also knows Peter's identity.

[@michaelcurry7454]

I'm as surprised as anyone, but I've been enjoying Dark Web quite a bit. I think it's fun. Maybe my standards are low. But when I compare this to something like Absolute Carnage, this has been a better time.

[@sabertoothsentry1418]

Chasm is a terrible, incompetent villain you say? Sounds like a case of Parker Luck.

[@sandywest4977]

What I want from Spider-Man...TO BE AND ACT LIKE A GROWN MAN . LIFE IS HARD NO MATTER HOW MUCH MAN CHILD YOU ARE

[@skyyswaggstudios2934]

I agree reading older Spider-Man is really fun, especially as someone that is new to most of the old stuff, like reading the roger stern stuff rn is just damn good Spider-Man comics compared to hearing about all the current stuff

[@superjlk_9538]

I think this current run has great potential of you get rid of the MJ and “six months ago” subplot. It just drags the story down for me

[@ADifferentLens2345]

You'd still have the problem of Peter dick riding Norman. MJ is important to the book, but needs to be with Peter. The book doesn't work without her

[@rabl3535]

Dark Web came out of nowhere and Ben Reilly’s new identity is something I find so dumb I now call him “Canyon”. It’s the “Drake” of Marvel and hopefully lasts as long.

[@spdrwrtr]

I would buy the HELL out of a DD/Spider-man mini set in the 80s. Just make it fun, that's it; I don't care who the villain is, just make it where Pete and Matt are buddies and I'm there, ready to buy issue 1

[@ahmadkaien]

This is why I think you should let stories just end. Let the characters exist and maybe we could have more in time but I just don't know why we constantly have to have more peter Parker Spiderman without a break.

[@theverminator4219]

“What’s going on with Spider-Man comics” well…nothing good🤣🤣

[@Stoopid_Sandwich]

You know what would make me happy right about now? What if we had some good ol’ 90’s style inter-company crossovers featuring Spider-Man that just made Spider-Man feel like a hero again? You could have a couple of books featuring Peter, Miles, Miguel and even Ben just doing their thing in the roles that people know and love, teaming up with characters like Batman, Superman, Spawn or the Ninja Turtles or Power Rangers or G.I. Joe or the Legends of Tomorrow or even Gargoyles if you wanted. It would make for a nice little Palate cleanser and give readers the chance to say “Hey, Look at that!” And in the meantime let the main Amazing book go on a bit of a hiatus for 6 months to a year and just let these crossovers take over in the mean time. Then when that’s done, you start Amazing over with new numbering and a new editorial team who can come in and relaunch the book with a clean sweep

[@wanderingrogue3039]

Yay Joel's back

[@genericavatar5785]

My idea for spiderman is a global adventure without his usual support cast(like mj or j.j.jamson) and teaming up with other heroes across the world.

[@mayotango1317]

Dan Slott did thay and fail.

[@MichelleAlexandria-EM]

Once Superior happened, I stopped reading comics. Why so many people loved that garbage is beyond me.

[@comicswithmurdock]

I definitely agree with you guys the Miles Morales run is a lot better than ASM right now

[@Luisramirez-cn7hi]

Boom did several serie of pete, miles, and spider-Gwen all in high school learning the ropes. They're a lot of fun 😁

[@TevyaSmolka]

Personally all I want is peter Parker and Mary Jane to have there daughter mayday Parker spider girl alive and kicking in the main marvel universe.

[@UltimatePower01]

“Face it Tiger, you just hit the jackpot”-> slot machine powers. Only narrative thread so far.

[@redheadmedia7901]

I apologize if I'm speaking out of turn. Everything I know from the comic book industry is purely from this channel and a little bit of listening to the comicstorian. But the problem with Spider-Man, and comics as a whole, I think lies in the formula itself. The way comic books are run I don't think works anymore. Spider-Man in the Amazing continuity is just a broken character that's already reached the heights of his narrative potential. I think any truly great Spider-Man story is going to come from Elseworlds style books or from the small or big screen. Simply because when you're working on television or movies or an out of continuity book, typically the writer has a lot more control over the story and there's the added benefit of being able to pick and choose what past you want for Peter. Just look at Imsoniacs Spider-Man as a good example. That Peter clearly has history but it's very different from what we have in the comics. That team is able to tell whatever story they want and pick and choose what from the comics they want to carry over. I truly think that the future of comics should be smaller in scale. No massive shared universes. And if there is a shared universe, it should all be dictated by one guy. Give a big marketing push to the new era of comics, give your top books to great creators and they form their own universe within their books. Kinda like how manga does it. One writer. One creator. Better stories being told. I know it sucks to lose the big shared universe, but it's unsustainable. There's never a good starting point. And nothing matters because it'll be retconned, rebooted, or ignored by other writers.

[@ADifferentLens2345]

At this point, I'm just enjoying the Lost Hunt series, that's the real continuity to me, and Wells and OMD etc were all just bad dreams Peter has in that story. Marvel need to use Lost Hunt to reset the canon, Ben is Spider-Man, Peter is married with a pregnant MJ etc. Nothing's felt right about the book since the Clone Saga ended.

[@robertmckinnon7003]

Finally, a Joel Show.

[@comicpopreturns]

Joel has a whole channel just for you.

[@ILoveRavenclaw9]

joel is very handsome

[@CapedJoel]

thank you

[@jakester1115]

The first volume of Wells run was actually pretty cool but it got meh af and then Dark Web started and it’s SO DUMB😭😂

[@seanprice4218]

I've missed yall doing a show together 😭

[@armandotorres8962]

Sal seems smart and brought up many good points, but it feels like he doesn’t want permanent change? I like the fact that there is a Bat Family and other Spider people. If there isn’t we’re stuck with the same story all the time. I

[@JoeChillton]

Did Joel escape from Arkham to rag on the state of the Spider Man? 😂 I thought this comic was getting serious but nope

[@matyG101]

They need to stop double shipping spider-man

[@Hi_Just_Fred]

I'm literally just here hoping to know what's up with that weird mutant Spider-Man pic I've been seeing. Ah, random demon Peter helped. Got powers from the evil clones. Symbiote magic stuff. K then.

[@wanderingrogue3039]

17:30

[@gamemasterbob9]

Zeb wells is really good, but please stop this what happened to Peter mystery

[@yabbadabbindude]

Miss these. And why tf is spiderman a battletoad

[@sandywest4977]

Why can't someone show the love and care that Stan Lee showed for Spider-Man?

[@SirenChats]

Poor Spider-Man

[@edg4441]

Spider-man has been a huge disappointment and they rebooted "The Amazing Spider-man" (TASM) again last year in 2022 with Volume # 6. The 15 issues of the new volume were OK, but that comic's storyline has gone in a weird direction again.

[@themaker2149]

I'm in a weird spot with spiderman I stopped reading amazing when Peter got rich and came back with beyond. On one hand I hate what is going on with Ben but on the other since I took a couple years break I'm not hating this as much a I probably would if I hadn't walked away fit awhile. Do I like what is going on not really but I'm still willing to wait and see what Peter did I just wish we had a better artist on the book

[@benjaminloudly]

Just clicked to see wtf that was in the thumbnail. Had no clue.

[@EckerKyle]

41:35 Wreck it Ralph?

[@robertmccarthy2254]

I was actully glad to quit reading comics. I had trouble spending money on stuff that was'nt very good. Spider-man? Aunt may need to Die Why? Because we could'nt have a marrige because he needs to be 25? Well good May's been dying since 1962 VENOM KILLS HER. HE THINKS SHE works with ock. cops think spidey did it FIGHT so big even Sipder-man thinks he killed venom. THAT'S ALL i got

[@mickeymouse7726]

What's going on with Iron Man comics

[@Burneye31]

Tom Taylor would be a terrible choice! I like Zeb Wells I thought his run would be far better than what it’s been, and Issue 17 is awful imo but I’m still optimistic

[@ouchseeker6165]

Whatever happened to kain Parker ?

[@Draliseth]

Can someone please explain the monstrosity on the thumbnail?

[@Sicod79]

umm...nothing good?

[@josemayorga9009]

They need to stop giving John romita jr main titles to draw one of the major reason this book is not good is the art Spider-Man needs a top artist he deserves it jr jr isn’t the artist he used to be he’s lost a lot of detail in his work for speed and it shows

[@TevyaSmolka]

Rek rap is such a terrible character

[@TickleMyNonos]

I thought of something when you said "what do I want to see with Spiderman" and I thought about it, I think I/we want to see Peter finally happy without ripping it all away from him immediately. They should have an epic story where Peter finally faces down his fears/regrets and fights and iconic foe like green goblin or something, and then at the end of it have him ride off into the sunset with Mary Jane and let Peter be absent for a few years real time . There's so many Spider-family characters to take his place, let Peter Parker figure his life out and let readers get a break, and then when you bring him back in two or three years the comic will sell gangbusters and they'll have had time to perfect arcs in the meanwhile, and maybe even have Peter live in New Jersey or New York but not NYC so he can pop up in random events even, which would also boost those event sales. Peter Parker Spiderman is hands down my favorite character ever, but they've done him dirty for so long, including Superior Spiderman and before