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Marvelous May – Ms. Marvel vs Spider-Gwen
Welcome back to Marvelous May! Sorry this is a little late, but I got maybe just a little distracted by the reveal of the new Pokémon yesterday. Also, I kinda donated my hair. Basically, you put your hair into a ponytail once it’s long enough to make an 8 inch ponytail, cut it off, and then mail it to have it and a few other ponytails converted into a wig for people that have had chemotherapy. And I felt so good after doing that, honestly, I think I might just do it again, although it’s going to take a LONG time to get it back to that length again… … …Anyway, Kamala Khan, AKA Ms. Marvel, vs Gwen Stacy, AKA Spider-Woman!
This is actually a bout that I wish could’ve been saved for at least the semi-finals, if I can be 100% honest. And here’s why: We’re currently in the middle of a new age in Marvel. Regardless of why they chose to do so, whether it was out of a genuine desire to be more inclusive for the sake of new readers or out of wanting to make more money, the fact is that we’re seeing a lot more diversity in Marvel’s starring roles, and a lot of new heroes being pushed to the top. Admittedly, not all of these have been perfect attempts. I still think there have been some serious missteps with the new Thor books, for example, and while I appreciate Sam Wilson being pushed as a big deal and keeping the more traditional shield, the fact that we’ve got two Captains America is weird and I honestly don’t think anyone would REALLY be offended if Sam was referred to as Lieutenant America. But, for me, the two books that have really gotten this formula right are Ms. Marvel and Spider-Gwen. For me, these are the two who, when the old guard eventually hangs it up and calls it a day, will be the ones we look to as the heroes of our age.
I’ve gone on and on and on about what I like about Ms. Marvel in the past, so I’ll try to keep it brief here. Put bluntly, she is both a shining role model and heroine to all Muslim people in the real world, as well as someone that the average reader can identify with and love. She has trouble fitting in with both her family and her peers, she has a great sense of humour and wit, she likes a lot of geeky stuff, she writes fanfiction, she loves heroes, and she oftentimes makes mistakes that requires either quick thinking or the admission to her peers that she needs help to get out of. In a lot of ways, she’s the modern-day Peter Parker in that she’s immediately identifiable to the reader. Hopefully, though, when she eventually grows up, she actually acts like an adult, as opposed to the mainstream Peter Parker, who is a man-child, even after obtaining his own international business.
Speaking of being like Peter, though, Spider-Gwen works as a great alternate take on the mythology of Spider-Man. While this version of Gwen Stacy isn’t exactly like the one we knew way back when, she nonetheless is a great and likable character who finds herself in similar dilemmas to the mainstream Peter. She’s being pulled in a lot of different directions and is seen by some as an outlaw, and has to try to find out for herself what the right thing to do in each scenario presented is. And I love how her Peter is the Uncle Ben of her story: The one whose death ultimately taught her that with great power comes great responsibility. It was something that was done with Miles Morales, the Ultimate Spider-Man (which I don’t know why they dropped the Ultimate part of his name, even with the loss of his old universe, just to further keep his book distinct from Peter’s), but it’s done in a new way that honestly makes me wonder if things would’ve been any different in the mainstream universe if Peter WASN’T the one to get the spider bite.
But here’s the really big reason why this match means something to me personally: Currently, due to money constraints, G. Willow Wilson’s Ms. Marvel and Jason Latour’s Radioactive Spider-Gwen are the only two Marvel books I’m buying. Well, okay, I’m not actually buying either one right now, but that’s because I switched over to buying the trades when they come out. My point is, these are the only two properties by Marvel that are earning my money, not counting the movies (speaking of, Captain America Civil War was AMAZING, and I FAR prefer it to the event comic Civil War). So, should voting for this match end in a tie, I have no idea who to break the tie for. But hey, that’s all part of the excitement, am I right?
Anyway, time to begin voting! Make sure you get your votes in before May 17th, when we’ll learn who the winner of this match-up takes on in the semi-finals. Also, feel free to click the links below to learn more about these two heroines, and check back in tomorrow for the final match-up of the second round. Ja né!
http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Kamala_Khan_(Earth-616)
http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Gwendolyne_Stacy_(Earth-65)
https://ladygeekgirl.wordpress.com/2015/03/19/spider-gwen-is-back-and-its-everything-i-wanted/
Marvelous May – Spider-Gwen vs Mayday Parker
Welcome back to Marvelous May! I’d just like to point out that I set up this tournament using a generator I found online, and I didn’t know which seeds would face each other, so this is actually completely random. Nonetheless, we do in fact have a battle between alternate universe Spider-Women: Gwen Stacy of Earth-65 vs Mayday Parker of Earth-982!
Spider-Gwen
In the mainstream universe, Gwen Stacy is probably best remembered as one of Peter Parker’s most prominent love interests (which is saying something, considering how many of them there are, and that even Captain Marvel can be counted among them), whose life tragically came to an end the day Green Goblin threw her off a bridge. However, in an alternate universe, things happened very differently. Gwendolyne Maxine Stacy of Earth-65 was once an ordinary girl with a love for music, acting as the drummer for a band called The Mary Janes. But her life was changed the day she was bitten by a radioactive spider and was granted superpowers. She can cling to and crawl along walls, she has superhuman speed, strength, agility, and balance, but most amazing of all is the Spider Sense, a sixth sense that warns her of danger and can grant her omnipresent detection of her surroundings, though it’s up to Gwen to react appropriately to it. She was also given a costume and web-shooters from her world’s Janet van Dyne, allowing her to web-swing across town or ensnare targets in webbing. At first, Gwen saw being Spider-Woman as a thrill only, loving her newfound fame, until the day her best friend, Peter Parker, depressed from a life of everything constantly going wrong for him (so I guess that’s one thing that’s universal no matter which Peter Parker it is) and in awe of Spider-Woman, decided to make a change. He was transformed into the Lizard, but lost control and ended up in a fight with Gwen, which resulted in his accidental death. Through this event, Gwen realized the lesson that all those with the Spider name must inevitably learn: With great power comes great responsibility. With that lesson in mind, Gwen opted to become a better hero, one that her city deserved. Having learned a lot about detective work from her policeman father, and possessing an analytical mind, she put these to use with her new gifts to make herself a better Spider-Woman, one who would protect her city from any threat that came its way.
Mayday Parker
May ‘Mayday’ Parker is the daughter of her world’s Peter and Mary Jane. Yeah, remember back when Mary Jane was pregnant during the Clone Saga? Well, in this universe, she actually had the baby, though she was abducted as part of a plan by Green Goblin. Eventually, a fight broke out between Spider-Man and Green Goblin, which resulted in the Goblin’s death and Peter losing his leg. With a new bionic leg given to him by Mr. Fantastic, Peter decided to quit being Spider-Man and keep his life as a hero a secret from his daughter. As it turned out, though, Mayday began developing spider powers as well, genetically passed down through Peter’s DNA. One day, she was attacked by a new Green Goblin, Norman Osborn’s grandson, as a message for Peter. Overhearing her parents talk about it and learning that her father was Spider-Man, Mayday began experimenting with her powers, and seeing that her parents were going to confront this new Green Goblin, she took up Ben Riley’s old costume and became Spider-Girl, saving her parents and beginning a new life as a superheroine, whether her parents liked it or not. Eventually, though, they did come around and helped their daughter, who eventually became a reserve member for A-Next, the new team of Avengers. Unfortunately, one day, an inter-dimensional life sucker named Daemos, who had been hunting down Spider-Men across the Multiverse, attacked and killed her father, sending May on a journey with all the remaining Spiders throughout the Multiverse to stop this new threat. After they succeeded, May was given her father’s old costume, and re-branded herself as the Amazing Spider-Woman.
And let the voting begin! You have until May 10th to get your votes in, at which point, we’ll find out which of these two Spider-Women will take on the winner of Scarlet Witch vs Ms. Marvel. Until then, check out the links below to learn more about these other-dimensional Spiders, and be sure to check in next time as Storm battles Gamora. Ja né!
Spider-Gwen Lyrics (AKA Gwen Stacy: The Insert-Cool-Sounding-Adjective-Here Spider-Woman)
Spider-Gwen, Spider-Gwen,
Does it better than Spider-Men.
Spins a web, to and fro,
Nothing like this white widow.
Look out!
Here comes the Spider-Gwen!
Is she strong? Listen bud,
She’s got radioactive blood.
It’s a gift and a curse,
Spinning out of Spider-Verse.
Hey, there!
There goes the Spider-Gwen!
In the chill of night,
At the scene of a crime,
Like a streak of light,
She arrives just in time!
Spider-Gwen, Spider-Gwen,
Friendly neighborhood Spider-Gwen.
There is nothing you must fear,
Insert-Cool-Adjective-Here.
To her, life is a great big bang up.
Wherever there’s a hang up,
You’ll find the Spider-Gwen!
10 Favourite Marvel Superheroes REVISED + A Thank You To My Readers
…Before I start, I have to give a HUGE thank you to everyone who checks out my blog. Not only did I break my former record for most views in a single day on my blog Thursday (the old record was 441), but just yesterday, the record was broken yet again with a total of 624! I could not have, in my wildest dreams, imagined that being a thing. So, to all of my readers, supporters, friends, and family, thank you all very much, and please continue to read my blog. Also, be sure to leave your own thoughts and comments on my articles as well. Really helps to know that people care about my stuff. ^_^
Anyway, a couple of years ago on my birthday, I made a list of my favourite Marvel superheroes. Well, two years later, looking back on that list, I find myself having some highly different opinions. Maybe it’s because I’m a lot more into Marvel Comics than I was back then, the addition of new characters, or just the continuing detriment of certain older heroes *COUGH!*PETEANDTONY*COUGH!*, but for whatever reason, I can’t honestly say that my top ten heroes of the Marvel Universe are the same as they were before. So, with that in mind, let’s take a look at my revised 10 Favourite Marvel Superheroes, starting with probably the most obvious…
#1 – Kamala Khan, AKA Ms. Marvel
Yeah, not exactly shocking anybody with this pick, huh? lol Can’t help it, guys. This is a character who, in less than two years, has become as important to me as Stephanie Brown, maybe even more-so in the grand scheme of things. She’s a geek, she’s a minority heroine, she’s the protector of New Jersey, and now, she’s a Goddamn Avenger. She’s earned the respect and recognition of Wolverine, the Amazing Spider-Man, Medusa, and most importantly, her predecessor and personal hero, Carol Danvers. There’s no limit to how high this character can go, and frankly, I’m just excited to be part of the ride. 🙂
#2 – Steve Rogers, AKA Captain America
As I’ve stated before, even as a proud Canadian, I love Captain America. Admittedly, though, this is mostly based on his appearances in the movies. In the comics, some of his exploits are a bit tainted due to repeatedly faking his own death and, more recently, becoming more concerned with bringing in Tony Stark for personally betraying him, instead of being focused on saving the world. Still, in both versions, there’s plenty about him to be inspired by. This is a guy who had damned near everything working against him in becoming a soldier, but fought tooth and nail to fight for his country and uphold ideals like peace, freedom, and justice anyway, to the point where his dedication made him the prime candidate to become Captain America. And despite beliefs that everything special about him came out of a bottle, really, that’s not true. He’s not just a lab experiment. Really, the better comparison is that he’s like a Power Ranger: The powers are just a tool for stopping evil. It’s the person using them that make them special.
#3 – James ‘Logan’ Howlett, AKA Wolverine
ADAMANTIUM RAGE!!! 😛 What is it with badass berserker heroes with tragic back-stories repeatedly cropping up in everything I read, write, watch, and play? Logan, Raiden from Metal Gear, Guts from Berserk, and so on. But hey, they are successful as characters, and Logan is no exception. The biggest problem with Wolverine is how near-impossible it is for him to die. Kinda hurts the overall drama of some of his stories, since you know he’s damned near always gonna come out of situations without a scratch on him. Granted, as anyone who has watched the DEATH BATTLE between him and Raiden knows, don’t mean he’s ALWAYS gonna be okay. I just really hope that, when Old Man Logan takes his place in November, he doesn’t have the same near-invincibility.
#4 – Carol Danvers, AKA Captain Marvel
Captain Marvel, she’s our hero, gonna take the villains down to ze-Wait, did I already do this joke? 😛 Anyway, I cannot believe I was not a Carol Danvers fan when I first wrote the 10 Favourite Marvel Superheroes. I can’t imagine a time anymore where I didn’t think she was awesome. And I have to give a huge thank you to Kelly Sue DeConnick for showing me just how amazing this character is. You will be greatly missed as the writer of her book going into the All-New, All-Different Marvel. Carol Corps 4 Life.
#5 – Jennifer Walters, AKA She-Hulk
As I’ve stated before, take the Hulk, slim him down a bit, make him a brilliant lawyer, a bit more in control of himself, way more compassionate for people, and a gorgeous woman. The result is She-Hulk, and for those reasons I stated, I can’t help but prefer her to her more famous cousin. And frankly, I can’t think of anyone better suited to be the leader of the A-Force, and am so glad to see that the core six members of the team in Secret Wars will all be sticking together in the new Marvel Universe.
#6 – Prince Odinson, AKA Thor
Whosoever lifts this hammer, if they be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor. And hoo boy, does this guy know how to use that power effectively. 😛 Mind you, he doesn’t have it anymore. And no disrespect to his successor, of course. I have no problem with Jane Foster, just the writing in how this whole scenario is playing itself out. Regardless, I find myself liking this Thor just the tiniest bit more. But hey, who knows what the future holds, right? I just hope they can find a way to appease fans of both Thors, ‘cuz so far, it ain’t happening.
#7 – Gwen Stacy, AKA Spider-Woman
I don’t know what exactly it is about this interpretation of the character, but I honestly think this version of Gwen Stacy is my favourite of all the now-officially-named Web Warriors. She’s badass, geeky, clever, and creative. She takes so much of what makes Peter Parker’s story work while still being fresh and new. What else can you say but…
Spider-Gwen, Spider-Gwen
Does it better than Spider-Men
Spins her threads to and fro
Nothin’ like this white widow
Look out! Here comes the Spider-Gwen
#8 – Wade Wilson, AKA Deadpool
Yeah, ’bout time he got to me! I mean, I’m ME! Why waste time with the rest of these guys?! Fuck, I’ve been back from the grave more times than Wolverine, I’m the newest member of the Uncanny Avengers, and hey, I’ve got a movie coming out! No way I wouldn’t be on here after all that! After all, we all know ol’ Jygie likes to suck up to people in the spotlight!
Stop writing my articles, WADE!
Jeez, relax, JEFFERY! Getting kinda grumpy since you turned 30, huh? What, didn’t think you’d still be living with your parents this late into life?
Ugh, moving on!…
#9 – Anna Marie, AKA Rogue
One of the best damned X-Men of all time, and a founding member of the Uncanny Avengers. Rogue is the classy southern belle who melts the hearts of men and women alike. However, piss her off, and not only is she more than capable of kicking your ass, but just touching you is enough to send you to the hospital. In other words, stay on her good side at all time.
You’re tellin’ me! I used to date her for a while, until she touched me, and left me aching for weeks. And not in the GOOD way, either…
GODDAMMIT, WADE!
#10 – Natasha Romanoff, AKA Black Widow
I know for a fact that I’ve said this at least a hundred times, but I will continue to say it until it is no longer true: WHY THE HELL DOESN’T BLACK WIDOW HAVE HER OWN MOVIE?! Let’s look at her track record in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, shall we? She stole the show in Iron Man 2 (not that there was much of a show to steal, mind you), she stole Avengers, The Winter Soldier, and even Age of Ultron, where she was put in an out-of-nowhere relationship with Bruce and presented as someone who considers herself a monster, not for being an assassin but because she couldn’t have kids. Not to mention, her most recent solo series was basically a James Bond flick set in the Marvel Universe, and we all know how successful those movies have been. There is not a single character in the MCU that hasn’t had their own movie that deserves it more than Black Widow, PERIOD.
AAAANNND that’s it, everybody! Be sure to like, comment, and subscribe, and I’ll see you all the next time Jyger wants to suck up to superheroes!
… … … … …I’mma kill him. -_-
Spider-Gwen #1 Preview
…Screw it, I’m linking to previews of the comics I get from now on. lol Well, I don’t really have time to do full reviews for new comics, since I go get them on the same night I go to play Dungeons & Dragons at Heroes’ Beacon (Oh yeah, I’m finally getting into D&D, thank goodness, lol), and I wanna encourage people to read comics, so here we are. This is the preview for Gwen Stacy: The Insert-Cool-Sounding-Adjective-Here Spider-Woman#1………..Oh, sorry, Spider-Gwen #1. 😛
SPIDER-GWEN SPINS INTO HER OWN SERIES!
• BECAUSE YOU DEMANDED IT! The breakout hit of the biggest Spider-Event of the century is taking comic shops by storm this winter with her own new ongoing series – SPIDER-GWEN!
• Gwen Stacy is Spider-Woman, but you knew that already. What you DON’T know is what friends and foes are waiting for her in the aftermath of Spider-Verse!
• From the fan-favorite creative team that brought you Spider-Gwen’s origin story in EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE, Jason Latour and Robbie Rodriguez!
The Gwen Stacy Spider-Woman Book Needs Its Own Series
You’ll notice that, on this past Wednesday, I did not review Edge of Spider-Verse #2. For those that don’t follow the current Spider-Man comics, Spider-Verse is an upcoming event where Spider-Men from alternate realities are being hunted down and killed, and so a large group of them are being gathered to fight this threat to them and figure out why they specifically are being targeted. And, I’ll admit, it’s an interesting story. The problem is, while there are limited side-stories that tell more of what’s happening from other perspectives, the majority of it seems to be told in Amazing Spider-Man (PASS), and a resurrected Superior Spider-Man (ULTRA PASS). However, one issue of the prologue to the event, Edge of Spider-Verse, got everyone’s attention, as it focused on an alternate reality version of Gwen Stacy (whose tragic death in the comics was recently relived in the movie Amazing Spider-Man 2) being the one the spider bit in that version of events.
Now, why didn’t I review it? Well, before you ask, of COURSE I bought it. Gwen Stacy is awesome, and seemingly even more-so in this book, as she’s shown to be highly skilled in parkour (which goes GREAT with spider powers) and has a love of music (which is seen when she uses her drumming on some poor bastard, lol). Also, I love the twist on the classic Spider-Man mythos, where her acting irresponsibly with her powers leads often-bullied Peter Parker to become that universe’s version of The Lizard before dying, thus being the death that teaches Gwen the “With great power comes great responsibility” lesson (and these aren’t technically spoilers, since all that is in the first few pages as told in an interestingly done montage). So, why didn’t I review it? Because going in, I KNEW this was gonna be a book that I’d have NOTHING unique to say about, and looking at some of the other reviews, I was right. This isn’t even me slapping myself down, either. This is just a fact, on account of everyone and their dog having something to say about this book. Yeah, it’s one of THOSE ones, that’s so good or so unique or just comes out at the right time that everyone’s talking about it. And what’s the one thing that’s being agreed upon the most? That this character NEEDS her own book when Spider-Verse is over.
Of course, if you’ll allow me a moment to play devil’s advocate, on the one hand, I can understand where Marvel might be concerned that the presence of multiple ongoing books (not events, but ongoing) focused on alternate reality versions of Spider-Man might make the stories seem less interesting, as part of the novelty of Miles Morales (and the Ultimate Peter Parker before him) is that he’s a Spider-Man from another universe. And yeah, I know her name is Spider-Woman, but there’s a very clear difference between Spider-Man and Spider-Woman of the mainstream universe, and Gwen in this book clearly has more in common with the former. So, if she had her own book, we would then have 616 Peter Parker, 1610 Miles Morales, and whatever number this version of Gwen Stacy gets. Still, I feel that there is enough uniqueness to each of them that they can all have their own books and not feel like retellings of each other.
And frankly, I would LOVE to see what they did with the rest of the supporting cast. Like, we see in this book that Gwen’s dad is still a Captain on the force, and I already mentioned what happens with Peter Parker, but in addition to that, Mary Jane is the lead of her own band with Gwen as the drummer, J. Jonah Jameson is leading this rally against Spider-Woman (don’t know if he’s still the head of the Bugle or not), and Matt Murdock is actually WORKING for the Kingpin. But what about the rest? Maybe Aunt May and Uncle Ben could be supporting characters that help Gwen out, with her feeling conflicting guilt over that due to Peter’s death, and they could possibly set up certain male characters (or female, if they feel like doing that) as love interests.
And then there’s the villains, and oh man, what they could do with the villains. Since it’s an alternate universe, they could pretty much get away with anything. Like, Doc Ock’s tentacles could be actual octopus tentacles, or Rhino could be an actual mutated rhinoceros, or Matt Murdock could be a villainous Daredevil that pushes Spider-Woman’s skills to their limit, or Electro could get his powers by being bitten by a lightning bug while drinking Red Bull. lol Okay, maybe not that last one, but really, alternate universe, they can pretty much do as they please.
But yeah, those are my thoughts on Edge of Spider-Verse #2 and the Gwen Stacy Spider-Woman in general. So, if you wanted a review, in short, I thought the book was great, and it left me with a craving for MUCH more, which is always a good thing. Big ups to Jason Latour, Robbi Rodriguez (who I swear to God has a name that makes me think he’s a superhero, lol), Rico Renzi (him too), and everyone else who helped work on this, and let’s hope that, if enough people say the same thing, that Marvel gives us what we want. Ja né!
Jyger's Rant 