Amazing Spider-Man Issue 639 “One Moment in Time, Part 2”

Amazing Spider-Man Issue 639 “One Moment in Time, Part 2”

Issue 638 of Amazing Spider-Man brought us the first part of Joe Quesada’s “One Moment in Time” story. We saw the events of that fateful day when Peter and Mary Jane’s marriage was erased from history. Now, in Issue 639, Quesada has the daunting task of making sense of the intervening twenty years of Spider-Man stories; the stories that old-school fans are upset about because the retcon rendered them worthless. Or did it? Issue 639 picks up the morning after the wedding. When Pete finally confronts MJ with the truth of the situation, she reaches her breaking point. She doesn’t mind being Spider-Man’s girlfriend, and definitely wants to be Peter Parker’s wife, but she has realized that she cannot and will not be Spider-Man’s wife. Through some introspection they realize that, despite not wanting to go through with the marriage, Pete and MJ still love each other and still want to be together. The whole decision comes off as a bit forced, but Quesada and Rivera deliver some genuine emotion to pull it together. Overall, it’s an acceptable solution to the problem, and likely the only way they could have incorporated the changes of “One More Day” while still maintaining the integrity of previous storylines. While I was expecting something a little more creative, I can’t be upset with something that makes sense. That said, the last couple pages threw the story into a completely unexpected direction. Part of Mephisto’s deal was Peter would have his old life back, secret identity and all. Though, if it’s now been established that everything previous to “One More Day” still happened, the events immediately preceding that story need to be explained. The most notable of these events are Peter revealing his identity and the shooting of Aunt May. It looks like we’ll have to wait to see how the unmasking is reversed, but the way they chose to keep Aunt May around just didn’t work for me. A lot of the tricks Quesada pulls in this issue seem like he’s taking the easy way out. After three years of buildup, I was simply expecting something more substantial out of “One Moment in Time.” However, while the writing may be a bit questionable, the story is still worth reading, and it’s important to make the distinction between the two in this case. Amazing Spider-Man Issue 639 “One Moment in Time, Part 2” Marvel Comics Story: Joe Quesada Art: Joe Quesada, Paolo Rivera, Danny Miki, Richard Isanove...

Amazing Spider-Man Issue 638 “One Moment in Time, Part 1”

Amazing Spider-Man Issue 638 “One Moment in Time, Part 1”

This is a story I’ve been looking forward to for quite a while. Three years, and almost 100 issues ago, Peter and Mary Jane Parker sacrificed their marriage to the interdimensional, trickster-demon Mephisto in exchange for saving Aunt May’s life. This was a huge shake-up to the Spider-Man lore and was not received well by the fans. While I personally enjoyed the plot twist, it did leave some question marks over the past twenty-odd years of Spider-Man comics. So, just a few short months before the “Brand New Day” era of Amazing Spider-Man comes to a close, Marvel’s Editor-in-Chief, and mastermind of the original “One More Day” storyline, Joe Quesada is bringing us “One Moment in Time.” The first issue of “One Moment in Time” brings us back to the day Peter and Mary Jane were supposed to be married. Mary Jane shows up at Peter’s apartment with a bottle of wine to talk about that fateful day in the past. In a very interesting publication twist, actual panels from the Amazing Spider-Man Annual #21 wedding issue are included, but with small changes detailing Mephisto’s influence on the timeline. So, the issue has an interesting style, artistically. You have Quesada’s art for the “present day” scenes, the original 1987 art of Paul Ryan and Paolo Rivera’s art depicting the changes in the flashbacks. While it takes a little getting used to, it creates a very interesting effect. Many fans, even those who read the Annual back in ‘87, don’t remember the severe doubt both Peter and Mary Jane were having at the time. Mephisto didn’t come in with his giant, demonic paintbrush and alter everything. No, he made some small influences on some minor players to nudge things in a direction they could have easily gone in the first place. The end result of this concept is a solid, unexpectedly emotional story. Amazing Spider-Man has been the most consistently good book on the shelves for the past 3 years, and Issue 638 lives up to the standard. Fans may still be pissed at the changes to Spidey’s backstory, but if the next 3 issues can continue the trend set by this one, maybe they’ll quiet down a bit. Amazing Spider-Man Issue 638 “One Moment in Time, Part 1” Marvel Comics Story: Joe Quesada Art: Joe Quesada, Paolo Rivera, Danny Miki, Richard Isanove...

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