The WrestleMania Match We Will Never Get. Spider-Man Vs Spider-Man

As Marvel gets ready to start shooting on Captain America: Civil War, most of us comic book geeks are wondering if the movies is going to have Black Panther take over the role that our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man had in the comics, as it's been rumored. That was before Marvel and Sony came to an agreement that will allow Spidey to cross over into the Marvel cinematic universe and have Marvel put out a new Spider-Man movie, with Sony distributing the film as well as having final say on matters, which could be disastrous. We all say The Amazing Spider-Man 2. I know, I did say it was the best Spider-Man movie ever made at the time I first saw it. However, I am allowed to change my mind.

Now, with each Dylan O'Brien rumor of his impending casting as the new Wallcrawler, I thought I would take an objective look at both Spider-Man franchises and see which one was truly better. Who played Peter Parker better? Who was a more comic book accurate Spider-Man? Could Andrew Garfield's hair actually fit under that mask? And yes, I know there are already tons of comparison articles out there. But here's another anyway.

I took a few days to watch all five Spider-Man movies. I started at the beginning with the first Sam Rami movie and ended with the Amazing Spider-Man 2. I tried to pay more attention to the acting, the costumes, the overall feel of the movie I was watching before I came up with a decision. I also broke down what I was watching for in categories which you will see as you read along.

I also want to stress that this is just MY opinion and my opinion only. I have been a massive fan of the character since I could read and I still remain a huge fan to this day. Spider-Man means so much to me and always will. So, I guess those are my only qualifications toward judging between the two.

Let's Get Started:

Which Origin Story Was Closer To The Comic?

When watching both movies, I realized the origins of both Spider-Men was similar, but different. Both were bitten by super spiders, although I don't think either were radioactive like in the comics. But that's where the similarities end.

In Sam Rami's Spider-Man, the origin story from the comics is followed almost faithfully. Peter Parker is bitten by the spider on a class trip, gains spider powers, tries to use the powers to gain money by getting into a wrestling match and gets gypped by the owner of the promotion. Owner gets robbed, Peter lets the robber get away when he could have stopped him, robber later shoots Uncle Ben leaving Peter to go after the killer and then finding out it was the same robber and he could have stopped him and prevented Uncle Ben's death does he realize he is to use his powers for the good of humanity.

In Marc Webb's Amazing Spider-Man, Peter Parker is trying to find out information about his father. He finds that his dad used to work with Dr. Curtis Connors, who works at Oscorp. Parker sneaks into Oscorp and accidentally walks into a room with a bunch of super enhanced spiders, one of which stows away in Parker's shirt and bites him on the neck as he's talking to Gwen Stacey. Parker later gets into an argument with his Uncle Ben, storms out of the house leaving Uncle Ben to follow after him. Parker then goes to buy himself some chocolate milk and is short a couple of pennies The clerk refuses to let him slide a couple cents. As Parker is leaving, he witnesses the store getting robbed and does nothing to stop it, even accepting the milk from the robber. As the robber is fleeing the scene and running into people, he drops his gun and Uncle Ben is there to try and stop the robber and gets shot in the process. Parker goes after the killer later on and is attacking every one who bore a resemblance to the killer, but never finds him. He only goes after the Lizard after he realizes that it's exsistance is partially his fault and he wants to go and stop it.

In Rami's Spider-Man, Parker becomes Spider-Man to make the world a better place. In Webb's Amazing Spider-Man, Peter becomes Spider-Man only to find the killer of his Uncle Ben. Not exactly heroic. In my opinion, This round goes to Rami's Spider-Man

Spider-Man 1,  Amazing Spider-Man 0

Who Was The Better Peter Parker?

In the comics, Peter was the ultimate nerd. Ignored by women, beaten up by jocks, made fun of by the cooler kids. Peter was always searching for acceptance and when he became Spider-Man, his confidence grew. We see this in Tobey McGuire's portrayal of the character. Tobey's Peter Parker is a nerd and is always looked down on by those around him except Mary Jane, Harry Osborne and Aunt May. Tobey's Peter Parker was Charlie Brown and that is what he was in the comics. Nothing ever goes right for him.

My main problem with McGuire's Parker is that while he was nerdy, he was also goofy, border lining on stupid. His goofy smile while "Rain Drops Keep Falling On My Head"plays in the background in Spider-Man 2, his dancing in Spider-Man 3 just made my skin crawl. Then there was his crying. I mean, he cried wayyyyy too much. Parker was never this goofy or whiny in the comics.

Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker was more hipster than nerdy. Sure he was smart, bullied and barely had any friends, but this Parker had some balls to him. He stood up to Flash Thompson, rode his cool skateboard in the hallways and flirted with Gwen Stacey. This was not your father's Peter Parker. Hell, he wasn't even the Ultimate version of Peter Parker. He was almost too cool to be an outcast, brooding at times as well. He even talked back to adults, like when he offered to send Captain Stacey a link to the video of himself that went viral.  Don't get me wrong, I liked Garfield's performance, but if we are going by comic book standards, Garfield's Parker would have been perfect as Peter Parker, college student as he had a lot more confidence by this point.

Even with the crying and stupid dancing, McGuire wins this round.

Spider-Man 2, Amazing Spider-Man 0

Who Was The Better Spider-Man?

After watching the movies the past few days, I noticed that both actors portrayed Spider-Man differently. Tobey McGuire's Spider-Man was not the Spider-Man I wanted. Although his Spider-Man had the costume right, his portrayal missed the mark. He, in my opinion, played Spider-Man almost exactly as he played Peter Parker. There was a twinge of geek in there and some Charlie Brown in Spidey. If the Black Cat had been around, I bet she would have blew him off. Another thing that cheesed me about McGuire was his habit of removing his mask all the time. What the heck?? Spider-Man barely had his mask removed in the comics. If the reasoning behind this was to get Tobey's reactions then that is a piss poor excuse. There are other ways to express Spider-Man's reactions to what was going on around him than to see McGuire's facial expressions.

Andrew Garfield's Spider-Man was pretty much on the money, with the exception of the outfit, which really did not bother me as much as I thought. Garfield as Spider-Man was bold, smart, and had something that was really missing from McGuire's Spider-Man....one liners. That to me was something I loved about Spider-Man. No matter how dire the situation was, Spidey had a string of one liners ready to zing at his opponent during his battles. He threw them at the Lizard and called Electro "Sparkles", He was even sarcastic with the two bit thug he stopped from stealing a car in the first movie. To me, the fact that Spider-Man can make light of heavy situations is one of his trademarks and for McGuire's Spider-Man to be void of that is a major mark against his Spider-Man. Oh, and Garfield had web shooters, not organic webs (Thank you so much James Cameron for that idea.)

This round goes to our favorite hipster.

Spider-Man 2, Amazing Spider-Man 1

Overall Tone Of The Movie

I remember when I first saw the trailer for Spider-Man and feeling so excited. I had been waiting for Spider-Man to be made into a film and I was finally getting it. When I saw the movie I walked out feeling satisfied with what I got. Sam Rami was obviously a fan of the character because when I watched this movie I felt like I was reading an issue of Spider-Man from the 1960's. I could see John Romita Sr. Drawing these characters. Spider-Man looked almost exactly like he did in the comics, with the exception of the spider on his back and lack of web shooters (Thanks again James....you know what, forget it. Just forget it.). I still feel like this to this day when I pop in the movie, as well as Spider-Man 2 in the Blue Ray player. I could watch both movies over and over again and never get tired of them.

Plus, Rami had dead on portrayals of characters like Flash Thompson, J. Jonah Jameson, Robbie Robertson, Norman Osborne, Aunt May, Uncle Ben, Harry Osborne and Otto Octavius. His only failure was Mary Jane. No offense to Kirsten Dunst, but she wasn't glamorous enough to pull off Mary Jane. Plus, she became a self absorbed, selfish woman as the series went on. It got to a point where I almost didn't want Spider-Man to save her.

We won't even go into Venom.

In The Amazing Spider-Man, it seems to me like Marc Webb used the Ultimate Spider-Man and Batman Begins as his template. I don't mind that all too much. The essence of Spider-Man was in this film. But it wasn't like he jumped out of the comics like the Rami's Spidey did. They altered the costume a bit in the first one and then he was more closer to the Spider-Man we know in the second film. Webb's first film was a lot darker than it probably should have been. Spider-Man is not a dark, brooding character. It seems like Webb tried to bring out Spider-Man's inner Batman at times and that didn't work.

Webb didn't bring a lot of Spider-Man's secondary characters into his movies. Yes, we had Uncle Ben and Aunt May. We had Gwen Stacy and Captain Stacey as well as Flash Thompson. We got Harry Osborne in the second movie as well as Norman, but Norman was wasted in a five minute bit with Harry. We did get Felicity Hardy, who would become the Black Cat, a version of the Rhino, The Gentleman, Dr. Kafka (even if he was a woman in the comics) and Alister Smythe but we never saw these characters develop as there was too many characters in the second film. You would have thought that Sony would have learned from Spider-Man 3.

I genuinely enjoyed the first film and still do. I think it's on par with Rami's first Spider-Man. I may have it above that movie just slightly only because I liked Garfield as Spider-Man so much. But, we are trying to determine which movie felt like what a Spider-Man movie should feel like and as much as I liked Garfield, this movie doesn't have that tone.

Spider-Man 3, Amazing Spider-Man 1

Wow. I was pretty shocked with myself after I watched all the films. I have been on board with Andrew Garfield being a better Spider-Man. While I do believe that he is a better Spider-Man, McGuire's Parker is more on point and Rami's movies were more Spider-Man-ish, if that makes any sense. I do think if the Amazing Spider-Man would have been a better movie, Webb's series would have come out on top and we wouldn't be getting yet another reboot of Spider-Man in 2017.

So, as I eat my words, I will proclaim that Sam Rami's first two Spider-Man movies are the standard bearers for all Spider-Man movies to be judged by. Has the perfect Spider-Man movie been made? I do feel that Spider-Man 2 is as close to one as you can get. Maybe Marvel will make that perfect Spider-Man movie. It depends on who they cast to play Spider-Man Dylan O'Brien is rumored to be the lead for this role, but Logan Lerman is another top choice) and direct (Drew Goddard is being considered to write and direct) the movie. But with Marvel involved, I feel a lot better about the films chances to be Spectacular and maybe even Ultimate.

My Most Prized Possession

I have been a fan of Marvel Comics for as long as I could read. I remember getting a copy of Origins Of Marvel Comics and Here Comes The Bad Guys as a birthday gift. I remember reading the origins of The Fantastic Four, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Doctor Doom, The Green Goblin and Doctor Strange. Heck, I still have that copy of Bring On The Bad Guys, all beat up as it is. But inside Origins Of Marvel Comics, I read a story that cemented my love of comics for the rest of my life and that was the origin story of the Amazing Spider-Man.

I loved the fact the Peter Parker was not much older than I was (Actually, since I was probably 6 at the time, he would have been a lot older than I was). I like the fact that he had such cool powers and dressed in a weird costume. Instantly after reading the story, Spider-Man became my favorite super hero. I read as many Amazing Spider-Man, Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man and Marvel Team Ups as I could get my hands on. Sure, I still loved watching Batman and Super Friends on TV, but Spider-Man was the man to me. I owe a huge thank you the man who helped create this wonderful character. Stan Lee.

Now, I know half that thank you would also go to Steve Ditko, who was just as instrumental to bringing Spider-Man to the heights of popularity that he enjoyed, plus he is now credited as a co-creator of the character. But since Mr. Ditko has now since become a recluse, I can only express my gratitude here to Mr. Ditko.

 Now Stan Lee on the other hand is still touring the country at the ripe young age of 91 years old. This man should be celebrated for without him, there is no Fantastic Four. There is no X-Men. There is no Avengers. There are no movies to spend our hard earned bucks on or cartoons on TV or merchandise to pick up. Without Stan Lee, life would have been all DC Comics. Not that it's a bad thing. But last I checked, Spidey was shooting webs at Marvel.

One of my dreams is to meet Stan Lee. Unfortunately, I have not as of yet the closest I have yet to come to meeting him was at last year's Comikaze. The line though was way too long and I didn't want to put my girlfriend and her daughter through that. Not that they would have minded. They are so awesome that they would have waited and had fun doing so. Maybe another time.

My most prized possession is a Stan Lee item. See, a few years back, Stan was still signing his mail (He's long stopped doing so) and I wanted to send something Spider-Man related for him to sign. Now, I wasn't going to send a comic or a DVD cover of Spider-Man to him. Mo, I wanted to send something meaningful to me for him to sign. One day, as I was reading a Spider-Man comic, the idea came to me. I went out and bought a poster of Amazing Fantasy #15. The very first story I remember reading of Spider-Man. So, I packed it up and sent it to his POW Entertainment offices along with return postage.

A couple of months later, this came back to me:

Sorry about the bad picture. I took this with one of my old cell phones which had a crappy camera on it.

But this doesn't look too bad though.

This poster is my most prized possession. To have, essentially, the father of Spider-Man sign my poster is just amazing (No pun intended) to me and I will cherish it for as long as I live. My plan is to be able to have it professionally framed and hung on my wall in the very near future. For now, I have it guarded by 4 ravenous pit bulls and it's also booby trapped. No one is getting this poster if I can help it.

I may never get an opportunity to meet the man who is responsible for hours of enjoyment as a kid, teenager and adult. I can only hope that many of the people who get to meet him express to him just how much happier he made their lives with his creations and fantastic books. Hopefully, one day, I will have that chance. Hopefully, I will have the opportunity to walk up to him, knees shaking, extend my hand out and simply say Thank you. Thank you for all the wonderful stories and characters you created. That, my fellow geeks, would mean a lot to me. Just as it has, I'm sure, to all those who already had the good luck to shake the hand of Spider-Man's dad.

Here Are Some Things I'd Like To See In Amazing Spider-Man 3

OK, we have gotten to see some real cool things in both Spider-Man movie franchises. I mean, first and foremost, we got to see Spider-Man on the big screen after being in development hell since the 1980's when first Cannon bought the rights and did nothing with them (and if you knew what they were planning, you would be glad we never got to see it.) and then James Cameron was going to make a Spider-Man movie with Leonardo DeCaprio and that never got made either. By the way, if you hated the organic web shooters from the Rami pictures, blame Cameron. It was his idea. Then again, this is the same man who unleased Titanic onto the world.

So, as much as I throw crap at Sam Rami for the God awful Spider-Man 3, I have to also give him credit for the first 2 movies, which I thought were great. We finally got to see characters like Peter Parker, Aunt May, Green Goblin (Mighty Morphin Goblin, actually), Doc Ock, Harry Osborne and Mary Jane, among other characters from the  Spider-Man universe which made Sony a ton of money and the new Marc Webb Amazing Spider-Man movies have done the same. Plus, we finally get a great Spider-Man (sorry, Andrew Garfield is a much better Peter Parker/Spider-Man than Toby McGuire) with web shooters, we get to see Gwen Stacy, Lizard,  Rhino and Shocker which we haven't seen on the big screen before.

Now, while we have seen all these awesome characters and story lines, there are a few things we haven't see just yet and I am hoping we see these sometime in future movies, maybe even as soon as the third movie.

Spider Tracers

Wayyyyy back in issue 11 of the Amazing Spider-Man, Peter developed these small electronic tracers to keep tabs on Doctor Octopus after he escapes from prison. These tracers were made to look like a spider and were small enough to remain unnoticed by whomever Peter or Spider-Man placed it on. Sometimes he will place it on them by hand, other times he uses a launching device in his web shooters for longer range and accuracy. He also used to use a tracker to locate the tracer, but now the tracer's signal is strong enough that Peter can follow it by using his Spider Sense.  

This is something I would love to see in Amazing Spider-man 3. It would showcase Peter's brilliance a bit more and I just think it would be pretty cool to see on the big screen.

Hey, it made an appearance on the 1970's TV series. It needs to be in a movie.

Why Hasn't Spider-Man Run Out Of Web Fluid?

I remember finding myself defending the organic web shooters from the Sam Rami movies. At the time, Spider-Man was evolving in the comics, doing more spider like things and I thought it made all the sense in the world that he would one day actually be able to shoot webs from his wrists. So, it wasn't a huge problem for me when he didn't have web shooters in the Rami movies.

But, I loved that the web shooters made it's triumphant return in the Amazing Spider-Man and I absolutely loved how they handled the making of them as well as how they look. Great job in bringing them to life.

So why haven't we seen what would happen if Spidey ran out of web fluid? I mean, in the course of the 2 movies, we have seen them not work under water, Lizard destroy them and a couple of other things happen in Amazing Spider-Man 2 that I don't want to give away. But he has yet to be in a situation where Spider-Man is in dire need of them, but runs out at the worst possible moment. Yeah, they touched on it in Spider-Man 2, but I am talking about during a fight scene or something like that. Let's take the plunge Marvel and put Spidey in that situation.

Spider Utility Belt

Yes, Batman has a utility belt that is much cooler than Spider-Man's, but I still want to see it in the movies. He can carry extra web fluid capsules on it as well as a miniature camera for pictures, just like in the comic books. And hey, just for 1960's kitsch, why not bring in the Spider Signal which he used to make a dramatic appearance with as well. I think that would be awesome.

How About More Characters?

One of the coolest things about Spider-Man that sets him apart from other superheroes, is his supporting cast and rouges gallery of villains. The Amazing Spider-Man movies has touched upon some of the cast of characters in the Spider-Man universe. If all indications are correct, we may finally get to see the Vulture in the third movie. But, there are some other villains who I think would be great in a movie, either as a main villain or even as a supporting character.

How cool would it be to see Spider-Man battle The Shocker? Maybe we get to see him tangle with Kraven The Hunter. Or maybe see him throw down with Mysterio? Hobgoblin? Carnage? Kingpin? How about we get a more accurate portrayal of Venom? I also would love to see Morbius in a movie as well.

How about some characters who aren't out for Spider-Man's head? How about appearances by Jean DeWolfe, Elias Wertham,  Glory Grant, Ned Leeds, Robbie Robertson? I'm still waiting for J. Jonah Jameson to appear in this series. There are so many characters they could use and I'm hoping to see as many of them as they can cram in.

Honestly, these are just some minor things I would like to see the writers and producers of the Amazing Spider-Man movies use. The Spider-Man universe and mythos is so vast and they have only just touched a small part of it. The movies are so good and I think some additions here and there could make the movies even better. As a long time Spider-Man fan, I would love these suggestions added or maybe some I haven't yet. I cannot wait to see what the writers have in store in Amazing Spider-Man 3.

Hey, at least I didn't suggest the Spider Buggy.

(shivers)

An Amazing Addition To The Spider-Man Collection

With my must see movie of 2014 set to open here in the US next Friday, I thought I would show off my newest addition to my Spider-Man collection. I have actually been wanting these ever since I saw some preview pictures of them before the Blu Ray of the Amazing Spider-Man was released. I recently saw them on eBay for a price that was too good for me to pass up, so I bought them.

These PVC statues were sold as part of a box set with the Amazing Spider-Man 3D Blu Ray. I love when you pick up a Blu Ray and there is a little something extra in it. I saw the Superman statue that was included in the French release of Man Of Steel and I was hoping we would get something similar. I wanted this set, but when I saw the sticker price on the box set, I figured I could get the statues separately off eBay at some point and put the box back. It took me a while to get them at the price I was willing to pay, but it was well worth the wait as these are pretty cool.

The sculptor did a great job capturing the likeness of Spider-Man. He looks exactly how he did in the movie, right down to the silver in his shoes and the yellow in his eyes. I didn't get what they were going with when they went with this look, but after seeing the movie I understood it. It looks like they are going with a costume that is closer to how he looks in the comics in the new movie.

The Lizard also came out great. You can see a bit of Rhys Ifans in the face sculpt. You could also see the color and texture of the Lizard in this statue as well, which really helps this statue stand out. When I first saw the Lizard, I couldn't understand why he didn't have a snout like he did in the comics. But, if you look in his earlier incarnations, you can see that he barely had a snout and I think that's what the designers were going for here. Again, I really didn't have a problem with a snout-less Lizard since I loved Ifans performance as Dr. Connors/The Lizard.

I'm thrilled I finally was able to add these two pieces to my Spider-Man collection. They may be just PVC statues, but I am very pleased with how good they look and they will be displayed prominently in my collection.

With the new movie coming out, we should see a flood of Spider-Man related merchandise. I cannot wait to see what will be flooding the shelves in the stores. I know we will get action figures, POP figures, bobbleheads, statues, t shirts and other cool merchandise that will tempt me to dive into my pocket for my wallet. If it's anything like we got for the first movie, then I will be a happy Spidey fan.

My Geeky Christmas Wish List

It looks like Batman didn't get what he wanted this year. Or maybe getting caught in one of The Joker's traps has something to do with the humbug up his butt. Either way, I'm sure this look is not the one he thought he would have by the Christmas tree.

Christmas is one of my favorite holidays. It's the one day of the year when I feel that we can have peace and harmony.... and presents. Maybe it's the greedy miser in me, but I love seeing wrapped presents under the tree with my name on it. As a kid, I remember getting such cool gifts as Mego Batman, Spider-Man and Superman figures, Mego Batman Command Center, Star Wars figures, Remco Batman CSF Copter and the Coleco Pac Man Mini Arcade are some of my favorite presents I recieved as a kid. I cherish my memories of opening those gifts and playing with them to death. Or in the case of my mom, headaches because I would play my Pac Man game early in the morning when everyone was sleeping. I was such a stinker.

Now that I am an adult, not much has changed. I still want to open gifts and enjoy the heck out of them. I may not play with my toys anymore, but it doesn't mean I don't love what I own and would be thrilled if I was able to open my presents and find the following under my Christmas tree.

NECA Batman

I had both of these figures pre ordered with Big Bad Toy Store, but because they kept getting delayed and in one of my biggest blunders, I cancelled the order. Now that they are out and I have seen both at various comic book stores, I want them, I want them, I want them! As much as I am a '66 Batman fanatic, I happen to think the '89 Batman is a nicer figure because it doesn't have that ugly ab joint that the '66 Batman has. Still, I want them both.

Kotobukiya Art FX New 52 Batman Statue

I have been wanting this ever since I first saw the picture of it. After seeing it in person, I wanted it even more. I love the metallic finish to the suit and the fact that it's magnets that keep it on it's base. Some people complain about the suits the new 52 DC characters have, but I don't mind them. Through the ears since his introduction back in Detective Comics #27, The Batman's outfit has gone through several changes. I actually like this outfit and I love how Kotobukiya made this statue.

DC Direct Silver Age Batman And Robin Statue

I am a sucker for anything classic Batman. I have seen this statue before and have drooled over it each and every time. This statue recreates the classic Carmine Infantino 1964 redesigned Batman. Infantino's Batman is one of my top 5 favorites and if I coul ever locate this statue for a decent price, I will add this to my Batman collection.

Kotobukiya Luke Skywalker Statue

I almost picked this up on several different occasions. I have added some great pieces to my Luke Skywalker collection over the course of the year and would have loved to have been able to pull the trigger each time I came close to. Even though the facial sculpt isn't all that close to Mark Hamill's, I do like this statue a lot. Love that Luke is decked out in the Bespin fatigues. This looks like the scene in Empire Strikes Back when he is looking to save Han, Leia and Chewbacca from the Empire in Cloud City. Take my money, please.

Walmart Exclusive Amazing Spider-Man Figure

It's times like this I wish I had a Walmart close by. Because there isn't one in NYC, I missed out on this figure but I would love to find it. I was wondering why an Andrew Garfield figure wasn't done, but then I saw this figure and have been trying to score one ever since. This figure has alluded my grubby hands,  but I will have it one day.

Hamilton Beatles Figures

I have been wanting these since the 90's. I actually had the John Lennon figure that my mom bought me, but was lost in one of my many moves. Not only do I want it back in my Beatles collection, but I want Paul, George and Ringo too. I don't feel that any Beatles collection is complete without these figures. There is barely any articulation in these figures, but who cares? It's the Beatles and I must have them.

Of course, there is a lot more goodies that I'd love to find under my Christmas tree this season, these were the ones I thought of right away. But, to be honest with you guys, I do love what ever my family and friends get me because they are some of the most thoughtful people around. Besides, the holiday season isn't about gifts. It's about spreading joy and love across the globe and if you ask me, the world could use a lot of love these days. Enough hate and crime and war. I think a great man once sang Give Peace A Chance. It's high time we try what Mr. Lennon sang.

Comic Book Marketplace Haul Part 2: More Spidey

When I went to the comic book marketplace yesterday, I really wasn't planning on picking up a lot of Spider-Man books. Batman had become the flavor of the month for me and I wanted to add some Batman literature to my comic book collection. In fact, I was determined to do so. I did pick up a couple of Batman books, but the bulk of my purchases were Spider-Man titles.

Lets be honest, I love Spider-Man just as much as I love Batman. I plan to get a Batman tattoo in the near future, but Spidey is the hero that is gracing my right bicep right now. In fact, as I am writting this blog, I am rocking a very sweet John Romita Spider-Man t shirt. So, I guess it's really no shock that I would pick up so much Spider-Man goodies.

Yes, as I was going through the boxes, my I was pretty much saying to myself, "Batman, Batman, I want Batman, Batma...ohh, here's a cool Spidey comic. MINE!" In fact, I had so many Spider-man books at one table put aside I had to put most away and just take the books I really liked.

Yesterday, I showed the Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man books I picked up for my collection, so today, I will show off the Amazing Spider-Man books I selfishly grabbed for my collection. Again, the condition is not the greatest,  but for a buck a book or in some cases, 4 for $1.00, I'm really not complaining about the condition of these books. Besides, I think the condition adds some character to the books.

Here's the Amazing Spider-Man haul:

This one is not an Amazing Spider-Man book, but the cover is so cool, I just had to pick it up for my collection.

Well, I guess I did start a Web Of Spider-Man collection with this issue.

That's all of the Spider-Man books I picked up. I do have a good news, bad news for my next blog. The Good news is, I don't have any Spider-Man issues that I bought at the comic book marketplace to show. I will be showing off 2 graphic novels I grabbed. The bad news? They're Spider-Man books. Ohhhhh, The Humanity!

Happy New Years! Resolutions For 2013

Even though Batman isn't too happy, I would like to take this time to wish everyone a happy and safe New Years and a great 2013. 2012 was a great year, collecting-wise. I rediscovered a passion for toys, comics and other pop culture awesomeness I thought was lost. Now, 2013 comes (take that Mayans) and I have plans for my collection. Everyone has New Years resolutions so here are mine, collecting-wise.

-Collect More Vintage

One thing I discovered this year was a passion for vintage toys. Let me be specific here, vintage superhero toys. The newer stuff that has been coming out hasn't thrilled me as much as the vintage stuff.

 I have always been a huge fan of Mego's World's Greatest Superhero line. I had some of the figures as a kid. A few years ago I was picking up the figures lose and now I want to finish the line as well as pick up a few of the accessories.

I also want to pick up more vintage Batman stuff for my Batman collection. As a kid, I loved Batman and always had a Batman figure or a Batmobile. With the Dark Knight movies and my rewatching the 1960's Batman show, my love of the character is at an all time high and I want to add more vintage Batman to my collection.

-Expand My Collection

As much as a Superhero fan as I am, specifically Batman and Spider-Man, there are other characters I would love to collect. Green Hornet, Luke Skywalker and James Bond are three that come to mind. I have seen some great pieces I would love to add to my collection. I would also love to add some vintage Superman, Hulk and Iron Man pieces too.

I would also love to pick up some vintage Star Wars toys like a Death Star Playset, X-Wing Fighter and some figures.

-Organize

One of the things I really want to do is to be able to display all the stuff I have managed to collect. I want to buy display cases from Ikea and put up some shelves. I have seen other collectors awesome collections and I would love to be able to do the same.

-Work On My Spider-Man and Batman Comics Collection
Over the past couple of years I started to collect Spider-Man and Batman comics. I would love to have an entire runs of Amazing Spider-Man, Batman and Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man. Now, Some of these books are way too expensive and I will probably never complete the sets, but I will have fun trying to grab as many of these vintage comics as I can.

I would also love to add some vintage comics to my collection. I just love the artwork from the 1960's and 70's. I could just read those stories for hours on end.


I hope everyone has a fantastic New Year. Please, don't drink and drive. Be safe and I will see you all in 2013.

So, I Just Read Amazing Spider-Man #700 (Spoilers)

 

Today, I strolled into Midtown Comics and purchased Amazing Spider-Man #700. I was anxious to read this issue, not because the current storyline was any good. Frankly, I think it's been piss poor. Doc Ock managing to switch from his dying, decrepit body and into Peter Parker's which cause Parker to have to figure out how to switch back before his organs fail and he goes kaput. Not exactly a killer read. But, as the faithful Spider-Man fanatic that I am, I read it and held out hope that there was some big payoff that would make reading this tripe worth my time.

Epic Fail.

Not only does Dan Slott manage to keep Peter Parker from getting back into his body thus dies at the end of the issue in Doctor octopus' body, but during the fight Ock has a change of heart thanks to visions of Peter Parker's life flashing before his eyes and become his own and is now taking the mantle of Spider-Man. The Superior Spider-Man.

What??

Do you mean to tell me that this retched person is now going to be Spider-Man thanks to a few memories? Have we not forgotten what a bastard he has been the past 50 years? The big ending I was expecting turned out to be a wet fart. Thanks Mr. Slott. You have farted on Spider-Man. Why? Because you want to make Spider-Man more like Batman? Um, hello. Batman and Spider-Man are 2 different characters. Why would Marvel allow Slott to do this? Haven't they learned with past attempts to take the mask off Parker? In the end, he has always returned to take his rightful place as Spidey.

I wonder what Peter Parker did to deserve not just dying in Ultimate Spider-Man, but in Amazing as well. Did he make fun of Mickey Mouse and that vengeful rodent order the hit?What must Stan Lee be thinking about this? All Parker has done was be the best superhero in the Marvel Universe. Now, he is dumped for a super villain all because Slott probably ran out of one liners to feed Parker.

This sucks more than Showgirls.

Well, no more I say.

As of now, I am done with Spider-Man. I was planning on picking up the first issue of Superior Spider-Man, but I refuse to support it. Not until Peter Parker is returned as Spider-Man (Come on, you know it's going to happen at some point). I will read the older stories and watch the movies for my Spider-Man fix, but I will not buy any of the Spider-Man titles going forward. As a matter of fact, most of Marvel's books haven't been that great. Avengers vs X-Men wasn't that great. The Spider-Men could have been better. Fantastic Four hasn't been good in a long time. Uncanny Avengers so far has not been a good read and I dropped that title as well. I might as well just stop buying new Marvel titles and stick to DC Comics.

Wow, Marvel has had a banner year in the comics front, haven't they? They turn Cyclops into a mass murderer, kill both Professor X and Peter Parker. What's next? Make Wolverine into a secret agent? Have Captain America turn on his country a la Sgt. Slaughter? Sometimes, I think Marvel has lost its focus. Maybe this Marvel Now thing is their way of getting it together. So far, it's not working.

A lot of people I know hated the reboot DC gave it's universe last year, but the Batman, Justice League and Green Lantern books have been good (In the case of Batman very good). I am also willing to give Superman, Aquaman and Green Arrow a try. I think DC has churned out some of the better comics the past year and I will continue to support them by buying their books. If Man Of Steel is any good, they might even be able to make a dent in Marvel Studios armor.

Don't worry Marvel. I'm not totally giving up on you crazy bastards. I still have older graphic novels to read Like Planet Hulk and World War Hulk. Plus, I do love the movies you put out. I just don't feel that you guys respected us Spider-Man fans with that craptastic storyline and I for one refuse to put up with it anymore. I have been a loyal Marvel fan since I was a kid, but until Peter Parker is back as Spider-Man , I will not buy the comics or any of the toys that come out from here on end. All my eggs will go into Batman's cowl. If it sounds like I'm whining, perhaps I am. Maybe you should have thought about it before you made this horrible mistake.

Besides I know I am not the only one who feels this way. I can honestly see Marvel taking a hit on this. Titles can lose readers, toys are left on the shelves, t-shirts and other merchandise left unbought. Profits shrinking. Joe Quesada being turned away at Space Mountain. Oh the humanity!

I am just praying that this is all just a part of a long, drawn out story line that will eventually have Peter Parker return. I am hoping that this "Superior" Spider-Man is not what we will have going forward. Only Dan Slott and the Marvel higher-ups know that for sure. I'm hoping that eventually, they do the right thing.