Friday, June 25, 2004
I can't believe I read the whole thing
As you can tell from our spiffy logo, this is about the life of everyone's favorite Spider-Man clone, Ben Reilly. “The Clone Saga” as it became known, was the most controversial Spider-Man story ever told. Years after the saga ended, fans are still divided as to whether the story was a landmark moment in Spider-Man history, or an embarrassing smudge of the 90s that further complicated the titles. To give you a little bit of a hint, let me say that I wouldn't begin a project like this if I hated the clone saga.
GrayHaven Magazine presents … “The Life of Reilly”
Ah, Spider- Man.
Of all the Marvel comics, I suppose Spider-Man is my favorite—then again, I'm not much of a Marvel fan to begin with, preferring DC. Then again, I'm not much into superhero comics anyway.
Be that as it may though, Spider-Man. Of all of Marvel's heros, he's the one that I can relate to the most—an awkward teenager who can't get a date yet saves New York time and time again, only to have screeds written against him by the horrible editor James Johah Jameson. And who can forget those incredible lyrics from the 60s animated series?
Spiderman, Spiderman,
Does whatever a spider can
Spins a web, any size,
Catches thieves just like flies
Look Out!
Here comes the Spiderman.Is he strong?
Listen bud,
He's got radioactive blood.
Can he swing from a thread?
Take a look overhead
Hey, there
There goes the Spiderman.In the chill of night
At the scene of a crime
Like a streak of light
He arrives just in time.Spiderman, Spiderman
Friendly neighborhood Spiderman
Wealth and fame
He's ignored
Action is his rewardTo him, life is a great big bang up
Whenever there's a hang up
You'll find the Spiderman.
(These lyrics are probably the third most recognized animated lyrics from my generation, only exceeded by “Conjunction Junction” and “I'm just a Bill” from School House Rock)
But since I don't really follow superhero comics that much, little did I know that in the mid-90s, a resurected story line from 1975, in which our Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman fought against his own clone, a little story line that nearly destroyed the whole Spiderman franchise.
Okay, a bit of hyperbole there, but still, in the 35 part (yes, thirty- five part) series you not only learn of the nearly two year long saga (through the four Spider-Man comic books and some special one-shots) every excruciating details about Peter Parker/Spider-Man (the “survivor” of the 1974 story and possible clone) and Ben Reilly/Scarlet Spider (supposedly killed and the “real” Peter Parker) and all the plot twists there-in (who really is the clone, and whose body really did end up in that smokestack in 1974?) but the details about what was going on behind the scenes at Marvel during that time.
Reading the series (and yes, I can't believe I read the whole thing) it struck me that superhero comic books and soap operas, despite the different media and target audiences, are basically the same thing. The editors had a definite story arc they wanted to present, but continuity errors, marketing pressure and the big problem—changes in employment of editors and writers caused the storyline to spriral out of control (at one point Ben Reilly was supposed to end up being the real Peter Parker, but seeing how the clone Peter Parker had not only married Mary Jane, but was about to become a father, complicated matters. And what about all the Spider-Man issues between 1975 and 1994? You mean that wasn't Peter Parker but a clone? You begin to see the problem here … ).
It's a fascinating read, although I did find myself skimming the Spider- Man story line to skip to the behind-the-scenes machinations going on at Marvel.
“Enuma elish” this ain't …
Here, according to the London Times, are a few sample passages:
Mark 1:4
Authorized version: “John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.”
New: “John, nicknamed ‘The Dipper,’ was ‘The Voice.” He was in the desert, inviting people to be dipped, to show they were determined to change their ways and wanted to be forgiven.”
Mark 1:10-11
Authorized version: “And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him. And there came a voice from the heaven saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
New: “As he was climbing up the bank again, the sun shone through a gap in the clouds. At the same time a pigeon flew down and perched on him. Jesus took this as a sign that God's spirit was with him. A voice from overhead was heard saying, ‘That's my boy! You're doing fine!’”
Via metaphorge , New Bible translation promotes fornication
Not only does it promote fornication, but it mangles the English lanuage as well. Like I mentioned a few days ago, modern translations of the Bible just don't have the lyricism of the King James Bible. “‘That's my boy! You're doing fine!’”?
Gaaaaack!
