- "Amazing Spider-Man" #700 is latest comic book to court controversy
- The just-released issue has plot developments that radically change the Spidey-verse
- 'Amazing' writer has received extreme reactions, positive and negative, from fans online
Editor's note: SPOILER WARNING: Do not read this story if you don't want to know what happens in "Amazing Spider-Man" #700.
(CNN) -- For decades, comic books have had major shake-ups in their pages, with varying degrees of fan support -- and outrage.
In 1992, well before the advent of social media, Superman was killed and comic books went flying off the shelves.
In 2007, social media like Facebook and Twitter were in their infancy when Captain America died.
And now -- due in part to the abundance of social media and the intense interest in Spider-Man's alter ego, Peter Parker -- a firestorm has erupted, after Marvel revealed that Parker will die, and the role of Spider-Man will be taken over by his archenemy, Doctor Octopus.
The just-released "Amazing Spider-Man" #700 marks the end of one of the most popular comic book series of all time after 50 years. All parties involved maintain that the changes are quite permanent, and next month the saga begins anew with the release of "The Superior Spider-Man" #1, with the Doc, Otto Octavius, stepping into the Spidey suit.
So much for the famous romance between Superman and Lois Lane. The Man of Steel sought solace in the arms of Wonder Woman starting in 2012's "Justice League" #12, potentially turning the League on its head. It was just the latest major change after DC Comics (owned by Time Warner, which owns CNN) hit a reset button of sorts a year earlier, relaunching and revising its famous characters in the "New 52."
In "Earth Two" #2, released in 2012, Alan Scott, the first Green Lantern, was reintroduced as a gay man. The hoopla around the revelation was criticized by some as "exploitation."
DC's decision to release a series of prequels to the classic "Watchmen" (under the branding "Before Watchmen") caused a heated debate in early 2012. The original's writer, Alan Moore, described the move as "completely shameless." He said, "I don't want money. What I want is for this not to happen."
Buffy Summers decided to terminate her pregnancy in the 6th and 7th issues of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season 9" in 2011. Abortion is not a topic discussed very often in comics, and the storyline received a good deal of attention online and in the media.
After Superman took the side of Iranian dissidents in 2011's "Action Comics" #900, he decided to renounce his American citizenship because he did not want his actions to be seen as U.S. policy. The pre-"New 52" story was criticized, especially considering his old slogan was "Truth, justice and the American way."
Captain America's (aka Steve Rogers') assassination, seen as symbolic of attitudes towards the U.S. at the time, was the most talked about comic book storyline in 2007. "Captain America" #25 sold through the roof, after the story received huge media attention. Cap eventually returned in 2009, but not before his former sidekick Bucky Barnes (who himself was believed to be dead for decades) took charge of the famous mask and shield.
Marvel Comics admitted a lettering error caused a group of protesters to be identified as members of the tea party movement in a scene from "Captain America" #602 in 2010. Marvel corrected any future reprints of the story, but conservatives especially criticized the issue.
Batman alter ego Bruce Wayne's back was broken by the villainous Bane in 1993's "Knightfall" storyline. This led to "Knightquest," in which Jean-Paul Valley took over as the new Batman. Slowly, it became apparent to readers that the unstable Jean-Paul went too far as Batman, at one point letting one of his enemies die. Readers' angry letters were featured in the "Batman" comic books at this time. It turned out that readers were never supposed to like Jean-Paul. A rehabilitated Bruce returned in "KnightsEnd" and outwitted Jean-Paul into giving up the role of Batman.
Starting in 1994, the multi-year "Clone Saga" shook Spider-Man fans to the core, as it was revealed that Peter Parker had been a clone all along, and his entire life was a lie (the seeds for which were planted over 20 years before). Ben Reilly took over as the new Spider-Man, and a large number of readers revolted. By 1996, Peter was restored as Spider-Man.
Back in "Batman," the second Robin, Jason Todd, died in 1988 after fans were asked to vote over the phone to determine his fate. Todd was seen for well over a decade as the one dead character who would never return. But in 2005, "Under the Hood" reintroduced Jason as the Red Hood, and Jason is now a regular character with his own comic book series.
Peter Parker's then-girlfriend, Gwen Stacy, was murdered by the Green Goblin in 1973's "Amazing Spider-Man" #121. At the time, it was the most controversial comic book story ever. Writer Gerry Conway told CNN that fans continued to criticize and reference the story decades after it was published, but he has never regretted it, since it allowed Peter to be with his true love, Mary Jane Watson.
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Otto believes that with the combination of his intelligence and Parker's inherited memories and spider powers, he can be an uber-Spider-Man. He can live Parker's life better than Peter could -- from fighting crime to getting back together with on-again, off-again girlfriend Mary Jane Watson.
When issue #700 was leaked early, fan reaction -- both positive and negative -- went into overdrive, with a few death threats directed at the issue's writer, Dan Slott.
Slott reacted on his Twitter and Facebook by saying he would report any threats: "Reality check: There is NO such thing as a 'funny death threat.' Especially if you TAG someone in it."
Slott later noted that the reactions were getting more civil, as time went on.
CNN spoke separately to Slott and to Marvel editor Stephen Wacker about the controversial comic.
CNN: Why did you choose Doc Ock as the next Spider-Man?
Dan Slott: When we first met Peter Parker, he was a teenage bespectacled nerd who resented all the other kids. One of his first lines was, "Some day I'll show them all! Some day they'll be sorry they ever laughed at me." That's not something a hero would say. If Peter had never learned the lesson of "great power and great responsibility," there's every chance he would have become a supervillain.
And then you have Otto Octavius, a bespectacled scientist who, after his radioactive accident, became the eight-legged Doctor Octopus. For all intents and purposes, he was the adult Peter could have become, Spider-Man's dark reflection. So what if we flipped it? What if we gave him a second chance? Peter's final, heroic act was giving Doc all the memories and experiences that kept him on the right path. But is that enough? Can that overcome Ock's true nature?
CNN: How did this idea originate?
Stephen Wacker: This was an idea Dan had when he came onto the book. It changed shape as we went. It wasn't originally going to be in the 700th issue, but as the story grew, we realized maybe it was time to change up the makeup of Spider-Man for good, to make a permanent change. With that and the fact that the 50th anniversary was approaching, we thought, let's go out with a bang.
CNN: Did the word spread around Marvel quickly when this was first discussed?
Wacker: Three times a year we have editorial retreats, where we bring in our writers and discuss every single book. Anytime we talk about Spider-Man, it's a big deal. There were certainly some loud opinions in the room.
Our editor-in-chief, Axel Alonso, was one of the louder voices not buying it originally. All the things Axel poked at toughened the story up and made us look at things differently.
CNN: Was that a sneak preview of how fans might react?
Wacker: The fan reaction never really surprises me. Anything you do with any of our characters, there's a big vocal fan base, particularly online. It gets more magnified with Spidey. You find people of all stripes reacting -- people who have been reading it for 50 years and love it, and others who say they're quitting Marvel forever.
I keep all the fan mail. You can see some of the same people who have written about six things over the past six years that made them drop Marvel forever.
There are not a lot of storytelling opportunities in the world where you get such an immediate, visceral reaction. That's a part of the job I like.
Slott: I've actually gotten a fair amount of "This is awesome!" (reactions to the story), but it's been very polarizing. No one has a middling review. No one has a take of, "It was all right." People are very split.
I got an angry tweet saying, "I don't like seeing bad things happen to good people." I'm like, good luck reading Charles Dickens, Mark Twain -- anything in literature!
Now people are saying, "Nooooo! Why are you being mean to (Peter)?" The answer is two words: "Dra. Ma."
CNN: Have you learned anything in dealing with the reaction to this particular issue on social media?
Slott: We have the most passionate fans in the world! Everyone knows who Spider-Man is-- and everyone cares about him!
In the world of comics, thanks to (newspaper publisher) J. Jonah Jameson, everyone thinks he's a menace. But in our world, he's beloved. Now we're going to flip that too. The readers are Jonah. They aren't ready to cut this guy a break. They think he's a menace! This is going to be the most meta Spider-Man of them all! And going from everything I've seen on social media, I am so up for that challenge!
