In case you missed it a couple of months ago, something major happened in the Ultimate Comics universe. Peter Parker was killed trying to save his Aunt May from the Sinister Six:
Today the new Ultimate Spiderman was revealed to be a half black, half hispanic teenager named Miles Morales. This has apparently set off a lot of people who are unhappy with Spiderman now being of a different race. I've read articles and comments with people being unhappy that too many "white" heroes are being replaced with ethnic replacements. I have to say... I have absolutely no problem with this. I mean, plenty of guys have been "replaced" by people of different ethnicity. James Rhodes was Iron Man for a while.
Heck, thanks to the recent Justice League cartoons, I'm sure some kids out there were wondering why Green Lantern was white in the movie. The only Green Lantern some of them had seen was John Stewart. I love Jaime Reyes as the new Blue Beetle. I was a pretty huge fan of of the Ted Kord version of the Blue Beetle, especially in his JLI role, and was as shocked as anyone when he was murdered by Max Lord. I'm really glad they didn't bring him back from the dead to re-boot the Blue Beetle. I really hope they don't sometime in the future.
This is what I get upset about. Death not meaning anything in comics.
One of the first comics series I read was "Crisis on Infinite Earths". In it, Barry dies basically saving the universe. It was a great death for a hero.
And, of course, he's not the only one. Plenty of superheroes have died and been reborn. Bucky, Superman, Jason Todd (the second Robin), Colossus, Jean Grey, Hal Jordan.... Very few comic deaths actually stick. These days when the big "news" in a comic is that "before the end... someone will die!", it isn't news at all. Death isn't a big deal in comics anymore.
Today the new Ultimate Spiderman was revealed to be a half black, half hispanic teenager named Miles Morales. This has apparently set off a lot of people who are unhappy with Spiderman now being of a different race. I've read articles and comments with people being unhappy that too many "white" heroes are being replaced with ethnic replacements. I have to say... I have absolutely no problem with this. I mean, plenty of guys have been "replaced" by people of different ethnicity. James Rhodes was Iron Man for a while. 
Heck, thanks to the recent Justice League cartoons, I'm sure some kids out there were wondering why Green Lantern was white in the movie. The only Green Lantern some of them had seen was John Stewart. I love Jaime Reyes as the new Blue Beetle. I was a pretty huge fan of of the Ted Kord version of the Blue Beetle, especially in his JLI role, and was as shocked as anyone when he was murdered by Max Lord. I'm really glad they didn't bring him back from the dead to re-boot the Blue Beetle. I really hope they don't sometime in the future.This is what I get upset about. Death not meaning anything in comics.
One of the first comics series I read was "Crisis on Infinite Earths". In it, Barry dies basically saving the universe. It was a great death for a hero.
...and for a long time.. he stayed dead. Wally West became the Flash. For 23 years he was The Flash. Pretty much my entire lifetime of reading comics, the only Flash I ever knew was Wally West. He was The Flash nearly as long as Barry Allen ever was. Barry's first appearance was in 1956. He died in 1985, so he was The Flash for 29 years. What was the point in bringing him back?
And, of course, he's not the only one. Plenty of superheroes have died and been reborn. Bucky, Superman, Jason Todd (the second Robin), Colossus, Jean Grey, Hal Jordan.... Very few comic deaths actually stick. These days when the big "news" in a comic is that "before the end... someone will die!", it isn't news at all. Death isn't a big deal in comics anymore.I hate to say it, because for 160 issues, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Peter Parker's adventures and problems being the Spiderman of the Ultimate Universe, but I hope he stays dead. He lived as a hero and died being a hero, and that should be his legacy.
And this new guy? Well, Brian Michael Bendis has been writing Ultimate Spiderman for 11 years now. I think it is one of, if not the best ongoing comics produced during that time. I have no reason to doubt that Miles Morales is going to make a great Spiderman.
Comments