Spider-Man’slove life has long been one of the most controversial aspects of the character’s history; to this day, Spidey fans continue to be at odds with Marvel Comics about therole romance should play in the Webslinger’s stories, and the latest comments from Senior Editor Tom Brevoort have only added another round of fuel to that fire.
In a new post on his Substack, Brevoortreiterated that Marvel fully intends on keeping Peter Parker single, explaining that “I believe that we’ve concluded decisively that the best platonic ideal of Spider-Man is one that is unattached.”
Custom Image by Milica Djordjevic
Of course, many fans continue to disagree with Brevoort and Marvel’s editorial position, leading to tension among the fandom at what seems to be the publisher’s willful disregard for what readers want from the character, at least when it comes to his relationship status.
Marvel Confirms Its Editorial Position: An “Unattached” Spider-Man Is Best For Business – From Their POV
Tom Brevoort Makes The Company’s Case
Tom Brevoort has been with Marvel for decades, and so he knows how controversial Spider-Man’s relationship status – or lack thereof – can be as well as anyone. He even prefaced his response to a question about Spider-Man once more getting married in Marvel’s main continuity by writing, “If I was a smart man, I would let this deadly fastball go by untouched.” However, Brevoort did proceed to give a frank answer, as is his nature, but it is once more not the one that fans want to hear.
The context of the question was a fan asking if the success of Marvel’s several alternation continuities in which Peter Parker and Mary Jane are married might prompt the publisher torekindle their legendary romance in the mainstream Marvel canon. Brevoort dismissed that idea, noting:
I believe that we’ve concluded decisively that the best platonic ideal of Spider-Man is one that is unattached, and that conclusion isn’t going to be changed by a particular alternate interpretation momentarily performing well.
Understandably, it is the first part of this answer that grabbed fans' attention, as itamounts to a firm confirmation of Marvel’s editorial position – which is that a single Spider-Man, unencumbered by romantic or familial attachments, is the way they envision the characterin perpetuity.
Hardcore Spider-Man Fans Disagree With Marvel’s Commitment To An Uncommitted Peter Parker
The “Creative Stagnation” Argument Continues
Tom Brevoort, and by extension, Marvel’s insistence on keeping Peter Parker “unattached” in its main universe strikes many fans as curious at best, and stubborn at worst. Spider-Man is, after all, inseparable from the maxim that “with great power comes great responsibility,” andat a certain point in the character’s history, it seemed like the natural extension of his heroic journey was to have him continue to struggle with progressively stronger villains while also having to juggle increasingly more urgent responsibilities, particularly as a husband and as a father – a trajectory Marvel thwarted with thecontroversial “One More Day” storyline.
For now, Marvel has no intention of bringing Spider-Man and Mary Jane back together, no matter how voluminous the fan demand for it might be.
In a way,Spider-Manlore has been dealing with the fallout of “One More Day"ever since, but even the story’s strongest critics will agree that it was incredibly dramatic, and indeed, going back as far as the death of Gwen Stacy, Spider-Man’s most dramatic and meaningful arcs have always been a result of Peter Parker’s personal attachments, rather than Spidey’s most epicconfrontations with Marvel villains. Nevertheless, for now, Marvel has no intention of bringingSpider-Manand Mary Jane back together, no matter how voluminous the fan demand for it might be.
