(ThyBlackMan.com) A fews weeks ago, Spider-Man: Miles Morales dropped. I remember years ago when Miles Morales was announced as the next Spider-Man, there was both excitement and pushback.
It’s important to note that when Marvel Comics announced it, the company was never specific that Miles would be a part of the revived Ultimate Marvel brand.
Miles Morales: The New Spider-Man
The outrage even reached dismissed MSNBC pundit Chris Matthews. It was a thing, folks. Going further, some nerd outlets went into the story from the Ultimate Fallout arc and mentioned Peter Parker’s death.
In the comics, it’s an important moment for Miles Morales, after all. Him meeting Peter on this death was similar to Peter meeting Iron Man in the films. Killing Peter Parker is a no-no! So what we had here was a lack of familiarity with what modern comics do.
That’s from a world-building standpoint. Comic book publishers in the U.S have comic book franchises. A character can have multiple versions depending on the universe. Not even just depending on the universe but depending on the timeline.
Yeah, I went into that awkward timeline excuse that Marvel and DC have used. Apparently, this dimension shaking, destroying, and merging phenomena happens so often it’s resulted in multiple versions of the same hero—sometimes under different names and genders.
Miles Morales existed in a particular universe that wasn’t the main universe. Even though Ultimate Spider-Man is one of my top three favorite Marvel series, his death in the Ultimates universe didn’t stop the show.
One of the credited creators of Spider-Man, Stan Lee, loved the idea. It was what Spider-Man was originally meant to be viewed as: a bright teenager getting super powers in a world where adults have the powers. The full body suit allowed readers to put themselves in boots of Spidey.
It’s the same with Captain America on that note.
Another Spider-Man
You still had Peter Parker proper doing his thing. That year was “Spider-Island” storyline where people in Manhattan were getting spidey powers. Yes, civilians were biting Spider-Man’s bit but he was still alive. The cash cow wasn’t dead and an Afro-Latino kid didn’t take his place.
And just like that, the outrage dissipated. People who hadn’t read a comic book in decades were no longer upset. Plus, there were more pressing matters in the world—as there always is.
At the time, I wondered where was this outrage with Miguel O’Hara or Spider-Man 2099. Platforms in the 2010s and now are much larger than in the 1990s. Plus, O’Hara was a Spider-Man for a time when the original should’ve been dead anyway.
Also, as cool as Spider-Man 2099 was, it wasn’t going to last long enough that it would’ve presented any kind of problems. Not in the 90s when the comics industry was in bad territory. Even if it did, it still wouldn’t have presented problems.
Similar to Miles Morales presenting no problems.
Miles In The Main Universe
Then Miles Morales became a part of the main universe. It’s a lengthy story but one of those dimension-destroying, universe-obliterating events? Yeah, that’s pretty much the cause. Of course, it is. Miles proved to be extremely popular and it would’ve sucked to just have him die along with his universe.
Plus, he had a cooler suit and doper moves than Peter. So yeah, keep Miles. He also came at the right time as Marvel Comics were adding younger superheroes to the universe.
Double M had to be included in this wave even if the existence of both Spider-Men makes things even more murky. It wouldn’t be Marvel if things weren’t murky, folks.
That aside, Miles has never seemed out of place in the main universe and has even proven as useful as his mentor/masked namesake when it comes to large catastrophes. As a character, he’s been well-written and protected for the most part.
Just imagine Miles Morales being introduced as Spider-Man in the 1960s or 1970s. If he wasn’t killed at some point, he would’ve eventually gotten that Black Spider name.
Staff Writer; M. Swift
This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.