Does anybody have an opinion as to whether or not the new stories in this mag are canon? Spider-Fan (http://www.spiderfan.org/comics/title/s ... ar_uk.html) mentions that this "is a generic cartoon version, essentially based on the popular 90's TV cartoon", but I'm a bit skeptical about that. It's still on-going years after the show ended, and cartoony art doesn't necessarily mean the comic is based on that or any other show.
Originally those new stories were one-off tales set in a "Generic Spider-Man" continuity which had much in common with the Spider-Man of the 1990's Cartoon series. More recently they attempted to construct their own "Ultimate Spider-Man-esque" version of young Peter Parker, though recent issues seem to have drifted back to the generic cartoon continuity.
I'm curious if there's any good reason these can't be considered canon. I haven't read this myself, but I may try to track some issues down.
Considering this series began as a reprint title for stories that were based on a cartoon show I think its safe to assume its a separate universe. I have also never read them but I would be shocked if they weren't loaded w/ continuity discrepancies from the MU. (eg. The description for series 1, episode 7 seems to suggest a completely different venom origin.) The easiest thing to do might be renting/buying a copy of the animated shows they were derived from and see how many differences they have.
http://www.marvel.com/universe/OHOTMU:B ... AZ7#Merlyn
Check the entry for the Captain Britain Corps in Alternate Earths Handbook or the Fury or Merlyn's entry in the recent A-Z series. I think they referenced this magazine as publishing alternate Earth stories.
http://www.marvel.com/universe/OHOTMU:B ... AZ7#Merlyn
Check the entry for the Captain Britain Corps in Alternate Earths Handbook or the Fury or Merlyn's entry in the recent A-Z series. I think they referenced this magazine as publishing alternate Earth stories.
I don't see anything about this magazine under Merlyn or Fury at that link. I also don't have the Alternate Earths Handbook to check - could you type out the relevant passages?
cweed4 wrote:Considering this series began as a reprint title for stories that were based on a cartoon show I think its safe to assume its a separate universe. I have also never read them but I would be shocked if they weren't loaded w/ continuity discrepancies from the MU. (eg. The description for series 1, episode 7 seems to suggest a completely different venom origin.) The easiest thing to do might be renting/buying a copy of the animated shows they were derived from and see how many differences they have.
Somebody wrote:Oh, it's a mix of stuff. I think they reprinted Marvel-Team Up v2 at one point.
Exactly. It did start out reprinting stuff based on the show, but it also reprinted a bunch of canon stuff. E.g. (according to Spider-Fan) #22 reprinted UTSM@ 1996 and #30-34 reprinted Amazing and Sensational stories. Because it's such a mix I think it may have to be treated kind of like Spider-Man Family, in that it might have to be considered on a story-by-story / issue-by-issue basis. At the very least I think it deserves a look.
I wrote the entries in question. Spectacular Spider-Man tells stories from an alternate reality. It can't fit with Earth-616, but the story where Merlyn turns up references Earth-616. Plus Merlyn is Merlyn (and Merlin) across the multiverse - barring imposters, any appearance by him is the same character, no matter what reality you are in. Hence the story gets mentioned in his Handbook entry and in the Fury's.