Spider-Man in 1964
The hits keep coming when it comes to new villains: Green Goblin, Kraven, Mysterio, and Electro.
It’s one thing to have superheroes run in the same professional circles. It’s a different, much more immersive thing when secret identities unknowingly walk around in the same social circles. Peter Parker and Johnny Storm (Human Torch) hang out in the same social group. Parker knows Storm because the Fantastic Four don’t hide their identities. But Storm doesn’t know Parker, so Spider-Man is frequently able to get the best of the Human Torch.
We get a healthy dose of “Aunt May is ill” this year, which ends up becoming a rather tiring plot device eventually. Whenever Peter isn’t played off as temperamentally weak, May gets the characterization. It’s not quite as bad as Jameson’s intrigues to destroy Spider-Man (just let unscrupulous newsmen stay in a gray moral area, man), but it does become an “oh, this plot point yet again” sort of thing. I suppose some major innovation credit should be awarded this year, where a simple cold bug wrecks Spider-Man, which leads to a big loss against Dr. Octopus.
Ock had a couple solid issues, but there were a couple weak outings with villains this year. I remember the Enforcers for being one of the all-time stupid major super-villains in Spider-Man’s early years. Consider that memory validated in this current read-through. They’re a mercenary team consisting of a cowboy, a strongman, and some short guy named Fancy Dan.
But there was also Mysterio! Conceptually, I would expect to hate this type of villain- the type of character that attempts to win via gimmick and conceit. Yet, there’s something about the showmanship and mystery that adds a strong element.
I think I’ve pinpointed what made Spider-Man more popular than Fantastic Four: the melodrama. There’s always some love interest that Parker is pining for; today it’s Betty Brant, tomorrow it’s Gwen Stacy or Liz Allen. For my part, I thought Betty Brant was a decent option for Parker, though it potentially risked entering Clark Kent-Lois Lane territory.
On a final note, I had forgotten that, in the earlier years, Green Goblin was not as… lethal as he would one day become.
