Being a fan of Mary Jane Watson-Parker can be a difficult thing. To begin with, she was introduced as a love interest for Spider-Man, which meant that she was created with the express purpose of playing well off the Wall-Crawler. Next, she wasn’t his first love and the people in charge of Marvel over the last few decades especially have been greater fans of Gwen Stacy. This has led to her getting treated rather badly since the infamous “One More Day” did away with the marriage of Peter and MJ (I don’t think Dan Slott hates MJ, but he definitely wrote her to be much less pleasant as a person than she once was). It’s taken years to get Mary Jane back to a level where Marvel editorial would allow her to play a major role in the Marvel Universe.
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Mary Jane fans had to sit through the Paul Rabin marriage, which was character assassination of the highest order by writer Zeb Wells, but things did get better when she became Venom under the pen of Al Ewing. That chapter of Mary Jane’s life is over, but with this year being the 60th anniversary of Mary Jane Watson-Parker, Marvel wasn’t going to leave it like that. Her anniversary special revealed that Venom gave her a parting gift, leading into Friendly Neighborhood Mary Jane #1 from Ashley Allen and Phil Noto. This first issue is outstanding, the perfect new beginning for the second best girlfriend in comics (Lois is number one, obviously).
| Pros | Cons |
| Allen does a fantastic job with the character and sets up a cool new status quo | There’s really nothing majorly wrong with the book, it’s just not completely flawless in every way, so it doesn’t get a perfect score |
| Noto’s art has just the right vibe for this character and story | |
| Anytime you get a comic with a Stilt-Man fight, that’s a quality comic |
This Issue Is Yet Another Stunner From Marvel Not-So Best Kept Secret
Anyone who has been reading Marvel Comics, but especially the X-Men books, has been seeing the rise of a writer who could be one of the next greats. Ashley Allen became the go-to writer for X-Men solo miniseries, putting out minis for Magik and Psylocke. While neither mini was a surprise hit that changed the way the audience looked at the characters, they were both solid books that sold well. They opened the door for more X-Men to get solo books and for Allen herself to get more jobs. So far, that’s been a great thing; she’s able to take these characters, find an interesting place in them, and use it to inform her stories. She uses this method with Mary Jane in this first issue and it works like a charm.
Since the loss of her marriage to Peter, Mary Jane has kind of been a character adrift. No one really knew what to do with her, which is what led to her becoming Venom. It was a weird change, but it was one that worked. Allen focused on a part of the character we haven’t gotten to see in a while – her work as an actor. MJ wants to start a production company, to give back to artists, but also to “move on” from being a superhero. It’s a great status quo for the character; she’s trying not to be a superhero, you know someone who helps people, by starting a company that… helps people. This is the kind of status quo that you could build an ongoing series out of, with Allen throwing in some Flash Thompson as well, another former Venom who could use something cool to do. Add in a great fight with Stilt-Man and a plot line involving the Chameleon and you have a first issue that does justice to its main character.
Noto’s Pencils Work Perfectly For This Story
Phil Noto has been drawing comics since the ’00s, coming to prominence working for Wizard Magazine’s Black Bull Comics. Noto has since worked for Marvel and DC, and his art is something of an acquired taste. Noto is an amazing artist if you’re doing a book that focuses a lot on dialogue and more realistic scenes – his figure work and character acting are gorgeous. However, he’s never been all that great for big, comic book-style action; as good as his art is, it doesn’t really have any flow or momentum to it. The way I usually explain it is his action scenes like snapshots frozen in time. It’s not bad, but his pencils on more action-heavy books don’t always work.
All of that said, he was the perfect choice for this book. I was getting major Sal Buscema vibes from his work across the issue; Sal was one of my favorite MJ artists growing up. Noto is able to capture the fire of Mary Jane; his MJ has an energy to her, that party girl fire that so many fell in love with. The character acting is outstanding, really getting across the emotional stakes of every scene. The fight against Stilt-Man is awesome, as well, and there’s a chance it wouldn’t have been. MJ doesn’t have a full symbiote, so the fight is more about being smart than powerful. Noto is able to make it work perfectly, creating an exciting action sequence that works better than his action scenes usually do.
Mary Jane is one of those characters that got a raw deal during the Quesada/Alonso/Cebulski years. Marvel editors didn’t like the Spider-Man marriage and hated that fans loved MJ, so it feels like they went out of their way to ruin her. It didn’t work, though, and books like this are an example of why: she’s a charming character that fans want to life. Mary Jane in a solo book, starting her own production company, is the perfect way to move the character forward as a star. I like the idea of Mary Jane in her own solo book, having her own little adventures outside of her place in Spidey’s life. Allen and Noto are able to give readers an excellent first issue, one that will pull readers in and give them an entertaining ride. I really want this book to be a Poison Ivy in 2022-level success (a miniseries that got turned into an ongoing series that is still going to this day) for Marvel and Allen, because this first issue presents a status quo that is too good for just a miniseries.
Friendly Neighborhood Mary Jane #1 is on sale now.
What did you think about Friendly Neighborhood Mary Jane #1? Is it a great new start for her or do you want something different? Sound off in the comment section below.
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