Spider-Man is here and all is right with the world!

Yes folks, it is Sunday and the new NY Post Spidey Collectible Reprint is in! It sports a great retro-cover of Spidey vs. Electro (seen here at the left), and an awesome newsprint style reprint of the second half of the Lee/Ditko classic story. Man I seriously just can’t get enough of this stuff!

Yesterday, I was at the Big Apple’s 10-year anniversary convention. It was a free-for fans entrance convention, sort of a way for Mike Carbonaro, and Big Apple to say “Thanks” for 10 great years. I was there as were several fellow CAG members. We sold some copies of Psychosis! #1, and got to promote the CAG network. I managed to get some of my own writing done at the con (no small feat, I might add). Plus there was the usual assortment of pros and fans catching up on our mutual lives.

).Oh yeah, I did score a very cool Spidey Fleece blanket that is now in my office (with all the other Spidey stuff. Whelp, that’s about it for now. I hope to have more later on in the week. I’m really hoping to post more regularly to this space, and even have some non-Spidey stuff about which I can chat (like the fact the I’ve just been informed that another one of my stories will be published in Psychosis! #2. How cool is that?

The Spidey Reprints are in! The Spidey Reprints are in!

That’s right boys and girls, the NY Post has resumed issuing the Spider-Man reprints. The current issue is Vol. #19 (reprinting the first half of Amazing Spider-Man #9, staring Electro).

As always, the read was refreshing, entertaining, and brought me back to my youth. Just so you all know, I’ve been collecting a second set of the comics and at Christmas, I gave the first 18 issues to my 12-year-old nephew Tony-o, who has gotten into reading comics over the past few years. Well, I hope that Tony-o is enjoying these comics as much as am I.

If anyone out there is reading this and wants to introduce their kids (nephews, nieces, grandkids, whomever) to comics, and want to be assured that the comics are going to be a) enjoyable, and b) “wholesome” then I would suggest the following Marvel titles:

Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane: This book is told from MJ’s point of view, and really doesn’t so much follow the established Marvel Cannon but is more of an off-shoot of the two Mary Jane prose novels that Marvel issued a few years back. Think Betty and Veronica with superheroes, and you’ll get an idea of what this series is all about. Writer Sean McKeever does a most excellent job in capturing teen girl angst in a superhero world.

Marvel Adventures Spider-Man (also available in Avengers and Fantastic Four): Here again with the Marvel Adventures titles is a re-interpretation of classic Marvel re-told in an up-beat, modernized way All fun, all-in-one issue stories, where there is no need to worry about continuity or what has gone on before (or even after) these three series are modern-day classic stuff.

In all three series, whatever you generally remember from Silver Age Marvel is essentially true, only the stories place the characters squarely in the modern era (cell phones, computers, etc.) only these items don’t so much detract from the story or enjoyment of the books, but add to their accessibility. As far as the Avengers go, the writers freely pull from virtually all variations of the group, assembling a team that never really served together (including Cap, Spidey, Wolverine, Hulk, and Iron Man, thrown in for good measure are X-Man Storm (who was never an avenger) and Giant Girl (who is actually a Young Avenger).). Still, the stories work, and are quite fun.

I have to say that I’m really happy that Marvel is remembering (finally) that if they don’t do something to engage younger kids in comics, that eventually the only ones in this field will be adults, and there will be no one to carry on this great tradition.

Hopefully some new (younger) readers will discover Marvel and then go not only back and collect the older stuff (either in its original formats, or in the reprint graphic albums), as well as move forward, collecting the newer stuff.

As fans and parents, we can only hope.

More Spidey Christmas Gifts!

That’s right, I have more Spidey gifts that I received for Christmas. I sort of forgot them, as they were essentially “gag” gifts that my brother Ron gets for me. Every year for Christmas and/or my birthday he and I swap theme gifts. He gets me Spidey stuff, and I get him Mets stuff. We’ve been doing it for years, and it is great. Mostly the stuff we swap is silly, inexpensive stuff, but that’s entirely not the point.

Anyway, Ron and Tony-o (his son, who also loves reading comics) presented me with this trio of gifts. Spidey Stickers, Spidey lunch bags, and a Spidey ice pack. Aren’t they mad-cool?

Yeah, I thought so too.

Anyways, when I spoke to the Customer Service Dept. over at the NY Post, they said that Spidey would be back on Sunday, January the 14th. Personally, I’m going to double-check this Sunday, just to be on the safe side. I didn’t check on Jan 1st, so I’m going to be very irritated if it was there I and I missed it.



Oh, and to not slight my lovely wife, she just acquired for me the 2007 Spidey calendar (at half price, no less!) This isn’t me (or her) forgetting, the calendar is something that you can really only get at a mall, and she didn’t visit one this past season, but found herself at a Border’s book store the other day, and lo and behold there was a calendar, so she grabbed it up for me.

Isn‘t she the best?

You so have to check this out!

A buddy of mine just sent me this link, and I want to share it with you all here.



Cool, eh?

One of my Christmas presents has been co-opted!

That’s right, it is New Year’s Day, and already one of my Christmas presents has been co-opted by a member of my household.

Just for the record, this is my daughter’s cat, Zazu, who is sitting in the kiddie Spidey chair that I was given for Christmas as a gag gift by my family. Zazu has apparently found it comfortable and perfect for sleeping, (which she does in the chair every night, near as I can tell). I think it is cute, and have no real objection to it, because, well, at least the chair is getting used, eh?