Spider-Man's French Connection- The Conspiracy Delusion!- and Gerry Conway's run on Amazing
“The Delusion Conspiracy!” is a funny title for a story I remembered because President Trump’s going to France- like Spider-Man, Robbie Robertson, and J. Jonah Jameson do in The Amazing Spider-Man #144. Rich guy leaves America to go to France in the middle of, in hopes to deflect from, speculation of his collusion with a known menace: that’s the premise. Writer Gerry Conway’s about to dangle this entire distraction before the reader’s eyes before lowering the boom with the bizarre sequel to his most famous story.
“Delusion” also appeared in Marvel Tales #121, printed the summer of 1980. On this very rare occasion, my Mom relented and purchased my sister and I both comic books from Rudy’s, the country town grocery store in the neighborhood where we’d one day attend Model Elementary, in the same building where she and her sister attended high school. Though the storytelling’s recognizably from an earlier time period, you also get a five-page back-up which introduced me to the 1950s version of The Original Human Torch and his partner, Toro. I deduced back then, as a reader of every single fraction of an inch of print in my rare ownership of each single comic book, the stories were reprinted from 1975 and 1954, so it’s also a window into the rich publication history of Marvel Comics. I liked the wild, Burgos-inspired uses of Torch’s powers, like flame doubles. Even a imbroglio with common crooks done in five pages could be ignited by child’s play imagination and one’s introduction, also, to the Statue of Liberty!
It’s a second part of two, so we begin with J. Jonah Jameson, esteemed Daily Bugle publisher (an original purveyor of truly ‘fake news’), boss to city editor Robbie and freelance photographer Peter Parker, held for ransom by a French terrorist supervillain. Buying comics in those days was always a gamble on a single piece of a larger tapestry, which bothered me not at all. This was the comic that introduced me to the sights of Paris, France, illustrated in both parts by Ross Andru and his longtime inking partner, Mike Esposito. On the subject of monumental action scenes, the Eiffel Tower seemed a more cliché choice, but it could’ve been a setting to rival Spider-Man: Homecoming’s Washington Monument rescue. Conway and Andru instead chose a solution based on a hardware store and some Parker science know-how to defeat Cyclone in a very, shall we say, comic book use of that science.
The cover, however, points to the truly suspenseful part: the ending. Maybe rejected NATO contractor Cyclone draws a “huh?” from your recognition- I’m sure he was disposed of by Scourge in that famous C-list villain Bar With No Name doom portrayed in Captain America #319. But that fashionable boot on the cover, paired with Spider-Man’s crouched, pointing figure exclaiming “but you’re dead!”, might be a stunning giveaway if you’re a reader of 1975...especially one who’s waited to see if Gwen Stacy, Peter’s tragically murdered girlfriend, could defy the grave one day.
Any book focused on the Bronze Age of Marvel- even with the allowance that many of its most written-about highlights are reserved for Integr8d Fix, volume two-would be remiss to ignore Gerry Conway’s run on Amazing Spider-Man, but especially, to omit the Death of Gwen Stacy. As I’m looking for a way into less-discussed but memorably-rendered storylines, the President’s summer Paris visit became the perfect reminder of Conway’s kick-off to his final story arc. Gerry shook up Spider-Man’s world and attempted to find something fresh in tone and subject, as only the second continuing writer of The Amazing Spider-Man, after co-creator Stan Lee (Roy Thomas, yes, did fill-in on ASM #101-104, memorably introducing Morbius, the Living Vampire). Whether you credit John Romita most for pointing out the possibility, laugh about Stan Lee’s nervous plausible deniability, or praise or damn Conway to the heavens, at the time, when supporting characters simply did not also become superheroes themselves (and that’s a subject of personal inspiration, as you’ll see when I finish Chrysalis of the Butterfly for next year), and Peter Parker was practically obliged by corporate trademark logic to remain unmarried, there was just nowhere else they could think to take Gwen Stacy. In fact, while a later generation would embrace strong female characters in storylines with roles more challenging to (or becoming!) their titular stars, Gwen had become bogged down by the limits and necessities of remaining Peter’s girlfriend but eternally not clued in on his secret identity. Her death instilled a sense of danger and consequence to the comic book world, growing up its stories in a way that might better match its now-older audience cohort.
I thought Robbie and Peter made a pretty interesting pairing in resolving Jameson’s dilemma, though we’re again in territory where the astute newspaperman could ascertain Parker’s dual identity, if he had not back in the days when he’d meet Captain George Stacy for those lunches that unnerved Peter so. I always liked how Robbie could be an integral character for his own sake, functioning in the story mostly as a voice of reason and a mature professional reporter, without ham-handed attempts to highlight his blackness. I also thought, including occasions his ethnicity did shade his perspective, Joe Robertson was written with knowledge of the world and certainty of his self.
Tough-minded, good-hearted, intelligent and wry, Robertson’s always been one of the most consistently-written, strong supporting characters in all of comics. The opposite of his publisher counterpart, Joe played things close to the vest where Jonah went off the deep end in speculation.
Jameson’s collusion with Mysterio (the second one, Danny Berkhart, if you’re keeping track) left him open to a blackmail attempt that maybe didn’t catch enough story traction: this was the set-up to his flight to Paris “in the night” as it were. I took a lot of things on face value as a very young fan, but I’ve come to agree with those that don’t think JJJ works as well when he crosses over into actual criminal territory, as with his Spider-Slayer gambits with Spencer Smythe. He and Robbie both end up hostages at Notre Dame Cathedral, where Peter plays Cyclone’s men until he can draw out Cyclone himself. Cyclone uses a belt-mounted gizmo he says he created as a NATO weapon to generate vorticity, perturbing the air in a given area into a destructive defensive and offensive force. Let’s just say Peter’s a big fan of ingenuity, shall we?
When Parker left LaGuardia Airport in part one, he shared a first whopping kiss with Mary Jane Watson, who had been his friend in all the fraught months following Gwen Stacy’s demise. I feel like, you may think of Conway’s villains as hit and miss, or even all the original ones are “hot air,” but the young writer, already the author of a few science fiction novels when he’s tapped by Lee to succeed him, excelled in making Peter and his cast interesting. You might find Parker being so morose, off-putting and unfair; he’s certainly written with some first hand experience in neurosis and manic depression. But Pete’s romantic life seems to have naturally evolved to a point where it could come back to life. Unfortunately, so then does Ms. Stacy!
May Parker collapses at the sight of the as-yet-unrvealed Ms. Stacy earlier in the story; I found it gripping stuff. When Peter comes home and rushes to the top of the stairs to confront the impossibility that’s been turning crazily in his mind, you’re left with a stunning cliffhanger! Gwen sightings have been hinted in earlier issues- in fact, coinciding at least once with the sorts of tricks Mysterio II uses to attempt to unnerve Spider-Man with his “back from the grave!” shtick. That sets up a very nice feint: after all, does Mysterio’s supposed ghost now know Peter’s secret? And so, little me learns of the legendary Death of Gwen Stacy in a completely backwards fashion. If it’s one of your first Spider-Man stories, you have no real idea why everyone’s so upset, but if certainly feels spooky! The returned Gwen Stacy, be she ghost, impostor, vampire, delusion- it’s completely open to speculation and in no way telegraphed she’s a clone, which was a relatively new science fiction idea I don’t think’s ever been depicted at this point.
Regardless of how you come to feel about the Clone Conspiracy, revisited just this summer, how its almost unending 90s derivatives may color your perspective, the moment, in its time, is breath-taking. It’s all together possible that it’s become as consequential to Spider-Man’s story world as the Stacy death-fall, which makes this pivot that much more remarkable, like lightning striking twice in Conway’s run. Best of all, for more Spidey fans than not, it’s the takeoff point of a wild story arc, a culmination of all Conway’s accomplished on the strip (including the introduction of The Punisher in #129, along with the villain behind this scenario, too, incidentally, the kinda-OK Jackal). The original return of Gwen Stacy arc singularly rivals the fevered writing behind the deaths of Gwen and the Green Goblin/Norman Osborn- and it’s never more baffling, controversial, dismaying, shocking, than on the final page of “The Delusion Conspiracy.”
It’s a second part of two, so we begin with J. Jonah Jameson, esteemed Daily Bugle publisher (an original purveyor of truly ‘fake news’), boss to city editor Robbie and freelance photographer Peter Parker, held for ransom by a French terrorist supervillain. Buying comics in those days was always a gamble on a single piece of a larger tapestry, which bothered me not at all. This was the comic that introduced me to the sights of Paris, France, illustrated in both parts by Ross Andru and his longtime inking partner, Mike Esposito. On the subject of monumental action scenes, the Eiffel Tower seemed a more cliché choice, but it could’ve been a setting to rival Spider-Man: Homecoming’s Washington Monument rescue. Conway and Andru instead chose a solution based on a hardware store and some Parker science know-how to defeat Cyclone in a very, shall we say, comic book use of that science.
The cover, however, points to the truly suspenseful part: the ending. Maybe rejected NATO contractor Cyclone draws a “huh?” from your recognition- I’m sure he was disposed of by Scourge in that famous C-list villain Bar With No Name doom portrayed in Captain America #319. But that fashionable boot on the cover, paired with Spider-Man’s crouched, pointing figure exclaiming “but you’re dead!”, might be a stunning giveaway if you’re a reader of 1975...especially one who’s waited to see if Gwen Stacy, Peter’s tragically murdered girlfriend, could defy the grave one day.
Any book focused on the Bronze Age of Marvel- even with the allowance that many of its most written-about highlights are reserved for Integr8d Fix, volume two-would be remiss to ignore Gerry Conway’s run on Amazing Spider-Man, but especially, to omit the Death of Gwen Stacy. As I’m looking for a way into less-discussed but memorably-rendered storylines, the President’s summer Paris visit became the perfect reminder of Conway’s kick-off to his final story arc. Gerry shook up Spider-Man’s world and attempted to find something fresh in tone and subject, as only the second continuing writer of The Amazing Spider-Man, after co-creator Stan Lee (Roy Thomas, yes, did fill-in on ASM #101-104, memorably introducing Morbius, the Living Vampire). Whether you credit John Romita most for pointing out the possibility, laugh about Stan Lee’s nervous plausible deniability, or praise or damn Conway to the heavens, at the time, when supporting characters simply did not also become superheroes themselves (and that’s a subject of personal inspiration, as you’ll see when I finish Chrysalis of the Butterfly for next year), and Peter Parker was practically obliged by corporate trademark logic to remain unmarried, there was just nowhere else they could think to take Gwen Stacy. In fact, while a later generation would embrace strong female characters in storylines with roles more challenging to (or becoming!) their titular stars, Gwen had become bogged down by the limits and necessities of remaining Peter’s girlfriend but eternally not clued in on his secret identity. Her death instilled a sense of danger and consequence to the comic book world, growing up its stories in a way that might better match its now-older audience cohort.
I thought Robbie and Peter made a pretty interesting pairing in resolving Jameson’s dilemma, though we’re again in territory where the astute newspaperman could ascertain Parker’s dual identity, if he had not back in the days when he’d meet Captain George Stacy for those lunches that unnerved Peter so. I always liked how Robbie could be an integral character for his own sake, functioning in the story mostly as a voice of reason and a mature professional reporter, without ham-handed attempts to highlight his blackness. I also thought, including occasions his ethnicity did shade his perspective, Joe Robertson was written with knowledge of the world and certainty of his self.
Jameson’s collusion with Mysterio (the second one, Danny Berkhart, if you’re keeping track) left him open to a blackmail attempt that maybe didn’t catch enough story traction: this was the set-up to his flight to Paris “in the night” as it were. I took a lot of things on face value as a very young fan, but I’ve come to agree with those that don’t think JJJ works as well when he crosses over into actual criminal territory, as with his Spider-Slayer gambits with Spencer Smythe. He and Robbie both end up hostages at Notre Dame Cathedral, where Peter plays Cyclone’s men until he can draw out Cyclone himself. Cyclone uses a belt-mounted gizmo he says he created as a NATO weapon to generate vorticity, perturbing the air in a given area into a destructive defensive and offensive force. Let’s just say Peter’s a big fan of ingenuity, shall we?
When Parker left LaGuardia Airport in part one, he shared a first whopping kiss with Mary Jane Watson, who had been his friend in all the fraught months following Gwen Stacy’s demise. I feel like, you may think of Conway’s villains as hit and miss, or even all the original ones are “hot air,” but the young writer, already the author of a few science fiction novels when he’s tapped by Lee to succeed him, excelled in making Peter and his cast interesting. You might find Parker being so morose, off-putting and unfair; he’s certainly written with some first hand experience in neurosis and manic depression. But Pete’s romantic life seems to have naturally evolved to a point where it could come back to life. Unfortunately, so then does Ms. Stacy!
May Parker collapses at the sight of the as-yet-unrvealed Ms. Stacy earlier in the story; I found it gripping stuff. When Peter comes home and rushes to the top of the stairs to confront the impossibility that’s been turning crazily in his mind, you’re left with a stunning cliffhanger! Gwen sightings have been hinted in earlier issues- in fact, coinciding at least once with the sorts of tricks Mysterio II uses to attempt to unnerve Spider-Man with his “back from the grave!” shtick. That sets up a very nice feint: after all, does Mysterio’s supposed ghost now know Peter’s secret? And so, little me learns of the legendary Death of Gwen Stacy in a completely backwards fashion. If it’s one of your first Spider-Man stories, you have no real idea why everyone’s so upset, but if certainly feels spooky! The returned Gwen Stacy, be she ghost, impostor, vampire, delusion- it’s completely open to speculation and in no way telegraphed she’s a clone, which was a relatively new science fiction idea I don’t think’s ever been depicted at this point.
Regardless of how you come to feel about the Clone Conspiracy, revisited just this summer, how its almost unending 90s derivatives may color your perspective, the moment, in its time, is breath-taking. It’s all together possible that it’s become as consequential to Spider-Man’s story world as the Stacy death-fall, which makes this pivot that much more remarkable, like lightning striking twice in Conway’s run. Best of all, for more Spidey fans than not, it’s the takeoff point of a wild story arc, a culmination of all Conway’s accomplished on the strip (including the introduction of The Punisher in #129, along with the villain behind this scenario, too, incidentally, the kinda-OK Jackal). The original return of Gwen Stacy arc singularly rivals the fevered writing behind the deaths of Gwen and the Green Goblin/Norman Osborn- and it’s never more baffling, controversial, dismaying, shocking, than on the final page of “The Delusion Conspiracy.”
Comments
Post a Comment