Hey Warriors, been a while. Hope reading week and midterms went well. This week’s installment of Geek Culture will focus on the recently announced collaboration between Sony Pictures Entertainment and Marvel Studios, bringing the the amazing world of Spider-Man to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Took them long enough. Sony has owned the feature rights to comic book character since 1999, when Marvel sold the rights to them for $7 million. Sony has made five Spider-Man movies and rebooted the franchise twice. Hopefully with the help of Marvel Studios, the third time will be the charm.
First, here is the breakdown of the deal: there will be a reboot of the Spider-Man story with the new web-head being introduced first in a Marvel film, then Sony Pictures will release the next installment of Spider-Man on July 28, 2017. Sony will continue to distribute, finance, own, and have final creative control of the Spider-Man pictures. It is still yet unknown if these two Spider-Man movies will be integrated into a Marvel production but it will be nothing short of amazing.
Next, courtesy of Empire Magazine, here’s a brief history of Spider-Man and the avengers in the comics. Spider-Man first graced the pages of the Avengers comic in December 1964, in an issue that announces his co-starring status on the cover. He assists the assembled heroes in taking down a Spider-Man robot sent from the future by the power-hungry Kang the Conqueror. Spidey asks to join Tony Stark and co., but is denied admission. He might have been disappointed at the rejection following their first mission together, but Parker got his chance in “…To Become An Avenger!” a story in 1966’s The Amazing Spider-Man Annual 3, when Cap, Iron Man and the rest decide to test him to find out if he’s worthy of joining the team. Unfortunately, it does not go well. After a fight with the Hulk, Peter decides to decline the offer to become an avenger. Time skip to 2004, Spidey is again working alongside members of The Avengers, albeit in a time when the team has been disbanded. A prison breakout at the supervillain-holding facility known as ‘The Raft’ orchestrated by Electro sends members of the team (including Captain America) into action. Spidey tags along and is eventually offered membership of a freshly reconstituted Avengers, something he declines at first.
Can’t forget the elephant in the web, Peter Parker’s tie with Marvel’s 2006 Civil War Comic Event, which is what the third Captain America movie is based off. The Civil War storyline sees heroes taking sides over a governmental demand for superheroes to register their identities and submit to regulations. Tony Stark is among those who support the move, while Captain America speaks out strongly against it. Stark convinces Spidey to reveal his identity and initially goes along with the pro side, before eventually siding with Cap.
Finally, Spidey will likely have a cameo/minor supporting role in Captain America: Civil War or Avengers: Age of Ultron. However, one thing that is clear is Spider-man will be joining the ranks of captain America, Thor and Iron Man in the third Avengers movie. Make sure you catch the web-head at the movies soon.
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