In Amazing Spider-Girl # 19 (2008), Peter shows May a Daily Bugle headline. The paper clearly shows that the date is Tuesday, March 28, 1996 (a Thursday in our universe), meaning that the modern MC2 stories take place in the mid-nineties, ironic considering the MC2 universe was started, with Spider-Girl, in 1998.
Here's the image they are referring to from Amazing Spider-Girl #19 (2008):
'But wait!' I hear you say, 'clearly that proves the modern MC2 takes place in the mid-nineties!' Well, no. Not really. Why? Well for starters, there is this little wrinkle which comes from Spider-Girl #33 (2001):
No, you don't need to adjust your screen! It really does give the date as Saturday, February 19, 2017. WHA?! 'Well, what does that mean? Is the MC2 set in the future or the past?' I hear you ponder loudly. The answer is neither. The MC2 is happening right now.
As I've covered before by deferring to the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Vol. 7: 'Though the MC-2 features a sliding timescale similar to Earth-616, it is not set in the future, but rather in the present, in this world, the Heroic Age occurred nearly fifteen years in the past.'
Essentially, any mentions of real-world current events or particular dates that will someday become impossible to reconcile should be either ignored or 'updated' with a more relevant substitute. Did a 60's Spider-Man comic reference the Beatles? Nowadays that reference might be to a more current music group such as One Direction (I'm so sorry, Bertone).
Hopefully I've cleared that up and not made everything even less understandable.
Until I figure out how to explain quantum mechanics without the use of a Flux Capacitor, I remain
frogoat
Hi there! Love the blog! I have a question. I've read many places here and having read the whole MC2 publication history that indicate only about a year has passed in the publication history of the MC2, what do we do about the Spider-Girl 1/2 issue? It says May's been Spider-Girl for 12 months. I am attempting to work on my own timeline (using a Before Present format instead of specific dates) but that issue would throw a wrench in it. I'd love to know you're thoughts. I'm going through my notes in order I read(I tried to read chronologically, mixed results)so I may throw it out for now, and see how it fits in after I get everything else.
ReplyDeleteLet me know how your timeline goes! I've slowly been working on a history for the MC2 and I know it can be very difficult at times. With regard to specific references like the one you mention, it's best to disregard them, as many issues refer to things as 'a few weeks/months ago' and the MC2 operates on a similar floating timeline to the Main Marvel Universe of Universe-616, albeit with its own quirks. Topical references should also be ignored or replaced with relevant substitutes, if you want to go that in-depth. There's also the issue of Christmas and May's birthday....
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