Studio Ghibli and the MC2

My partner adores the animated features produced by Studio Ghibli, an animation film studio based in Japan. From their deeply emotional films such as Grave of the Fireflies to it's whimsical and charming productions like Kiki's Delivery Service and My Neighbor Totoro, it's clear to see why Studio Ghibli is so highly regarded for it's attention to character and focus on beautiful animation. It might seem an unlikely connection, but as a tribute to my wonderful partner, I'd like to do a brief posting about the time Studio Ghibli made an appearance in the MC2.

Totoro is a large cuddly forest spirit that appears in the 1988 Studio Ghibli film My Neighbor Totoro. Since his first appearance on screen, the character has become an icon, appearing on all sorts of merchandise and even being integrated into Studio Ghibli's logo and branding. The character has even been seen in the Disney Pixar film Toy Story 3 as a plush toy. But more importantly, Totoro appeared as a cameo in an issue of Spider-Girl.

Spider-Girl #51 is notable for being the only issue of the Spider-Girl not written by Tom Defalco, as it was originally a stock story commissioned in the event of a tight deadline. Written by Sean McKeever with art by Casey Jones, the story is about an unnamed student at Midtown High who has a crush on May 'Mayday' Parker and writers her a letter the day he leaves town. But more importantly, it features Totoro!

Yes, the lowly freshman student's best friend Kari carts her school books around in an adorable Totoro backpack. It's nothing earth shattering, but it's a nice little nod and seems appropriate for a teenager to tote such a cute piece of merchandise. I'm willing to bet that this was an inclusion from artist Casey Jones as it's not mentioned in dialogue. But that's just my guess.

Enjoy your time together and be good to one another, people. Love you, Sugar Plum!

Until I stop seeing pop culture within pop culture, I remain

frogoat

Lady Octopus in the MC2

With her recent reappearance in Nick Spencer's Amazing Spider-Man run (and since I absolutely missed a similar opportunity last year with the release of Into the Spider-Verse) I figured it would be a good time to take a look at Carolyn Trainer aka Lady Octopus in the MC2.

Carolyn Trainer made her first full appearance in Amazing Spider-Man #406 ( with only her tentacles seen the previous issue) wherein she took on the mantle of Doctor Octopus following the murder of Otto Octavius by Kaine. Carolyn was later instrumental in resurrecting her predecessor and assumed the role of student under Otto's tutelage.

However, due to several big changes behind the scenes on the Spider-Man books in the late 90's, Carolyn simply stopped appearing and wasn't seen for several years. When she did return in the 2000's in small roles throughout various titles, she was dubbed 'Lady Octopus', presumably to differentiate her from the original Doc Ock. While the events of these later stories are almost certainly not canon to the history of the MC2, the moniker 'Lady Octopus' does play a curious part in events.

With that out of the way, the MC2's Carolyn Trainer first appears in Spider-Girl #68, working with Dr Sonja Jade, a former ally of Otto Octavius. With a reference to her predecessor earlier in the issue, the major involvement of Dr Jade and the final page of the story leaving Carolyn shrouded in shadows, it's left unclear which Doc Ock we are seeing. However, the letters page for the issue proclaims 'Doctor Octopus is back!'

The mystery is teased a bit further throughout Spider-Girl #69 as John Jameson is kidnapped by Jade's goons with assistance from a set of mechanical tentacles. It's no until later in the issue Carolyn Trainer makes her big entrance declaring herself 'the new Doctor Octopus'. It's here we learn that Otto Octavius has recently died. Dr Jade and Trainer abducted Jameson and his wife's scientific equipment, planning to turn people into 'monsters for mobsters'. Unfortunately for The Buzz, they first tested this on his father John Jameson, turning him into the Man-Wolf once more.

When her control module for the Man-Wolf is destroyed and she is nearly shot dead, Carolyn abandons the plan, splitting from Dr Jade and leaving the equipment and Jade's men to be captured. After Dr Jade is apprehended by Spider-Girl, Doctor Octopus quickly defeats her but spares her life as repayment for the heroine having saved her from a bullet earlier.

Next, Carolyn becomes embroiled in the ongoing gang war between the Black Tarantula and recently incarcerated current Kingpin of crime, Canis. Offering up her protection and technology to chop shop owner and mobster 'Handsome' Richie Valentine in exchange for a weekly stipend, Trainer encounters Spider-Girl when the latter is given intel by the Black Tarantula's assistant Chesbro that Trainer is working with Valentine's boss, Canis (Spider-Girl #72).

However, when Spider-Girl is knocked into Valentine's workshop and is forced to fight off his goons, Valentine surrenders, believing Spider-Girl is working with 'Lady Octopus'. Afterwards, Carolyn thanks Spider-Girl for 'attending' to Valentine for her. Spider-Girl, feeling used, attacks Lady Ock only to be soundly beaten and on the verge of being killed when Ock suddenly leaves. Spider-Girl then receives a phone call from Chesbro offering the Black Tarantula's assistance (Spider-Girl #72).

When next we see our fair Lady Octopus, she frees Canis from police custody during a transfer and seemingly forms an alliance. With Chesbro informing Spider-Girl of this alliance and offering the Black Tarantula's assistance again, Spider-Girl soon confronts the pair of criminals in the sewers only to find herself buried beneath tons of rubble by Ock covering her escape (Spider-Girl #74).

With Canis losing control of his criminal empire, Lady Ock reminds him that he must still compensate her for efforts in breaking him from prison. Offering to eliminate Spider-Girl if he identifies his various criminal connections. Unwilling to do so, Canis attempts to organize a meeting of his men to bring them into line but this too falls apart thanks to the intervention of Spider-Girl. Left with no other options, Canis agrees to Lady Octopus' terms (Spider-Girl #75-76).

Carolyn meets with and convinces the leaders of the various crime families to attend a special meeting, promising her client can provide protection, worldwide distribution and strength. Later, Canis arrives at his meeting to discover that it is not his lieutenants in attendance just as Lady Octopus leaves, having sealed him in. Encountering Spider-Girl, Ock informs her of Canis' predicament and reveals her betrayal, allowing her to escape as the hero attempts to save the fallen crime lord (Spider-Girl #77).

Elsewhere, the Black Tarantula concludes his meeting with the former lieutenants of Canis. We learn that Carolyn has been secretly working to undermine Canis for the Black Tarantula the whole time, just as the Black Tarantula has been manipulating Spider-Girl to target his rival's organisation. The co-conspirators are interrupted by an angry and hurt Spider-Girl who has organised others to aid Canis so that she can follow Lady Ock (Spider-Girl #77).

Confronting Lady Ock and the Black Tarantula, Spider-Girl is soon joined by Agent Weadon's team, led by Kaine. Outnumbered, Carolyn attempts to flee with Raptor and Spider-Girl in close pursuit. No longer restrained by the Black Tarantula's orders not to kill her, Lady Octopus throws a large boat at Spider-Girl, nearly killing Raptor in the process. However this time Spider-Girl blindfolds herself and trusts solely in her instincts to guide her through Lady Ock's tentacles to rip off her harness and disarm the villain. Soon after, the Black Tarantula (briefly) turns himself over to the authorities (Spider-Girl #78).

Unfortunately, that's the last time we see Carolyn Trainer in the MC2. I think it's very notable that in the lead up to her MC2-debut and in her early appearances ol' Carolyn was originally billed as 'Doctor Octopus' -her rightful title especially following her mentors death-  but this was later dropped as the series drew closer to Spider-Girl #75. For those who do not know, the Spider-Girl series was slated for yet another cancelation attempt around this time, possibly resulting in the character being renamed 'Spider-Woman' to accommodate the new character Anya Corazon aka Araña who was to be given the moniker and series title 'Spider-Girl'. Perhaps these events are unrelated, and Carolyn was simply renamed 'Lady Octopus' to keep in line with her Main Marvel Universe counterpart and avoid confusion....but I can't help drawing connections.

Given how I recently talked about LGBT+ representation in the MC2, I think I might be called out if I didn't at least mention that at least some fans believe Dr Jade and Carolyn were in a romantic relationship. I'm guessing this opinion may have arisen at least partially due to Carolyn's proclivity to refer to Sonja Jade as 'my sweet' and 'my darling' and even 'my dear'. While I don't want to dismiss these claims, I do have to point out that Carolyn also referred to others in a similar fashion on various occasions, including both Spider-Girl and Canis. That said, Carolyn was quite thankful when Jade was apprehended; remarking she had become 'tiresome of late', referred to The Buzz as 'definitely not my type' and insisted on clarifying her relationship with the original Doctor Octopus was that of 'colleagues' when Spider-Girl suggested otherwise. So...draw your own conclusions, fans!

Until I find more time to research, write and post these silly little blogs, I remain

frogoat

Spider-Girl: The Complete Collection Vol. 2

It doesn't feel all that long ago that I reviewed Spider-Girl: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 and here I am again nearly exactly 365 days later, taking a look at Vol. 2. Collected in this trade paperback release we have Spider-Girl (1998) #16-#32 by Tom Defalco, Ron Frenz and Pat Olliffe.

While it's not my intention to review the issues within the collection, I have to admit, flipping through these stories I was transported back to my youth, to a time when I had nothing but wonder and joy for the medium of comics, when I first fell in love with the Spider-Girl character, her supporting cast and her world. There is so much to enjoy in these stories, with subplots and threads pulling together in surprising yet natural ways. There's a sense that any teething issues the creative team may have had are gone and now they are delving deeper into all the characters and giving us a richer and more fleshed out look at the established cast. 

When I wrote my review for the first volume in this collection, I wasn't aware of  some of the complaints I've since encountered online. While I mentioned the flimsy cardstock, I didn't have as much of an issue with the paper quality, but in hindsight I can see why this would be frustrating. As a fan of the series, I really want to see these issues reprinted in the best possible quality. It's also worth mentioning that I received another copy of the first volume with several missing pages in the weeks following my review, which after my initial anger I decided was perhaps worth retaining as a misprinted edition, even if it never amounts to any monetary value. With all that out of the way, the card stock for Volume 2 appears to be ever-so-slightly thicker than it's predecessor. Meanwhile, the glossy pages of the interior seem to be much the same. I've not noticed any issues with the printing process, nor have I encountered any missing pages, crinkling along the spine or even dints and folds in the cover. 

The cover is, in my humble opinion, a much more appealing choice than the first volume. Vibrant colours, a great layout and design with mood and menace and atmosphere emanating from every corner and an honest to gosh great looking Spider-Girl and maniacal Goblin looming in the background really made me want to crack this thing open and dive into the story. 

I think the choices of which issue to start and end the volume are solid. Despite my personal preference to package Spider-Girl #17 as the final issue of volume 1 because I feel it's a good culmination of her early adventures, I can't deny it would have made for an odd second volume 2. If the second volume had started with Spider-Girl #18 and had to close out with #32, it would be smaller volume and the only alternate then would have been to collect a few further issues such as #33-#34, meaning chopping up a few of the next major ongoing story arcs. Plus, this way the volume ends on a great cliffhanger. All in all, I think this was the best option. 

As for additional material, there is far less on offer here than last time, with only three pages in the back reproducing inked covers to several relevant issues in the collection in addition to two pages reproducing various inked pages of art from the stories. While these are a nice inclusion, I think printing several covers and interiors per page is a mistake. I'd much prefer to view Pat Olliffe and Al Williamson's art one-per-page so they can be better appreciated.

With that all said it's still a great collection, and currently the best way to physically read these issues. If you have the spare money, I'd recommend picking it up. If you don't have the money, I believe these stories are now available digitally through Marvel at a high quality too. Here's hoping the other MC2 titles get similar treatment in years to come.

Until I stop buying, disavow the MC2 and get legally declared non compos mentis, I remain

frogoat

Stinger in Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2

Reddit user and founder of the delightful subreddit r/MaydayMemes, 'maydaymemer' recently brought it to my attention that Cassie Lang aka Stinger is a playable character in the Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 video game.

Stinger was released as part of the 'Ant-Man and The Wasp Character and Level Pack' DLC on the 3rd of July 2018 which added various Ant-Man related characters from both the original comics and the Marvel Cinematic Universe films. In addition to Stinger, these including Ant-Man (Scott Lang), Wasp (Hope van Dyne and Ghost as they appeared in the Ant-Man and The Wasp movie, Egghead, Crossfire, Giant-Man (Raz Malhotra) from the comics, and for some reason The Human Fly.

Before anyone points it out, I did notice that that the Stinger costume depicted shares the same silver doodad's on the shoulder pads as the Cassie Lang of the Main Marvel Universe. While it's definitely likely this was no coincidence, I think given that the MC2 costume and identity predates and even inspired the MMU version it's fair to count this as an adaption. It's at least more clear cut then other examples.

It seems Stinger doesn't have any unique voice lines and I can find no voice actor credited, which is a shame, though not unsurprising for a bonus character. The more curious detail is the omission of any other MC2 characters in the game, considering the plot revolves around alternate universes and future and past timelines interacting. Other popular realities such as 2099 and Future Imperfect are represented along with more recent additions such as the character Spider-Gwen. But I wouldn't like to speculate about the reasons...


Luckily, good ol' maydaymemer has an answer to the lack of MC2 representation in the game, too:

Until we get a proper MC2 game, I remain

frogoat