Okay, I have always been one of those people to give someone the benefit of the doubt. Once, twice, even three times. It seems, however, that Marvel has created an epidemic of gigantic proportions and unleashed it upon those of us willing to shell out a few bucks (or hundreds) a month to catch up on the new happenings of our favorite books. This seemingly unstoppable plague is none other than a lack of continuity of storylines.
I somewhat expect that a character that I read in one story will at least "appear" to be the same character in another book. This makes it VERY difficult for one to distinguish that the person they are reading about is that same character they know and love. It seems that Marvel has taken a lot of us for mindless readers who will simply pay out for a simple story with multiple ads thrown in. It seems that they underestimate the knowledge of the majority of readers and some of us must put an end to this confusion.
I simply would like for one character to remain "dynamically static" in the universe they reside in. Sure, stories change and characters have to change to meet the adjustments of writers, stories, and "going-ons" that occur. This does NOT mean that the character has to be re-written each and every time a new book or writer comes into the picture. Take recent fallout from the Secret Invasion event that has rocked the foundations of the known Marvel universe. Without giving too much away many of the characters were "adjusted" to fit the storyline of this major crossover that occurred in multiple Marvel books. Then out of the blue, a seemingly different storyline (Wolverine Manifest Destiny, to name one) is occurring in the assumed same universe as the event in a separate book that we are expected to pay $3 or more for to "keep up" with a character's storyline. I must let you all know that I also have no problem with Marvel creating multiple stories to make a profit...just don't destroy that which makes the entire Marvel lineup AWESOME...continuity!
I don't like reading an ongoing event and having to pause to put on a different mindset to read a simple story that has no continuity to other stories. I just would like to see the Marvel Editors-In-Chief, make a promise that they will deliver stories that at least can be followed by readers of any age and fans of any character without feeling like they are short-changed. I also think that the majority of this stemmed from the removal of editor comment blocks in the comics. You remember those boxes that would at least direct you to HOW the story you are reading fit into the overall flow of the other Marvel books at that time. I think bringing those back would be beneficial and an editors "show of good faith" to the readers who DO try to read the majority of their books (and sometimes pay too much). This would make readers young and old again appreciate that which we grew up with loving...an ongoing storyline that allowed one to emerse oneself into the Marvel universe and see the character grow in the stories as you did in real life. THAT is what made and to a point still makes Marvel great, the ability to change tactics and still realize what the readers want and love. This is what made Stan Lee great and keeps avid readers coming back for more.
Until the Thing actually comes up with non-cheesy one-liners, Make Mine Marvel!!!