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Dan Slott Explains Everything About Superior Spider-Man #30

Published Tue, 15 Apr 2014 22:00:43 -0500

by Rich Johnston

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Some folks have had trouble getting to grips with what Dan Slott wrote at the end of Superior Spider-Man #30. So, with #31 out tomorrow, what better time for a refresher course.

I have to say I'm with Dan on this. Spoilers, obviously. In fact….

Dan posted in response to concerns,

Everything you need is in ASM #700 and SSM #30.

ASM #700 establishes that there's a link between the two of them (the moment they both have the Uncle Ben alarm clock moment).

Pete thinks: "I MAY need a direct link for a full transfer, but a link still exists."

Why does he say "may"?

Because when he had the octobot attached to himself, he fought it. And that didn't help. That's why he thinks he needed a direct link.

On the very next page, Peter has "his entire life flashing before his eyes"…
…and that is the upload he's going to send to Ock.

He's sending him EVERYTHING, but he's fighting Doc on the key moments– those that REALLY define him as Spider-Man– and doing everything in his power to make sure that those specific moments in the lifetime montage strike home.
(For the sake of argument, let's say those are 31 key memories).

And, again, Doc Ock FIGHTS AGAINST THIS THE ENTIRE TIME.

In SSM #30, when PETER is reliving all of Doc Ock's life (and losing his sense of self as he gets overwhelmed by Doc's memories)…
…he reaches full circle. He's now at the moment in ASM #700 where Peter/Ock is having HIS life flash before his eyes and he's uploading that to Doc/Spidey.

At THAT point, we're in Doc's head (as is the SSM #30 version of Peter). Doc fights against the upload. But the SSM #30 version of Peter– getting one "taste" of it, realizes that THAT is his life– so he DOESN'T fight it. He welcomes it ALL in. He takes back ALL of ASM #700's-life-flashing-before-his-eyes-Peter's memories. And SSM #30-Peter gets it all back.

Basically, it's a nested-file.

It's an all-or-nothing DL of all the memories– nested in a memory Doc Ock has.

For the nitpickers who want a reason why Doc didn't access THAT:
Either Doc Ock DIDN'T know it was there– OR he knew that if he tried that strategy, he'd basically be doing a "factory reset" on ALL of Parker's memories and he'd be up for round two on the psychic plane.
(And, let's be honest, how well has Doc EVER done on Round Twos against Spider-Man?).
And, if you were Doc, would you risk doing ANY kind of "factory reset" on your brain?

Since these are the sum-and-total life memories of Peter/Ock from ASM #700, only those all-or-nothing files COULD have had the "Carlie shooting at me" memory.

But, if you're Carlie Cooper, and someone says, "I'm Peter Parker. Doc Ock and I swapped, but now I've swapped back."– logically, the memories Peter had AFTER the swap AS Ock would be ones that "person" wouldn't have UNLESS there was some kind of a "swap-back."
It works. If you need me to, I can draw you a chart. :-)
(There was one line of dialogue that was cut from that scene to make space. It went "C'mon, Carlie. You're one of the smartest people I know. Think it through." I liked that line, 'cause it also praised Carlie's intelligence, something Ock wouldn't do. But… it really crowded that panel up.)

Hope this helped.

***

"HEY! If your story was told well, you wouldn't HAVE to explain it!"

Well…

Honestly, most people I've talked to who read the issue cold– without reading ANY message board out-there theories first– ALL got it without me having to explain a damn thing.

And, in the case of Marvel writers who needed to know how Peter was coming back– EACH time, when I'd get to the point where I'd say, "And then we reach full circle in Ock's memories and he hits ASM #700… When Dying Peter has his life flash before his eyes, and he starts forcing those memories over to 'Doc'…"

EACH Marvel writer would finish the sentence, saying some version of "…and Peter takes it all back, where Doc didn't."
And EACH time that writer would say something to the effect of, "How did I not see that coming? That's good." (Or "that totally works.")

THAT'S the simple version. That's the way it was always going to happen. Everything that lead you away from it was misdirection. And most people are cool with it. It really doesn't take a "No Prize" to make it work. It just needs the suspension of disbelief that ALL fantasy stories require– and a willingness to go with the story (instead of fighting it… like Doc Ock would.) ;-)

Swear to God– I've asked an 11 year old what he thought happened in SSM #30. He walked me through it. And he nailed it.