There’s oneSpider-Manstory that stands as arguably the worst retcon in the hero’s established canon. It was so hated, in fact, that Marvel Comics had plans to launch a storyline that would have erased it entirely, before pulling the plug.
In an article published byAIPT Comicsby David Brooke, it’s revealed that Marvel Comics editor Jordan D. White had a pitch for a story that would have shown Gwenpool traveling back in time to erase the events of2004’sSpider-Man: Sins Pastby J. Michael Straczynski and Mike Deodato Jr.
Jordan D. White: “Back in the day, I pitched doing a Marvel Legacy issue with Gwenpool and Gwen Stacy, where Poole is back in time and spends the whole time trying to make sure Stacy never sleeps with Norman Osborn.”
InSpider-Man: Sins Past, it’s revealed that Gwen Stacy had an affair with Norman Osborn. Not only did they sleep together, butGwen Stacy became pregnant with twins, and she gave birth to them in secret. Needless to say, fans weren’t thrilled with this retcon, which is why White’sGwenpoolpitch seemed like the perfect solution.
Marvel Still Erased Spider-Man: Sins Past, but Without Gwenpool
While Marvel Comics decided not to move forward with White’s pitch, the publisher did listen to fans and effectively erasedSpider-Man: Sins Pastinanother way. In Nick Spencer’sAmazing Spider-Man#73, it’s revealed that Gwen and Norman never slept together at all. Norman made it appear as though they had an affair with the help of Mysterio and Mendel Stromm.
Not only that, but the twins Gwen supposedly gave birth to were genetically engineered clones that were created as part of a larger scheme by Harry Osborn. Rather than use Gwenpool to go back in time and eraseSins Past Back to the Futurestyle, Marvel decided to retcon the retcon, thereby returning Gwen Stacy’s story to its status quo.
Fans Deserve to See the Scrapped Gwenpool Story
Even though Marvel’s ultimate solution to undoing what fans hated aboutSpider-Man: Sins Pastwas effective, White’s scrapped Gwenpool time travel story still deserves to be told. The idea of Gwenpool spending the entire comic trying to convince a past version of herself not to sleep with a guy she’ll regret hooking up with is hysterical, and could resonate with many readers.
Spider-Man: Sins Pastwas controversial enough to warrant the retcon fans saw inAmazing Spider-Man#73, but using Gwenpool to undo thatSpider-Manstoryline could have been even better if Marvel Comics hadn’t pulled the plug.
