****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
My favorite two comic series of all time are Kurt Busiek's "Astro City", and Sean McKeever's highschool drama "Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane", and I really wouldn't be able to say which of them I like more.When this series was in publication, I was reading around 30 Marvel books every month. Mostly standard superhero stuff like Avengers and X-Men titles, but I've always been interested in fresh or alternate takes. I'd enjoyed many "Spidey in high school again" stories before and figured this was just another, but when you open it up, it immediately feels like something really special.A big part of this is the shift in focus to MJ. There are superhero antics here, of course, but only from the perspective of a character who's usually not directly involved. (Which is a common approach of Busiek's, too.) The story is about MJ's life--school, friends, family, and the occasional crazy Spider-Man stuff happening in her neighborhood. It's also SO FUN to read it knowing that Peter and Spider-Man are the same person even though the book never tells you. The series is also full of easter eggs and cameos for long-time Spidey fans.One of McKeever's strengths is his ability to portray believable, vulnerable young people, which is something that goes back to his first indie series (The Waiting Place). All the characters in this book have distinct personalities with clearly-depicted wants and insecurities. Sometimes they're jerks to each other, but, you *get* it... they're all sympathetic. The emotions they feel and the struggles they go through are very familiar.The other thing that really makes SMLMJ stand out is the art, primarily by Takeshi Miyazawa, with colors by Christina Strain. Miyazawa's panel composition is dynamic, creative, and interesting even when the scene is just two friends sitting at the table talking. His figures are well-observed. I still distinctly remember MJ carrying her heels while walking home from a dance. The occasional action scenes also look great! Throughout, the characters actually *look like teenagers* and have personal styles and wardrobes, as well as different profiles and body types (as opposed to characters being basically the same face with different haircuts). And they are so expressive... I still get pangs when I look at his "sad MJ face" panels. Strain's colors are also wonderful. One of the touches I love about her work is her use of halftone/ziptone dots in places many colorists would use a flat color or gradient. It gives a lot of personality to the panels that lack backgrounds. She also used color to add design elements to the characters' clothes, background posters, and the like.I cannot recommend this series highly enough. It's heartwarming, compassionate, funny, and hopeful. It tells stories that are widely relatable and will make you feel seen and understood. I'm thrilled to have these new editions out so I can keep some in my classroom while hoarding my autographed hardcovers at home. While I think SMLMJ is an excellent choice for young comic fans, it's very much an all-ages thing. I was already in grad school when it came out and I still fell in love with it. You'll never be "too old" for this one.
