.gif)
Trouble (comic book)
Encyclopedia
Trouble is a five-issue romance comic book
limited series
published in 2003 by Marvel Comics
as a part of its Epic Comics
imprint
. Written by Mark Millar
and illustrated by Terry
and Rachel Dodson
the series deals with teen pregnancy
. The basic concept was created by Bill Jemas
and Joe Quesada
.
Trouble was considered by Marvel's editorial group as the possible origin of Spider-Man
. It was also meant to re-popularize romance comics (which were very popular in the 1950s (see 1950s in comics
), selling millions of copies), but failed.
A trade paperback
collecting the five issues was originally scheduled to be published on 18 February 2004, but canceled when Epic was shut down after Bill Jemas, who had been a driving force behind the imprint, resigned as president of Marvel Comics.
during their summer vacation, looking for some fun away from home. Soon they make friends with fellow service staff members Richard and his brother Ben and the four of them, after a couple of days of hard work and being bossed about by the guests, go to a dance together. After the dance and a round of night swimming they head back to their rooms: May takes Ben to her room and sleeps with him, while Mary tells Richie it is too fast for her and she wants to wait before having sex with him. She later reveals to him it is because a palm-reader
told her she would become a mom before she was twenty if she had sex in her teens. The same fortune-teller also told May nobody was ever going to call her "mom", which explains why May is so open in her relationships. Richie is not very understanding of her reasons for not sleeping with him and starts an affair with May. May tells Mary she is cheating on Ben, but not with whom. A while later, she finds out that she is pregnant. Upon realizing the fortune-teller must have been wrong, Mary now finally sleeps with Richie, who then ends the affair with May. When May reveals her pregnancy to Ben, it turns out he's sterile
and her affair with Richie, who must be the father, is uncovered. May is thinking about having an abortion
, but decides against it. Afraid of going home and facing her dad with an unwanted child she runs away.
After some time of living with a guy she is disgusted by and never even tells she is pregnant May contacts Mary and meets with her. Mary is still very angry with May for having an affair with Richie and tells her she deserves all the trouble she is going through, but decides to help her when May tells her she has been thinking about suicide. Mary comes up with the plan to tell everybody the baby is hers, so May will not have to face her fundamentalist parents and Mary can test if she can trust Richie, who is still in love with her and writing her frequent letters, none of which she has answered, yet. So once little Peter is born, Mary takes him to Richie and they start a family, while May returns home to her parents as if nothing had happened.
. These covers were to appeal to a female audience (Marvel originally hoped for high sales outside the comic scene, particularly with a collected edition
that was to be heavily promoted in many bookstores, but never published after the series did not do well in the direct market
). Contrary to speculations among comic book fans, the models on the covers were confirmed legal adults.
The second printing of the first issue (Trouble #1: The Second Chances Edition) was the only one to feature a conventional comic book cover, drawn by Frank Cho
.
and Uncle Ben along with his parents Richard and Mary Parker
. Thus, the revelation that Aunt May is actually Peter Parker's mother was highly controversial among Spider-Man
fans. May's behavior in Trouble did not match Aunt May's character, nor did the characters' appearances match their the corresponding characters' looks in previous Spider-Man comics. Enough of the early lives of Spider-Man's family been established previously that the story contradicted prior continuity. For example, Aunt May and Uncle Ben were much older than Spider-Man's parents, and his parents met while working for the C.I.A. Aunt May was also established as never having had a child.
And while Dodson's art was well liked, Millar's dialogue in Trouble was criticized as not representative of the time it is set in (supposedly the 1970s) and his storytelling failed to grab the audience, with many complaining that the characters were written too similar and hard to keep apart; "Save for the fact that one of the girls will do it on the first date when the other one won't".
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
limited series
Limited series
A limited series is a comic book series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....
published in 2003 by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
as a part of its Epic Comics
Epic Comics
Epic Comics was a creator-owned imprint of Marvel Comics started in 1982, lasting through the mid-1990s, and being briefly revived on a small scale in the mid-2000s.- Origins :...
imprint
Imprint
In the publishing industry, an imprint can mean several different things:* As a piece of bibliographic information about a book, it refers to the name and address of the book's publisher and its date of publication as given at the foot or on the verso of its title page.* It can mean a trade name...
. Written by Mark Millar
Mark Millar
Mark Millar is a Scottish comic book writer, known for his work on books such as The Authority, The Ultimates, Marvel Knights Spider-Man, Ultimate Fantastic Four, Civil War, Wanted, and Kick-Ass, the latter two of which have been adapted into feature films...
and illustrated by Terry
Terry Dodson
Terrence "Terry" Dodson is an American comic book artist and penciller. He is best known for his work on titles such as Harley Quinn, Trouble, Marvel Knights Spider-Man, Wonder Woman and Uncanny X-Men...
and Rachel Dodson
Rachel Dodson
Rachel Dodson is an American comic book inker and colorist, who often works with her husband, Terry Dodson. Her work includes Marvel Knights Spider-Man and Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil that Men Do for Marvel Comics and Wonder Woman for DC Comics.-External links:* on Wizard...
the series deals with teen pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy is a pregnancy of a female under the age of 20 when the pregnancy ends. It generally refers to a female who is unmarried and usually refers to an unplanned pregnancy...
. The basic concept was created by Bill Jemas
Bill Jemas
Bill Jemas is an American media entrepreneur, writer and editor. He is a former vice president of Marvel Comics, and a founding partner at 360ep, a media management firm.-Early life:...
and Joe Quesada
Joe Quesada
Joseph "Joe" Quesada is an American comic book editor, writer and artist. He became known in the 1990s for his work on various Valiant Comics books, such as Ninjak and Solar, Man of the Atom...
.
Trouble was considered by Marvel's editorial group as the possible origin of Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
. It was also meant to re-popularize romance comics (which were very popular in the 1950s (see 1950s in comics
1950s in comics
See also:1940s in comics,other events of the 1950s,1960s in comics and thelist of years in comicsPublications: 1950 - 1951 - 1952 - 1953 - 1954 - 1955 - 1956 - 1957 - 1958 - 1959-1950:See also: 1950 in comics...
), selling millions of copies), but failed.
A trade paperback
Trade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
collecting the five issues was originally scheduled to be published on 18 February 2004, but canceled when Epic was shut down after Bill Jemas, who had been a driving force behind the imprint, resigned as president of Marvel Comics.
Characters
- May - A 17-year-old redhead and somewhat of a wildchild.
- Mary - May's blonde best friend and rather shy.
- Ben - Richard's older brother, who was often in hospitals as a child.
- Richard - Ben's younger brother and their dad's clear favorite.
Plot summary
May and her best friend Mary work in a resort in the HamptonsHamptons
The Hamptons may refer to several villages and hamlets in the towns of Southampton and East Hampton on the far east end of Suffolk County in Long Island, New York. These townships occupy the South Fork of Long Island, stretching into the Atlantic Ocean. The Hamptons form a popular seaside resort,...
during their summer vacation, looking for some fun away from home. Soon they make friends with fellow service staff members Richard and his brother Ben and the four of them, after a couple of days of hard work and being bossed about by the guests, go to a dance together. After the dance and a round of night swimming they head back to their rooms: May takes Ben to her room and sleeps with him, while Mary tells Richie it is too fast for her and she wants to wait before having sex with him. She later reveals to him it is because a palm-reader
Chiromancy
Palmistry or chiromancy , is the art of characterization and foretelling the future through the study of the palm, also known as palm reading, or chirology. The practice is found all over the world, with numerous cultural variations...
told her she would become a mom before she was twenty if she had sex in her teens. The same fortune-teller also told May nobody was ever going to call her "mom", which explains why May is so open in her relationships. Richie is not very understanding of her reasons for not sleeping with him and starts an affair with May. May tells Mary she is cheating on Ben, but not with whom. A while later, she finds out that she is pregnant. Upon realizing the fortune-teller must have been wrong, Mary now finally sleeps with Richie, who then ends the affair with May. When May reveals her pregnancy to Ben, it turns out he's sterile
Infertility
Infertility primarily refers to the biological inability of a person to contribute to conception. Infertility may also refer to the state of a woman who is unable to carry a pregnancy to full term...
and her affair with Richie, who must be the father, is uncovered. May is thinking about having an abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
, but decides against it. Afraid of going home and facing her dad with an unwanted child she runs away.
After some time of living with a guy she is disgusted by and never even tells she is pregnant May contacts Mary and meets with her. Mary is still very angry with May for having an affair with Richie and tells her she deserves all the trouble she is going through, but decides to help her when May tells her she has been thinking about suicide. Mary comes up with the plan to tell everybody the baby is hers, so May will not have to face her fundamentalist parents and Mary can test if she can trust Richie, who is still in love with her and writing her frequent letters, none of which she has answered, yet. So once little Peter is born, Mary takes him to Richie and they start a family, while May returns home to her parents as if nothing had happened.
Covers
All issues of Trouble featured photo covers by French photographer Phillippe Biabolos in the style of teen romance novels, which is unusual for an American comic book series, with cover design by Joe QuesadaJoe Quesada
Joseph "Joe" Quesada is an American comic book editor, writer and artist. He became known in the 1990s for his work on various Valiant Comics books, such as Ninjak and Solar, Man of the Atom...
. These covers were to appeal to a female audience (Marvel originally hoped for high sales outside the comic scene, particularly with a collected edition
Trade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
that was to be heavily promoted in many bookstores, but never published after the series did not do well in the direct market
Direct market
The direct market is the dominant distribution and retail network for North American comic books. It consists of one dominant distributor and the majority of comics specialty stores, as well as other retailers of comic books and related merchandise...
). Contrary to speculations among comic book fans, the models on the covers were confirmed legal adults.
The second printing of the first issue (Trouble #1: The Second Chances Edition) was the only one to feature a conventional comic book cover, drawn by Frank Cho
Frank Cho
Frank Cho, born Duk Hyun Cho, is a Korean-American comic strip and comic book writer and illustrator, known for his series Liberty Meadows, as well as for books such as Shanna the She-Devil, Mighty Avengers and Hulk for Marvel Comics, and Jungle Girl for Dynamite Entertainment...
.
Reception
The series' main characters, May, Ben, Mary and Richard, were obviously meant to be Peter Parker's Aunt MayAunt May
May Reilly Parker-Jameson, commonly known as Aunt May, is a supporting character in Marvel Comics' Spider-Man series. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, she first appeared as May Parker in Amazing Fantasy #15...
and Uncle Ben along with his parents Richard and Mary Parker
Richard and Mary Parker
Richard and Mary Parker are fictional characters of Marvel Comics. They were the parents of Peter Parker, the boy who one day would become Spider-Man. They will appear in the 2012 reboot of the Spider-Man film franchise...
. Thus, the revelation that Aunt May is actually Peter Parker's mother was highly controversial among Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
fans. May's behavior in Trouble did not match Aunt May's character, nor did the characters' appearances match their the corresponding characters' looks in previous Spider-Man comics. Enough of the early lives of Spider-Man's family been established previously that the story contradicted prior continuity. For example, Aunt May and Uncle Ben were much older than Spider-Man's parents, and his parents met while working for the C.I.A. Aunt May was also established as never having had a child.
And while Dodson's art was well liked, Millar's dialogue in Trouble was criticized as not representative of the time it is set in (supposedly the 1970s) and his storytelling failed to grab the audience, with many complaining that the characters were written too similar and hard to keep apart; "Save for the fact that one of the girls will do it on the first date when the other one won't".
External links
- Trouble cover gallery at Comic Book DB
- Newsaramas coverage of Marvel's press conference about Trouble (archived at archive.org)
- SpiderFan.org Top Ten Reasons Not To Take The Trouble Mini-series Seriously (incorrectly states Mary's maiden name has never been revealed, it was Fitzpatrick)