The early 2000s were a time of experimentation and new ground for Marvel Comics, with the company finding all manner of new successes as it crawled out of bankruptcy. One of these was the Ultimate Universe, which was a monumental triumph for several years. Another, much more unsuccessful idea, however, was the 2003 comic book called Trouble.
As an attempt to bring back the romance comics of the 1950s, Trouble was both poorly received and controversial due to its provisional connection to Marvel's most iconic character, Spider-Man. Here's how Trouble spelled trouble both critically, financially and for fans of of Marvel's biggest hero.
What Was Trouble?
Trouble was published from 2003 to 2004 and was written by Mark Millar and drawn by Terry and Rachel Dodson. The story centers around two teenage girls in the 1970s, the redheaded May and the blonde Mary, who form relationships with the brothers Richard and Ben. While May becomes sexually active with Ben, Mary is hesitant to do the same with Richard due to a palm reader warning her that she'll become a mom before her 20s if she has sex in her teens. Likewise, this same palm reader claimed that May would never be referred to as a mother.
Unable to understand Mary's actions, Richard cheats on her with May. When May becomes pregnant, the entire arrangement is revealed, with Ben in particular being embarrassed due to his sterility. May tries to run away, briefly staying with a man that she despises. Even though Mary doesn't feel sorry for all of May's trouble, she does try to help her when her friend contemplates suicide. Eventually, it's decided that Mary will take the child and raise it as her own, so as to keep May from having to deal with the wrath of her conservative parents. She gives birth to a boy named Peter, who Mary and Richard then take and raise together as a family.
More Trouble Than It's Worth
The series was an attempt to broaden the publisher's horizons beyond superhero comics and revitalize the romance comic genre that was once popular. Despite this, it failed on both fronts, most especially due to its connection to a certain superhero in particular. As the names in the story would suggest, Trouble is a sort of alternate take on the parents, aunt and uncle of Peter Parker.
The characterizations, however, didn't match any previous versions of Uncle Ben, Aunt May or Richard and Mary Parker. For one, Richard and Mary are meant to be much younger than Ben and May, which is why most continuities portray Aunt May as so old. The idea that Aunt May was actually Peter's biological mother was especially, well, troublesome, and it sullied what was usually one of comics' most steadfast and innocent characters. The fact that she was a redhead in the story and even quoted one of Mary Jane's famous lines also suggest an unintentional Oedipus complex once Peter begins dating MJ. Many fans were also simply disgusted at the prospect of reading a version of Aunt May and Uncle Ben in such sexual situations.
It didn't help that even beyond these criticisms Trouble was poorly received. The characterizations were deemed to be poor. The dialogue in particular was noted as being ill-fitting for the era, and none of the stakes were intriguing enough to maintain interest. The art from the Dodsons, however, was as well-received as their usual work. The lack of sales or interest in the series saw what was meant to be a monthly ongoing turn into a five-issue limited series, with the work failing to even slightly revitalize the mainstream industry's interest in romance comics.