Marvel Commemorates End of Dan Slott’s “Spider-Man” Run

Dan Slott’s run on Spider-Man is coming to an end after more than a decade, and Marvel has released a video to celebrate it.

“After over 180 issues, Dan Slott’s record-breaking Spider-Man run has reached its world-shaking climax!” it begins, before seguing into a rapid-fire display of many of the covers from his books over the years.

It ends with an advertisement for his last two issues, Amazing Spider-Man #800, now available, and #801, which will be out on June 20th. That issue will serve as a sort of epilogue, tying up a few loose ends after the epic battle in #800 (which featured the death of a prominent character and the defeat of the Red Goblin).

Slott started as one of several writers for the web-head in 2007, but three years later became the only one, a position that he has had since. He will now to moving on to write for Iron Man.

It has certainly been an interesting decade for Spider-fans, as Slott has shown a distinct willingness to shake up the status quo, at least on a temporary basis. For example, he had Peter Parker go from journalist to scientist to the owner of a major corporation, had him travel around the world and the multiverse, and introduced several new characters like Spider-Gwen, Silk and the Web Warriors, each of whom has received their own spin-off books.

That said, his run has not been without controversy. Many felt that he was on the book too long and changed the Spider-Man mythos too much, taking away the character’s street-level, working-class appeal. His decision to turn anti-heroine Black Cat back into a villain was rather unpopular, and his Superior Spider-Man series, wherein Peter was replaced by a body-stealing Doctor Octopus, was especially contentious.

That said, most of his less-popular decisions have been undone (or will), and he has certainly added much to the franchise. Renew Your Vows was celebrated for bringing back the popular Peter/Mary Jane marriage, and his Spider-Verse story looks to be an inspiration for the upcoming Sony movie Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

In the end, most fans agree that it is time for Slott to move on, but the changes he made will have long-lasting repercussions for the series and are certainly worth his colleagues at Marvel commemorating.