By picking a specific time frame -- 1972 in this case -- we create a reference point. No one can complain that "we don't know which Fantastic Four stories are stil 'real'," because nothing after 1972 is 'real' any more. Or make it 1970. Or 1968. The date is not all that important. What matters is the consistency, and that we go far enough back to find the "core" of these characters.

Valerie Finnigan wrote: It stands to reason that Peter Parker as an everyman would mature and get married. That's what most people do, although most guys don't land models.

It doesn't "stand to reason" at all, because no matter how like us he is, Peter Parker isn't real.  In that light, it doesn't make sense, in any world, to see him "mature and get married".  Winnie the Pooh is an everyman, albeit a bear, and no one has clamored to see him "mature".  The only reason why I can see people wanting Peter to stay married, or get married in the first place, is because they want him to "age", "grow", and "mature" along with them, although at a much more retarded pace.  90% of what made Peter Parker the character he was went out the window when he married a supermodel, eventually moved into a comfy loft in Manhattan, then again to Avengers Tower with both his aunt and wife, and really hasn't had one worry about money, girls, or relationships in general for nearly two decades our time.  That, to me, is so incredibly sad for a character that has been my all-time favorite for over 30 years.

QUOTE: The date is not all that important. What matters is the consistency, and that we go far enough back to find the "core" of these characters.

Some problems might arise, however, where the core of certain characters belongs to a different real-time than others. Although this could be minimized (even ignored to a degree) if the old style of letting each comic book deal primarily with its own characters also took hold again.

It would be interesting to hear vented the editorial arguments, the debates behind the decision. Is the "core" Thor prior to Walt Simonson? I wouldn't look beyond Lee/Kirby myself, but others -- maybe most others -- would disagree. And what's "core" X-Men, the 1975 team or the 1963 team? Et cetera.

JB wrote: Remember, he had a bunch of girlfriends before even meeting MJ, Gwen, Betty, and Liz. ++++++ D'you see...? *** Referencing that is should be "Betty and Liz", without the comma? I think that may be a function of where you learned punctuation. I was certainly taught that no comma was needed before the "and", but then I was also taught that punctuation goes outside quotation marks, unless it is part of the quotation. That's another one that seems to vary with geography (and the personal quirks of the English teacher!)

No, Chief,  what I meant was that it should read '...before even meeting MJ: Gwen, Betty and Liz' - i.e. with a colon to separate the girlfriends he had before MJ from MJ herself.  He had NO girlfriends before 'meeting MJ, Gwen, Betty and Liz'...Betty having been his first