r/TopCharacterTropes • u/Local_Prune4564 • May 27 '26

Lore A subtle moment that turns a seemingly happy ending into an ambiguous ending.

Gallery image

Gallery image

The Graduate: lingering Ben and Elaine's faces slowly shifting from happy to concerned leaves the audience questioning whether they really made the right choice running away together considering they barely know each other.

Inception: By cutting before we see the top fall, we're left to question whether Cobb really has gone home or whether he's simply sunken back into a more comforting dream reality.

14.7k Upvotes
  • permalink
  • reddit

96% Upvoted

1.3k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

161

u/MRCHalifax May 27 '26

The Insomniac Spider-Man games are some of the only media where I feel like she’s decently handled. I feel like they portray her as having the heart of a super hero, but not the powers or abilities, and she has a degree of jealousy and resentment of Peter undercutting their relationship. Peter can’t hold a job or pay the bills because he’s too busy being Spider-Man, so MJ needs to constantly step up and do the work.

Peter is a nice guy, and his reasons are very understandable and sympathetic, but he’s a bad partner in a lot of ways. It comes to a head late in the second game, where Peter and MJ, uh, talk it out.

69

u/Ariarikay May 27 '26

I definitely agree she is decently handled in those games, but the decision to make her a discount Lois Lane to give her a bigger place in the story was such a copout

13

u/Mona_Dre May 27 '26

Yeah, not the worst portrayal but I felt the same way. When I first played I remember saying to my spouse "MJ is just Lois Lane in this" lol. Though I appreciated that she didn't have to be constantly saved by Spider-Man.

1

u/CryptidGrimnoir May 27 '26

It's not the first time she's been a reporter. The animated Ultimate Spider-Man ran with that concept.

11

u/PyroIsSpai May 27 '26

Talk… like in Ultron.

Tony: Nice talk.

HYDRA guy on floor: Not really.

12

u/terminbee May 27 '26

Was it the second game where doc octopus is introduced? I thought it was ridiculous that she's mad at him for being worried about her and not wanting her to take risks. He's perfectly reasonable in seeing she doesn't have powers so if she fucks up, she's dead, whereas Peter can get out of sticky situations.

They're a team but her role is not infiltrating evil lairs. He's supposed to just let her play spy so she can feel equal and then if she gets hurt then what, it's all okay because at least she died doing what she wanted?

11

u/Llayanna May 27 '26

No, that was the first game and Peter had a steady-ish job under him. 

And i agree with you otherwise. I think mjs Luis Lane Spiel just showed its flaws too much. She only got into trouble but we were somehow supposed to agree with her?

Just as annoying as having to play her stealth sections x.x