Saving Spiderman At Zapp! Comics

If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is around to hear it does it make a sound? It's a very good question, one I'm not sure there is a sufficient answer to. I'm standing outside Zapp! Comics in Manalapan and pondering that question, but not for the usual Zen mind-expanding reasons.

Spiderman is dead. Not a clone or Spidey from another dimension, the one and only Peter Parker is dead. Gonzo. Finito. Adios.

I've been a fan of Spiderman since my mom sat me down in front of the TV when I was a kid to watch "Spiderman and His Amazing Friends". The bright reds and blues flashed acrossed the screen and captured my imagination for a lifetime.

The thing about Zapp! Comics is that all the stories, all the mythology of Spiderman, Superman, Batman and all the rest are sitting lifeless on print pages. They lie in wait, a bunch of lines and colors and words. They have no powers until we open the pages, flip through and activate their powers in our heads. Then they come alive, swinging through the air and flying through the clouds.

Peter Parker always spoke to me and for me, a geeky kid who just wanted to fit in and do the right thing, more often than not getting things bungled up. He had heart, was loaded to the brim with wisecracks and a cool secret identity.

But now he was dead.

The other thing about Zapp! Comics is that whenever you wander in you know that you'll be met with fellow adventurers, others who get the same joy in opening a static comic book and using their mind to activate the adventures inside. In some little way they contribute to Spiderman's climbing up a wall or Superman's saving Lois Lane (again). It's not like walking into other kinds of stores where people are there working for a paycheck. Most people who work at comic book stores aren't there to get rich, they're there because they love it.

I can see the same dejected look in some of the other faces, but this is like real life. Nothing lasts forever and eventually we all grow old or get beaten up by the Green Goblin.

Unless . . . unless I never open up that book. If I never lay my eyes on Spiderman, or the bunch of evil bad guys trying to off him, then the Spiderman in my mind can never die, will never die.

I can go back and relive all the epic adventures through back issues and trade paperbacks (all in ample supply at Zapp! Comics). I can keep him alive in my mind.

If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is around to hear it, I don't know if it makes a sound. But, as long as I'm around, Spiderman never has to worry about dying.

Zapp! Comics is located at 700 Tennent Road right next to Stop and Shop. For more information check out their Web site.