This year marks the 50th anniversary of Spider-Man first making his comic book debut. Invented by writer Stan Lee and writer/artist Steve Ditko, Spider-Man was meant to be an entirely new sort of superhero in the comic book world. Whereas superheroes like Superman and Batman were larger-than-life adult heroes that readers were meant to admire, Lee and Ditko wanted to create a character that their teenage readers could more easily relate to. So they came up with Peter Parker -- a geeky high school student who is, by most standards, just a normal kid. At least, he is until a spider bite from a radioactive arachnid grants him superpowers -- turning geeky high schooler Peter Parker into Spider-Man.
Even after gaining superpowers, though, Peter was still Peter beneath the Spider-Man mask -- and that's precisely what's made his character endure for fifty years. Peter was still just an ordinary kid trying to do the right thing, and it was because his character wasn't larger than life that fans could relate. It's also made him one of the most popular and recognizable characters in comic book history, and -- as the nearly $250 million box office returns for The Amazing Spider-Man will attest -- his popularity doesn't soon look to be fading.
So to celebrate Spidey's Golden anniversary, let's take a look at five of the most pivotal, noteworthy, and occasionally controversial storylines to come out of this fifty-year history:
Spider-Man: The Clone Saga - writers, Terry Kavanagh, Howard Mackie.
A 1975 storyline led Spider-Man to square off against his own clone. It was an idea that was revisited in the 1990s with the Clone Saga, which features Peter Parker discovering that his former clone is still alive -- and isn't his only clone! Originally intended to be a story that would take less than a dozen issues to resolve, the book proved popular enough with fans that the storyline was stretched out over several years. It remains one of the most popular Spidey sagas to date.
MPL's just ordered the complete graphic novel saga -- be sure to keep an eye on our catalog to check out the upcoming titles!
The Death of Gwen Stacy - writer, Gerry Conway; artist, Gil Kane.
Movie-goers have just been introduced to Gwen Stacy thanks to this summer's blockbuster The Amazing Spider-Man. What remains to be seen is whether or not the movie sequels will follow Gwen's harrowing character arc from the original comics. Gwen and Peter have fallen in love and are on the verge of engagement -- when the Green Goblin attacks, and Gwen is caught in the crossfire.
The repercussions of losing Gwen Stacy had a profound effect on Peter, and her death is still referenced in new issues coming out to this day. The storyline was applauded at the time for daring to give a character an unhappy ending -- and fans remain appreciative that the storyline was handled with real emotion and lasting effects.
Civil War: The Amazing Spider-Man - writer, J. Michael Straczynski; artist, Ron Garney.
Civil War: Peter Parker, Spider-Man - writer, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa; artist, Clayton Crain.
The Marvel "Civil War" remains one of the biggest comic book sagas of all time, as well as one of the most popular. The larger story concerns a "Superhero Registration Act," wherein all specially-powered people will be required to register their status with the government, for their own safety as well as for the safety of others and of the country itself. Used as a metaphor for issues of privacy and safety-vs.-freedom, this crossover epic was of particular noteworthiness because it resulted in Peter Parker announcing his secret identity as Spider-Man to the world. A pretty big departure from the normal superhero story -- although, as we're about to see, it was one with perhaps shorter-lasting consequences ...
Spider-Man: One More Day - writers, J. Michael Straczynski with Joe Quesada; artist, Joe Quesada.
Don't mention this one to a diehard Spidey fans; it probably won't go over well. Peter's Aunt May is dying -- and to save her, Peter has to make a deal with the devil. Literally, in fact: he makes a bargain with the demon Mephisto to save his aunt's life. But Peter and Mary Jane have to pay a price: Mephisto will wipe their marriage out of existence.
The behind-the-scenes story to this unusual plotline might be the true epic, however. Rumors spiraled that editors were getting tired of having a married Peter Parker and wanted to return the character to his formerly single status, as well as to find a way to make Peter Parker's secret identity a secret again. The fallout of this storyline allowed the writers to do both, making Peter Parker a single man again and having the world once again be ignorant of Spidey's real identity. The comic was poorly received by fans, but, for better or worse, the storyline did allow writers to return the characters closer to their original versions.
Ultimate Comics Spider-Man: Death of Spider-Man - writer, Brian Michael Bendis; artist, Mark Bagley.
Launched in 2000, the "Ultimate Comics" line is an "alternate universe" of books, with stories that take place away from the mainstream continuity of the regular storylines. The Ultimate books allow Marvel to tell reimagined, updated, character-altering stories with established characters that they may not, for whatever reason, want to tell in their "main" universe of events. It gave writers and readers alike a chance to go back to the beginning of characters' appearances and see a new version of the story.
The reason for such a line becomes apparent with a book like this one -- which features the death of Spider-Man himself, Peter Parker, at the hands of the Green Goblin. Outside of the ordinary continuity, writer Bendis was able to craft a poignant and memorable story that gave Peter Parker's story a fitting ending.
(But don't worry, it's all in fun -- the 50th-anniversary Spider-Man is still alive and kicking it in the comic books.)
See all our Spider-Man books in the catalog here!
-- Post by Ms. B
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