Peter ParkerSpider-Man

Along Came a Spider

A bite from a spider somehow granted teenager Peter Parker its arachnid abilities and instead of using them for personal gain, he decided to help others with them. An orphan living with his aunt, May Parker, the boy chose to wear a mask while fighting crime so as not to burden her with his actions.

Calling himself Spider-Man and sporting a pair of web-shooting devices he’d constructed, Parker wound up in internet videos which attracted the attention of Tony Stark. The billionaire industrialist deduced Spider-Man’s secret identity and approached Parker at his and May’s home in Queens, New York with a request for aid from the hero in an upcoming confrontation with Captain America and a group of other rogue Avengers and associates. Parker was initially hesitant to even admit his secret career as Spider-Man, but the thrill of adventure and Stark’s talk of responsibility drew him in and he accepted the invitation, as well as a new, high-tech costume and web-shooters.

Does Whatever a Spider Can

Peter Parker’s gifts from the spider bite include enhanced strength, stamina, and agility, as well as the ability to cling to nearly any surface by his hands and feet, and an internal “alarm” of sorts that warns him of impending danger. When in costume he becomes a figure in motion, leaping and jumping about with a steady stream of wisecracks.

The Spider-Man suit designed by Tony Stark includes wrist-worn web-shooters (adapted from Peter’s own invention) that emit lines of synthetic “webbing” capable of supporting great weight with a high-degree of holding power. In addition, the suit provides various optical powers, a voice-changer, a drone tracking device, and some protection against outside elements. When not in use, the suit appears as loose, thin cloth, but when donned, it adheres tightly to the body and stretches easily to almost any movement by the wearer.

Recently, Parker acquires a specialized suit of armor from Stark that features many qualities of the inventor’s own Iron Man suits, including enhanced protective layering, optics, internal air supply, along with a set of four spider-like extra “arms” that answer to the teenager’s mental commands.

To Squash a Spider

Spider-Man has yet to attract a sizable Rogues Gallery, but his first real Super Villain adversary is Adrian Toomes, the Vulture.

Over the course of Spider-Man’s interactions with the Vulture, he advanced from a nuisance in Toomes’ eyes to a true obstruction in the man’s schemes. Toomes also perhaps saw a bit of himself in Spider-Man, albeit at a younger age. Unfortunately, the Vulture discovered his foe’s secret identity and was able to initially warn Parker off with threats toward his family and friends. But, the young man’s sense of responsibility and justice outweighed any fear and he did everything within his power to ensure that Toomes never flew again. Now in prison, the Vulture still harbors Spider-Man’s secret, though he had decided to keep that to himself as an apparent sign of respect towards his enemy.

In addition to the Vulture himself, two of his associates may also still cause trouble for Spider-Man: Herman Schultz, AKA the Shocker, who wields a powerful gauntlet inherited from his late colleague, Jackson Brice, and Mac Gargan, a dangerous criminal who was injured in a confrontation with Spider-Man. Both men have been incarcerated, but Gargan in particular seems eager to enact his revenge on New York’s young champion.

When Thanos made his play for the Infinity Stones, Spider-Man, coming to Iron Man’s aid, placed himself in direct opposition to both Thanos and those who serve him.

Classmates, Comrades, and Kin

May Parker took her nephew in to raise him as if he was her own son and has instilled values in Peter Parker that serve him well. So close are the two that he worries over hurting May with his Spider-Man activities and feels the pain of lying to her. May is easygoing to some extent, but is quick to let her nephew know when she is unhappy with any situation he may be involved in.

As a student at the Midtown School of Science and Technology, Parker enjoys only a very small circle of friends, partially due to his extracurricular time as Spider-Man. His best friend is his classmate Ned, who discovers Spider-Man’s secret identity by accident and is in complete awe over the details of Parker’s costumed career. During Spider-Man’s first real adventure involving a major adversary, Ned provides valuable support, despite his seemingly bumbling demeanor.

Peter Parker’s kindhearted first crush, Liz, led to Peter’s shocking discovery that her father was his enemy, Adrian Toomes, and Liz’s departure not only from Peter’s school, but also from the city with her family.

Spider-Man maintains a mentor-student relationship with Tony Stark, even through ups and downs between them, due to Parker’s rebellious streak and his desire to be just like Stark when it comes to heroics.

To the Avengers and Beyond

After securing Peter Parker’s promise of help in the aftermath of the Sokovia Accords, Tony Stark flew the teenager to Germany under the pretense, to his aunt, of a scholarship program and internship. Once there, Parker suited up in his new Stark-created Spider-Man gear and joined the confrontation under Stark’s direction against the rogue heroes. Though a self-professed fan of Captain America, Parker temporarily stole the man’s famous shield at the onset of the battle, and later regretted having to clash with him and his companions. Overall, Spider-Man held his own against the Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and toppled a giant-size Ant-Man. He was taken out of the fight when Ant-Man accidentally struck him while falling, however. Stark ordered Parker to stand down for the rest of the action.

Upon returning to Queens, Parker explained away his injuries as the result of a brawl he’d been in; May assumed that it was with fellow students. In reality, the young man looked forward to more battles, despite Stark’s seeming reluctance to involve him in any future battles.

Finally, after growing frustrated with the lack of direct communication with Stark, and itching to be useful as Spider-Man, Parker returned to crimefighting on the streets of his neighborhood. As fate would have it, he came across a group of criminals robbing a bank with weapons left over from the alien Chitauri invasion of New York. In the process of confronting them, however, he accidentally destroyed a nearby establishment. To make matters worse, Parker’s friend, Ned, discovered his Spider-Man secret. Tony Stark also personally warned Parker to curtail his Super Hero activities and his campaign against the Vulture, the man responsible for supplying high tech weaponry to criminals.

Together, Parker and Ned figured out a way to track the criminals’ power source. After discovering it led to Washington D.C., the location of an upcoming school trip, the young hero went along as part of a science competition team. After a harrowing experience at the Washington Monument with a Chitauri explosive, Parker returned to New York and tracked the Vulture to a deal on the Staten Island Ferry. Iron Man jetted in to help when the ensuing fight threatened to sink the ferry and kill those onboard; later Stark warned Parker again, in no uncertain terms, that his career as a Super Hero was over. To ensure Parker took him seriously, he also took back the Spider-Man suit.

Dejected, Peter Parker turned back to his school activities and asked the girl of his dreams, Liz, to accompany him to the Homecoming dance. The night of the dance, he learned that Liz’s father is Adrian Toomes, the Vulture, and in turn, Toomes learned that he was Spider-Man. Toomes warned Parker to stay away, but the young man, wearing his original homemade Spider-Man costume, stubbornly refused to give up and battled his foe all the way into the air and on top of a plane carrying Stark weapons the Vulture attempted to hijack.

Upon defeating his adversary, Spider-Man left him for the police and prepared to face Tony Stark’s wrath. Instead, impressed by the growth he had seen, Stark commended him for his victory, and offered Parker a new, upgraded Spider-Man suit and full Avengers membership. However, Peter had reevaluated how quickly he was trying to raise his status and politely declined Stark’s offer, deciding to stay a local hero for the time being. Returning home, he discovered Stark had returned the suit he’d taken back from him earlier, and Peter donned it again, only to be stumbled upon by May.

When Thanos’ followers came to Earth to acquire the Infinity Stones harbored there, Spider-Man aided Iron Man and Doctor Strange in confronting the powerful being. Wanting to try to save Strange when he was abducted by the aliens, he stubbornly disobeyed Stark’s orders to stay behind and hitched a ride on the departing starship—ultimately given an assist by the upgraded, armored suit Stark had made for him that he’d once turned down while declining Avengers membership.

Together, Parker, Stark, and Strange travelled to the dead world of Titan, where they met members of the Guardians of the Galaxy and prepared a plan to keep Thanos from getting Strange’s own Infinity Stone. The plan failed and the tyrant left Titan with the Stone, going on to gain the sixth and final Infinity Stone on Earth. Having done so, with a snap of his fingers, Thanos caused half of all life throughout the Universe to end. On Titan, those affected included Peter Parker, who could feel something was happening to him. Peter told Tony Stark he didn’t want to go and that he was sorry before disintegrating into nothingness in Stark’s arms.