Spider-Man

For other uses, see Spider-Man (disambiguation).

Spider-Man
Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man at San Diego Comic-Con in 2014
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Amazing Fantasy #15 (August 1962)
Created by	Stan Lee Steve Ditko
In-story information
Alter ego	Peter Benjamin Parker
Species	Human mutate
Place of origin	Queens, New York City
Team affiliations	Avengers Fantastic Four Secret Defenders Future Foundation Daily Bugle Heroes for Hire X-Men League of Realms Mighty Avengers New Avengers S.H.I.E.L.D. Spider-Army / Web-Warriors
Partnerships	Black Cat Silk Spider-Man (Miles Morales) Spider-Woman (Gwen Stacy) Iron Man Daredevil Hulk Human Torch Wolverine Deadpool Captain America Doctor Strange
Notable aliases	Spidey, Ricochet, Dusk, Prodigy, Hornet, Ben Reilly, Scarlet Spider, and Captain Universe
Abilities	Superhuman strength, speed, reflexes, agility, coordination, and balance Ability to cling to solid surfaces Accelerated healing Genius level intellect Proficient scientist and engineer Precognitive spider-sense ability Utilizing wrist-mounted web-shooters Master martial artist and hand-to-hand combatant

Spider-Man is a fictional superhero appearing in the Marvel Comics. He is one of the most well-known superheroes in the Marvel Universe. The character was created by the writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15 in August 1962. He was an orphan being raised by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben as an ordinary teenager. He would deal with the normal struggles of being young as well as the struggles of being a costumed crime fighter. His powers were superhuman strength, speed, agility, the ability to cling to almost every surface and the ability to shoot spider-webs using a device that he invented, which he calls "web-shooters." He reacts to danger quickly with his "spider-sense," enabling him to combat many foes.

Spider-Man first appeared in the early 1960s, when teenagers in superhero comic books were usually only sidekick to the protagonist. The series featured Peter Parker, a high school student who frequently suffered rejection, inadequacy, and loneliness. Most young readers could easily relate to this. Unlike some teen heroes, such as Bucky and Robin, Spider-Man never had any adult mentors like Captain America and Iron Man to teach him to be a superhero. He had to learn for himself that "with great power comes great responsibility" – a quote that he would cherish from his late Uncle Ben.

Over the years, Marvel has featured Spider-Man in several comic book series such as The Amazing Spider-Man, Spectacular Spider-Man and Sensational Spider-Man. Peter Parker has developed from a shy high school student to a troubled but outgoing college student married to a high school teacher. He has been a single freelance photographer. He has also been a member of the New Avengers and the Fantastic Four. Spider-Man has had a lot of nicknames. He has been called "Spidey," "web-slinger," "wall-crawler," or "web-head." Some villains also call him " arachnid ". He calls himself "Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man."

Spider-Man has been among the most popular and commercially successful superheroes. He has been seen as Marvel's most important character and company mascot. He has appeared in animations and movies. He has been played by actors Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, Tom Holland, among others. Live-action movies include Spider-Man (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004), Spider-Man 3 (2007), The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019), and Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021).

The first time that Spider-Man appeared in the Amazing Fantasy #15 comic book was in August 1962. Because of its success, a new comic book series began called The Amazing Spider-Man. Others were created including Spectacular Spider-Man, Sensational Spider-Man and Ultimate Spider-Man.

Outfit

Spider-Man wears a red and blue super suit. This has a webbing design on the suit's red parts: the mask, torso, boots, and gloves. The leggings and sleeves are blue.

Fictional character biography

In Peter Parker's first appearance, he is introduced as an orphaned science whiz teenager living with his aunt and uncle in the Forest Hills section of New York City. He is a brilliant student. He gets picked on by his peers who accuse him of being a bookworm. He constantly gets bullied by Eugene "Flash" Thompson, who calls him "Puny Parker" and humiliates him daily. One day, he is bitten by a radioactive spider. This gives him powers that turn him into Spider-Man.

As Spider-Man, he then becomes a successful TV star. The career then goes to his head. One day at a studio, he refuses to stop a thief, saying that it is the job of the police, not that of a star. He then returns home to learn that his beloved Uncle Ben has been murdered and as Spider-Man, he angrily sets off to capture the killer. When he does, he is horrified to find that the man is none other than the burglar he refused to subdue. Learning that with great power comes great responsibility, Spider-Man becomes a vigilante. After his uncle dies, Peter and his aunt become desperate for money, so he gets a job as a photographer at the Daily Bugle selling photos to J. Jonah Jameson, who seems to be jealous of Spider-Man and makes Spider-Man look bad in the paper. As he battles many enemies for the first time, Parker struggles to simultaneously juggle his personal life and costumed adventures. In time, he graduates from high school and enrols at Empire State University. There he meets roommate and best friend Harry Osborn and his second girlfriend (having been romantically involved with Betty Brant before), Gwen Stacy, Peter also discovers his best friend Harry has a drug problem. Harry's father is revealed to be one of Spider-Man's nemeses, the Green Goblin. Peter then attempts to give up his costumed identity. During his adventures, Spider-Man has made several friends and contacts within the superhero community, who often come to his aid when he faces problems he cannot solve.

His loved ones are frequently endangered by enemies, including a Spider-Man costume, which turns out to be an alien symbiote. After noticing the symbiote's true nature, Peter then rejects the symbiote after a difficult struggle. In a controversial storyline, Peter becomes convinced that Ben Reilly, the Scarlet Spider, a clone of Peter created by his college professor Miles Warren, is the real Peter Parker and that he, Peter, is the clone. Peter gives up the Spider-Man identity to Reilly for a while until Reilly is killed by the returning Green Goblin and revealed to be the clone after all. He, for a little bit, develops additional spider-like abilities, including biological web-shooters, toxic stingers that extend from his forearms, the ability to stick individuals to his back, enhanced Spider-sense and night vision, and increased strength and speed. He even becomes a member of the New Avengers and reveals his civilian identity to the world, which causes more problems such as Aunt May being shot. Due to his Aunt May almost dying, his marriage to Mary Jane and public unmasking are later erased due to a deal made with the demon Mephisto This results in several adjustments to the timeline, such as the resurrection of Harry Osborn and Spider-Man original powers. After months of just Peter knowing Spider-Man's identity, he unmasks himself to the New Avengers and the Fantastic Four.

Spider-Man in pop culture

Spider-Man is one of the most well-known superheroes ever created. His quote With great power comes great responsibility is one of the most popular superheroes quotes ever. He has also been adopted in other media such as television and video games and most popularly Sam Raimi's film trilogy which includes Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2, and Spider-Man 3. The Amazing Spider-Man movies are also popular.

Television

In both live-action and animated television programs, Spider-Man has appeared on television numerous times. In animation, he appeared in a 1967 television series named after him. He also appeared in "Spidey Super Stories" on The Electric Company. He appeared as a guest star in a Spider-Woman animated series. There was also a 1981 animated series of him, and then an animated series called Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends soon after. In the Marvel Animation Age in 1994, there was another series about him, and there was a spin-off called Spider-Man Unlimited. After the Sam Raimi movies, there was an animated series of Spider-Man on MTV called Spider-Man: The New Animated Series. In 2008, there was an animated series called The Spectacular Spider-Man. He appeared in The Super Hero Squad Show. In live-action, there is Amazing Spider-Man and a tokusatsu series of Spider-Man in Japan.

Movies

See the main article: Spider-Man in movies

• Spider-Man Strikes Back (1978)
• Spider-Man The Dragon's Challenge (1979)
• Spider-Man (2002)
• Spider-Man 2 (2004)
• Spider-Man 3 (2007)
• The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
• The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)
• Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
• Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
• Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
• Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
• Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)