Marvel’s New Spider-Man Is Even More Fascinating Than Peter Parker

Peter Parker is known as the Amazing Spider-Man, but there’s a new kid on the block looking to stake his claim to that title. Ultimate Spider-Man has been the breakout star of Marvel’s relaunch of the Ultimate Universe. The series features Peter Parker gaining his Spider-Man abilities while he’s a married man to Mary Jane Watson. The married couple have two kids, Richard and May Parker, who have come to learn Peter has been secretly fighting crime as Spider-Man. When Peter turns up missing alongside Harry Osborn (Green Goblin), someone else steps up to fill the void as the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Ultimate Spider-Man #13. Continue reading at your own risk!

Ultimate Spider-Man #13 comes from the creative team of Jonathan Hickman, Marco Checchetto, Matthew Wilson, and VC’s Cory Petit. The bulk of the issue deals with Spider-Man (Peter Parker) and Green Goblin (Harry Osborn) being prisoners of Kraven the Hunter, who is a member of Kingpin’s Sinister Six. But back in New York City, a black-clad Spider-Man is still patrolling the streets. We quickly learn this person’s identity, and it’s none other than Peter’s son, Richard Parker.

Peter Parker’s son is the new Ultimate Spider-Man

Citizens walking down a busy street in New York City in January look up to see a black-clad Spider-Man swinging high in the sky. After stumbling to stick the landing on a rooftop, Spider-Man’s mask slithers away from his face to reveal Richard. The young Parker is working with Spider-Man’s symbiote/picotech suit, which was gifted to him by Tony Stark/Iron Lad when he accepted the radioactive spider.

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Richard and the symbiote have been working together to patrol the city, so no one will notice that the real Spider-Man is missing in action. The symbiote compliments Richard by telling him how much he’s improved, the whole time taking on the form of Peter Parker. It’s a little unsettling, but Richard seems to be adapting well enough to this awkward situation. The suit lets Richard know that if Peter were dead, he’d be able to sense it through the bond they share.

But while Peter Parker is missing, his son Richard is doing an excellent job of being his Spider-Man stand-in. When Peter originally got bitten by a radioactive spider, he was just around Richard’s age and had to learn how to be Spider-Man on the job. Plus, he didn’t have the luxury of having a symbiote helping him either.

This is the dyamic that most Spider-Man fans are used to. A young high schooler learning that with great power comes great responsibility is a trademark of Spider-Man storytelling. And the final pages of Ultimate Spider-Man #13 has already set up Richard’s first arch-nemesis in the form of the new Black Cat. Felicia Hardy appears in the final moments seeking revenge against Spider-Man for crippling her father, the original Black Cat. We’ll have to wait until next issue to see how their confrontation shakes out, but it’s possible they go from enemies to allies, and possibly even lovers.

Spider-Man and Black Cat have had a complicated relationship in the comics, from having romantic feelings towards each other to being fierce rivals. What complicates matters is Black Cat doesn’t know this is a different Spider-Man than the one who injured her father. And on the opposite side, Richard doesn’t know what his father has been up to while being Spider-Man. It’ll be a fascinating confrontation to watch unfold, and another test for the new Ultimate Spider-Man to try and pass.