Madame Web: The Comics History of the Spider-Man Spinoff

Cassandra Webb / Madame Web

Created by Dennis O'Neil and John Romita Jr. in 1980's The Amazing Spider-Man #210, the comic version of Cassandra plays a distinct role in the Spider-Verse landscape. As an adult woman, Cassandra was diagnosed with Myasthenia gravis, which left her paralyzed and blind. Her husband, Jonathan Webb, created a life support system to help her survive, which just so happens to look like a spider web.

There, Cassandra uses her various superpowers — telepathy, clairvoyance, and seeing the future — to help various superheroes. She not only forms a bond with Spider-Man, but she becomes a mentor to Mattie Franklin when she takes on her role of the third Spider-Woman. Cassandra is then captured and killed by the family of Kraven the Hunter, just after she transfers her superpowers to...

Julia Carpenter / Spider-Woman

Julia Carpenter was created by Jim Shooter and Mike Zeck during 1984's Secret Wars #6, and is the second woman to take on the mantle of Spider-Woman. After agreeing to participate in a secret government operation designed as an "athletic study", Julia is given super powers, and very quickly proves her skills among her fellow superheroes during the first Secret Wars. As Spider-Woman, Julia went on to become a member of the Freedom Force and the West Coast Avengers, while also being a single mother to her daughter, Rachel.

For a stretch of time, Julia did not operate as a superhero at all, after her superpowers were stolen by the third Spider-Woman, Charlotte Witter. She returned to the world of superheroes as Arachne, becoming a key player during the events of Civil War and then joining Omega Flight. Once she was gifted Cassandra's powers — as well as her blindness — Julia began to operate as the second Madame Web, and continues to do so to this day.

Anya Corazon / Araña

Created by Joe Quesada, Fiona Avery, and Mark Brooks, Anya Corazon made her debut in the 2004 relaunch of Amazing Fantasy #1. As a high school student, Anya was given powers — including the ability to sprout a spider-esque exoskeleton around her body — from the mystical Spider Society, eventually taking on the mantle of Araña.

After fighting alongside — and later, with — the Spider Society, Anya began to be folded more into the larger Marvel Universe, becoming a sidekick of sorts for Ms. Marvel and Wonder Man, and joining forces with Rikki Barness / Nomad on an array of adventures. Eventually, Anya took on the mantle of Spider-Girl, working both as a solo superhero and within larger ensembles.

Mattie Franklin / Spider-Woman

Created by John Byrne and Rafael Kayanan in 1998, Martha "Mattie" Franklin has her own unique tie to the Spider mythos, as she is the niece of J. Jonah Jameson. After sneaking into the controversial Gathering of Five, Mattie accidentally got the Spider powers that were meant for Norman Osborn. She uses these powers — and her fandom of Spider-Man — to operate as a superhero.

Years later, Mattie made her modern-day return in the pages of Alias, in which Jessica Jones and Jessica Drew helped rescue her from kidnapping, drugging, and prostitution. In the aftermath of that, Mattie gives up her superhero stature and joins the Loners, and sporadically factors into Spider-Man related storylines.

Ezekiel Sims

Created by J. Michael Straczynski and John Romita Jr. in 2001's The Amazing Spider-Man #30, Ezekiel is a wealthy man who gained superpowers through the Spider-Totem. Over the years, he teamed up with Spider-Man on a number of occasions, especially where the supernatural aspects of their mythos was concerned.

Ezekiel also plays a key role in the origin of Cindy Moon / Silk, as he gets approval from her parents to lock her away in a secret bunker once she develops powers. Spider-Man eventually discovers this detail and helps free Cindy, which kicks off her time as a superhero.

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Madame Web is set to open exclusively in theaters on February 14th.