Your Spider-Man head canon and fan theory

[boots]

Ben Reilly didn't have to have actually been dead. Given that he was supposedly a "perfect clone," he ought not to have turned to dust and ash even at the moment of his death. Ergo, my personal theory was that after beating nine levels of hell out of him, Osborn had him hidden away to serve as a living voodoo doll for Peter, and then swapped him out with a hastily made clone that he killed to throw Peter off the trail while spending the next several years torturing Ben himself. For what end? A backup plan in the eventuality Peter turns down his "generous" offer of becoming his new son and heir? Just another means to get some sadistic satisfaction out of the suffering of a man with the same face as his simultaneously hated and admired, if not beloved, nemesis? A little of both?

look, i kinda get where slott was coming from. the idea of someone being killed and resurrected a dozen or so times in a row is interesting to explore in a sci fi-ish way. problem was: it wasn't explored. it was just sorta dumped in our laps.

maybe this is one of those times where the fan theory was more interesting than the eventual in-universe reveal.

[boots]

Maybe I wasn't clear. I would set this during the original Clone Saga when Peter put "Ben's" body in the smokestack. I'd have it be revealed the original Spider-Man was killed by Warren who then had two clones each with memories of the original fight each other. The winning clone went on to become the Peter we know and love. As I previously stated, this would likely have to be an AU comic because of how it would change Spider-Man forever.

not sure if you're happy to spoil your won tale- but why would warren go ahead and knowingly have 2 clones duke it out? unless he honestly doesn't care about "real deals" anymore.

[boots]

In Ultimate Marvel, that more or less is the origin. The spider that bit Peter was an Oscorp project driven by military funding in part to create a super-soldier program which goes back to Captain America, goes back to Fury, and also Logan/Wolverine and so on.

As per AF#15 and later tellings, the actual experiment was the isotope ray shooting device. The spider just happened to cross-through and then before it died it bit Peter, choosing to make him the embodiment of the powers of the spider totem.

The Spider itself isn't part of the experiment.

i personally prefer it when things aren't too neatly wrapped up together or tied in, having them happen in their own separate pockets makes their world feel bigger.

it works for smaller scale projects like the mcu, and perhaps for ultimate marvel. i do kinda like the random insanity of the mu as it is though (even though it's all the celestial's fault of course)

[boots]

Spider-Sense is actually a psychic link connecting every Spider to a cosmic, multiversal Uncle Ben hivemind that observes each Spider and upon detecting danger yells "Look out!" telepathically, which due to the Spiders' unevolved mortal brains they simply interpret as a feeling of imminent danger.

are actual spiders in the MU hooked into this too?

[Celgress]

not sure if you're happy to spoil your won tale- but why would warren go ahead and knowingly have 2 clones duke it out? unless he honestly doesn't care about "real deals" anymore.

In my idea, he is so blinded by his hatred of Spidey for Gwen's death he stages the whole thing. He is just sane enough still to know the real Spider-Man would likely win against a copy but after he "plays it safe" no matter who wins he wins. After his return in the 1990s, Jackal kept mum (as his own "twisted little joke") until the reveal (in modern-day) because he enjoys "messing with their heads" especially "Peter's". Jackal is one sick dude so I think it could work, plus Norman could always play a role if need be.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

i personally find ideas like yours fun, even though i know alot of fans spontaneously started bleeding from their eyeballs just reading that

There's a reason for that. Saying Peter's a clone means that the Spider-Man who romanced Felicia, who met the Kid Who Collected Spider-Man, fought Juggernaut and Firelord, married MJ, fought Venom and Carnage and so on...is not the Peter Parker of AF#15. It would negate a huge part of Spider-Man's history and delegitimize it.

I don't think people who liked the idea of Peter-as-clone, and certainly not the writers behind it, grokked the full meaning of what that retcon meant.

[Snoop Dogg]

are actual spiders in the MU hooked into this too?

only if they've swam in pure gamer fluids

[boots]

In my idea, he is so blinded by his hatred of Spidey for Gwen's death he stages the whole thing. He is just sane enough still to know the real Spider-Man would likely win against a copy but after he "plays it safe" no matter who wins he wins. After his return in the 1990s, Jackal kept mum (as his own "twisted little joke") until the reveal (in modern-day) because he enjoys "messing with their heads" especially "Peter's". Jackal is one sick dude so I think it could work, plus Norman could always play a role if need be.

yeah, i can see that. in that way jackal is the kind of guy who just can't let go and wants to keep picking at the scabs of the past- if it weren't for clones and simulations, then he'd be the kinda guy who just keeps playing **** over and over in his head in an attempt to "win".

[boots]

There's a reason for that. Saying Peter's a clone means that the Spider-Man who romanced Felicia, who met the Kid Who Collected Spider-Man, fought Juggernaut and Firelord, married MJ, fought Venom and Carnage and so on...is not the Peter Parker of AF#15. It would negate a huge part of Spider-Man's history and delegitimize it.

meh.

i suppose that depends on your view of clones. when it was revealed peter was the clone, it actually made me like him more.

[boots]

only if they've swam in pure gamer fluids

ain't nothing more pure. bottle that sweet stuff and give it to the needy

[Celgress]

meh.

i suppose that depends on your view of clones. when it was revealed peter was the clone, it actually made me like him more.

True, one could look at it in reverse. This Peter has accomplished all the things since the clones dueled whereas the "Real Peter" accomplished a lot less by comparison, but I digress.

[boots]

True, one could look at it in reverse. This Peter has accomplished all the things since the clones dueled whereas the "Real Peter" accomplished a lot less by comparison, but I digress.

yeah, i didn't see it as an either/or situation. i mean, marvel did push the "omg i'm not real i'm worthless fmcl" line a lot so i don't blame the majority of readers for feeling that way

[Snoop Dogg]

Kindred is Uncle Ben's long-lost son who ran away as a teenager due to disagreeing with his father over the decision to marry his favorite fictional hero, the Astounding Pill Bug Boy, to his love interest, Briana Block, in the 80's. He then became a serial killer of unethical rice farmers, but died and went to hell after an accident caused him to suffocate under a mountain of that sweet grain. At which point, he worked his way up the ranks to become the demon Kindred, and upon learning that his stupid cousin got his father killed, he's dedicated his unlife (and taught Mephisto how to beat Final Fantasy X) to accomplish one thing. MAKING SURE SPIDER-MAN WILL NEVER BE MARRIED.

[Celgress]

Kindred is Uncle Ben's long-lost son who ran away as a teenager due to disagreeing with his father over the decision to marry his favorite fictional hero, the Astounding Pill Bug Boy, to his love interest, Briana Block, in the 80's. He then became a serial killer of unethical rice farmers, but died and went to hell after an accident caused him to suffocate under a mountain of that sweet grain. At which point, he worked his way up the ranks to become the demon Kindred, and upon learning that his stupid cousin got his father killed, he's dedicated his unlife (and taught Mephisto how to beat Final Fantasy X) to accomplish one thing. MAKING SURE SPIDER-MAN WILL NEVER BE MARRIED.

Might be interesting if Kindred is Peter Parker (or his "soul fragment") who was replaced by a doppelganger due to the infamous Deal, that's my current theory anyhow.

[Celgress]

yeah, i didn't see it as an either/or situation. i mean, marvel did push the "omg i'm not real i'm worthless fmcl" line a lot so i don't blame the majority of readers for feeling that way

Right, I hate the either/or situation for the exact reasons you've outlined.

Edit - I simply gave an equally ridiculous counter-argument to the "not the real one so I'm worthless" claim.