Peter Parker: Spider-Man Appreciation 2020

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Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #9 Jan 1985
"Assault on Galactus!"
The battle-wounded Colossus exits the rustic building he is healing inside to see Galactus starting up his machine to devour the planet.
He re-enters the building to tend to the unconscious Zsaji. He tells her he loves her and goes out to help stop Galactus.
Meanwhile, the X-Men and Magneto try to attack Galactus. An energy ball appears and blocks them from continuing up the mountain.
In the village, Hawkeye, Captain Marvel and Wasp watch the X-Men try to battle it when
suddenly a large blast on the mountain makes them think the X-Men have been defeated.

At Doombase, the remaining heroes try to return to the battle that is going on on the mountainside.
They take a ship from the base and begin to travel to the battle.
Hulk is distraught over his new "intelligence" of Bruce Banner's mind in his body.
Ben Grimm suddenly regains his powers as the Thing.
Iron Man ponders what Spider-Woman's true intentions are.
Spider-Man meanwhile, is glad to have his webs back since he has donned the new "black costume".

Mister Fantastic thinks of a reason as to why they are all there in the first place.
They reach the mountain and are hit by Galactus' beams.

They crash into Colossus, who braces their ship from impact.

The heroes exit the ship and begin their fight to reach Galactus.
As they get closer, Mister Fantastic realizes a meaning to this conflict and tells the heroes NOT to stop Galactus.
He says the only way to stop Galactus is to let him win.
In doing this the Beyonder will grant him his wish of freedom from his planet-consumption hunger.
As they all agree to stop fighting, Reed suddenly vanishes along with Galactus and the construct Galactus built.
Reed appears on Galactus' homeworld which is housed in his spaceship in space.
There Galactus shows Reed a vision of his pregnant wife and their child, Franklin.
Then Galactus tells Reed to listen to what he is about to tell him.

Inside the containment unit in the Doombase, Doctor Doom determines that he needs to get to Galactus' homeworld and he breaks free of his cell.
He ignores the pleas of the other villains who are still trapped and releases only one other, Klaw.

On the mountainside, Colossus frees the trapped X-Men from beneath some rubble.
They all journey into the village and Colossus realizes Zsaji is awake and runs not to him, but to Human Torch.
While they are all discussing what to do, Mister Fantastic reappears in the village.
He says Galactus told him that Reed was a "Champion of Life". This emboldens him not to fight Galactus. The Avengers decide otherwise.
Galactus reappears on the mountain and turns on the machine again. The Avengers then head back toward the mountain.
Doctor Doom watches the battle from inside the Doombase where he cuts up Klaw into tiny disc-shaped lenses.

The battle continues and Mister Fantastic realizes he must stop Galactus to be able to see his baby born.

He tells the heroes to stop Galactus from leaving and they cannot.
He flies off to his homeworld where he begins to devour it and creates a huge energy field.
Doom sees this as his opportunity to "steal" the energy of that homeworld by using the Klaw-discs as a siphon...

Story by Jim Shooter. Art by Mike Zeck and John Beatty.

[Digifiend]

Peter and Aunt May appear in Hawkeye Freefall #2. Clint's at a charity fundraiser and the charity in question is FEAST, which May runs. Peter's there as a photographer as well as to support his aunt. spoilers:

And then we get a Spider-Man vs Ronin fight. Ronin is NOT Clint.

end of spoilers

[Huntsman Spider]

Peter and Aunt May appear in Hawkeye Freefall #2. Clint's at a charity fundraiser and the charity in question is FEAST, which May runs. Peter's there as a photographer as well as to support his aunt. spoilers:

And then we get a Spider-Man vs Ronin fight. Ronin is NOT Clint.

end of spoilers

Thanks, I'm gonna check that one out.

[PaxHouse]

Sooooo.....anybody had any thoughts about the IMMORTAL HULK:GREAT POWER One shot....???

[Huntsman Spider]

Sooooo.....anybody had any thoughts about the IMMORTAL HULK:GREAT POWER One shot....???

I liked it, personally. Thought it was a good showcase of Spider-Man's relationship, such as it was, with Bruce Banner and the Hulk.

spoilers:

Anyone think that The One Below All, the true source of the Hulk's power, is the reason Hulk remembers Spider-Man's real name and Banner doesn't?

end of spoilers

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Super awesome marvel Valentine card!

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #10 Feb 1985
"Death to the Beyonder!"
With the heroes of Battleworld preventing Galactus from trying to consume the planet,
Galactus has no choice but to consume his own worldship for sustenance.
The heroes quickly shield their eyes from the blinding flash of light.
However as they witness Galactus consuming the needed energy they suddenly spot it being diverted back to Doombase.
Captain Marvel quickly travels there at he speed of light to see what happened and witnesses Doctor Doom
bombarding himself with the energies which he is filtering through special lenses made out of Klaw's body.
She reports this new development back to the others via Professor X's telepathic link.
With the process finished, Doom is revitalized by the sheer power he has absorbed
and soon finds his perceptions have been enhanced beyond human comprehension.
After acclimatings himself, Doom suddenly senses Captain Marvel's presence in his midst.
When Xavier's psi-link is suddenly cut off the heroes all rush to the nearest shuttle, which is held aloft by Magneto's powers.

Along the way, Captain America makes a comment about Magneto living up to his "hype".
This starts a heated exchange between the two about human mutant relations.
When Cap says he is only standing by with Magneto due to the fact that the X-Men are vouching for him,
Wolverine pipes up and berates Captain America for not doing as much for mutants as he does ordinary humans.
When Wolverine becomes too heated, the X-Men pull him back to prevent a fight from happening.
While back at Doombase, Doom is debating on what to do about the Beyonder,
as he has power beyond compare but is it enough to stop the Beyonder?
Doom holds council with the severed head of Klaw and decides that
he must tempt fate and face the Beyonder even if it means his death.
Utilizing his new found power, Doom constructs a new suit of armor and departs for space.
The heroes soon arrive and find no trace of Doom and all their prisoners still locked in their cells.
Spider-Woman finds Captain Marvel who has somehow been trapped in her light form.
They also find the severed head of Klaw, and after a massive earthquake,
the disembodied villain tells them that Doom is about to face off against the Beyonder himself.
In deep space the Beyonder demands that Doom go back and not approach him,
but Doom is more determined than ever to claim this ultimate prize.

With the planet still shaking up, Mister Fantastic suggests that they try and revive Galactus and locates him in space on their monitors.
Before they can act another shockwave hits, causing part of Doombase to collapse on some of the heroes.
Amid the chaos, Colossus notices that Zsaji's village is in danger as well
and wants to go out to her but knows that she cares only for the Human Torch.
Colossus is shocked when the Torch is disinterested in helping her while trying to help Mister Fantastic from under the rubble.
Insulted by this, Colossus is about to start a fight when suddenly the planet is rocked by another massive earthquake.

While in space, Doctor Doom continues his attack on the Beyonder.
While his foe continues doubling his power to match Doom's, the monarch of Latveria refuses to surrender.
As a final effort, Doom beams an image of himself back to Earth and appears before the heroes.
He asks those who wish to defeat the Beyonder to lend them their power offering them everything they could want and more.
All they need do is take his hand. When Magneto reaches out to take it the Wasp, Hawkeye and Iron Man attack him.
Magneto is kept at bay long enough that Doom cannot maintain the image anymore and disappears.
After he is gone, Hawkeye tries to chastise the X-Men for trusting Magneto, but Captain America orders him to stand down.

Doctor Doom has been defeated. His ravaged body now lays on the surface of Battleworld.
However, soon he is enveloped in energy and his mind probed. Doom's life flashes before his eyes:
his discovery that his later mother was a witch, how he became a famous defender of his people, the accident that ruined his face,
his rise to power in Latveria and his endless quest to rescue the soul of his mother from the clutches of the demon Mephisto.
Unwilling to die, Doom suddenly finds his body being recreated and his armor repaired by the energies swirling around him.
This rebirth is causing more earthquakes that threaten to bring down Doombase around the heroes.
Captain America orders an evacuation and goes to free their prisoners so they can escape themselves.
The heroes regroup outside just as Doombase crumbles to the ground.

Suddenly there is a blinding flash of light that appears above them and changes into a massive Doctor Doom.

Doom announces that the Beyonder is dead,

and shrinking back down to human size, Doom removes his mask and declares the Secret Wars over.

Story by Jim Shooter. Art by Mike Zeck and John Beatty.

[Digifiend]

Dial H For Hero #12 today had Miguel briefly turn into Peter Parker, complete with glasses, as he looked on his first appearance.

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

Uncanny X-Men #190 Feb 1985
"An Age Undreamed Of!" Guest-starring the Avengers, the New Mutants and Spider-Man.
The military has come to New York in full force after a strange mystical barrier has erected itself around
the island of Manhattan, transforming the teeming metropolis into a Hyborean realm of barbarians and magic.
In Washington DC, there is an emergency meeting with National Security at the White House.
There, Valerie Cooper briefs those gathered of the situation going on in New York.
She explains that anyone who crosses the mystical barrier into the city is
transformed into a barbarian from a bygone era with no memory of their previous life.
However, those who stumble out of the area are restored to normal.
Intelligence has gathered that an evil sorcerer named Kulan Gath is responsible for the spell.
Attempts to contact the Avengers and the Fantastic Four have failed.
However Val confirms that a number of the Avengers, X-Men and Spider-Man have been spotted active in the city.
All of them, with the exception of Spider-Man, have been transformed.

When the talk focuses on members of the X-Men, a bunch of anti-mutant rhetoric gets passed around until a commanding military officer
speaks up about how this is exactly the sort of bigotry that America fought against when they battled the Nazi's during World War II.
Val breaks up the debate and tells them that she hopes the super-human community trapped within the mystical barrier can resolve their problem.

Within the barrier, Storm of the X-Men has been transformed into a warrior woman aboard a passenger ship.
She is awoken when her sleeping quarters is broken into by the Morlocks, who now are enforcers for Kulan Gath.
They arrest her because her existence displeases their master and they are about to brand
her with a hot iron collar, but Storm manages to break free, knocking over the hot coals.
As the other Morlocks attempt to avoid the flames, Storm climbs up to the mast head, but Callisto follows after her.
Unarmed, Storm is defenseless when Callisto slashes her stomach open with a knife.
This causes her to briefly remember her previous identity.
With the boat burning up quickly, Storm grabs Callisto and swings out to the water.
Being sure that Callisto takes the brunt of the impact, Storm swims away from the blaze and passes through the mystical barrier.
She and Callisto are restored back to normal and Storm retains all her memories.
Swimming toward a military vessel, Storm wonders what Kulan Gath has done to her other friends.

At that very moment, Kulan Gath is doing everything in his power to convert those who would stop him into his loyal slaves.
To this end, he magically merges Professor X and Caliban into a single entity to better hunt his foes and has Sorcerer Supreme,
Dr. Strange, mystically warped so that he cannot utter a magic spell or cast any with his fingers, rending him harmless.
With these threats neutralized, Gath orders prisoners to be brought to them.
The most recent prisoners are members of the New Mutants.
However, while he is capable of transforming Wolfsbane, Cannonball, Sunspot and Mirage into his loyal slaves,
his spell has no effect on Warlock who manages to escape. When it is explained that Warlock does not come from Earth
and is immune to the Master Spell, Kulan uses his magical might to force Caliban/Xavier to deal with the Technarc.
Gath is unaware that he is being spied upon by Selene who also has not been affected by the spell and has decided to overthrow him.
Selene teleports into the city where she kills a number of Kulan Gath's minions in an attempt to recruit Rachel Summers and Magma to her side.

Meanwhile, on the Hudson River on the other side of the barrier, Storm and Callisto are aboard
a military ship trying to figure out what to do, now that they are locked up.
They are contacted by Selene telepathically through Rachel to warn them that Kulan Gath intends
to not only make his Master Spell permanent, but also to make it encompass the entire Earth.
She tells Storm and Callisto that while she cannot prevent another transformation
when they cross the barrier, she can at least make them remember their mission.
Agreeing to do something, Storm picks the lock to the room that they were locked in and they jump ship, heading toward the barrier.

Back on the other side, Spider-Man, one of the only people unchanged by the Master Spell, flees for his life.
Hunted by the New Mutants, Spider-Man ducks into a tavern and tries to fight them off.

Inside are the transformed Avengers, Captain America, Starfox and Wasp, as well as the X-Men Nightcrawler and Rogue.
The New Mutants succeed in capturing Spider-Man when Mirage notices young Illyana and recognizes her as a foe of her master.
Before she can take Magik prisoner, the Avengers step in and a fight breaks out.
Nightcrawler and Rogue decide to join the fight and help the Avengers.

As the battle rages, Colossus and Sunder enter the fray, turning the battle in a massive free for all.

Back on the other side, Storm and Callisto travel the Morlock Tunnels to the edge of the barrier.
Without hesitation the two pass through, once more being transformed into warriors and are instantly ambushed.
While above, the battle rages on until Magik begins using her magic.
She realizes that her Soul Sword frees those from Kulan Gath's control when she strikes her brother Colossus with the sword.
She is soon overwhelmed by attackers until Selene steps in and uses her powers
to slay most of the warriors, forcing the New Mutants to retreat from the battle.

With the fight over, Selene makes her presence known to the heroes and offers an alliance with them.
She is attacked by an astral image of Kulan Gath who swallows her up, transporting her off to be his prisoner.
He warns the gathered rebels to cease their quest to overthrow him, offering them pleasure
beyond their wildest dreams and teleports away, warning them not to cross his path again.
As Kulan Gath disappears, Storm and Callisto arrive and they and the others flee before the forces of Kulan Gath can storm the bar.
When Gath learns that his enemies have fled, Selene mocks him. This causes her to be tortured.
Gath then tells his minions that he wants all the rebels taken prisoner by sunrise and sends them back out into the city.

Meanwhile in the Morlock tunnels, the gathered rebels camp out for the night and begin comparing notes.
They all realize that Kulan Gath is their primary concern but worry that Selene's
brand of evil is something to be dealt with when Kulan Gath is defeated.
Deciding to work together, the heroes all call out "Avengers Assemble!
Although most are gathered together in this rallied cry, standing off to the side are Rachel and Magma.

Story by Chris Claremont. Art by John Romita, Jr. and Dan Green.

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Stan Lee & Spider-Man | Amazing Fantasy Come True

[Batman Begins 2005]

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

John Romita Jr's rendition of the comicbook character Spider-Man in the above posted image looks to me very awkward.

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #11 Mar 1985
"...And Dust To Dust!"
Doctor Doom has stolen the power of the Beyonder and appeared before the heroes gathered on Battleworld.
Removing his mask, Doom reveals that his face has been completely healed.
He then announces that with the Beyonder seemingly dead, the Secret Wars are now over.
From afar, Doom's former minions watch as Doom speaks with the heroes.
Thinking Doom has betrayed them, the Molecule Man is furious and uses his powers
to uproot the earth under the heroes and fling them across Battleworld.
When Owen Reece angrily confronts Doom, Doom merely opens up Reece's mind
and removes the mental blocks that prevented him from being able to alter the molecules of living things.
Struck by this revelation, Molecule Man suggests that they retreat and figure out their next move.
Volcana suggests her apartment and so the Molecule Man creates a ship that
will allow them to fly to the chunk of Denver that has been brought to Battleworld.

Meanwhile, the heroes regroup at Doombase to review their notes and decide what to do with the now god-like Doctor Doom.
While they discuss this, the villains have regrouped at Marsha's apartment.
There they all agree that the Secret Wars are not worth it, and want to go home even if it means forfeiting the prize.
With that, Molecule Man uses his powers to erect an air-tight dome around Denver and pull it free from Battleworld and venture off into space.
This is picked up by the heroes' scanners and when Spider-Woman expresses concern for the friends
and family she still has in Denver, Mister Fantastic regretfully tells her that there is nothing they can do.
That evening Colossus cannot sleep because of his growing feelings for the alien woman Zsaji that he has fallen in love with.
Unwilling to go forward with whatever plans until he sees her one more time, Colossus leaves in the night.
As he goes, a ball of energy arrives at Doombase and takes possession of the Hulk.
The possessed Hulk is spotted by Spider-Woman, who tries to stop him.
When the Hulk's path is impeded the energy that is possessing him switches over to her and she continues on into the lab.
There she finds Captain Marvel -- still trapped in energy form -- as well as the severed head of Klaw.
Before she can do anything there is a blinding flash of light that causes her to scream.
When the other heroes arrive they find Klaw missing and Captain Marvel restored to normal.
They also find a message from Doctor Doom telling them to meet him at the Tower of Doom at dusk the following day.
When they wonder where the Tower of Doom is, they look out the window and see a massive stone tower off in the distance.
Doom has reformed Klaw and brought him to his side.
Having grown tired, Doom orders Klaw to guard his tower while he sleeps.

At the alien village, Zsaji is awoken by the arrival of Colossus who has brought her flowers and professes his love to her.
Back at Doombase Nightcrawler and Wolverine are looking for Colossus for the big meeting.
Wolverine points out that he is off with Zsaji and Nightcrawler laments about what this will to Piotr's girlfriend Kitty Pryde back home.
Wolverine points out that Colossus isn't really in love with Zsaji, he is just feeling the after-effects of her healing powers.
The heroes soon board a craft and fly out to Doom's tower to meet with him.
Doom announces to them that there is no more need to fight as he intends to use his omnipotence for altruistic ends.
In order to demonstrate this, he uses his power to resurrect Kang the Conqueror and return him to his own time.
He also explains that he has summoned Nova, the herald of Galactus, to recover her master from space.
He then offers to grant the heroes any wish they want in recompense for all the suffering he has caused them in the past.
When they all begin discussing it, Captain America notices that Spider-Woman is acting strangely and paying particular attention to Klaw.
Cap eventually comes back and tells Doom they want nothing.
As such Doom allows them to go free but warns them against acting against him in the future as he will destroy them instantly.
As the heroes exit, Captain America sends everyone else back so he can venture back inside and try to spy on Doom.

He finds Doom spending time with Klaw, and once detected, Doom invites the Captain in, sending Klaw away.
Down one of the corridors, Klaw is ambushed by Spider-Woman and
the energy that has been possessing her since the night before transfers to Klaw.
Captain America hears that Doom has no interest in conquering the universe and when Klaw returns
to inform him that Spider-Woman is knocked out in the hallway, Doom sends Cap away to her.
Outside he finds the others still waiting and tells them they need to call a meeting.
Elsewhere, Colossus is trying to have a romantic interlude with Zsaji but is forced to come back due to the mental summons of Professor X.
The heroes then meet back at Doombase, where they discuss whether they should go up against a god-like
Doctor Doom or leave him be, but they agree that to only go after their foe if the vote is unanimous.

Everyone agrees that Doom cannot be left with such power unchecked with almost everyone voting yes.

With the last vote boiling down to Colossus, he tearfully asks Zsaji to forgive him and votes yes.

The moment he does, the heroes are torn apart by a massive blast of energy that seemingly kills them all.

Story by Jim Shooter. Art by Mike Zeck and John Beatty.

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

The best superhero in the Marvel universe!

I hope we get some Spider-Man crossovers with as many different characters and offices as possible. I feel like there's been a severe lack of Peter popping up in other heroes' books!

Which is a shame since the character is to me a true 'everyman' superhero

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

Uncanny X-Men #191 Mar 1985
"Raiders of the Lost Temple!" Guest-starring the Avengers, the New Mutants and Spider-Man.
With the island of Manhattan transformed into a hyborian era reality by Kulan Gath, the evil sorcerer has Spider-Man strung up and tortured.
He explains to the wall-crawler that he intends to use him as a sacrifice to make his Master Spell expand
the entire globe and become irreversible in repayment for his previous humiliation at the hands of Spider-Man.

When Spider-Man continues to joke despite his condition, Gath tortures him some more so that his screams echo across his castle.
Kulan Gath then goes and checks on his other prisoners, and tortures Selene for daring to oppose him
by mutating her beaten body so that she, like Dr. Strange, cannot cast or chant any magic spells.

When Mirage and Sunder report back saying that they have been unable to find the rebels,
he angrily turns them into stone until Caliban/Xavier also tells him that they also cannot detect their enemies.
Restoring Sunder and Mirage to normal, Sunder suggests that the rebels must be
hiding in the Morlock tunnels - the only place where magic cannot search for them.

While in the ruins of what used to be the New York Public Library, the gathered Avengers
and X-Men wander through the wreckage of Kulan Gath's most recent slaughter.
They are attacked by a woman named Arilynn, the sole survivor of the massacre,
who attacks them believing them to be the enemy as they include Callisto as one of their number.

Before they can explain further, they are attacked by Kulan Gath's forces, led by the Scarlet Witch.
As the battle rages, Rogue loses her invulnerable diamond form, leaving her vulnerable to attack
and she is killed when she is stabbed in the back with an enemy sword.
Furious to see her comrade die in battle, Storm enters the fray like a woman possessed.

She is almost over powered when suddenly Warlock smashes through the wall and carries her away.
Unfortunately for Warlock, he cannot communicate with Storm due to the Master Spell making them speak two different languages.

The battle ends with the rebels fleeing and Starfox and the Wasp captured by the enemy.
They are taken to Kulan Gath, who uses his powers to transform them into powerful magical creatures to use against his enemies.
Meanwhile, on the rooftop of the building, Warlock attempts to communicate with Storm
with visual imagery showing her her previous self before the magical transformation.
Storm cannot fully understand what the creature is telling her, but the sight of
the old world allows her to begin to see through the illusion cast by the Master Spell.

Meanwhile, the rebels decide to try and sneak into Kulan Gath's palace.
The next day, with Captain America and Colossus posing as soldiers,
they pretend to be taking Magma and Rachel as prisoners to Kulan Gath.
However, Gath is waiting for them and sends his New Mutant and Morlock subbordinates against them.
As the battle rages on, Magik uses her Soul Sword to free her fellow New Mutants from Kulan Gath's control.

In the heat of the battle, Callisto is forced to slit Sunder's throat but vows to him that his death will be avenged.
Their fight spills into Kulan Gath's throne room where Spider-Man has been
mystically crucified onto a cross for the final sacrifice that would finalize the Master Spell.

As Kulan Gath watches on, the Vision then attempts to solidify himself in Colossus's body,
causing both men to explode, seriously wounding Captain America.
Nightcrawler, Callisto, Illyana and Arilynn attempt to storm Gath,
but are then turned into stone by the Scarlet Witch.

Having seen enough, Spider-Man uses the last of his strength to break free from his bonds despite the pain.
Spider-Man attempts to attack Kulan Gath directly, but is mystically struck down.

Watching from above, Storm and Warlock dive down to attack Kulan Gath,
managing to remove the amulet from around his neck. However before Storm can destroy it,
Magma manages to steal it away and uses it to restore Selene to normal. She then uses her power to strike down Warlock.
However, before Selene can use the power of the amulet for her own ends, Storm allows the dying Warlock to infect her
with the Transmode Virus. This causes Storm to regain her full memories and in turn infect Selene with the Transmode Virus.
With Selene under her control, Storm forces her to use her magics to free Dr. Strange.

Freed from his bondage, Dr. Strange deduces that the only way to undo the damage caused by Kulan Gath
would be to prevent him from casting his Master Spell to begin with. As such, Strange combines his magic with Illyana's
mutant teleporting power to alter history so that Kulan Gath never rose to power. Appearing in Dr. Strange's sanctum,
the only ones who remember the battle are Strange, Magik, Professor X, Storm, Callisto, Caliban, Captain America and Arilynn.
He tells those gathered that they will be the only ones who will remember the battle.
Because nobody knew how Kulan Gath gained his dominance,
they all wonder how history might have been effected in order to prevent events from unfolding.

At that moment, in the subway station where Jamie Rodriguez was supposed to be stabbed by a mugger, Nimrod
a mutant hunting super-sentinel from the future appears in the train station. Seeing a human being in jeopardy,
Nimrod blasts the mugger, incinerating him. The blast also knocks Jamie off-balance,
making the amulet fall out of his pocket and sink into the mud next to the subway tracks.
Helping Jamie up, Nimrod scans the area and notes an anti-mutant epitaph spray painted on a Dazzler movie poster
and realizes that mutants are considered a threat in this time and that it must carry out its prime directive to obliterate all mutants.

Story by Chris Claremont. Art by John Romita, Jr. and Dan Green.