Why isn`t Kaine a popular character?

[PCN24454]

Origins are extremely important because it affects how you can adapt a character for media. If a character is hard to adapt, they will miss their shot to hit it big. The concept of a character is very important when trying to sell a character and Kaine is the 3rd most popular edgy Spider-Man and the 2nd most popular clone. Spider-Man is not a franchise about clones, and if they're going to do a story about a clone that becomes Peter's ally, they're only going to pick one. And if they're going to do a story about an edgier Spider-Man, it'll be more likely an adaptation of the stories involving two out of his three most popular enemies. The best thing that could've happened to Kain in the current landscape was the idea of shifting him into the straight man and check for Ben's manic disaster shenanigans, but that rich premise was wasted on a mediocre, wheel-spinning book. The message I am trying to get across is for a variety of reasons that have nothing to do with himself as a character, KAINE IS FUCKED and has no reason to exist in the current Spider line. Which is why we are waiting for someone to pick up the ball.

It doesn't help that most adaptations don't last long enough to adapt something that by nature would be a really big storyline. It'd be incredibly jarring to include something like the Clone Saga in Season 1 or the beginning of a Spider-Man story.

[Frontier]

It doesn't help that most adaptations don't last long enough to adapt something that by nature would be a really big storyline. It'd be incredibly jarring to include something like the Clone Saga in Season 1 or the beginning of a Spider-Man story.

Granted, they've done Miles Morales and Spider-Island in Year One Spider-Man story so never underestimate what's possible when creators need to sell toys/merchandise.

Granted, they also had the Jackal as a main villain but still never really did the Clone Saga...

[CrimsonEchidna]

The big thing for relevancy for a particular character is if there's anyone actually championing them behind the scenes. You can kind of see this shift at Secret Wars where Kaine lost just about all relevancy in favor in Miguel being brought to the present, Miles transferring universers, and them trying to capture lighting in a bottle with Spider-Ock. Especially with Spider-Ock, Kaine's entire niche of being the "edgier" Spider-Man got completely supplanted.

[Frontier]

The big thing for relevancy for a particular character is if there's anyone actually championing them behind the scenes. You can kind of see this shift at Secret Wars where Kaine lost just about all relevancy in favor in Miguel being brought to the present, Miles transferring universers, and them trying to capture lighting in a bottle with Spider-Ock. Especially with Spider-Ock, Kaine's entire niche of being the "edgier" Spider-Man got completely supplanted.

It seems like they're kind of done with SpOck though.

[CrimsonEchidna]

It seems like they're kind of done with SpOck though.

But that kind of loops back to my idea that there's no one really advocating for Kaine or Ben Reilly for that matter. For better or worse, Nick Spencer seem to have gone out of his way to avoid treading old ground of Dan Slott's run after and I think the Clones is another area they're not in a real rush to revisit.

[PCN24454]

Granted, they've done Miles Morales and Spider-Island in Year One Spider-Man story so never underestimate what's possible when creators need to sell toys/merchandise.

Granted, they also had the Jackal as a main villain but still never really did the Clone Saga...

And it was very much jarring.

[Celgress]

But that kind of loops back to my idea that there's no one really advocating for Kaine or Ben Reilly for that matter. For better or worse, Nick Spencer seem to have gone out of his way to avoid treading old ground of Dan Slott's run after and I think the Clones is another area they're not in a real rush to revisit.

Gee, I wonder why?

[Darthfury78]

Kaine’s biggest problem is not being unique enough in today’s comic market. I think he would work best on a team, like maybe x-Force or the Defenders(something similar to the original concept for the team). Also, Kaine needs a regular job like a bodyguard or bouncer. Both of those would fit his personality and eliminate his drifter mentality ( which is why I loved his solo series because it actually allowed him to lay down some roots). He also needs a personal life outside of the costume, friends and a steady love interest. He and Ben have developed a brotherly relationship, and that’s great for both of them, but Kaine especially could use more people in his corner to rely on.

As far as a regular job goes, I want to see him working as an Civil Engineer or Architect. The revelation is that Kaine has his college degree at the Masters Level in Engineering. This would set him a part from Peter Parker. As far as love interest goes, I feel that Heather Douglas(Moondragon) or Dr. Moira MacTaggert(X-Men) would fit Kaines personality quite well...

[classicgmer]

As far as a regular job goes, I want to see him working as an Civil Engineer or Architect. The revelation is that Kaine has his college degree at the Masters Level in Engineering. This would set him a part from Peter Parker. As far as love interest goes, I feel that Heather Douglas(Moondragon) or Dr. Moira MacTaggert(X-Men) would fit Kaines personality quite well...

You're not ever going to rest until Peter Parker or some variation of him is romantically linked to Moondragon are you?

[Scott Taylor]

Well I like him. Or at least liked him with the long hair, cloak and gnarly tights. He's like your partly insane uncle who always ruins Thanksgiving dinner. Instead they've put him in a Spider-Man suit and then tried to give him normalcy. Making him even more similar to the original Peter Parker is dumb.

But the fact remains he is just a knock off Spider-Man no matter how you slice it. Hence - not that popular.

[Tien Long]

I like Kaine. He has Spider-Man powers, but with a Wolverine attitude. He still has the responsibility, but will go to some brutal ends to ensure it. That inevitably causes him to be a lot more battered and battle damaged than Peter. I've always said that's one of the reasons why I like Kaine, you can beat and bloody him in ways that Pete couldn't.

For me, what holds Kaine back is the personality. I get that he's damaged and brutal, but I don't see that many character moments where he displays this. More often then not he seems pretty awkward in situations with other characters. With Pete, I know that he'll try and be funny and cool whenever he gets nervous. But what would Kaine do?

So a more defined character would help Kaine out.

[Huntsman Spider]

I like Kaine. He has Spider-Man powers, but with a Wolverine attitude. He still has the responsibility, but will go to some brutal ends to ensure it. That inevitably causes him to be a lot more battered and battle damaged than Peter. I've always said that's one of the reasons why I like Kaine, you can beat and bloody him in ways that Pete couldn't.

For me, what holds Kaine back is the personality. I get that he's damaged and brutal, but I don't see that many character moments where he displays this. More often then not he seems pretty awkward in situations with other characters. With Pete, I know that he'll try and be funny and cool whenever he gets nervous. But what would Kaine do?

So a more defined character would help Kaine out.

From what I recall of Chris Yost's take on Kaine, whereas Peter tries to get along with the people he runs into and works with, with his jokes being a method of getting them to feel at ease with him, Kaine instead tries to drive them away from him by acting like a gruff, foul-mouthed jerk . . . not that that works very well. It's those damned Parker genes, I tell you! A popular meme that might sum it up well enough, though: "Kaine wants to be hardcore, but Houston [or Aracely] won't let him." And despite himself and his efforts to seem aloof, gruff, and uncaring, it's extremely obvious after a point that he does care and genuinely wants to be a better person, in honor of his clone brother Ben (before Clone Conspiracy mucked that up) and Peter.

[Pav]

I've long thought Kaine would be better served by having his original powerset returned: his hyper-spider powers were always fascinating to me and really sets him apart from other Spider-People, even more than The Other powers do.

-Pav, who hopes we see him again soon...

[SpideyClone]

As far as a regular job goes, I want to see him working as an Civil Engineer or Architect. The revelation is that Kaine has his college degree at the Masters Level in Engineering. This would set him a part from Peter Parker. As far as love interest goes, I feel that Heather Douglas(Moondragon) or Dr. Moira MacTaggert(X-Men) would fit Kaines personality quite well...

Beyond ridiculous. Kaine was an assassin prior to his appearance in the 90's clone saga, and pretty much a drifter at that, who spent his time pursuing Ben Reilly to make his life a living hell. Somehow you want to say in the 2-3 years he existed at that point he had time to get a graduate degree in engineering? Even if he had Peter's complete memories (which he doesn't), the timeline makes it impossible.

As for your choices in love interests go, I won't even dignify that with a response.

[SpideyClone]

I've long thought Kaine would be better served by having his original powerset returned: his hyper-spider powers were always fascinating to me and really sets him apart from other Spider-People, even more than The Other powers do.

-Pav, who hopes we see him again soon...

I could get behind that, but only if we can get past the degeneration issue. He can still be a tragic figure in the sense of trying to overcome the bad things he did in his life, and possibly failing, while not have the specter of degeneration constantly hanging over him.