What makes the 616 Spider-Man Special?

[Mister Mets]

In the context of the Spider-Verse, what makes the Spider-Man introduced in Amazing Fantasy #15 special?

This was a question I pondered since there were clips from the comics in Across the Spider-Verse, and alternate dimensions have obviously become a major part of the Spider-Man mythos.

One point is that he has been in a lot of adventures, even if you think he's still in his mid-20s.

[CaptainUniverse]

In the context of the Spider-Verse, what makes the Spider-Man introduced in Amazing Fantasy #15 special?

This was a question I pondered since there were clips from the comics in Across the Spider-Verse, and alternate dimensions have obviously become a major part of the Spider-Man mythos.

One point is that he has been in a lot of adventures, even if you think he's still in his mid-20s.

Out of universe, I suppose it has something to do with 616 being the primary universe that introduced the world to characters like Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four. But in-universe? I got nothing. It doesn't even make sense for him to be special, in the comics, 616 isn't even the first universe to have a Peter Parker in it, that honor goes to a reality in the Sixth Multiverse (where Galactus came from) that resembled the Fox TAS universe. 616 Peter is, for all intents and purposes, an echo of that long dead Peter Parker from the Sixth Multiverse.

[Huntsman Spider]

The funny thing is that he wasn't supposed to be special. The reason Earth-616 was called Earth-616 (aside from being the Number of the Beast in some translations of the Bible) was that it was supposed to be "just another Earth," not necessarily the focal point of Marvel's Multiverse the way DC's Multiverse had Earth-One being. The same applies to Spider-Man himself, who beyond being the first in terms of publication history and with the largest mythos was distinguished as a hero by, as Al Ewing ultimately distilled his archetype in Defenders Beyond, "Could-Be-You." That, paradoxically, was what made Spider-Man special, that by a twist of fate, a moment of random chance, an ordinary, alienated young person became something extraordinary, and ultimately chose to use that extraordinariness to defend, save, and protect others and the world around him as opposed to profiteering off the gifts he'd been given, even though he still struggled with the same problems most of us in real life would endure, whether as a teenager or an adult.

[Kaitou D. Kid]

Since OMD, absolutely nothing.

Peter B seemed experienced. He's the only Spidey who can piss off Miguel without consequences. He was there when Miguel's world got destroyed. That implies he's an equal.

Peter B was also the only one to find Miles and sneak up on him while Miles escaped from everyone.

Slott and Wells' Spider-Man don't stand out in any way.

[Daibhidh]

In theory in universe Peter and 616 in general shouldn't be special.
In practice there are a large number of universes that split off 616 and far fewer that split off the MC2 universe or 1610 or 65 or so on. I don't think anyone has come up with an in-universe explanation for that yet.

[Celgress]

Post-OMD, nothing makes it special. Modern 616 Peter with his repressed character development and world development is interchangeable with any other high school-aged or otherwise inexperienced Spidey. Insomniac Spider-Man, for example, is far more capable and emotionally stable than his 616 counterpart.

[godisawesome]

I think what makes him special is similar to the thing that makes Batman probably the strongest franchise in DC:

- He has the highest accumulation of great stories;

- He has the highest accumulation of great stories that connect directly to each other.

That last part is probably why no one seriously thinks 616 Peter’s a 20-something anymore, unless they’re carrying (unnecessary) water for current editorial; everyone tends to have just a few too many stories clearly tied together and roughly aligned to each other in a serious case of time progressing onwards.

Everyone, including staunch OMD supporters who claim that growth and change is bad, wants some piece of Spidey In High School to Spidey In College to Spidey The Night Gwen Stacy Died to Spidey Post-College Vs Harry to Spidey Vs Hobgoblin(s) to Spidey Vs Venom to Spidey Teamed With Venom to Spidey Oh No Norman’s Back to Spidey The Veteran Hero With A Spidey Family… etc., that they want to see current 616 stories be sequels to.

People will debate what specific aspects of multiple eras are “can’t miss,” and yeah, there appears to be a minority of fans and a stubborn majority of active creators who would vociferously fight against the larger fanbase and public perception that “Spidey Marries MJ” is a major component of that as well, but we *all* have too many connected stories we like for anyone to seriously demand that we just go right back to “High School Peter” and stay there… even though “High School Peter” is likely the most prevalently adapted version right now.

You could even argue that managing to get past the high school years is the most frequent sign that an adaptation is successful, so engrained is the desire to chain together multiple stories and “grow” Peter.

The argument stingy creators usually have is about how much further you should or could go; and again, I’d note that the guys behind OMD both then and now still clearly set their standard as “…a decent time after college” even at the most paranoid about change.

And since no other adaptation or AU has managed to quite string together so many solid stories and eras everyone wants, if remains the ace up the sleeve of 616 Spidey, which is again comparable to how most people treat comic Batman and his family.

[clonegeek]

The thing that made Peter Parker special compared the rest of the Marvel Universe is that he is a rather finite character. The moment he graduated highschool he became that.

Peter Parker's story to me is about a boy growing up and slowly accepting the responsibilities that come with it. Going to college, paying rent, getting married and eventually becoming a dad, all the while dealing with the latest villain of the week.

[Kurus]

I think 616 spidey was to first superhero to feel like a normal person. The fantastic four introduced a team with conflict, but at the end of the day they were superhero celebrities. Peter struggled to pay rent, he had to take care of his elderly aunt, deal with a boss who was kind of a jackass. And despite being an Everyman, he was a very distinct, flawed character, especially during the dikto years. Plus he was one of the first superheroes to put a major emphasis on romance, with Stan and romita bringing their experiences from that genre to bare. And finally, reading the first 30 or so years feels like you are actually reading the story of someone’s life. There was a forward momentum to the book that was lost in the mid nineties.

[Celgress]

I think 616 spidey was to first superhero to feel like a normal person. The fantastic four introduced a team with conflict, but at the end of the day they were superhero celebrities. Peter struggled to pay rent, he had to take care of his elderly aunt, deal with a boss who was kind of a jackass. And despite being an Everyman, he was a very distinct, flawed character, especially during the dikto years. Plus he was one of the first superheroes to put a major emphasis on romance, with Stan and romita bringing their experiences from that genre to bare. And finally, reading the first 30 or so years feels like you are actually reading the story of someone’s life. There was a forward momentum to the book that was lost in the mid nineties.

Thank you, this sums up my main problem with Modern 616 Spidey. One can debate when exactly it happened but the forward momentum has completely ceased and if anything drastically reversed in recent years.

[PCN24454]

He’s the first so every other Spider-Man will naturally be based on him to some degree.

[bat39]

Out of universe, I suppose it has something to do with 616 being the primary universe that introduced the world to characters like Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four. But in-universe? I got nothing. It doesn't even make sense for him to be special, in the comics, 616 isn't even the first universe to have a Peter Parker in it, that honor goes to a reality in the Sixth Multiverse (where Galactus came from) that resembled the Fox TAS universe. 616 Peter is, for all intents and purposes, an echo of that long dead Peter Parker from the Sixth Multiverse.

Wow...did not know that about Galactus :O And the Marvel Multiverse for that matter...

I think what makes him special is similar to the thing that makes Batman probably the strongest franchise in DC:

- He has the highest accumulation of great stories;

- He has the highest accumulation of great stories that connect directly to each other.

That last part is probably why no one seriously thinks 616 Peter’s a 20-something anymore, unless they’re carrying (unnecessary) water for current editorial; everyone tends to have just a few too many stories clearly tied together and roughly aligned to each other in a serious case of time progressing onwards.

Everyone, including staunch OMD supporters who claim that growth and change is bad, wants some piece of Spidey In High School to Spidey In College to Spidey The Night Gwen Stacy Died to Spidey Post-College Vs Harry to Spidey Vs Hobgoblin(s) to Spidey Vs Venom to Spidey Teamed With Venom to Spidey Oh No Norman’s Back to Spidey The Veteran Hero With A Spidey Family… etc., that they want to see current 616 stories be sequels to.

People will debate what specific aspects of multiple eras are “can’t miss,” and yeah, there appears to be a minority of fans and a stubborn majority of active creators who would vociferously fight against the larger fanbase and public perception that “Spidey Marries MJ” is a major component of that as well, but we *all* have too many connected stories we like for anyone to seriously demand that we just go right back to “High School Peter” and stay there… even though “High School Peter” is likely the most prevalently adapted version right now.

You could even argue that managing to get past the high school years is the most frequent sign that an adaptation is successful, so engrained is the desire to chain together multiple stories and “grow” Peter.

The argument stingy creators usually have is about how much further you should or could go; and again, I’d note that the guys behind OMD both then and now still clearly set their standard as “…a decent time after college” even at the most paranoid about change.

And since no other adaptation or AU has managed to quite string together so many solid stories and eras everyone wants, if remains the ace up the sleeve of 616 Spidey, which is again comparable to how most people treat comic Batman and his family.

This.

Granted, this is why he's important from a real-world perspective. In-universe (or rather in-multiverse) I dunno.

When 'Life Story' was being published, I kinda thought it'd be neat if we saw the Peter of that story have a multiversal team-up with 616 Peter. Maybe that would have told us something new about 616 Peter...

[ARkadelphia]

Pete’s boyish charm and good looks

[Ubauba01]

There should be plenty of identical/near-indentical versions of that Peter in the Multiverse, so nothing really.

They say 616 is the only one that defeated Morlun in the first Spider-Verse story, albeit in Spider-Man Life Story, we see that Spider-Man defeat Morlun as well (which should take place chronologically before Spider-Verse if that is the same Morlun). There are also others if we count mobile games like Spider-Man Unlimited. Albeit these stories came later or at the same time as the first Spider-Verse.

The way Dan Slott treats the Marvel Multiverse is more limited in possibilities. In the first Spider-Verse story, it is kind of implied that Inheritors don't have alternate counterparts in the Multiverse. Likewise, IIRC, it was outright said that there is only one Other in the whole Multiverse.

[Huntsman Spider]

There should be plenty of identical/near-indentical versions of that Peter in the Multiverse, so nothing really.

They say 616 is the only one that defeated Morlun in the first Spider-Verse story, albeit in Spider-Man Life Story, we see that Spider-Man defeat Morlun as well (which should take place chronologically before Spider-Verse if that is the same Morlun). There are also others if we count mobile games like Spider-Man Unlimited. Albeit these stories came later or at the same time as the first Spider-Verse.

The way Dan Slott treats the Marvel Multiverse is more limited in possibilities. In the first Spider-Verse story, it is kind of implied that Inheritors don't have alternate counterparts in the Multiverse. Likewise, IIRC, it was outright said that there is only one Other in the whole Multiverse.

Funny enough, in Life Story, having just reread the expanded TPB with the inclusion of the Annual focusing on J. Jonah Jameson, it was actually Peter's children Claire and Benjy that beat (and killed) Morlun.