Reruns of the 60's cartoon, then Spider-man and his Amazing friends cartoon and then a friend who I played hockey with got me into comics in 86. I stopped collecting in the mid 90's for about 7-8 years, started back in 02/03 and haven't looked back. Peter Parker/Spider-man was the most relatable character for me.
Romita Sr + Spider Man and Friends + Black Suit original saga reruns.
That`s how I lost my virginity.
When I was about 4 years old I saw a Mego Spider-man and it was all over. Then I read the 1984 Marvel Secret Wars series in which he really shined against many powerhouses like Titania, The X-Men, etc. I came to appreciate his Parker's humility and power in reserve. Occasionally I like to see a writer really let him off the chain though.
I go back some 50 years, to a time when spin racks were present in things called Milk Bars in my country. I had first read super heroes like Superman and green lantern, and Magnus the Robot Fighter. Then I saw this scary character, covered head to foot with spider webs, and it was like watching an alien to start with, until I realised this kid dressed up in this costume for some reason, and he came across these weird things going on. He scared the bejesus out of the gangsters of New York City, a mixture of super powered bad guys and ordinary mobsters, and this kid would handle them with utter aplomb. Later on, the tragic nature of this spider person started to dawn on me - he did not have a happy childhood, and, he was driven by some guilt-ridden compunction to show his dead uncle he was a good person. It was the weirdest character you could come up with.
In addition to the Electric Company and the 60's cartoon re-runs, the newspaper strip also helped me get into Spidey.
I bought this yesterday.
Mainly the 90s animated series. Had a ton of the figures from that show.
First noticed the character when he made a guest appearance on an old Spider-Woman cartoon.
Though it was cool to have a male counterpart to Spider-Woman, but not much beyond that.
Then I saw the 90s cartoon and I was hooked.
As with many people, i was always aware of Spidey from the cartoons to the bad live action TV show (being a child of the 80's). In terms of the comics though, it was the Clone Saga that got me on board, specifically Ben Reilly.
I miss that guy.
"The rules of regeneration are known!"
"Sorry, what did you say? Did you mention the rules? Now, listen. A bit of advice: tell me the truth if you think you know it,
lay down the law if you're feeling brave, but never ever tell me the rules!!"
I remember seeing Amazing Spider-Man comics on news stands and in delicatessens from as young as four, but it wasn't till I was ten that I began to buy Amazing Spider-Man comics and other Marvel titles.
I also got into the reruns of the 60's cartoon.
TIME AND A WORD
I was born in 81 so by the time i was around 4 there were reruns of the 67 cartoon on as well as the 80s Spider-Man cartoon and Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends. I loved them all and started collecting the comics when I was around 6. Collected them consistently up until about 3-4 years ago.