Why Miguel O'Hara Is Marvel's Most Important Hispanic Character

7. His Place In The Cultural Zeitgeist

Miguel O'Hara is a character who was ahead of his time in more ways than one. Years before Hispanic superheroes rose to the prominence seen today, Miguel was mixing it up on the pages of Spider-Man 2099 in the early 1990s.

Of course, Miguel wasn't the first Marvel hero from a Latino background, as a couple others do predate him, most notably Bobby da Costa/Sunspot. However, Miggy was the first Hispanic hero to star in his own major solo series at the House of Ideas.

The original Spider-Man 2099 title was the crux of Marvel's 2099 imprint and ran for a total of 46 issues, plus an annual, a special and even a crossover with the original Spidey thrown into the mix for good measure. And it could have lasted even longer, had editorial drama not led to Peter David prematurely stepping down from the book.

What's more, Miguel was the first person of Hispanic descent to take up the mantle of Spider-Man, or any Spider-hero for that matter, predating Anya Corazon by over a decade and Miles Morales by nearly two. Speaking of beating Miles to the punch, Miguel was also the first biracial Spider-Man, being half-Mexican and half-Irish.

In recent years, Miles has rightfully become one of Marvel's most celebrated champions of diversity. And his star has only risen thanks to the Oscar-winning animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. However, it should be remembered that, at least to an extent, it was Miguel who walked so that Miles could run.

If you want an example of Miguel being an unsung hero, just consider the fact that Miles was the lead character of Into the Spider-Verse, whereas Miggy was relegated to a post-credits scene (albeit a hilariously great one.)