10 Superhero Comic Deaths (That Didn't Mean Anything)
4. Spider-Man
This one is a two-part death, so to speak. The first, comes with Morlun. Morlun was the only villain and a very random villain to kill Spidey. He viciously beat Spider-man, stalked him, hospitalised him and even removed an eye. He effectively killed Peter Parker. Before he died, however, Peter struck a mortal blow to Morlun and ended his reign of terror. Peters death did not last very long, as he rose from the ashes and evolved into something superior (more on that in a second). Eventually, the ramifications of this storyline would be erased due to a bad call from the editorial department, and Brand New Day made its way onto shelves. Much later, in issues #698-700, Peters mind was swapped. Doc Ock placed his mind inside the body of Spider-man, while Peter wasted away in Ocks decrepit, failing body. In the final issue, Peter passed away in Ocks body and Doctor Octopus became the new Spider-man, AKA the Superior Spider-man. As a year and some months passed, fans were outraged, yet intrigued by the exploits and adventures of Ock-Spidey. It did not last, however, as the series came to a close, Peter Parker was somehow alive within his body, fumbling around in his/Ocks brain. With one final breath, Ock let Peter take control of his body and become Spider-man once again. This, actually, was a great story. The one problem lies within the novelty of Ock as Spider-man and the fake-out of Peter being dead. The interesting aspects of the story ended quickly with the revelation that Peter was never actually gone. He was hidden and lost, and it was one hell of a cop-out.
Ethan is a a comic book writer and a podcaster (3 Beers Deep). He loves comics, movies, and pro-wrestling. Check out his awesome articles here on What Culture!
