The Death Of Ultimate Spider-Man might be one of the best Spider-Man stories ever told. There are character moments for everyone involved (Mary Jane stealing a truck and driving it into Norman Osborn whilst Peter's down is a highlight), and it's full of genuine emotion, humour and pathos. The Clone Saga, meanwhile... The infamous storyline saw the Peter Parker who starred in Spider-Man comics for decades revealed as a clone of the original, now going by the name Ben Reilly. Our Peter retires from being Spidey, and loses his powers in the process. Ben Reilly served as Spider-Man for a good few years. Then there was the Return Of The Powers story where Peter goes to hospital, slowly dying of what is assumed to be Clone Degeneration Syndrome. Ben is fighting a rejuvenated Hammerhead during all this. He flatlines...and then he gets better. And guess what? His powers return! A few months later, Ben died in his place. In a final twist, it turned out Ben was actually the clone all along, as the pair team to fight a resurrected Green Goblin Reilly takes a glider to the chest, and dissolves into dust...
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
