10 Times Miles Morales Spider-Man Totally Outdid Peter Parker

10. Original Origins

A good origin story is arguably the most vital part of any comic book hero. Peter Parker has what we like to call the textbook origin. An unlikely person has an accident of some kind and wakes up totally changed. Yes, that sort of story is old hat at this point, but it’s not cliche if you invented the cliche. Brian Michael Bendis faced an uphill battle in making Miles’ origin different enough to be an original take, but similar enough to result in another character named Spider-Man.

He ended up deciding to give Miles a spider bite as well, but this time it was tied more closely to Miles’ personal life. The bite in question would be a result of Miles’ Uncle Aaron doing a job as the Prowler and accidentally picking up the genetically altered bug and bringing it back to his place where Miles finds it and gets the bite.

Another huge difference between Miles and Peter is what happened directly after being bitten. Peter Parker, though not at first the most heroic, soon decides to heed his Uncle’s words and take on the great responsibility that his great powers entail. Miles, on the other hand, doesn’t want to be a hero.

Even after his best friend, Ganke, tries to convince him to use his powers to fight crime, Miles tells him he just wants to be a normal teen (never heard that one before). Even during the death of his hero, Peter Parker, Miles does nothing. It’s the shock from this event that inspires Miles to finally put on the mask. Seeing this different interpretation of how someone would react to getting spider-powers wasn’t only refreshing, it was realistic.