The History of Spider-Man: 1975

For over 50 years, Spider-Man has been a sensational standout in the Marvel Universe, and this summer, the web-slinger swings onto the silver screen once more in “Spider-Man: Homecoming”! In celebration of this stories history, we present Spidey’s spectacular step-by-step story!

In AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #140, Peter Parker dealt with not only a tracking device placed upon him by the mysterious Jackal, but the return of the Grizzle to vex his later-ego. Spidery later puzzled over a new Mysterio in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #141, and managed to beat him at his own game in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #142.

The wondrous wallcrawler joined with the high-flying Falcon to take down the man called Midas in MARVEL TEAM-UP #30, and after a brief battle with Iron Fist in MARVEL TEAM-UP #31, DOPED OUT THE RIDDLE OF Drom the Backwards Man. Then, without missing a beat, he entered into battle alongside the Punisher to wage war against Moses Magnum in GIANT-SIZE SPIDER-MAN #4. MARVEL TEAM-UP #33 brought conflict with the Meteor Man, formerly the Looter, which spilled over into MARVEL TEAM-UP #34.

Peter flew off to exotic Paris for a story with the Daily Bugle’s Robbie Robertson and J. Jonah Jameson in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #143, and following a whirlwind of a fight with Cyclone in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #144, returned home to discover Gwen Stacy seemingly alive and well. Our hero received little time to process Gwen’s resurrection in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #145 when the Scorpion struck Spidey a near-mortal blow, one that stung all the more when the Jackal later enlisted the arachnid antagonist in his revenge scheme on the webslinger in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #146. 

The Amazing Spider-Man (1963) #144

• Published: May 10, 1975
• Added to Marvel Unlimited: March 18, 2013
• Writer: Gerry Conway
• Penciller: Ross Andru
• Cover Artist: Gil Kane

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MARVEL TEAM-UP #36 provided a brief respite from the mystery of Gwen Stacy for Peter, despite the strange encounter with the Frankenstein Monster and the Man-Wolf in it and MARVEL TEAM-UP #37. Spidey swung down to the Florida Everglades in GIANT-SIZE SPIDER-MAN #5 to mix it up with both the Man-Thing and the Lizard, but he returned to the Big Apple in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #147 to learn the truth about Gwen’s appearance and the Jackal’s reason for cloning the dead girl.

Spidey raced to save reporter Ned Leeds from the Jackal’s bomb in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #148, and discovered his foe to be Peter’s very own college professor, Miles Warren. The professor blamed the wallcrawler for Gwen’s death and unveiled a Spider-Man clone to fight the original in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #149. After the dust cleared from the brouhaha and the Jackal appeared to perish by his own hand, Gwen’s clone left town to find herself and trouble Peter no more.

Still reeling from the ordeal, the young hero helped the mutant Beast battle the Griffin in MARVEL TEAM-UP #38, and somehow found himself in the middle of a gang war in MARVEL TEAM UP #39 between the Human Torch, the Big Man, the Enforcers, and the Crime Master. It took an intervention by the high-kicky Sons of the Tiger in MARVEL TEAM-UP #40 to sort it all out.

Spider-Man wondered if he might be a clone in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #150, but when he felt strong emotions for Mary Jane Watson during a fight with Smythe and a new Spider-Slayer, he realized he couldn’t be a soulless duplicate. He later threw his clone’s inert form into a fiery furnace in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #151, hoping that the strange chapter in his heroic life would be closed forever…