Spider-Man was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko and saw his first comic appearance in 1962 featuring much of what Spider-Man still is today; his super strength, agility, wall climbing, web-shooter inventions, Spider-Senses and the hero’s nerdy and often bullied alter ego, Peter Parker, were all part of the equation. Spider-Man is a global phenomenon. He is an instantly recognizable hero on par with Wolverine or DC’s Superman and Batman. But why? And just how big is Spider-Man?
Spidey instantly struck a chord with the comic’s teen viewership. In a time when superheroes were all grown men, Spider-Man was a teen doing his best, hence the comic’s well-known adage “With great power Comes Great Responsibility”. The comic also featured many colorful yet relatable villains; instead of “General Zod” character-types which were hellbent on destroying the earth, the comic featured Spider-Man battling it out against villains like Vulture, a man who turned to crime after his colleague financially ruined him, or Venom, the ultimate archetype of what Spider-Man could be if he used his powers for evil.
Now today Marvel often portrays Spider-Man as the company’s mascot, and the strong but shy teen makes regular appearances all over the world. There have been many comic variations from Spidey in the Medieval era to Spidey in the future (Spider-Man 2099 and Spider-Man 2211). Spider-Man India saw a retelling of the story in an amazing Indian setting while Ai Apaec saw Spider-Man envisioned as a six-armed South American Spider God. Throughout all this the original The Amazing Spider-Man comic, which began in earnest in 1963, was still running strong. Our favorite web-slinger is a pleasure to read in all his iterations.
The First Spider-Man Cartoon series ran from 1967 to 1970 and Spider-Man’s first live-action tv series (1974-77) was a small educational TV show for kids, demonstrating that Spider-Man was already being used as an integral figure for a whole new generation. And, for generations new and old Orlando Florida sports a Spider-Man 4D amusement ride. Spidey has been a powerful figure in many childhoods across the world.
Many game communities have also created their own tribute to our favorite web-slinger. There are thousands of Spider-Man skins to be found on Minecraft and the Crimson Web knife skin for Counterstrike can be acquired for anything from 51 dollars to well over 200 on Case 51, depending on the knife. Spider-Man is one of the most common cosplay characters out there, from cheap morph suits to dedicated costumes there has never been a comic con without Spider-Man. But for fans that want to show their dedication in other ways there is a mountain of merch to choose, from Lego sets to clothes, and toys to bedcovers many items seem to be aimed at a younger generation while collectible statues and even car stickers appear to be aimed at older Spider-Man fans.
From comics and cartoons to costumes and collectibles, Spider-Man has slowly penetrated many aspects of day to day life. Even today he’s still a fan favorite and is a global symbol for “doing right”, a perfect example of this is the recent partnership between Marvel and the UN, which will produce a comic of Spider-Man assisting UN troops. Spider-Man is a global phenomenon because his character struck gold with the readership, creating a fan-base that would develop or invest in Spider-Man wherever he could be found.
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Considering the fact that Fisk has all of these crime bosses under her thumb is a true testament to his power, and he’s finally ready to cash in. Not only that, but his position as Mayor allows him to reward whoever’s successful with a criminal’s ultimate dream: a literal ‘Get Out Of Jail Free’ card, allowing the holder to operate with complete autonomy thanks to the protection’s they’d receive from Fisk’s office. Naturally, this is quite the coveted prize, and it seems likely that every criminal gang is going to try their hand at bringing Boomerang in to Fisk. After all, the former Kingpin being the mayor is the best thing that’s ever happened to them, and all of their operations have seen high returns in the years since. While it’s seemingly a small line in this issue and in the film, the scene did become a very popular meme on the internet. As such, it does seem as though Fisk’s reference to this line is intentional on the part of writer Nick Spencer, serving as a quick but fun easter egg for Marvel and Spider-Man fans to find in the issue from Marvel Comics.
I can speak for others, but the two biggest things for me was the sense of humor, (he put a costume and could say what he wanted, who didn’t want to do that as a teen) and his powers. He was always the ultimate david vs goliath superhero because his speed, agility, and spider-sense made him more than a match for a lot of bigger, stronger characters. His strength of character and ability to make mistakes made him more human, and therefore appealing as well.
There isn’t any one reason for Spider-Ma’s popularity as he resonates with different people for different reasons. His costume, his cast, his villains, his fighting style, his love of science, his down to Earthness, his humour and just that little dash of undefinable magicall make him popular
A few points
a) Spider-Man stopped being shy by issue #7
b) Spider-man ceased being a teenager before the Death of gwen Stacy
c) Even as a teen Spider-Man acted more like an adult
d) His message about great power=Great responsibility isn’t at all specific to his younger age. It’s a humanist story not a coming of age thing.