By now, I’m sure a lot of you saw the recent “Avengers: Infinity War” film, or you’ve added the Bluray or DVD to your Christmas list. For the character of Spider-Man, it’s very significant for the fact that it is the first time we’ve ever seen the character journey into space in a movie!
While it’s the first time a cinematic Spider-Man has been to space, the main Earth-616 comic book Spider-Man has been journeying to space for years now. For this month’s Spider-Tracer, we’ll be taking a look at the more memorable journeys Spider-Man has made to “the final frontier” (cue the original series Star Trek theme).
One of the earliest instances where Spider-Man headed out into space was at the end of “Marvel Team-Up” #54 (1977). Spider-Man is locked in a rocket and sent into space by the minor villain of the piece, Major Del Tremens (who is then defeated by Woodgod; talk about obscure!). We pick up where we left off with Spidey in “Marvel Team-Up” #55, his oxygen dwindling. Thankfully for our hero, he encounters Adam Warlock (who will be showing up in quite a bit of Spidey’s trips to outer space). Following a battle with the cosmic Stranger, who was after the Soul Gen upon Adam’s forehead, Adam Warlock helps send Spidey on his way back to Earth.
Later that same year in “Marvel Two-In-One Annual” #2, Spider-Man is back in space, this time teaming up with the ever-lovin’ blue-eyed Thing. Following some odd, interconnected dreams featuring Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell, not Carol) and the Avengers battling Thanos, the heroes head into space to look into the matter further. They discover Thanos’ ship and must battle their way through the Mad Titan’s army. Spider-Man frees the Avengers and Mar-Vell in order to take down Thanos once and for all, but it’s not enough! Thankfully, Spider-Man is able to free the Soul Gem, which allows Adam Warlock’s soul to escape long enough to turn Thanos into stone, thus ending his threat for several years.
Perhaps Spider-Man’s most memorable trip into outer space occurred during the 1984-1985 12 issue limited-series “Marvel Superheroes: Secret Wars”. We see Spidey, along with several of Marvel’s other big time heroes (the Avengers, X-Men, the Fantastic Four minus the Invisible Woman, etc) brought to Battleworld by the Beyonder to battle some of Earth’s greatest villains (Dr. Doom, Doc Ock, Ultron, Galactus, etc). What makes this pretty significant for Spider-Man would be the discovery of the Venom symbiote. Following a huge battle in issue #8, Spidey finds what is believed to be a costume-repairing machine, which, in fact, is later discovered to have been a prison for the aforementioned living costume. As we all know, Spidey eventually rids himself of the suit (twice, in fact), but ends up gaining one of his most persistent foes, Venom, in the process.
Just a few years later, in “Amazing Spider-Man” #328, after temporarily gaining the cosmic powers of Captain Universe, Spider-Man is able to not only take the Hulk on (in his grey persona at the time), but win! Spidey punches the Grey Goliath into space, but decides to fly into space and bring him back to terra firma. It was a quick trip, but a trip into outer space, all the same.
Not long after, Spider-Man popped by in “Avengers” #’s 314-318 to combat the space pirate, Nebula. It’s fun to look back at these older Marvel issues and see the reasoning behind why Spider-Man would be better off not being an Avenger, especially after his having been a member for what, well over ten years, now?
Subsequently, Spider-Man, along with a huge roster of Earth’s heroes, head into space to combat an Infinity Gauntlet-powered Thanos in “Infinity Gauntlet” issues #3 and #4. Spider-Man dies in the conflict (I did an article several months ago detailing Spidey’s many deaths, and it’s further covered there), but is fortunately resurrected by issue #6.
While Spider-Man does not head into space for the sequel, “Infinity War”, he does go back during “Infinity Crusade”, brainwashed as part of the Goddess’ army of followers. The Goddess was split off from Adam Warlock (that guy again?), and while she was supposed to be the good portion of his soul, she saw using extreme measures as a way to meet her goals, even declaring a holy war on those in the universe who did not follow her. Fortunately, Earth’s heroes, including Spider-Man, were able to come to their senses and thwart her, banishing her to the Soul Gem.
Time passes, and Spidey finds himself teaming up with Starfox, Dr. Strange, Adam Warlock, Pip the Troll, Moondragon, and Thanos himself to go to outer space against several failed clones of the Mad Titan’s design.
In “Amazing Spider-Man” #680-#681, Spider-Man and the Human Torch travel into space to rescue John Jameson, who becomes entangled in a plot orchestrated by Doc Ock and the rest of the Sinister Six, forcing the heroes to combat Octobot-controlled zombies. The heroes triumph, and Johnny even manages to steer the ship to Daytona Beach in the middle of Spring Break. Good ol’ Johnny…
“Amazing Spider-Man” Volume 4, #9 features Spider-Man and Nick Fury, Jr. heading in to space to foil the international criminal, Scorpio and the Zodiac cartel. This was during the Parker Industries era, when Peter owned his own technology company, and was thus able to take his very own Arachno-Rocket into space. The rocket… didn’t survive the issue.
In “Guardians of the Galaxy” Volume 4, #14, Spider-Man is abducted by the shape-shifting Skrulls. Thankfully this issue takes place during a time when Flash Thompson as Venom was on the team, because without him, it’s very likely the others, who don’t know Spidey nearly as well, wouldn’t have been able to tell the imposter apart from the real deal.
While Spider-Man is typically better suited for the streets of New York City than, say, an alien planet (he even seems to prefer it), it’s definitely fun to see Spider-Man out of his element from time to time, and that includes outer space.
What’s your favorite Spider-Man moment out in space? Let me know in the comments section below!
Apple Podcasts
Google Podcasts
Spotify
Pandora
Amazon Music
iHeartRadio
Podbean
Amazon Alexa
Player.fm
Listen Notes
Stitcher
you left out a Web of Spiderman comic where Spidey saves the Watcher from some green alien that ties up with yellow laser on the cover ( I want to say like 29 or 30) that I always kind of enjoyed as a one and done story.
Also Cosmic SPidey guest starred in Quasar #6 and helped him (Literally) toss Terminus off the planet and into space.
@hornacek
Yeah, I always found that revelation, weird, too. Good story, but the comment kinda came out of nowhere.
Oh, and the woman in that screenshot is Terraxia, someone Thanos conjured to life with the Infinity Gauntlet in order to try and make Death jealous.
I like how in that Infinity Gauntlet screenshot, the woman (Nebula?) is saying “GROW”.
Marvel Two-In-One annual #2 has a weird history for me. For years back in the 80s I read many anecdotes about how this story specifically stated that it was Peter Parker’s destiny to become Spider-Man. When I finally tracked down a copy and bought it, I was expecting some galactic revelation, and from what I remember, it was just some narration box that said it, but it felt like it was an offhand comment by the narrator. Very unfulfilling.