Our ‘Friendly NeighborhoodSpider-Man’ has always been a colorful figure of comfort. Wise-cracking, brave, and just a little bit nerdy, he’s forever been a hero people could rely on and trust. He certainly stands apart from the grittier characters from the Marvel pantheon, for instance, The Punisher or Jessica Jones.
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It’s surprising then thatSpider-Manhas been responsible for a number of deaths over the decades. Whether accidental or self-defense, there is blood on the hands of the webslinger. This list features ten examples of times whenSpideywent too far, bringing fatal results.
10The Finisher
Employed by the Red Skull, The Finisher was an assassin who just so happened to be responsible for the deaths ofPeter Parker’s parents. He dispatched them by tampering with their plane, making the fight between himself andSpider-Manpersonal.
Appearing inAmazing Spider-Man Annual 5,Spider-Mangoes head-to-head with The Finisher and gives the assassin a ‘finisher’ of his own by firing back a missile at him. It’s all in self-defense, of course, even with the history between them.
9A Racist
TheX-Menseries has long been an allegory about racism (and perhaps the metaphor can be extended to homophobia and transphobia), andSpider-Manis certainly a purveyor of all that is good and decent himself. He certainly wouldn’t stand for any hateful comments.
Still, it’s quite shocking to see him essentially web a bystander to death in an issue pairing him withWolverine. A person on the street makes a derogatory comment about mutants, andSpider-Manplasters them with webbing. Brutal stuff!
8Queen
Usually an enemy of Captain Americas, Ana Soria is an American soldier who can control insects. Re-emerging into the world under her new moniker “Queen”, she soon went up againstSpider-Manand had a rather complicated relationship with him.
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In a story taking place amidst Parker’s transformation into The Spider,Spider-Manmanages to defuse a bomb left by Queen, but more explosions rock her hive, seemingly killing her. It’s later revealed that Queen survived somehow, but that’s another story.
7Drom
Drom is certainly one of the more eccentric villains in Spider-canon – a character who lives his life backward, even growing backward. He is now kept alive purely by his mirror, one which retains his identity.
During a battle alongside Iron Fist, the two crimefighters hear Drom’s sorry tale and then run the risk of having their energy absorbed by his bizarre powers. Careful not to touch him,Spider-Mansmashes Drom’s beloved mirror over his head, causing the tragic enemy to fade away into nothing.
6Gog
Raised byKraven the Hunter, Gog is a huge alien entity famously strong enough to kill a Tyrannosaurus Rex. He was originally from the realm of Haizlip but found his way onto Savage Land in a spaceship.
Spider-Mannever likes killing, but in this case, he felt it necessary. Gog was in hot pursuit of him whenSpideyfound his way onSavage Landin a hunt for Kraven. The only way the webslinger could dispatch of the mighty alien was by trapping him in quicksand.
5Master Programmer
Ben Reilly took on the mantle of theScarlet Spider, a different version ofSpider-Manin the Marvel Universe. He also just so happens to be a clone of Peter Parker.
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The Scarlet Spider goes up against Carolyn Trainer’s version ofDoctor Octopus, and her virtual mind (known as the Master Programmer). Master Programmer blurs our reality with virtual reality, but the Scarlet Spider is able to introduce a computer virus to the system controlling the VR system, thus killing Master Programmer.
4Digger
Originally conceived as a sort of Crypt-Keeper-style character, Digger later found his way into the Marvel Universe proper. Digger ended up joining the supervillain group The Night Shift, taking residence in the aptly-named Tower of Shadows.
Digger met his fate at the hands ofSpider-Man, who reasoned that because Digger is already dead (what with him being agamma-zombie), his death wouldn’t be entirely unethical.Spideyengages the villain in a battle, knowing that he’ll disintegrate if he wastes too much energy.
3Charlemagne
A soviet spy who later went rogue, Charlemagne (or Charlie) was a tragic character who was romantically linked with Wolverine for a time. She turned her back on the KGB, so they sent out a host of assassins to finish her off.
Her death was deliberate on her part but accidental onSpider-Man’s.Spideyand Wolverine were fighting, and in the tussle, the webslinger mistook Charlie for Wolverine and punched her hard enough to kill her. She wanted to die that way, to avoid torture from her former employers.
2Gwen Stacy
In one of the most heart-breaking moments inSpider-Manhistory,Spider-Manaccidentally kills his belovedGwen Stacyin a lose-lose situation.
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The twisted Green Goblin rams Stacy from the top of a bridge with his glider and watches her plummet toward the water below. Knowing that a fall from that height will kill her,Spider-Man, already losing time, webs Gwen’s leg to prevent her from hitting the river below. Unfortunately, the sudden stop causes her to break her neck, killing her instantly. A devastating moment.
1Morlun
Morlun is one ofSpider-Man’s greatest enemies, traversing themultiversein a bid to wipe out every version of the webslinger. He even managed to kill one version ofSpider-Man, but ended up having a grisly end.
One version of Peter Parker becomes infected with a disease, a disease that causes him to mutate into a spider creature. Unable to resist his arachnid instincts, Peter transforms into The Spider and devours Morlun in some particularly graphic scenes.
