Yesterday I reached back into the past to talk about a character from a few decades ago, so today I thought I should do a more modern character. However, while this Spidey was invented more recently, in a way they’re from decades past as well. The story of Spider-Man Noir is set back in the late 1930’s during the Great Depression.
Spider-Man Noir puts an interesting spin on the character, and sets him during a period piece of comic book story telling. Along with the heavier leaning on gangsters, fedora hats, and pistols, this Peter Parker’s origin is also turned into something far more mystical. It reminds me of movies such as Indiana Jones, where weird relics actually hide ancient powers and real magic.
In this version of the story Peter is a newbie crime reporter trying to make a difference. After following a tip-off, Peter comes across some criminals unloading a shipment of stolen antiques. A large spider statue ends up getting broken, and hundreds, if not thousands of spiders come pouring out of it. They attack the men, killing them. They also go after Peter and he is bitten and immediately has a skin-pealing vision of a massive spider-god creature that, while terrifying, claims the bite of his spiders only harm those of evil intent. Instead it decides to “bestow upon you a greater torment… the curse of power.” Peter awakes with his various spider powers, including organic webbing, and goes on to fight the gangs and mobs of New York. His costume is based off his late Uncle Ben’s paratrooper WWI uniform. It’s almost entirely black, and he wears a trench coat and carries a gun.
It is interesting to note that this Peter Parker never hears the traditional “with great power comes great responsibility” phrase. Instead in this telling, the closest phrase to this is “If there is too much power, then it is the responsibility of the people to take it away.” Also early in his crime fighting career, he doesn’t have any qualms about killing, as he kills the Vulture after defeating him. Though to be fair, in this world, the Vulture is an insane mad man who eats his victims.
Positively Jim 