Warning! Contains a preview for The Amazing Spider-Man #34Now that Spider-Man has turned to the dark side, he is determined to win back Mary Jane by killing the new man in her life. Recently, Peter Parker and MJ split up after she was trapped in an alternate dimension with a man named Paul Rabin. Though only a few days passed for Peter, the former Mrs. Parker spent several years with Paul, developing a loving relationship and forming a family with him and two children they adopted. When they finally returned to Earth, Mary Jane decided to stay with Paul and their children.
In a preview for The Amazing Spider-Man #34 by Zeb Wells, Patrick Gleason, Marcio Menyz and VC’s Joe Caramanga, Norman Osborn bursts into Mary Jane and Paul’s apartment, frantically wondering why they haven’t answered their phones and warning them that they need to get away from Manhattan. He does not reveal the truth to MJ: that Spider-Man has been corrupted by the Green Goblin’s sins and is now on a path to full-fledged villainy.
Instead, he says that Peter is being framed by someone who is going after people Spidey might hold a grudge against, including Paul. MJ and Paul take this to heart and leave. As Norman waits behind in their apartment, Spider-Man shows up in his black suit, looking for Paul.
Spider-Man Is On The Warpath
In Nick Spencer’s previous The Amazing Spider-Man series, Norman’s sins were removed from him, seemingly curing him of his villainy and setting him on a path towards redemption. However, in The Amazing Spider-Man #32 by Wells, Gleason, Menyz and Caramanga, Kraven the Hunter imbues a spear with these sins and attempts to stab Norman with them. Spider-Man interferes and is stabbed instead, transforming him from a friendly neighborhood hero into a full-fledged villain. After hunting Kraven down and burying him alive last issue, he’s now on the prowl for others who have wronged him.
It makes sense that a dark side version of Peter Parker would target Paul. Another development of Spencer’s run was Peter and MJ rekindling their old romance, with Peter even preparing to propose to his longtime love. However, when Wells began his run on the series in 2022, the two were no longer together and MJ was eager to put some distance between her ex and her new family. Though Spider-Man eventually accepted that she had moved on, he’s no longer thinking rationally. He may currently believe that killing Paul will free MJ up to be with him, but obviously if he kills her partner then she’ll never be able to forgive him and look past this transgression. Although he will inevitably return to his normal, heroic self, he will be left to suffer the consequences of whatever actions he carries out during this villainous phase.
Spider-Man Wants To Repeat The Green Goblin’s Worst Crime
Norman Osborn knows all too well the thoughts that are going through Peter’s mind and the danger he now poses to his enemies. He has had to grapple with the terrible things that he did as the Green Goblin. Though he has won over some skeptics like Peter, many others are unwilling to forgive and forget. When Paul suggests that he and MJ take the bridge to escape Manhattan, Norman warns them, “Trust me…take the tunnel.” He knows that if Spider-Man is now thinking like the Green Goblin, he may want to recreate the death of Gwen Stacy and throw Paul from the Brooklyn Bridge. Peter himself seems to suggest this is his plan when he tells Norman, “I’m not like me anymore. I’m like you.”
It will likely take the combined powers of Norman Osborn (in his superhero persona of the Gold Goblin) and Mary Jane (who has recently become the superhero Jackpot) to stop Spider-Man. But even that may not be enough. Peter’s relationship with Mary Jane has been one of the few consistent high points of his life, and although Spider-Man may believe he can set things right through violence, he may instead end up losing Mary Jane forever.
The Amazing Spider-Man #34 will be on sale September 20 from Marvel Comics.
