The Tentacles and the Trap!

Believing that Spider-Man is dead, Dr. Octopus decides to lay low for a while. Coincidentally enough, he ends up taking up residence at May Parker's home in the room she put up for rent. Setting up shop there, Octopus gets in touch with his men and gets them to organize once more. While at Peter's apartment he shares with Harry Osborn, tensions between Peter and Harry increase. After a quick trip to sell pictures of Dr. Octopus to Jameson, Peter visits Mary Jane and Gwen Stacy where both compete for a date with Parker, when Peter remembers he should check on his Aunt May to make sure everything is okay with the new boarder. When he arrives at his old home, he is shocked to find the boarder in question is his long time foe.

Peter tries to warn Aunt May about how dangerous Octopus is, however Aunt May won't hear it, and when left alone with Octavius, the doctor warns Peter that his aunts life depends on him keeping his mouth shut. Of course, Octopus doesn't know that Parker is his old foe, and when Spider-Man arrives later that night to battle him, Octopus is shocked to see that his enemy survived their last battle.

The Doctor's men arrive and there is a battle on the front lawn of the Parker house. When Aunt May is roused by the battle, she sees Octopus battling Spider-Man. When Octopus tells May that Spider-Man was trying to rob her home, she faints. Rushing to May's aid, Spider-Man is unable to stop Dr. Octopus from getting away. Changing back to his identity of Peter Parker, Peter calls for an ambulance and vows that he will get his revenge against Dr. Octopus.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Aunt May, Doctor Octopus, Harry Osborn, J. Jonah Jameson, Joe Robertson, Betty Brant, Gwen Stacy, Mary Jane Watson, Dr. Bromwell

Continuity Notes

• Aunt May remembers Otto Octavius who she "visited" with Betty Brant, unaware that they were actually hostages. That happened in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1. Aunt May states that happened in 1964. This should be considered a topical reference per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616. Per the Timescale, the passage of time between Amazing Spider-Man Annual and this story is roughly one year.

• Doctor Octopus mentions how Spider-Man foiled his scheme as the Master Planner. The footnote in this story jokingly can't remember if that happened in Amazing Spider-Man #31 or 33. Actually, the Master Planner's schemes ran from Amazing Spider-Man #29 until issue #33, although Doctor Octopus was not revealed as the Master Planner until Amazing Spider-Man #32.

• Aunt May using an old black-and-white television in this story should also be considered a topical reference.