Amazing Spider-Man #149
Even If I Live, I Die!
The Jackal has revealed his identity to be that of Peter Parker's biology professor: Miles Warren. Knocking out Spider-Man, the Jackal takes him and Ned Leeds to his secret lab. There, when Spider-Man revives, the Jackal tells him the genesis of his revenge plot: How he secretly loved Gwen Stacy, and how when she died he was devastated and blamed Spider-Man for her death. When he had Serba clone Gwen's DNA, Serba came back to him when he realizes that he'd been tricked into cloning humans (Which Serba found unethical), Warren would then strangle him to death.
His mind unhinging, he soon blamed the murder of Serba on the emergence of another personality, which he dubbed the Jackal. Creating his costume, the Jackal would then clone Gwen Stacy and recondition her to have the same memories as the original Gwen in the hopes of using her against Spider-Man.
When Spider-Man tries to attack the Jackal again, the Jackal manages to get away. While at the Daily Bugle, Betty Brant is upset because Ned and Peter have been missing for two days. As Mary Jane, J. Jonah Jameson, and Joe Robertson try to comfort her, Peter suddenly enters the room and claims he has no knowledge of seeing Ned and claims he hasn't seen him in a week. But what's this? At the EXACT same time, Peter is in his Spider-Man identity, web-slinging over to Shea Stadium to meet the Jackal for their final battle!
There the Jackal drugs Spider-Man, and when he revives he finds that the Jackal has created a Spider-Man clone for him to fight. To make matters worse, the Jackal has Ned Leeds tied to a bomb primed to go off in a matter of minutes. The clone of Gwen is mortified that the Jackal would resort to murder. Gwen's words strike a chord in Warren who realizes that there was no Jackal, only Miles Warren, and only he could have killed people. Snapping out of his dementia, Warren tries to redeem himself by freeing Ned Leeds. However, he doesn't get clear of the bomb in time, and it goes off seemingly killing him. The explosion causes part of the stadium to collapse on the Spider-Clone as well, seemingly killing the clone of Spider-Man.
Later, Peter Parker and the Gwen Stacy clone pay their respects to the real Gwen's grave. There, the clone of Gwen tells Peter that she realizes that she could never know him like the original has, and decides that it's best that she leave and never return. Peter begins to believe that maybe he is the clone. Peter returns to his apartment, sullen and hurt, but is shocked to find that someone is in his apartment. Rushing up to see who it is, he's happy to see that it's Mary Jane. He lets himself in, and the two begin to make up for their past fight.
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, Spider-Clone, Jackal, Mary Jane Watson, Gwen Stacy clone, J. Jonah Jameson, Joe Robertson, Ned Leeds, Betty Brant, Tarantula
Continuity Notes
There are multiple stories pertaining to the death of Gwen Stacy. She was killed in a battle between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin in Amazing Spider-Man #121.
The battle in this issue between Spider-Man, the Jackal, and his clone occurs at Shea Stadium. This should be considered a topical reference per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616, particularly since Shae Stadium was torn down in 2009. Likewise, should the date of birth on Gwen's tombstone (1954) should be considered topical. Modern Readers should interpret this to mean that Gwen was 21 years old when she died.
Although the Jackal and the Spider-Clone both seemingly die here, they both resurface in Amazing Spider-Man #399 and Web of Spider-Man #114 respectively. In Amazing Spider-Man #399 and later in Spider-Man: The Osborn Journal #1 it has been revealed that the Jackal who died at the Shea Stadium was a clone sent by the original Warren. Warren intended to trick Peter Parker into thinking he was a clone while the clone took over his life. However, Norman Osborn interfered with this plot so that Peter and his clone didn’t swap places, creating even more confusion and anguish when the Jackal revealed his entire plot.
