Amazing Spider-Man #222
Faster Than the Eye!
While on patrol, Spider-Man happens upon some thieves attempting to steal a shipment of mink coats. While Spider-Man deals with most of the thugs, one of them try to get away in the delivery truck. However, Spider-Man manages to catch up and web up the vehicle to prevent him to escape. Although he prevented the robbery, the wall-crawler is annoyed that the delivery men are just as afraid as him as they were of the thieves. Collecting his camera from a nearby rooftop, Spider-Man swings over to Times Square his spider-sense begins to go off warning him of nearby danger. Down below at a nearby camera shop something moving at superhuman speed begins robbing the establishment. This is the costumed villain known as the Speed Demon who tries to make his getaway, only to have Spider-Man come in and try to stop him. However, Speed Demon is far too quick for the wall-crawler, who has a hard time slowing up the villain. Ultimately, Spider-Man is tossed through the window of a nearby bakery. Speed Demon stops long enough to get a good laugh at the cake splattered hero before making his escape.
When the news of this robbery -- one of many -- reaches the Daily Bugle, J. Jonah Jameson is furious of the news, because none of his photographers could snap a photo of the villain. That's when Peter Parker arrives with photos of the battle. Jameson finds almost all of them unusable because the photos failed to capture Speed Demon because he was moving too fast. However, there is one that Jameson finds satisfactory, a picture of Spider-Man's humiliating defeat, much to Peter's chagrin.
Later at the penthouse home of the Speed Demon, the villain gloats over the newspaper reports about Spider-Man's defeats. Walking among his ill-gotten gains, the Speed Demon recounts his origins, how he was granted his powers by the Grandmaster and as the Whizzer was a member of the Squadron Sinister. However, after his last defeat, he began working on improving the formula that gave him his speed. Finally enhancing his powers, the man once known as the Whizzer reinvented himself as the Speed Demon. That afternoon, Peter Parker goes to Bloomingdale's, figuring that it would be an ideal spot for the Speed Demon to loot. Peter's hunch proves correct as the Speed Demon soon arrives to loot the place. Peter runs to a nearby change room and puts on his Spider-Man costume.
This time, Spider-Man uses the close quarters to his advantage, causing the villain to stumble upon the displays, oil slicks, and finally spraying him in the face with perfume. While Speed Demon is blinded by the noxious perfume, he runs blindly into Spider-Man's webbing. Ultimately, the wall-crawler manages to get a blow in that knocks the Speed Demon into a wall long enough to be webbed up. Taking a photo of this defeat, Peter turns it over to J. Jonah Jameson, who is not interested in publishing a picture of Spider-Man's victory as his last editorial incorrectly predicted that the Speed Demon would defeat Spider-Man. Jameson crumples up the photo and throws it in the garbage.
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, Speed Demon, J. Jonah Jameson, Joe Robertson, Lance Bannon
Continuity Notes
Spider-Man compares Speed Demon's speed to that of Quicksilver. Spider-Man first clashed with Quicksilver in Amazing Spider-Man #71.
The Speed Demon recounts his origins, which were first depicted in Avengers #70 and his latest defeat at the time, which was in Avengers Annual #8.
