Origin of the Species Part Four

The police have been trying to track down Spider-Man who had been evading crooks who have been trying to capture a newborn baby that is allegedly the son of Norman Osborn.[1] However, the police have lost track of the baby, and reports about Spider-Man have come in that the web-slinger is angry about something. This is because Spider-Man has been tricked into thinking that the Osborn baby is dead. Needing to refill his web-shooters, Peter Parker breaks into a science lab to get access to the chemicals he needs, leaving his camera behind to pay for everything.

At a police prescient in Chelsea the officers are surprised when the Hypno-Hustler comes running into the police station begging the officers for protection. As they are asking the Hustler who he wants protection from a massive web-ball containing Diablo, Overdrive, and the Spot comes rolling into the police station. As it turns out, Spider-Man has declared war against every super-villain who answered the call from Doctor Octopus to capture the Osborn baby. When the officers ask the chief what this could mean, he tells them to be on alert because the usually friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is not feeling so friendly tonight.

Elsewhere, Screwball — unaware that the Osborn baby has been recovered — is using her internet skills to track Spider-Man’s movements. She is interrupted by the Looter who drops down in his hot-air balloon. As she tells him to get lost, Spider-Man snags her with webbing and yanks her off the roof. The Looter rushes over the edge calling out Screwball’s name, leaving him open for Spider-Man to ambush him from behind. Although the Looter pleads with the web-slinger, saying he had nothing to do with the hunt for the baby. This, unfortunately for the Looter, falls on deaf ears.

Meanwhile, at the abandoned Kravinoff estate, Doctor Octopus is contacted by the Chameleon who confirms that he successfully tricked Spider-Man into handing over the baby and he is bringing the Osborn child back to base. As they agree on the terms of payment, the Chameleon asks why Octavius wants the baby so badly. Otto explains that the baby is the offspring of Norman Osborn and Lily Hollister, who both had been genetically altered by two variants of the Goblin Formula. As such, the baby Osborn is an entirely new breed of human and potentially has the genetic make-up that Otto can use to restore his withered body.[2] As Otto is explaining that there are no other sources for these formulas to co-mingle, Harry Osborn is in one of his father’s Goblin hideouts about to consider consuming two vials of the very same Goblin Formula that Otto has been speaking of.

Meanwhile, at the penthouse of Shelly Hatton, Mary Jane and Lily Hollister are still safely locked away in the apartment’s panic room. Finally waking up, Lily remembers Mary Jane and asks for her cell phone.[3] Mary Jane is concerned by the lengthy phone number that Lily is typing into the phone. That’s when Carlie Cooper arrives and orders Shelly Hatton to let her in. She uses her police credentials to make Shelly let her in, but admits that she is there on personal business. As Hatton is explaining how Mary Jane and Lily are locked in the panic room, Tombstone comes barging in, having followed Carlie there from the Coffee Bean. Tombstone rips open the door of the panic room and demand that Lily tell him where the baby is. As Mary Jane tries to explain that Lily doesn’t know where the baby is, she continues to fiddle with Mary Jane’s phone. That’s when Carlie comes running in with guns blazing, having realized she still cares for Lily like a sister and is now willing to die to protect her.[4] That’s when Lily finally punches in the code to summon her Goblin Glider and it comes crashing through the wall and slams into Tombstone, knocking him out. With the danger over, Mary Jane fills in Carlie on what happened, making up a story to convince her that Peter Parker managed to safely get away from the battle with Doctor Octopus.

During this time, Spider-Man has been scouring the city wrapping up crooks wherever he finds them. In Hell’s Kitchen, he corners the Freak in an alley. In Vinegar Hill, Brooklyn, Spider-Man webs up Electro to a pair of steel girders. The Vermin finds himself webbed up in Battery Park.

Later, at Pier 92 on Manhattan’s westside, the Shocker and Sandman meet with the Enforcers and learn that the hunt for the Osborn baby is over. Now they now have to deal with Spider-Man on the rampage, furious that Doctor Octopus has left them all holding the bag. The Sandman tries to convince the Enforcers that they need to team up, but Fancy Dan doesn’t think his gang is at risk because they weren’t involved in the hunt for the Osborn baby. They quickly realize how wrong they are when Spider-Man dives underwater and starts snapping the support beams of the pier like matchsticks, sending the crooks falling into the water. As Spider-Man deals with the Enforcers, the Sandman has a problem maintaining his cohesion in the water. At the same time, the Shocker pleads with Spider-Man to save him because he can’t swim. The enraged web-slinger responds by snapping the Shocker’s wrist so he can direct his vibro-gauntlets and blast the Sandman into particles. Fearing for his life, the Shocker pleads with Spider-Man to spare him, telling the web-slinger that he can find Doctor Octopus at the Kravinoff mansion.

Moments later, Spider-Man arrives and finds only the Chameleon in the mansion. The master spy begs for mercy, apologizing for helping the Kravinoff’s attack him and for tricking him into thinking the baby was dead.[5] Shocked to discover that the Osborn baby is still alive, Spider-Man demands to know where it is. The Chameleon explains that he was on his way to bring the boy to Octavius when he was attacked and the baby was stolen from him by the Lizard.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Doctor Octopus, Stanley Osborn (unnamed), Carlie Cooper, Aunt May, Lily Hollister, Chameleon, Diablo, Enforcers (Fancy Dan, Montana, Ox), Freak, Hypno-Hustler, the Lizard, the Looter, Overdrive, Sandman, Screwball, Shocker, the Spot, Tombstone, Vermin

Continuity Notes

1. This is not Norman Osborn’s baby. In fact, it is the son of Harry Osborn, as explained next issue.

2. As explained in Amazing Spider-Man #600, the years of head injuries sustained by Doctor Octopus have caused him to suffer serious brain damage causing his body to atrophy and wither away.

3. Mary Jane and Lily Hollister met at Hary’s welcome back party in Amazing Spider-Man #545. Mary Jane says that this happened “a few months” ago. This is accurate enough as far as the Sliding Timescale goes as the events of that story and this is about a year apart.

4. Lily and Carlie’s past is somewhat complicated. Here are the details:

   • As explained in Amazing Spider-Man #586, Carlie was adopted by the Hollister family after her parents died (actually her father had faked his death, see Amazing Spider-Man #618-620)

   • Also explained that same issue, Lily — through her relationship with Harry Osborn — discovered a cache of Norman’s Goblin weapons as well as a new version of the Goblin formula. This allowed her to become Menace, a villain who terrorized New York City’s mayoral candidates. This was all part of some complex scheme to make voters sympathetic for her father, Bill Hollister, one of the candidates. She first started her campaign as the Menace in Amazing Spider-Man #549. During her time she ended up murdering mayoral candidate Lisa Parfrey in Amazing Spider-Man #551.

   • Lily was eventually exposed and brought to justice in Amazing Spider-Man #587. Carlie had disowned her adoptive sister ever since.

5. The Chameleon assisted the Kravinoff family’s gauntlet on Spider-Man and later assisted them in resurrecting his brother, the original Kraven the Hunter. This all happened from Amazing Spider-Man #612 to 637.

Spidey Sundays Part Twelve

Spider-Man and Mary Jane are seemingly helpless now that that the crooks known as Bull and Brain have stolen the web-slinger’s latest invention, a time machine. Brain has set the device to August 15, 1962, intending to use his knowledge of the future to make him the smartest man in that era. Spider-Man warns him that this plan is going to backfire on him spectacularly. Brain thinks this is a trick and gloats that he is much smarter than Spider-Man and activates the device and disappears.

While everyone is confused, Spider-Man slips away to change back to Peter Parker. He then suggests that Bull and Mary Jane join him for pizza. When they ask why he isn’t concerned that Brain has gone back into the past, Peter assures them that he is not a threat. That’s because in the year 1962, Brain has materialized in the living room as a young couple, having been de-aged to the exact age he would have been in 1962 — an infant.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Bull, Brain, Mary Jane Watson

Continuity Notes

• Although unclear here, the universe that Bull and Brain travel to is not the Earth-616 universe which becomes clear when you see how fast and loose writer Stan Lee is with continuity, the silly plot, and not to mention how Spider-Man is self-aware of the fact that he is a comic book character. As I write this (September 2020) the reality Bull and Brain come from and the one they visit have yet to be designated a reality number.