Avenging Spider-Man #17
An alarm goes off at the headquarters of the Time Variance Authority, an organization that preserves the stability of the time stream. The infraction is brought to Mister Oborus who goes over the paperwork. He is pleased that the TVA has sent their operative to eliminate the target but when he sees where they have been dispatched, Oborus prepares for one of those days since their agent has been dispatched to the Baxter Building.
On Earth, Spider-Man answers a call from the Fantastic Four to come to the Baxter Building. Otto Octavius has some modicum of respect for Reed Richards, but is dealing with the replacement team that was formed while Richards and his family were off on a mission.[1] Measuring up Ant-Man, She-Hulk, Medusa, and Miss Thing, Octavius considers these members inferior and wonders what Richards was thinking when he selected them.[2] When Ant-Man explains how they need to go check on an alarm that has gone off in the Microverse, Spider-Man at first assumes that the Fantastic Four have invited him to join them on this mission. He quickly learns, much to his horror, that he has actually been asked to babysit the children of the Future Foundation while the team goes to investigate.
While Otto finds the children of the Future Foundation to be highly intelligent, he finds their youthful whimsey to be irritating. He is less enthusiastic when he learns that Dragon Man can’t really help him out due to his pacifist nature. He does become interested in the work of Bentley-23, whose mad scientist sensibilities remind Otto of when he was a child. When the youth insults Spider-Man, he decides to take a look at his latest plans for a chronal engine. He is interrupted by Alex Power and Dragon Man, who relay the other children’s hope that Spider-Man will take them on patrol as he did recently with the Avengers Academy.[3] Otto agrees to brainstorm with the children after he checks on something.
Spider-Man then goes down to the Baxter Building’s vault intending to plunder the secrets held there to further his own agendas.[4] However, before he can access the vault he is ambushed by Death’s Head, the agent sent by the Time Variance Authority.[5] While this is happening, a number of armored TVA operatives appear in the Baxter Building to eliminate the Future Foundation as they are a threat to the timestream. However, the Baxter Building’s defenses are more than adequate to deal with the invaders and keep the children safe. When Spider-Man fights back against Death’s Head, Mister Orobus arrives to try and quell the situation. When the Baxter Building’s defenses attempt to contact the Avengers, Orobus uses his power to shut down the system.
As Alex Power tries to get Orobus explain his situation, he becomes aware of the fact that the Spider-Man present is one with the mind of Doctor Octopus.[6] Before Orobus can expose him, Spider-Man webs his mouth shut. With the battle starting up again, Spider-Man orders Dragon Man to get the children to safety while he deals with the intruders. Before he can attack Orobus, Spider-Man is tackled by Death’s Head. Having grown tired of dealing with the robotic bounty hunter, Otto uses the talons in his glove to decapitate the robot. That’s when another TVA operative teleports into the building with an update. However, when he also tries to blow Otto’s cover, his mouth gets webbed shut as well. Annoyed by the battle, Orobus pulls the webbing off his face and orders Death’s Head to be taken from an earlier point in the time stream and brought to the battle.
This earlier version of Death’s Head is distracted by his decapitated future self and gets kicked out of a window by Spider-Man. By this point, Alex Power suggests they go back to talking things out. Spider-Man concedes and demands answers from Orobus. He explains that in the next two days the Future Foundation will create a device that will rip a hole in space-time plunging the entire timeline into a outer-verse causing a chronal disaster and that this invention was created to intentionally do this. This causes Bentley-23 to become defensive because it is his invention that will cause the problem. In order to prevent their elimination, Spider-Man whispers something into Bentley’s ear that convinces the boy to stop creating his new invention. This causes the timeline to correct itself, satisfying the TVA who depart.
When the Fantastic Four return from their mission, they are quickly told what happened. Annoyed by the whole experience, Spider-Man tells Lang that he will no longer be available for babysitting and leaves. While back at the TVA’s head office, Mister Orobus gets an update on the situation. He is informed that they have lost track of Death’s Head and assume that he has been eliminated from the 616 timeline. They are wrong, as at that moment Death’s Head is pulling himself out of the hole he put on 6th Avenue, wondering what year it is. That’s when the agent learns from Orobus that Spider-Man’s body is possessed by Doctor Octopus. When asked why they didn’t stop him, Orobus explains that the situation is out of their jurisdiction.
While back on Earth, Spider-Man has succeeded in stealing something out of the Fantastic Four’s vault, the head of the Sandman. He takes the Sandman back to Doctor Octopus’ old lair in Battery Park and welcomes him home.[7]
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, Future Foundation (Dragon Man, Alex Power, Bentley-23, Onome, Artie Maddicks, Leech, Mik, Turg, Tong, Vil, Wu), Death’s Head, Fantastic Four (Ant-Man, She-Hulk, Medusa, Miss Thing), Time Variance Authority
Continuity Notes
The original Fantastic Four have taken Reed and Sue’s children, Franklin and Valeria, on a trip through time and space. This is a cover for Reed to find a cure for a condition that will cause the FF’s powers to deteriorate and kill them all. See Fantastic Four (vol. 4) #1-16. Reed formed the replacement team to look after the Future Foundation while they were gone in FF (vol. 2) #1-2.
Spider-Man sizes up the replacement Fantastic Four and references a few facts about them:
He mentions how Scott Lang stole the Ant-Man equipment that was originally created by Henry Pym. Lang became the second Ant-Man circa Marvel Premiere #47. Despite Otto’s jaundiced views of him, Scott became Ant-Man with Hank Pym’s blessing.
He also mentions how Jennifer Walters became the She-Hulk after getting a blood transfusion from her cousin, Bruce Banner aka the Hulk. See Savage She-Hulk #1.
Although Otto has no idea who Darla Deering is, she is a pop-star that was dating Johnny Storm prior to the Fantastic Four leaving on their mission. She was his last minute pick for the replacement team in FF (vol. 2) #1.
Peter Parker was actually the Spider-Man who took the Avengers Academy on patrol back in Amazing Spider-Man #661-662.
Otto thinks about how before he became Spider-Man his only future was death. Otto was diagnosed with a degenerative disorder in Amazing Spider-Man #600. With his life on the line, he then swapped bodies with Peter Parker in Amazing Spider-Man #698-700. This will remain the status quo until Superior Spider-Man #31.
Otto uses Peter Parker’s memories to identify Death’s Head. Stating that Parker encountered a similar being in the past. However, there is not been any prior instance where Spider-Man encountered any past Death’s Head. So one could assume that Peter Parker met a Death’s Head unit in some, as yet, untold story.
Mister Orobus glosses over some recent Spider-Man history. Namely, the Spider-Island and Ends of the Earth events. See Amazing Spider-Man #666-673 and 682-687.
The Sandman was captured by Spider-Man during the Ends of the Earth story arc in Amazing Spider-Man #682-687.
