The Big Blow Out

Peter Parker is awoken from his sleep at 7 am by his alarm clock. He accidentally smashes it while trying to turn it off. He gets dressed and just before he leaves out the front door, his landlay, Maimie Muggings comes knocking looking for his rent. Nearly broke, Peter changes into Spider-Man and slips out from the skylight to avoid her. As he web-slings across the city Spider-Man worries about his financial situation, particularly after the recent fire of in his apartment building will likely lead to a rent hike. He contemplates asking J. Jonah Jameson for a raise but doubts he will give it. His only other option is asking Professor Morris Sloan for a raise in his teaching assistant salary. Thinking of school gets him thinking about his romantic woes, particularly that Debra Whitman has started dating Biff Rifkin. As he changes back into his civilian clothing on the roof of Empire State University, he hopes that Debra is back in the office so he can talk to her.

When he enters the teaching assistants office, Peter is delighted to see that Debra is back. However, when he tries to apologise for how he has been acting, but she snubs him. Heading to his cubical he bumps into Marcy Kane who is wearing a beret this day, when Peter cracks a joke about it she angrily brushes him off. Steve Hopkins points out that this is the third thing she has worn on her head in as many days, and that he wants to find out why. Steve then reminds Peter that he doesn't have any classes until noon, meaning he didn't have to get up so early.

Meanwhile, at Project PEGASUS, lawyer Emerson Bale is demanding that Dr. Myron Wilborn turn over the super-villain known as Nitro over to his daughter Virginia Hunter. When he presents a writ giving them the rights, Wilborn has two canisters wheeled into the room. Bale demands that his client be released from these inhuman conditions. The canisters are opened and the gaseous form of Nitro reforms and returns to human form. When Virginia tells Nitro to take it easy, but the villain refuses to do so. Nitro makes himself explode, knocking everyone else and blowing a hole in the ground. He then takes the unconscious bodies of Virginia and Emerson and escapes. He takes them back to Virginia's home where he has Bale tied up. Both Emerson and Virginia try to convince Nitro to turn himself in, however he refuses to do so, revealing in his power. Tired of being pushed around, he decides to renew his conflict with Captain Marvel. When Bale tells Nitro that Captain Marvel is in Denver, Colorado. Nitro decides to go there, but first he needs to steal some money. Putting on street clothes, Nitro grabs Virginia and leaves Bale typed up. Fearing what might happen next, Bale hops over to the phone and tries to call for help.

At that moment, Peter Parker is cashing his teaching assistant pay check at the bank. Worrying how much money he has left after he pays his bills when he bumps into Nitro on his way in. This sets off his spider-sense, but since the criminal is not in costume, Peter isn't sure why. Suddenly, police cars pull up in front of the bank. Peter stops to see what's going on when the front of the bank suddenly explodes. Peter slips away to change into Spider-Man and attacks Nitro as he is trying to take the money from the vault. The wall-crawler thinks he is in for an easy fight given Nitro's age, but is bowled over when Nitro makes himself explode again. Spider-Man tries to web Nitro up, but he blows himself up again to break free. The hero then snares Nitro by the legs in his webbing and carries him over to a chemical plant and tosses Nitro into the blast proof chemical storage unit.

When Nitro blows himself free, Spider-Man takes advantage of his reconstitution to look in the labs and finds canisters of a nausea inducing gas. When the wall-crawler tosses the canister at Nitro. The villain blows himself up again, but when he reconstitutes himself, he absorbs the gas and becomes violently ill. He is too sick to make himself explode and surrenders. When Nitro is brought carted off in an ambulance, Virginia thanks Spider-Man for stopping her father before he can hurt anyone. Emerson Bale tells Spider-Man that he learned a lesson about representing Nitro, and can no longer represent him in trial. Spider-Man swings away, but can't help but feel bad for Nitro, who was nothing more than a bitter old man.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Nitro, Debra Whitman, Marcy Kane, Steve Hopkins, Mamie Muggins, Project PEGASUS (Myron Wilburn), Emerson Bale

Continuity Notes

• Spider-Man worries about a rent increase after a fire in his building. This fire happened in Amazing Spider-Man #214. He is also concerned about standing up Debra Whitman and her dating Biff Riffkin. This happened in Amazing Spider-Man #215-216.

• Nitro explains that he got his powers from the Kree. That happened in Captain Marvel #34.

• Emerson Bale recounts Captain Marvel's recent activities in New York, circa Marvel Spotlight (vol. 2) #8. This issue incorrectly cite Marvel Spotlight (vol. 2) #12, however the series ended after issue #11.