X-Men and Spider-Man #1
The Strangest Teens of All!
Many Years Ago…[1]
Scott Summer, Jean Grey, Bobby Drake, Hank McCoy, and Warren Worthington are all watching the news footage of their recent battle with the Hulk in Las Vegas. Bobby is particularly upset that the news is presenting events as though the X-Men were instigating the battle when it was the military that set of the Hulk. However, Hank points out that this is part of a guest editorial by J. Jonah Jameson, publisher of the Daily Bugle.[2] As Jameson rants about the dangers mutants pose to society, Scott suggests that Warren wears a mask that covers more of his face because he fears that he might be recognized. Warren assures Scott that he was moving too fast for the cameras to get a good focus on his face anyway. Jean can’t believe they’re arguing over fashion when Jameson is spreading anti-mutant rhetoric. Bobby agrees, wishing that Jonah would go back to talking about Spider-Man like he usually does.
In Manhattan, Spider-Man is swinging past an apartment when he overhears Jonah suggesting that mutants should register with the government. He pauses long enough to be glad that Jameson is picking on someone else for a change. Swinging away he admits that the X-Men don’t deserve the criticism but he could certainly use the break. As he returns to his apartment and changes back to Peter Parker, he thinks that about his other concerns. Like how he’s struggling with the idea of showing his girlfriend, Gwen Stacy, that he does care even though he disappears all the time. He wonders if he should tell her that he’s secretly Spider-Man but worries about telling the truth, particularly since her father is a police officer and the NYPD isn’t Spider-Man’s biggest fan. He then reminds himself not to wallow in pity since he’s got a date with Gwen tonight, and he should get with it or else lose her to someone like Flash Thompson.[3] Watching the news on his television and interview with Kraven the Hunter grabs his attention. When the reporter interviewing him asks about his recent stint in prison, Kraven admits he went overboard trying to apprehend Spider-Man and paid the price for it.[4] He tells the reporter that this time he intends to apprehend Spider-Man lawfully, and then suggests to the viewing audience that Spider-Man is actually a mutant.
This comes as a shock to both Peter Parker, and the X-Men watching in Westchester. The X-Men are particularly disturbed to hear this because the Professor’s computers confirmed that Spider-Man is not a mutant.[5] Scott points out that regardless of the truth, Kraven the Hunter just put a target on Spider-Man’s back for every mutant hunter to go after him. Warren figures Spider-Man can look out for himself, but Hank reminds them of all their foes — such as the Sentinels, Sauron, and Magneto — who could force Spider-Man into doing their bidding. Jean agrees and suggests that they do something since Spider-Man is not around the same age as them and all alone.[4]
Later that day, Peter is walking to the Coffee Bean arm-in-arm with both Mary Jane Watson and Gwen Stacy. Considering his situation, he thinks he’d be crazy to go out looking for Kraven the Hunter when he’s in the company of the two women. However, as he enters the Coffee Bean thinking how this is going to be a quiet night, his is unaware that Kraven the Hunter has found a fragment of his webbing that hadn’t yet dissolved and has picked up Spider-Man’s scent. Kraven knows that even if the web-slinger is in his civilian identity his hunting skills will allow him to find him no matter what. At that same moment, the X-Men are driving around the neighborhood while Jean tries to reach out with her telepathy to find Spider-Man. It’s a slow process because Jean’s telepathy is not as powerful at the Professor’s who is still recovering back at home. The group then pull over their car and figure if they check out places where people around their age hang out, they may be able to locate Spider-Man in his civilian identity. As they enter the Coffee Bean, Hank worries that they’ll all stick out like a sore thumb, that concern quickly fades when they get a good look at the clientele of this trendy coffee shop.
At that same moment, Peter, Mary Jane, and Gwen meet up with Flash Thompson and Harry Osborn. While Harry complains that Peter is hogging all the women, Flash refuses to be a third wheel. Spotting Jean Grey in the crowd, he decides to try and make a move on her. When Scott tells Thompson that Jean is spoken for, Jean telepathically suggests that by pretending to dance with Flash, she can scan the room better.[7] While Scott sulks the other X-Men decides to try their luck with Mary Jane and Gwen. Finding Warren’s flamboyant attitude to be offputting, they choose to dance with Hank and Bobby instead.[8] Peter and Harry become jealous when they notice this and when they start trying to break up the dance, Jean picks up Spider-Man’s mental pattern. That’s when Kraven the Hunter comes barging in looking for Spider-Man. Peter manages to lock himself in the men’s room to change into Spider-Man while the Jean uses her mental powers to cloud everyone’s mind while the X-Men get into theirs. When he realizes that he is also facing the X-Men, Kraven calls in his ally, the Blob, whose morbidly obese body can barely fit through the door. That’s when Spider-Man arrives and suggests they take the battle outside before someone gets hurt. Cyclops agrees and uses his optic blast to knock the Blob back outside. During the fight, Kraven manages to draw blood from all the X-Men by hitting Marvel Girl in the head with one of his bolos, using the energy beams in his costume to melt Iceman’s protective coating to cut him with a knife, slicing Angel with a spear, and lastly cutting Beast with his fingernails. Cyclops gest frustrated with how Kraven is making short work of his teammates and blasts him with an optic blast. However, Kraven has decided that he’s had enough and leaves the Blob behind. Without Kraven to deal with, Spider-Man and the X-Men pile onto the Blob and easily subdue him in a prison of ice and webbing. With the battle over, the X-Men explains why they came looking for him, and he thanks them for their concern but points out that Kraven doesn’t have a whole lot of credibility. He then departs, thinking how he’s going to explain his recent departure to Gwen. That’s when Marvel Girl notices that Cyclops cut his hand in the battle.
Later that evening, Kraven the Hunter meets with his employer, Mister Sinister, and he presents the DNA samples he collected from the X-Men in the battle. When he hands them over to Sinister, he asks the evil mutant what he plans on doing with them. Sinister isn’t certain yet, but admits that he is impressed with Kraven’s performance this evening and offers to pay him an even larger sum of money for a sample of his own DNA as well.
Recurring Characters
X-Men (Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Iceman, Beast, Angel), Spider-Man, Kraven the Hunter, the Blob, Gwen Stacy, Mary Jane Watson, Harry Osborn, Flash Thompson, J. Jonah Jameson, Mister Sinister
Continuity Notes
This story takes place around the events of Amazing Spider-Man #80 and X-Men #66, placing this story as happening during “year three” of the Modern Age.
This footage of the X-Men’s battle with the Hulk is from X-Men #66. The newscaster states that they tried to get Charles Xavier to appear to give his opinion but he was unable due to illness. That is because at the X-Men’s mission to Las Vegas was to collect a device from Bruce Banner that could help cure the Professor who was weakened after using his mental powers to drive off an invasion by the Z’Nox in X-Men #65.
Peter worries that all the stress in his life will give him an ulcer. He’s not wrong as he eventually does develop one from stress in Amazing Spider-Man #113.
Chronologically, Kraven was last defeated by Spider-Man in Spider-Man/Human Torch #2.
Mention is made about how the X-Men first thought Spider-Man was a mutant. This is probably a reference to X-Men #21, when the X-Men attempted to recruit Spider-Man onto their team.
According to Civil War #2, Peter would be roughly 18 years old at the time of this story. On the other hand, according to X-Men #1, Bobby Drake was 16 when he first joined the team and the other X-Men are a few years older than him (at least two years older, although there are lots of conflicting information) The presumption here is that Bobby is about 20 in this story and the rest of the X-Men are between the ages of 22 and 25 in this story.
Jean mentions how Professor X shut down her telepathic powers at a young age and that they were just recently reactivated. As explained in Bizarre Adventures #27, Jean couldn’t control her telepathic abilities when they first manifested so Xavier shut them down. Xavier unlocked Jean’s mental powers again around X-Men #41 as explained in X-Men #65.
Hank says dancing with the girls will help Bobby get his mind off Lorna. He is referring to Lorna Dane, who joined the X-Men following the events of X-Men #49-52. Although Bobby developed a romantic interest in Lorna, she eventually formed a relationship with Alex Summers, aka Havok, in X-Men #66, much to Bobby’s chagrin.
Topical References
This story pays homage to the era in which this story takes place as such there are a lot of dated references. These include:
The Stardust Casino being depicted as part o the Las Vegas Strip. This casino closed down in 2006.
The X-Men having an old CRT television that has channel dials and a cable box on top.
The street clothes everyone wears in this story is what was fashionable in the late 60s.
The New York City skyline appears as it did in the late 1960s
In a flashback, the lab of Doctor Octopus is depicted as having vacuum tubes lying around.
Peter has a portable black-and-white television set that uses an analog television antenna to pick up signals.
The equipment used in the television studio is also dated.
There is a 60s model VW Beetle parked out front o the Coffee Bean.
Warren is driving a late 60s Mustang convertible (unless you want to believe he’s driving a vintage car, I guess)
