Opposites Attack

Spider-Man and Iceman have teamed up to stop Videoman, a video game character that has come to life and is now terrorizing the video arcade at Madison Square Garden.[1] They make short work of Videoman when Iceman freezes their foe and Spider-Man shatters him to pieces. With the danger over, the pair decide to go grab a bite to eat together. When they get to talking, Spider-Man asks what brings Iceman out to Manhattan after he recently moved back to Westchester. He tells Spider-Man that things have been hectic since he rejoined the X-Men and he needed some time to unwind.[2] He also admits that he is also taking a break from dating as well. Spider-Man admits he doesn’t miss the single life since getting married.[3]

That’s when they are joined by Firestar of the New Warriors who asks Spider-Man and Iceman if they want to go on patrol together since her teammates are all being boring.[4] When Iceman brags about being a seasoned superhero, Spider-Man sticks up for her. She responds by melting Iceman’s ice chair sending him falling to the street. Then, after kissing Spider-Man on the cheek for sticking up for her, flies off. Later that day, as Peter Parker and Mary Jane are watching the news Peter discovers that the kiss was caught on tape. He’s actually surprised when Mary Jane actually gets jealous over an innocent kiss on the cheek. Peter finds this humorous because he’s always the one to get jealous. However, he’s not laughing the following night when he goes out web-slinging with a sore back after sleeping on the couch.

He is found by Firestar, who has come to convince Spider-Man to become her crime-fighting partner. Spider-Man tries to deflect this idea, letting slip that he’s already gotten in trouble thanks to her. That’s when they both spot Iceman turning over some crooks to the police. Iceman and FIrestar start exchanging insults until Spider-Man’s spider-sense detects the Beetle trying to slip past them with a bunch of stolen money. However, Iceman and Firestar’s incapability allows the Beetle to get away. Seeing how they are constantly fighting gives Spider-Man an idea. In the morning, he tells Mary Jane his idea to set up Iceman and Firestar, but she thinks that is a terrible idea. Still, he is certain that this is a good idea and that it’ll all work out.

When he goes out as Spider-Man again, Peter spends time with both Iceman and Firestar and convinces them that the other teases them all the time because they have a crush on one another. He then tells them to meet him later in the evening for help. When they arrive at the rendezvous point they don’t find a super-villain to fight, but a candle lit dinner set up for the both of them. The two both realize they’re hungry and decide to sit down and eat. The pair start off having a nice dinner but ultimately start bickering with each other, which turns into a full blown fight.[5] However it’s during this fight that they both get a look into each other’s eye and both realize they are attracted to each other.

Thus starts a whirlwind relationship between the pair. Later, Iceman and Firestar work together to stop the Shocker from robbing a bank. Watching from a distance is Spider-Man who is pleased to see that his attempt at playing match maker is turning out to be a success. That’s when he is amubhsed by Videoman. He is quickly joined by Firestar and Iceman and they quickly realize that freezing Videoman solid isn’t going to work this time. Spider-Man has Firestar use her microwave power to disrupt Videoman’s signal, allowing Iceman to freeze the computer processor that is ithe core of his being, bringing the threat of Videoman to another brisk end.

When they suggest working together as a group, Iceman suggests that they make it Iceman centric. This causes an argument between he and Firestar again when the voice their annoyance over each other’s bad habbits. That’s when they realize that it was Spider-Man who set them up to begin with and decide to take their anger out on him. Later, Peter Parker is back at home with a cold after getting his comeuppance from Iceman and Firestar. Luckily, Mary Jane is around to take care of him, but take the opportunity to gloat about being right about her husband being a terrible match maker.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Iceman, Firestar, Mary Jane Watson, Beetle, Shocker, Swarm

Continuity Notes

1. The narrative states that this story takes place prior to Web of Spider-Man #75.

2. At the time of this story, Iceman had just rejoined the X-Men in Uncanny X-Men #281 after a lengthy stint as a member of X-Factor.

3. Spider-Man is referring to Mary Jane Watson whom he relatively recently married at the time of this story as seen in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #21. However, years later his marriage is erased from existence by Mephisto in Amazing Spider-Man #545. In the new timeline, Peter would say he was engaged instead of being married.

4. At the time of this story, Firestar was a member of the recently formed New Warriors. The group got together in New Warriors #1.

5. Firestar states that she once fought the X-Men. That was in Uncanny X-Men #193. Here she mistakes Wolverine for being Australian, this is actually a nod to the episode “A Firestar is Born” from the Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends TV series. That episode guest stars the X-Men, which includes a Wolverine that speaks with an Australian accent for some reason.