Spider-Man Unlimited #18

All My Pasts Remembered!

From his secret hideout, Doctor Octopus reads the news reports about his miraculous return to life.[1] Although his loyal follower, Carolyn Trainer, thinks this is great news, Otto just wants to be left alone. Particularly because his memory is still jumbled after his return and he is still recovering over the ordeal. He is also upset that his return came at the expense of Angelina Brancale who sacrificed her virtual reality form and is now stuck in a catatonic state. Carolyn tries to assuage Otto by telling him that Angelina sacrificed herself willingly. Confused by why the world at large hates him, Octavius asks Trainer to explain to him why this is.

While in Queens, Otto Octavius is the subject of conversation in the Parker home. Peter reminds his wife, Mary Jane, that Doctor Octopus is one of his most deadly foes and he needs to catch him before he does something.[2] Although Peter wants to go out looking for Otto right away, Mary Jane convinces him to go out for breakfast with her so they can review Otto's history and try and figure out where he might be hiding out now. While at the Daily Bugle, Ben Urich tells Dilbert Trilby about the return of Doctor Octopus. As the Bugle's obituary writer this is very distressing for Tribly to hear, as he hates writing obituaries about super-humans as they always manage to cheat death.[3] Urich thinks Trilby is getting paranoid and asks the obituary writer to tell him what he knows about Otto Octavius for insight on a story he wants to write.

What follows is a recounting of the life of Otto Octavius told from the perspectives of Dilbert Trilby, Carolyn Trainer, and Peter Parker.[4]

The Life and Times of Otto Octavius

Trilby: Otto Octavius was a smart student in school but was tormented by bullies in school and abused by his father, Torbert Octavius, at home. The only source of love Otto received was from his overbearing mother, Mary. Otto focused on his studies and went on to college on a full science scholarship. He was driven to focus on his studies by his mother, especially on his freshman year when his father was killed in a construction accident.[5] Eventually, Otto graduated from college at the top of his class, much to the delight of his mother.

Trainer: After graduation, Otto established himself as a genius in the field of nuclear research. It was during one of his early lectures about a mechanical harness that could be used for handling radioactive materials that Carolyn Trainer first met Otto Octavius. The tickets were a gift from her father who knew she was a fan of Otto's work. Meeting him in person, Carolyn found herself instantly smitten by Otto. She came to see him as a gracious, giving, and generous man.

Parker: That's not the opinion held by the people at the Atomic Research Center where Otto Octavius worked. There he was viewed as a cruel and arrogant man and went through multiple lab assistants each year. The use of his mechanical arms in his research earned Otto Octavius the nickname "Doctor Octopus" among his peers. Although Mary Jane finds this kind of sad, but Peter insists that Otto brought it on himself.

Trainer: Carolyn has a different opinion, she feels that his colleagues were jealous of Otto's genius. She even thinks that the woman Otto dated at the time -- Mary Alice -- was equally as jealous of him, and tried to manipulate Otto into doing what she wished. However, this romance was short-lived when Otto's mother learned of it and forced him to break it off for fear that her son would abandon her. Although it broke Otto's heart to do this, Carolyn believed that this was the right move as he deserved so much better.

Trilby: After briefly wondering what would have happened to Otto Octavius if he had stood up to his mother, the obituary writer continues his narrative. He tells about how, after the break-up, Otto Octavius buried himself in his work becoming more cold and distant to his colleagues. It was during this time he discovered his mother was now dating a man. Furious that she allowed herself to find the happiness that was denied him, Otto went into a rage that frightened his mother so much she suffered a heart attack and died.[6] Over the next three weeks, Otto did his work like a zombie and continued pushing himself to the edge. Trilby believes that it was his state of mind that led to an explosion that fused his mechanical arms to his body, turning him into Doctor Octopus.

Trainer: Carolyn was in college at the time of Otto's accident and she was devastated by the news. She spent long hours waiting for updates on his condition while he was in the hospital. She learned that Otto was being cared for at Bliss Private Hospital under the care of Doctor Kevin Hunt. Hunt believed that Otto suffered brain damage from the explosion, but Carolyn dismisses this idea, calling Hart a quack. When Otto finally awoke from his coma he discovered that he could mentally control the mechanical arms that were fused to his body.

Doctor Octopus is Born

All three parties then recount Spider-Man's first battle against Doctor Octopus.[7] Peter tells about how J. Jonah Jameson sent him to photograph the hostage situation at the Atomic Research Center. Going as Spider-Man, the novice hero didn't realize how serious the situation was until he saw Doctor Octopus threatening his hostages and came crashing in. Carolyn Trainer recalls how, initially, Otto delivered a humiliating defeat to Spider-Man. Trilby focuses on how, despite the humiliating defeat, Spider-Man returned to ultimately defeated Doctor Octopus. However, this was not the end of the notorious villain.

Trainer: Carolyn tells Otto about how he was represented by Matt Murdock following his first arrest. It was his skills as a lawyer that Otto managed to get a more lenient sentence on an insanity plea. Trainer then began visiting Otto in prison and the two became close. During one such visit, Otto assured her that he has been spending his time in prison constructively by honing his ability to control his mechanical arms and vows that once he gets out, he will never get captured again.

Parker: Peter tells Mary Jane how Otto only spent a short time in prison as it was his first offense.[8] Once free from prison, Doctor Octopus began working with Philidelphia mobster Blackie Gaxton. When Spider-Man tried to stop them, Betty Brant's brother Bennett was killed. Although Peter thinks Bennett might still be alive had he not interfered, he assures Mary Jane that only Doctor Octopus is to blame for what happened.[9]

Failures

Trilby: This time, the authorities were less lenient with Doctor Octopus.[10] While in custody this time, they enlisted the aid of Giant-Man, Iron Man, and Mister Fantastic who developed a means of removing Otto's mechanical arms. Unfortunately for them, they didn't realize that Otto could still mentally control his mechanical arms, even from afar, and eventually escaped.[11]

Trainer: Carolyn then tells Otto about how, during that escape, he recruited Electro, Mysterio, the Vulture, Sandman, and Kraven the Hunter to form the Sinister Six.

Parker: Despite this ambitious scheme, Spider-Man managed to defeat each of his foes in one-on-one combat until they were all defeated and sent back to prison.

Trainer: However, Otto didn't stay captured for long. Breaking out of prison he set himself up as the Master Planner, building the underwater hideout that they are now using to hide out. Otto remembers this last failure, becoming furious that Spider-Man ruined this master scheme.[12]

Trilby: From then on, the majority of the schemes created by Doctor Octopus ended in failure, usually at the hands of Spider-Man.

Cheating Death

Trainer: Carolyn explains that after a time, Otto became convinced that his endless battles with Spider-Man might lead to his death and began putting measures in order to try and reach immortality, of a sort. Seeking out Carolyn, Otto tapped her expertise in virtual reality to create a sophisticated artificial intelligence called the Master Programmer. The Master Programmer was then programmed with copies of Otto's memories and personalities up to that point. It was also this time that Angelia Brancale, Carolyn's secretary, became smitten by Otto. When it became obvious that she would do anything for him, they used her as a test subject for their creating a virtual reality construct that could interact with the real world, and thus Stunner was born.

Trilby: Otto's death eventually happened at the hands of the mercenary known as Kaine. Dilbert wrote Otto's obituary and attended his funeral.[13] Concluding his tale, Dilbert is quite disturbed by the news that Otto is somehow back from the dead. The only logical explanation is that his death was a hoax.

Epilogue

After finishing the lengthy tale, Peter expresses his concerns about Otto's return. Prior to his death, Otto discovered Peter's secret identity and although he appeared to have gaps in his memory when he was resurrected, Parker fears that Otto may someday remember and put their lives at risk. Mary Jane is not as concerned, pointing out all of the others that know Peter's double identity, and reminds him that she can take care of himself -- like when the Chameleon attempted to attack her recently. Remembering how his wife defeated the Chameleon causes Peter to burst out laughing.[14]

Luckily, Peter has nothing to worry about as at that moment Carolyn Trainer explains that Doctor Octopus was murdered by Kaine before he had a chance to upgrade the memories copied over to the Master Programmer. Although she planned on creating a virtual reality construct of Otto, she is grateful that other options came to fruition that allowed them to bring Otto back from the dead. After hearing his life story, Doctor Octopus vows that although he has failed many times in the past, all he needs is one major success in able to claim total victory.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Doctor Octopus, Lady Octopus, Mary Jane Watson, Stunner, Ben Urich, Dilber Trilby, (In Flashback) Mary Octavius, Matt Murdock, Giant-Man, Mister Fantastic, Iron Man

Continuity Notes

1. Doctor Octopus was murdered by Kaine in The Spectacular Spider-Man #221. More recently, he was resurrected in Amazing Spider-Man #427.

2. Peter and Mary Jane are referred to as husband and wife here. However, years later, their marriage is erased from existence by Mephisto  Amazing Spider-Man #545. As such they should be considered a common-law couple here.

3. A number of the examples that Dilbert cites are:

   • Spider-Man: For a time it was believed that the original Spider-Man was killed when a skeleton wearing a tattered Spider-Man costume was discovered in The Spectacular Spider-Man #231. At the time, Peter Parker had retired as Spider-Man in The Spectacular Spider-Man #229 and Ben Reilly, Peter's clone, took up the mantle in Sensational Spider-Man #0 adding credibility to this claim. This idea fizzled out when Peter returned as Spider-Man in Spider-Man #75.

   • Daredevil: At the time of this story, Daredevil faked his death in Daredevil #325 and assumes a new identity. He eventually dumped this new identity in Daredevil #347.

   • The Hulk was believed to have been killed in a nuclear explosion in Incredible Hulk #345. In reality, he was laying low and working as a bodyguard in Las Vegas until his survival became public knowledge circa Incredible Hulk #377.

   • Trilby says "don't even get me started on the X-Men". Indeed many X-Men have been reported dead only to come back, even at this point. There are too many instances to list here.

   • He also figures that the recent deaths of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four might also become undone. He's not wrong. The two teams were thought to have been killed in Onslaught Marvel Universe #1. However, they really survived and exist in a pocket dimension as seen in the Heroes Reborn event. They will return to their proper dimension in Heroes Reborn: The Return #1-4.

4. A lot of the details here, particularly details about Otto's childhood, were previously detailed in Spider-Man Unlimited #3.

5. This contradicts The Spectacular Spider-Man Vol 2 #9. In that story, Otto states he was still a young child when his father died and was forced to watch his father die in bed. Given Otto's varied state of mind, there's no telling what facts were are true.

6. This is contrary to Spider-Man - Doctor Octopus: Year One #3. In that telling, Otto's mother did not suffer a heart attack but was strangled to death by Otto. It's entirely possible that Otto covered up the fact that he murdered his mother.

7. The first battle between Doctor Octopus and Spider-Man happened in Amazing Spider-Man #3.

8. Peter specifically states that Otto was in prison for a year. Otto was released from prison in Amazing Spider-Man #11. Per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616, Peter's assessment of Otto being in prison for a year should be considered a topical reference as it measures the length of time between publications. Per the Timescale, Otto would only have been in prison for a few months, at most. Since Peter states that Otto did not act up while in prison, modern readers could assume that Otto was released from prison early based on good behavior.

9. This all happened in Amazing Spider-Man #11. Although everyone believes Bennett died here, he survived and will resurface again in Venom Vol 2 #1.

10. Although not implicitly stated here, Doctor Octopus was arrested in Amazing Spider-Man #12.

11. What follows here is a recounting of Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1.

12. Doctor Octopus operated as the Master Planner from Amazing Spider-Man #31-33.

13. Trilby attended Otto's funeral in Spider-Man: Funeral for an Octopus #1.

14. Mary Jane lists off a number of individuals who know Peter's double identity at the time of this story:

    • Norman Osborn: AKA the Green Goblin, discovered Peter's secret identity in Amazing Spider-Man #39-40.

    • Venom: Eddie Brock learned Spider-Man's identity in Amazing Spider-Man #299-30 after bonding with the alien symbiote that Peter rejected.

    • The Puma: Was able to determine Spider-Man's secret identity by following his scent as seen in Amazing Spider-Man #256-258. However, he did not attach a name to the fact until Amazing Spider-Man #272-273

    • Daredevil: Managed to use his enhanced senses to learn Spider-Man's identity during the Sin-Eater affair circa Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #107-110.

    • More recently, the Chameleon learned Peter's identity in The Spectacular Spider-Man #242. He used this knowledge to try and go after Mary Jane in The Spectacular Spider-Man #245, but she easily saw through his disguise and was able to defend herself.

    • Doctor Octopus learned Spider-Man's secret identity during the Web of Death story arc.

The Secrets of Doctor Octopus!

A feature explaining the many abilities of Doctor Octopus granted by his mechanical arms. It details the mechanics that allow the tentacles can move and flex on their own due to a series of compact motors. The pincers allow him to grip objects with a force of 175 lbs. per square inch. He can also extend his arms to a length of six feet each allowing him to climb up walls and over fences.

Powered by a nuclear powered thermo-electric generator the arms also allow Otto to lift objects as heavy as 3 tons. After years of practice, he can control each arm and have them carry out multiple tasks simultaneously. He can also control the harness mentally from a great distance, allowing him to control the tentacles even though they are not attached to his body. Coated with adamantium, the arms are highly durable able to withstand attacks from powerful opponents like the Hulk, or Cyclops, Iceman, and Wolverine of the X-Men.

Lastly, the pincers on each arm can be modified to contain built-in weapons such as needles, and launchable buzzsaws.

Her Name Was Stunner!

Doctor Octopus pays a visit to the unconscious body of Angelina Brancal. He thinks about how she sacrificed everything to ensure he was brought back to life. He thinks about how miserable he life was as a woman suffering from morbid obesity. However, she was the subject of scorn from other women, how she was ignored and shunned by the opposite sex. How she struggled her entire life trying to control her weight, feeling powerless and alone.

He remembers how he life had changed when he and Carolyn Trainer built the virtual reality device that transformed Angelina into the amazon woman known as Stunner. He remembers how beautiful and powerful she looked in that form. Deciding that is how he will always see her, Otto Octavius leaves a rose on Angelina's body and quietly leaves the room.

Recurring Characters

Doctor Octopus, Stunner