A Lock for Every Key

At Empire State University, Otto Octaivus — in the body of Peter Parker — is attending classes.[1] He is furious that he has to re-obtain his doctorate under Parker’s identity, forcing him to endure lectures from Doctor Donald Lamaze.[2] This is because when Otto attended class at ESU back in his youth he and Lamaze were classmates. Thinking back to those days, he recalls how Don didn’t understand material they were learning, earning Otto’s ire.

Noticing that “Peter Parker” is zoning out, Lamaze asks “Peter” if he’s boring him. Otto grudgingly tells Lamaze that he is not, holding back the vitriol he is really thinking. When Anna Maria Marconi asks why “Peter” bothers showing up for class, he hints that he only shows up because of her. That’s Otto gets an alert on his Spider-Man app and excuses himself to take the call, telling Lamaze to continue the class without him. The call is from mayor J. Jonah Jameson, calling Spider-Man on the secure number given to him.[3] He tells the web-slinger that they are finally going to execute Alistair Smythe — aka the Spider-Slayer — for murdering his wife, Marla Madison.[4] He has called to ask for Spider-Man to come down to the Raft and oversee the execution just in case Smythe tries to make an escape. Agreeing to put down Smythe if he does something, Otto assures Jameson that this will all be over soon. As he hangs up the phone, Jameson admits to himself that it will never be over, at least not for him.

Later, J. Jonah Jameson arrives at the Raft as prisoners are being transferred to other facilities. He meets with Ted Shipley, the head of security. Jonah is not happy with the amount of escapes that have happened during Shipley’s watch and orders him to make sure the execution of Smythe goes smoothly, threatening to terminate his pension. Ted assures the mayor that they have taken every precaution, unaware a number of insectoid robots are sneaking onto the island. Shipley then takes Jameson on a tour of the facility, stopping at the infirmary where three prisoners — Boomerang, the Scorpion, and the Vulture — are still in intensive care after being brutally beaten by Spider-Man.[5]

While at Horizon Labs, “Peter Parker” is overseeing the transport of equipment to the Raft. Max Modell is upset that “Peter” is doing this without the authorization of Horizon Labs. More over, the end of quarter is coming and Max has yet to see “Peter’s” latest invention. Otto is annoyed that he has to deal with Modell and tries to placate him. However, Max picks up on “Peter’s” condescending tone and reminds him who his boss is and how dangerously close “Parker” is getting to being fired. After this exchange, Otto slips into a nearby alley to change into Spider-Man. He thinks about how he traded the shackles of his ruined body for the limitations of Peter Parker’s life and vows to be free of them soon enough.[6] As he heads for the Raft, Spider-Man summons all of his spider-bots to head to the facility to assist him in keeping order. As Spider-Man arrives on the scene with his equipment, Ted Shipley tries to introduce himself to the wall-crawler. However, Otto knows Shipley very well due to his abusive treatment while Otto was incarcerated at the Raft and gives him a colder reception than the mayor.[7]

Leaving the Anti-Spider-Man Squad to prepare his equipment, Spider-Man decides to go into the maximum security wing to pay a visit to the Spider-Slayer. There, Otto is mocked by the Spider-Slayer. However, he pays him no heed because he is suddenly distracted by the cell where he was left to die as Doctor Octopus. After this recollection, Otto tells Smythe that he can’t wait to see him dead so he can finally leave this place and never see it again.

Moments later, J. Jonah Jameson returns to the Raft, this time with his secretary Glory Grant and Norah Winters a reporter from the Daily Bugle. Down in the viewing room, Smythe’s lawyer protests Jameson’s presence, accusing him of using his political power to rush his client’s execution.[8] Jonah warns the lawyer that if he continues to delay the execution he will do everything to make the lawyer’s life a living hell. That’s when Smythe is wheeled into the room where he will be executed and he tells them all not to worry about it as he has found religion since his incarceration and has made peace with his impending death. Spider-Man is unimpressed with this sermon, muttering about how a life-long criminal can’t suddenly change their stripes. He stops himself as he realizes the irony of what he is saying, prompting Norah Winters to keep going, as she was taking a quote.

As the executioner prepares to give Smythe his lethal injection, his cybernetic insects suddenly come bursting out of the vents and take down the guards in the room. A number of the robots quickly leap onto Smythe’s body encasing him in a new cybernetic carapace. However, Spider-Man was prepared for this and his spider-bots come out of hiding to fight off the Smythe’s robots. As the Spider-Slayer tries to escape, he quickly discovers that Spider-Man has blocked every exit. This forces him to initiate his back-up plan and sends some of his insects into the infirmary where they give cybernetic upgrades to Boomerang, the Vulture, and the Scorpion. Hacking into the PA systems, the Spider-Slayer orders all of the remaining prisoners to help him kill Spider-Man and win their freedom. With their restored bodies and upgraded weapons, the three villains are more than happy to put down the guy who landed them in the Raft to begin with.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Spider-Slayer, Boomerang, Scorpion, Vulture, Anna Maria Marconi, J. Jonah Jameson, Max Modell, Glory Grant, Norah Winters, Jester, Screwball, Lizard, Don Lamaze

Continuity Notes

1. Otto took over Spider-Man’s body in Amazing Spider-Man #698-700.

2. Dr. Lamaze talks about how, for every minute on Earth, five hours of time passes in the Negative Zone. This idea was first explored in Fantastic Four #251-256.

3. Since Otto took over as Spider-Man, he finally won over J. Jonah Jameson in Superior Spider-Man #1. Spider-Man gave Jameson a private number to call when he needed Spider-Man in Superior Spider-Man #3.

4. Marla Madison was murdered by the Spider-Slayer in Amazing Spider-Man #654.

5. Shippley goes over the various criminals that have been beaten by Spider-Man recently.

   • He mentions Screwball and the Jester, who were well enough to be transferred elsewhere. Spider-Man brutally beat them in Superior Spider-Man #6.

   • The Scorpion had his jaw punched clean off by Spider-Man in Amazing Spider-Man #700.

   • Boomerang was seriously roughted up by Spider-Man in Superior Spider-Man #1.

   • Lastly, there is the Vulture whom Spider-Man blinded and seriously injured in Superior Spider-Man #3.

6. Otto Octavius began suffering from a degenerative illness dating back to Amazing Spider-Man #600. His failing body was his motivation for stealing Peter Parker’s life.

7. After his last effort to destroy the world, Otto was locked up in the Raft until his swapped bodies with Peter Parker. See Amazing Spider-Man #682-687.

8. There is a bit of back-and-forth between Jameson and the lawyer here that makes a few references:

   • Mention is made about how Jameson tried to rip out Smythe’s throat. This was when he was transformed into a spider-creature during Spider-Island. See Amazing Spider-Man #666-673.

   • The lawyer mentions that part of Alystair’s motivations to kill Marla Madison was to avenge the death of his father. Spencer Smythe had a long history of creating Spider-Slayer robots for Jameson dating back to Amazing Spider-Man #25. This turned into an obsession and Spencer ultimately died of cancer in Amazing Spider-Man #192 after years of exposure to the radioactive isotopes needed to make his robots.

The Death Penalty in the Marvel Universe

In this story, mayor J. Jonah Jameson appears to have the ability to enact the death sentence. Which is quite impressive given that capital punishment is something that is allowed or denied at the state level. Even more incredible is that this story was written in 2013, a time when the death penalty had been abolished in the state of New York for nearly a decade.

Usually, the subject of the death penalty can be dismissed as a topical reference that reflects the time of a publication because, as of 2004, all references to there being a death penalty in New York became topical per the rules of the Sliding Timescale.

That said, there is no explanation for why and how the mayor of a city is able to reinstate the death penalty when, in the real world at least, he would not have the authority to do so.

My theory is that the in the New York of the Marvel Universe, the city has much more autonomy than the rest of the state due to the fact that New York City is where most super-humans exist. There’s also a heavy presence of SHIELD in the area as well. I would like to think that a city in this situation would have extra legal powers that would normally only be given to the state.