Webs of Possibility: The Spider-Men That Never Reached Fame

Welcome to Random Fandom, where I review out of my mind about the things I find.

Spider-Man is one of these people who needs no introduction. He’s a superhero, he swing on webs, beat up some bad guys, and learns the responsibilities of what his powers will bring, either good or bad. One bad responsibility is trading your marriage to the Devil to save your loving aunt, but that’s another spiral into the Marvel Universe.

No, we’re going to another Marvel Universe. Marvel is one of these companies who are willing to experiment beloved characters into new environments and situations. For example, the Noir Spider-Man. Taking place in the Noirsh 1930s, this Spider-Man relies on organic webbing and stealth in order to defeat his foes, oh, and he carries a gun and wears a trenchcoat, because says BADASS like a gun and a trenchcoat.

Another example is Spider-Man 2099, a successful alternate Spider-Man back in the early 1990s that takes place in the future. It was released during Spider-Man’s 30th birthday and takes place in a world where technology rules the world and product placement is the king. His alter-ego, Miguel O’Hara, got these powers not by a radioactive spider, but with addictive drugs and gene alternation…boy, we’ve come a long way from Spider-Man becoming a wrestler.

Why I am referring to these Spider-Men in particular? Well, most of you might have immediately found out that these characters will be in the new game, Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions. Basically, Spider-Man destroys a Tablet of Order and Chaos by accident during one of Mysterio’s robberies, which causes problems in Marvel Multiverse. Along with Noir, 2099, and Ultimate Spider-Man, a Spider-Man that takes place in an alternate present where he’s still a teenager, Spidey Prime must get all the pieces back before the villains from this universe and others who got them use it to destroy Spider-Man once and for all.

And today, I’m taking a look at the Spider-Men that didn’t get to be famous or well-liked as their counterparts. Originally, I was going to look for Spider-Man 2099 Meets Spider-Man, a one-shot where Spider-Man is in 2099 and Spider-Man 2099 is in Continuity, but this thing is so damn hard to find! So, I’m resorting to find three Spider-Men people might have not of heard from and give my opinions of how superior or inferior they are to the real deal.

This is Webs of Possibility: The Spider-Men That Never Reached Fame.

Spider-Man: Unlimited

Alias: Peter Parker {Earth-751263}

Issue Example: Spider-Man Unlimited #½

The first one that didn’t reach the ritzy lifestyle that the other Spider-Men are known for, {well, one if you count other medians,} is Spider-Man Unlimited, a short-lived animated television series.

He is Peter Parker, but his adventures and costume is far more different than the one we know of him. After being blamed for the supposed death of J. Johan Jameson’s son, John, who was inside a space capsule to Counter Earth, by being defeated by Venom and Carnage {together at last!}, Spider-Man is being hassled by the public as a bad image and decides to let things right by going to Counter-Earth to save John from what horrors what Venom, Carnage, and Counter-Earth will bring.

As long as you don't dance,
we won't have any problems.

Sporting a new costume made the leader of the Fantastic Four, Reed Richards, which emits nanotechnology, Spider-Man discovers that Counter-Earth has Beastials, who look like the Animorphs gone butch, as the dominant species. Spidey Unlimi-tay finds John as a part of a gang of non-furry Freedom Fighters and decides that under John’s request that they’ll go back to Earth only after all of the Beastrils are defeated for good.

And that’s not the least of Spider-Man’s worries; Venom and Carnage have survived the flight in the space and also has to face off the leader of the Beastrils, The High Evolutionary, which their battles usually end in a draw.

It was a very different Spider-Man series, bringing Spider-Man into the world full of animal warriors who turn out to be antagonists. And it’s a very good reason why Spider-Man Unlimited is labeled as an alternate universe, the show only lasted 13 episodes! It doesn’t end on a high note too; it ends on a cliffhanger which symbiotes rule the planet.

The reason why it was cancelled was for low ratings, possibly because of the success of Pokémon. Yes, hundreds of little monsters capable of battle defeat a concept idea of Spider-Man if it was a B-Movie.

But, at least, the series had its share of propaganda to show how damn awesome it is. The only major thing I could find is a comic book series, that lasted for a short run too…but while the series had 13 episodes, the comic had 6 issues, including a Wizard ½ issue, and the last three are original storylines only!

Venom and Carnage are the only
alien things Spidey has witnessed...until NOW!

The topic on Spider-Man Unlimited #½ is just a retelling of the story’s pilot episode, including the fact that Flash Thompson was hanging around as Spidey for a little while after the controversy brewed. The issue ends on Spider-Man going into the space shuttle to retrieve John. It’s only a prologue to the first issue of a 2-parter, and it ended with some decent concept art from Andy Kuhn, who did the art for other Marvel books as well, such as Marvel Adventures and Marvel Team-Up.

It’s a good addition to the story, but it’s a lot to pay for a backissue. It was about $10 when I got it and it was during a 50% sale. Still, it’s highway robbery. It even includes a certificate of authenticity, or as Linkara from Atop the 4th Wall fame would call it, proof that you have a copy of this garbage.

But unlike Doom’s IV, this was actually a spin-off to a well-known, well-loved character. It’s awesome, but treated. It’s extreme, but only when Spider-Man reaches to Counter-Earth. It’s makes no sense, but in the world of comics, what do you expect?

And we hope that this story will reach a conlcusion.

It does give me a good explanation of why Peter-A is going to Counter-Earth and I’m excited to see what the Beastials will be like, but is it worth your hard-earned money? Well, here’s the thing, why don’t you see the first episode of Spider-Man Unlimited on YouTube? It will give you an opportunity to see if the series is a well-watch, then you can get issues #4-6 and watch the other episodes to see the further adventures of Spider-Man Unlimited!

I would give it a one star, but since this is a prologue and a short-lived series on TV and comic, I would up it up a bit, but for goodness sakes, continue the franchise!

Spider-Man Unlimited, it deserves another look-through in order to revive the character to continue the story to make sure Counter-Earth isn’t ruled by Venom and Carnage’s babies! I’ll give you a second to stomach that.

RATING:
* *

Spider-Man: The Spider-Man

Alias: Unknown {Presumably monster}

Issue Example: Marvels Comics Group Spider-Man #1

This character isn’t part of a spin-off TV series and it isn’t part of a satire. This character is turned out to be one of the lost works of Marvel.

There’s no human under there, it has no other emotions besides devouring its enemies, and it doesn’t like publicit, which turns our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man into the sinister alleyway verison. That thing is known as The Spider-Man.

The Spider-Man doesn’t take any sympathy from those who surround it and spawned from a crashed space capsule many years back…what most people think how it came here.

Just a main idea on what you'll expect.

But before I tell you about the mysterious beast, let me tell about the world it’s based on. This is known as the Marvel Universe within the Marvel Universe, or comics made in the Marvel Universe, where a comic company does its best to portray the heroes that surround them by creating new characters based around public media. This was known as Marvels Comics Group.

In July 2000, Marvel released some of these one-shots, including variations of Daredevil, who is literally a devil, the Fantastic Four, who have a 4x4 vehicle, and Captain America, which the one-shot was written by Steve Rogers, the former REAL Captain America. They were bizarre, but yet they try their best to make sure these comics are made as if a team of super-mutants wearing spandex existed.

Now, the whole story of this one-shot is a newspaper company known as the Clarion trying to get more information about the Spider-Man, which its publisher, T.T. Thomas, is desperate to learn about the creature as it was the only thing that emerged from the space capsule during a failed mission his son, Jay, was on. The staff finds more pictures of the monster eating a crook before they did interrupted by the Doc Ock from the Marvels Universe, Professor Squid. He has a bone to pick with T.T. covering his escapades and not even a SWAT team can prevent him from murdering this Jameson clone.

Thye even have a verison of the Marvel
Bullpen, including a comic strip.

The Spider-Man crashed through the skylights and battles Squidward into the printing the room, which turning the machine crushes the Squid’s tentacles. The Spidey then flees to get some photos of itself from a stranger that took them during the melee. The final panel had it wearing the J necklace Jay got from his late mother before going on that failed mission.

It deserves some speculation for this as well as emerging out of the space capsule. Did Jay become the Spider-Man? Did the Spider-Man eat Jay once it entered the shuttle? Did a radioactive spider alien bite Jay during his trip in space? Either way, Jay is screwed.

We never find out more about the creature as well as the others in the Marvels Universe because Marvel never did a sequel series for the one-shots! I don’t know why Marvel decided to move on as if nothing happened, but it’s worth to see the other Marvel Heroes and Villains into a citizen of Earth-616’s eyes. It’s not the Amalgam Universe where everybody from DC and Marvel are like Resse’s Peanut Butter Cups; these are newly-constructed characters as if the characters actually did exist.

My conclusion? The story was a breeze, the characters are well-liked, and we love to know more about the mystery of the Spider-Man. They also do a news bulletin along with a Marvel comic strip based on the characters. It’s much better than Clone Saga books or even One More Day, but I’m only comparing it to regular Spider-Man books.

I’m giving it an Epictude of Fandom guarantee and a four-star rating only because I want The Spider-Man and the Marvels Universe to return. It could be a crossover with the real and fiction worlds, it could be a new line of characters and villains that people like nowadays, or it could be a sequel to the previous one-shots. All I know is that the world needs The Spider-Man and I am the first one to say to Marvel to “MAKE MINE MARVELS!”

RATING:
* * * *

Spider-Man: Magna

Alias: Yu Komori

Issue Example: Spider-Man the Magna #3

1970 was the year most Spider-Man fans didn’t realize because it the Japanese Era of Spider-Man. Marvel Comics decide to give the rights to Spider-Man in the country of Japan to Ryoichi Ikegami, who would later be known as the creative force of Mai, the Physic Girl, and then came a Spider-Man for a new country to love.

Out was New York, out was Uncle Ben, and out was Peter Parker. Instead, Yu Komori, who suffers the same characteristics Peter had, gets the spider-bite in the world known as Tokyo, Japan…Earth.

Electro vs. Spider-Man! Who will win?
Well, this is Spidey's first battle.

Yu finally figured out these powers will make a superhero and makeshifts a costume as well as web shooters for him to defeat foes. His no-name Aunt then tells him that his penpal, Rumi, is coming to Japan to meet Yu face-to-face.

On that date, the Japanesque Electro, who looks like a teenager rather than an adult, robbing a bank, using his electric powers to knock out guards and blasting open the safe. The people think he’s a cyborg {Why? Maybe superpowered villains are officially robotic.} and Yu doesn’t become Spidey right away as Electro escapes in a getaway car.

He then meets Rumi, who’s brother has been missing for six months, and decides to help her without any acknowledgement of the robbery made by the lightning bolt in tights earlier.

Yu then finds out that Rumi needs money, or yen wherever she’s from, to pay for the hospital bills for her mother. She is suffering from heart problems and in a world where Rumi hasn’t established from, they suffer from loss of money as well…Earth.

Hearing that the Tokyo version of the Daily Bugle is going to give the lucky person $10,000 for the capture of Electro, Yu finally decides to make a difference and heads out as Spider-Man for the first time to fight him.

That’s the back-story from the first 2 issues, or the Electro Arc, and today I’m reviewing the third and final issue of that arc. So, let’s not waste any time and go right ahead to find out what happened to Japanese Spidey!

You know, right person, the lyric "Does whatever a spider can"
meant that he has the powers of a spider, not a super-spider!

Spider-Man fails to beat Electro and doesn’t think he has a rematch in mind. Our hero, ladies and gentlemen.

Meanwhile, a man who looks like Master Roshi if he was a sharp-dressed man was escorting Electro to the banks all along. He finally feels that being recognized for his research for high voltage engineering to get money and using the Man Currently Known as Electro to do his work was a terrible idea, as he thinks the robberies got people killed. He decides to give Electro a choice to become normal again, but Electro is greedy to let that stop him.

Electro then decides to rob a department store, where Yu is giving Rumi the bad news that he can’t go through with paying off for her mother. Before Tokyo 90210 can break out, Electro begins his crime of snatching yen and Yu decides to become Spider-Man again to stop him. He lures Electro outside where less people will get hurt, but that turns out to be a bad idea when Electro accidentally zaps the High Voltage Man.

His death will never give Electro the chance to be normal again and does the most reasonable thing he can think of. Blaming Spider-Man for his actions. Once on the rooftop though, Spider-Man punches Electro {Yes, he’s gone from web-shooting to physical violence now.} into a block of cement.

Japanese Spidey removes the mask to find out it’s…Rumi’s brother! Oh my god, this is more shocking than I found out that Darth Vader was Luke’s father…after seeing Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith all in one night!

That's what Peter thought too, Yu. Now, he uses his powers for
good and later, gets six arms. You might want to think about that.

Anyway, Rumi’s brother crippled a child by a runaway car and forced to pay a settlement of $50,000. He found his luck on the High Voltage Man, who is apparently the father of the child he hit, and decided to become a human guinea pig for his experiments. As he expires, Spider-Man learns the power of responsibility.

He may be a success, but Rumi now feels a hatred for Spider-Man for killing for her brother as well as calling him an unfortunate person. So, Yu must learn to use his powers in way that will make him and others happy.

It’s a different take to the whole Spider-Man learning “With Great Power, Comes Great Responsibility”, but the story seems fast-paced, the characters’ translated speech is usually padding, and the art, while it is good to look at, can be annoying at times.

But, who am I to diss another country for being different? I’m giving this magna a 3 out of 5, because Magna needs to be respected and loved. Although, it doesn’t make any sense, but we must learn to check out other medians of entertainment every country offers. Spider-Man: The Magna; love it or hate it, it’s one country’s art is another country’s garbage.

RATING:
* * *

And that concludes my Spider-Men That Never Reached Fame. Some were weird and some were too awesome by words, but either way, we need to see these Spider-Men back again sometime. So, if you’re reading this, Marvel, bring these Spider-Men back for a short time! You can ditch some of your Deadpool books to do more Alternate Spidey, because what I can tell, one group of Deadpool Corps is enough!

Do me a favor and enlarge this. Find the J
and I'll give you a cookie.