During their final battle, Ben was impaled on the Green Goblin’s Glider in 1996’s SPIDER-MAN (1990) #75 by Howard Mackie, John Romita Jr., and Scott Hanna. Then, after being thought dead for years, Norman Osborn reappeared and told Peter and Ben that he orchestrated the events of “The Clone Saga” to torment Spider-Man – and he was the one who cast doubt over who was the real clone. When Peter returned to New York, he and Ben grew closer over their shared memories, with both men coming to regard the other as a brother. He was also one of the few heroes still active in New York after the Fantastic Four and the Avengers appeared to perish during Onslaught’s attack. During Ben’s tenure as Spider-Man, he briefly merged with the Carnage symbiote to keep it from bonding with someone more dangerous, fought Trainer’s daughter after she became the new Doctor Octopus, and briefly dated the daughter of the burglar who killed Uncle Ben. In 1996’s SENSATIONAL SPIDER-MAN (1996) #0 by Dan Jurgens and Klaus Janson, Ben Parker debuted as Spider-Man, sporting a redesigned costume, dyed blonde hair, and a job at the Daily Grind coffee shop. Spurred on by that revelation and his sense of obligation to Mary Jane and their unborn child, Peter decided to retire as Spider-Man and let Ben take over his mantle in SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN (1976) #229 by Tom Defalco, Sal Buscema, and Bill Sienkiewicz. Seward Trainer complicated the relationship between these Web-Slingers when he claimed he found evidence that proved Peter Parker was a clone and Ben Reilly was the original Spider-Man. While Ben took his place in jail, Peter compelled Kaine to confess to his killings. After Mary Jane told Peter she was pregnant and Aunt May seemingly died, Peter was arrested for one of Kaine’s killings. Soon, Spider-Man and the Scarlet Spider began working together against the resurgent threat of the Jackal, his numerous Spider-Man clones, and Kaine, who killed villains like Doctor Octopus and the Grim Hunter. After Ben and Peter formed a tentative friendship, Reilly donned his iconic Scarlet Spider costume for the first time to fight Venom in WEB OF SPIDER-MAN (1985) #118. When Aunt May fell seriously ill, Reilly returned to New York to see her and inadvertently confronted Peter in 1994’s WEB OF SPIDER-MAN (1985) #117 by Terry Kavanagh, Steven Butler, and Randy Emberlin. Throughout this period, Ben was followed closely by Kaine, another one of the Jackal’s Spider-Man clones who was more aggressive, violent, and unstable.Īlthough Ben was thought dead for years, “The Clone Saga” famously put him in the center of Spider-Man’s world throughout the 1990s. As he traveled across America, Ben forged a close bond with scientist Seward Trainer and fell in love with Janine Godbe, who was on the run after killing her abusive father. He subsequently created a new identity for himself by combining Uncle Ben’s name and Aunt May’s maiden name to become Ben Reilly. However, the clone survived and realized he was not the real Peter. After their fight, the clone appeared to perish in a bomb blast that also seemed to kill the Jackal. Under the impression that he was the original Peter Parker, the clone fought the real Spider-Man. After the death of his student Gwen Stacy, Miles Warren – the obsessed mad scientist known as the Jackal – created clones of both Spider-Man and Gwen, complete with the memories of their counterparts. Although he was only known as Spider-Man’s clone at the time, Ben Reilly first appeared in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1963) #149 by Gerry Conway, Ross Andru, and Mike Esposito.
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