Superhuman strength, sticky webs, wall-crawling — Spider-Man’s got a killer power set. But with great power comes great confusion. When you think too hard about Spidey’s world, some things just don’t add up. We’re used to just rolling with it, suspending our disbelief for the sake of awesome stories.
But hold on! Comic book writers have actually put a lot of thought into explaining these little quirks. So, in this article, we’re going over the five most confusing questions about your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man and answering them once and for all.
1. Why Does No One Ever Notice Spider-Man Coming Back to Peter Parker’s Home?
You’d think that a superhero swinging around the city and regularly returning to the same place would be a dead giveaway. Surely, someone in NYC must have tried to track him down. That’s where Peter Parker’s spider-sense comes in — any potential threats, present and future, are pinged by spidey-sense. It is exceptionally good at letting Peter know if he’s being watched when he’s about to don or remove his suit. If someone’s lurking around Peter’s house, trying to track Spider-Man’s secret identity, his spidey-sense would go off like a burglar alarm.
Now, you may wonder why his spidey-sense doesn’t go off when, for instance, Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) catches him at the end of Spider-Man: Homecoming. That’s a fair point, but Peter’s spidey-sense is tuned to recognize threats. People close to him, like Aunt May or Ned (Jacob Batalon), wouldn’t register as a danger to his identity. Therefore, the spidey-sense wouldn’t activate. Plus, Peter’s spidey-sense in the MCU movies isn’t well-honed or utilized until the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home.
2. How Does Spider-Man Not Break Through Skyscraper Windows While He’s Swinging?
Spider-Man’s webs are strong enough to yank car doors clean off! So, how do those sleek skyscraper windows hold his weight without shattering into a million tiny shards? And when he lands on the side of a skyscraper, shouldn’t the force of his momentum shatter all the windows?
This comes down to spidey-sense too. Spider-Man never swings on fragile windows, weak walls, or accidentally webs pigeons because his spidey-sense subconsciously tells him where and how to swing. There have even been a few storylines in The Amazing Spider-Man comics where Peter loses his spidey-sense, and suddenly starts misjudging swings and crashing through windows.
3. Why Has No One Other Than Peter Parker Been Able to Create Web Fluid?
Peter was a teenager when he created web fluid in his room with a home chemistry set. So, couldn’t other super-geniuses out there figure it out? Why haven’t Spider-Man’s villainous inventors like Doc Ock or Green Goblin managed to replicate it? There are a couple of reasons for this.
In Spider-Man: The Animated Series Season 3, Peter explains that getting bit by the spider gave him “instinctive knowledge of how to combine certain enzymes to make the webbing.” This instinctive knowledge could be the missing piece that other geniuses, no matter how brilliant, lack. Then there’s the logical reasoning; webs only work with Spidey’s power and gimmick. Why shoot webbing at your opponent when you can hurl an exploding Pumpkin Bomb or just shoot them? Peter wants to incapacitate and immobilize his opponent, not kill, so webbing makes sense for him. But for villains hell-bent on destruction and mayhem, it wouldn’t be the most effective weapon.
Even if someone managed to recreate the web fluid, there’s another hurdle: using it effectively. In the comics and Spider-Man: The Animated Series, when Peter loses his powers and tries to use his web shooters, he just isn’t strong enough. Spider-Man’s strength, agility, and of course, his spidey-sense, are all crucial for fully utilizing the webs.
4. How Do Peter’s Friends Not Recognize Spider-Man’s Voice?
Considering how many of Spider-Man’s villains are people who know Peter, it’s baffling that they don’t recognize his voice. In The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Harry (Dane DeHaan) discovered Spider-Man’s identity by watching him being protective of Gwen (Emma Stone), and not by recognizing his voice. The comic book explanation is that Peter’s mask muffles his voice enough so people do not notice it. Plus, Spider-Man consciously alters his voice when interacting with people he knows. In the recent Tom Holland and Spider-Verse movies, Spider-Man uses a more mature and authoritative voice when interacting with with friends or family.
5. Why Does Peter Work as a Poorly Paid Photographer Despite His Genius Level Intellect?
Peter is considered one of the Marvel Universe’s brightest minds, yet he’s always broke, has trouble paying rent, and is stuck slinging a camera for J. Jonah Jameson. But there’s more to Peter’s job than meets the eye. First, let’s consider the flexibility. Photography is an on-field job; absences are not questioned. Secondly, being a photographer helps explain why Peter is always near scenes where Spider-Man is.
But there’s a deeper reason — something tied to the core of who Spider-Man is. “With great power comes great responsibility” isn’t just a tagline; it’s what drives Peter everyday. After Uncle Ben’s death, he vowed to use his powers for good, never letting personal gain cloud his responsibility. Despite the lousy pay, working at the Bugle lets him swing into action as Spider-Man without anyone suspecting a thing. Also don’t forget to check out which version of Spider-man is the most powerful!
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