While attending a public rally where May Parker spoke against the corrupt forces controlling New York, Peter’s passion and anger caught the attention of Ben Urich, a photographer and reporter for the Daily Bugle. Urich took Peter under his wing, giving him a path into journalism and exposing him to the city’s criminal underworld. Although Urich was known to some as “the Spider” because of his network of informants, he was also compromised by addiction and had been blackmailing Norman Osborn rather than fully exposing him.

Peter’s transformation began when he followed a tip meant for Urich to a warehouse where the Goblin’s men were unloading stolen antiques. One artifact, a spider idol, broke open and released a swarm of spiders. One of them bit Peter, causing him to experience a vision of a spider-god. When he awakened, he had gained arachnid-like powers, including enhanced strength, speed, agility, reflexes, wall-crawling, a danger sense, and the ability to produce organic silk webbing from his wrists.

Peter created his Spider-Man costume using elements inspired by his Uncle Ben’s World War I airman uniform, including a dark mask and goggles. Unlike many other versions of Spider-Man, this Peter began his career with a far harsher sense of justice, using intimidation, violence, and occasionally firearms against the criminals who ruled his city.

Spider-Man’s first major campaign targeted Norman Osborn and his criminal enforcers, including noir-era versions of familiar enemies such as Kraven, the Chameleon, the Vulture, Ox, Fancy Dan, and Montana. During this conflict, Peter learned that Ben Urich had been compromised by the Goblin, but Urich ultimately attempted to do the right thing and expose Osborn’s crimes. Before he could complete that redemption, Urich was murdered.

Peter continued the investigation with help from Felicia Hardy, owner of the Black Cat speakeasy and a former lover of Ben Urich. Felicia gave Peter crucial information that helped him understand the depth of Osborn’s corruption. During the final stages of the conflict, Spider-Man rescued J. Jonah Jameson and Felicia, defeated Osborn’s men, and confronted the Goblin himself. Though Peter had the opportunity to kill Osborn, he chose not to, marking an important step away from simple vengeance and toward a more disciplined form of justice.

In the later Eyes Without a Face storyline, Spider-Man investigated the Crime Master and uncovered horrific experiments conducted by Doctor Otto Octavius in connection with the Friends of New Germany. This case revealed the growing influence of fascist ideology and racial violence in his world, further reinforcing the political and moral darkness of Earth-90214.

Spider-Man later became involved in multiversal Spider-events, including Spider-Verse, where he joined other Spider-powered heroes against the Inheritors. During these conflicts, he fought alongside versions of Spider-Man from many realities and became associated with the Web-Warriors. He was gravely wounded during these events and later continued to participate in multiversal battles involving the Web of Life and Destiny.

During Spider-Geddon, Spider-Man again joined the fight against the Inheritors. He was killed by Morlun, but was later resurrected by the same spider-god force that had empowered him, awakening in a cocoon much like he had when he first became Spider-Man. His resurrection reaffirmed his mystical connection to the spider-totem forces of the multiverse.

Spider-Man remains one of the most distinctive Spider-Men in the multiverse: a Depression-era vigilante shaped by economic injustice, organized crime, political corruption, and personal loss. His methods are darker than those of many Spider-heroes, but beneath the hardboiled exterior remains the same essential drive to protect the powerless from those who abuse power.

Spider-Man’s powers are mystical in origin rather than purely scientific. His webbing initially manifested as dark organic silk that could form sprays or nets, though later appearances show him using it with greater precision for web-lines and more conventional Spider-Man movement.

Limitations: Although highly durable, Spider-Man can still be injured by bullets, blades, explosions, and sufficiently powerful superhuman attacks. His harsher tactics and willingness to use lethal force have also created moral conflict, especially when judged against the values taught to him by Aunt May and Uncle Ben.

• Spider-Geddon event (Spider-Geddon #1–5, 2018)
• Returns to Earth-90214 operations (Various Spider-Man Noir series)