History
El Hombre Araña's story apparently replicates Spider-Man from Earth-616 up until the point where el Hombre Araña and Spider-Man both had six arms, and lost four of them.[note 3] There were some changes, thou: On Earth-TRN911, el Hombre Araña is a popular and widely respected hero, admired by the general public[4] and respected by the Army[5] and the Police,[6] who appreciates el Hombre Araña taking care of superhuman threats that are beyond their power.[2] The police chief has the means to contact el Hombre Araña to ask him for help.[3] J. Jonah Jameson's incendiary anti-Spider-Man headlines are published in his newspaper (here called El Clarín, but they are mostly disregarded by sensitive people.[7]
Like on Earth-616, Peter Parker from Earth-TRN911 works as a photographer for Jameson's newspaper. Jameson tends to reprimand him for not bringing the photos that he wanted in time,[5] and did his best to pay Peter as little as possible with excuses such as other expenses in the same operation,[5] but Jameson's secretary Betty Brant noticed that Peter was the chosen photographer to represent El Clarín in any relevant issue.[8] Simultaneously, Peter studied science at Empire State University, and was friends with several of his classmates, including Harry Osborn, Gwen Stacy, "Flash" Thompson, Mary Jane Watson and exchange student Klaus Kruger from Lichtenbad (who returned to his country).[9][note 4] Peter also pretended to be personal friends with el Hombre Araña, to justify the frequency he obtained photos of the hero.[10] There was some racial prejudice in the University against black students, with Peter being against that sign of racism.[11]
Again like on Earth-616, the two most important women in Peter's life were his widow aunt May ("tía May") and his girlfriend Gwen Stacy.[5] Tía May had several infirmities requiring attention, including headaches due to poor eyesight.[9] About Gwen, Peter dreamed of marrying her,[12] but he was afraid of revealing his secret identity to her, and was reluctant to forfeit his mask as long as his heroic activities were needed to save lives.[6] Still, he spent so much time with her that he introduced her and Jameson, another person he spent a lot of time with.[9]
As a super-hero, el Hombre Araña was the number one enemy of crime, sworn to dedicate his life to fighting crime and tyranny,[2] even if he was not the only active superhero in the city.[13] As the stories take place during the Cold War, el Hombre Araña frequently confronted spies that were trying to steal government secrets and sell them to Communist countries.[7][2][14] El Hombre Araña confronted many other enemies, such as el Alfiler, whom he sent to jail along with other criminals,[8] female criminal Hidra, whom he also sent to jail,[15] Kraven el Cazador, who impersonated el Hombre Araña,[4] Electro,[6] and especially el Duende Verde, who was secretly Peter's friend Harry's father, successful industrialist Norman Osborn, suffering from psychiatric crises. Although el Duende Verde discovered el Hombre Araña's secret identity, Norman forgot everything about his time as el Duende when he recovered; and thus, thinking that Norman was innocent of el Duende's crimes, el Hombre Araña decided not to turn him in.[2]
Gwen's father died in a fight between el Hombre Araña and a villain.[16] Gwen came to believe that el Hombre Araña was directly responsible for her father's death and hated the hero. Deciding that she would be living just for that as long as she was close to el Hombre Araña,[6] Gwen moved to London to live with her uncle Arthur. Her relation with Peter suffered, as both she and Peter were sad at the separation. Initially Tía May expected that Peter would overcome his youthful crush, but four months after Gwen's move, he was still lacking the joy of living,[12] though he still refused to consider retiring el Hombre Araña.[6] Tía May wrote Gwen a letter asking her to return while el Hombre Araña continued his exploits fighting el Duende Verde, who returned when Norman Osborn was angry at his son being friends with Parker, perceived by Norman as a weakling and a bad influence,[12] Kraven, who wanted revenge on the only enemy he had failed to defeat, and used a weakening potion that sickened Peter even more than his romantic life,[4] and Electro, who had more mundane goals such as making easy money.[6] He also had new enemies, including Satánica and her giant robots who tried to destroy the city.[5]
Gwen eventually returned to New York City, and to Peter, for good.[17] She however sworn to never approach el Hombre Araña,[18] and in fact would never like him.[10] El Hombre Araña was still active at that time, fighting spies like the Satánicas,[7] and confronting treacherous Buitre, a villain who baited el Hombre Araña with the promise of a respectable job to attract him to a trap - and managed to escape. At the same time, Peter obtained excellent grades at the University, favorably impressing Mary Jane and, by doing so, angering Harry, who was wooing Mary Jane with slight success.[8] The situation was hot enough for Harry, who had joined Gwen hating el Hombre Araña, to challenge Peter to a boxing match.[note 5][19] Peter easily won the fight, then solved a minor situation with a robot computer that may have discovered el Hombre Araña's identity, and spread the rumor that Harry was el Hombre Araña.[19] Peter kept a friendly relation with Harry, and the whole gang travelled together to visit Klaus in Lichtenbad (where el Hombre Araña found that Klaus was a megalomaniac who died in their confrontation),[9] but still Harry, and to a lesser extent Flash, became frequently angry at Peter and Gwen for cancelling common plans in favor of individual dates.[15]
Peter Parker continued his adventures in both his secret and his civilian identities. J. Jonah Jameson recruited him for a supposed photographic report during a sea trip; although Jameson really wanted to look for a cache of lost gold ingots on a mysterious island; they were accompanied by a crew of sailors, by Clarín high-ranking employee Joseph Robertson and by Gwen Stacy, who happened to be with Peter when he was briefed, and whose expenses Jameson agreed to paid, as long as she became a journalist trainee. They found hostile savages and a giant,[20] but they apparently survived the event and returned home.[21][note 6] Soon afterward, alien invaders coming from a different galaxy attacked the city, using their technology to temporarily blind the population so as to steal minerals from Earth. El Hombre Araña confronted them and, when they saw his power and bravery, they offered him to join them and go to their planet. El Hombre Araña refused and, when he damaged the alien technology (restoring eyesight to the Earthlings), he scared the aliens enough for them forfeiting her initial conquest plans.[11] Later, when several airplanes exploded mid-flight, Peter volunteered to travel in a probably-targetted plane so as to provide first-person news; and, while doing so, he found an organization of air pirates, or Piratas del Aire, that had escaped the FBI and USAF by pretending to be an air circus while stealing information to sell to foreign powers. El Hombre Araña apprehended several pirates, although their leader was killed in the fight, and Peter provided a good report and photos to Jameson.[2]
Jameson and Parker find themselves embroiled in a dangerous business when a repentant drug dealer and former Mafia member, walked into his office to give Jameson an incriminating letter. The Mafia had killed the son of that criminal, and he intended to expose them with a detailed note for the FBI; but he only dared trust a reputable journalist like Jameson. Jameson intended to break the news before the police knew the details - however, before Jameson could put the letter in his safe, he was visited by Senator Roger Steves, then they all heard a shootout, in which the Mafia possibly killed the repentant drug trafficker. Jameson, distrusting Steves, summoned Parker and Brant to instruct them to take the envelope together to the FBI the next day, with Parker keeping it at his house in the meantime; Jameson feared that the Mafia might try to steal his safe - Jameson's office was indeed searched overnight, in vain. Parker kept the envelope at his house for a longer time, at Jameson's request, awaiting further instructions - but then Parker and Stacey were kidnapped by Steves and his Mafia goons while at a University costume party; they were tied up and locked in a lonely cabin, and Steves threatened to throw acid in Gwen's face unless Peter handed over the document. Meanwhile, the superhero Diabólico, trailing Steve's gang, tracked the envelope to Parker's house and followed the lead to the cabin. Fortunately, the superhero Diabólico, who had been tracking that gang, barged in and attacked, causing Steves to spill the acid on his own face. The police arrested the criminals, and Gwen declared her admiration for Diabólico, whom she found better el Hombre Araña. Jameson, discovering what happened, drove by in his car through the area and reproached Parker for his decisions because now all the newspapers would discover what happened at the same time, depriving Clarín of any advantage. Jameson claimed to fire Parker, and was really upset that he didn't get any photos; however, Jameson was secretly relieved that he and Parker were no longer Mafia targets.[13] In the end, Diabólico and Parker were in good terms, and Diabólico somehow discovered Parker's secret identity as el Hombre Araña.[18]
El Hombre Araña then thwarted the return of Hidra, who was defeated and sent to the hospital under police custody.[15] Soon afterward, Peter's physics teacher Koval hired Peter as his personal lab assistant for a chemistry project after classes, developing a solution that, when poured over a man's skin, would protect that person from physical attacks and give him extraordinary strength. Koval's other assistant Robert, jealous of Koval's growing interest for Peter, eventually killed Koval, stole the elixir and used it on himself, starting a crime wave as the superhuman Hombre Dorado, proving to be el Hombre Araña's better in a match. Peter, being familiar with the solution that created el Hombre Dorado, knew that uranium would disintegrate both the solution and the man, and tried to stop el Hombre Dorado from stealing atomic batteries; el Hombre Dorado, disregarding his words, continued with his crime and was destroyed in front of el Hombre Araña and the police.[1]
Another scientist, ailing Professor Stark, expert in electronics, knew of Peter's expertise and contacted him to trust him with a secret, due to Peter's chemistry talent. Stark performed an experiment on Peter, and transported Peter to the 23th century, where he was apprehended by the locals who believed Peter to be Stark, and thus the man who had created a super-computer that controlled their world. Peter escaped his captors and met local historian Karla, who was not against Stark and who started a brief romance with Peter when she knew of his real identity (both as Peter and as el Hombre Araña). Together, Peter and Karla confronted Cerebrus and his minions, apparently destroying the computer, and then Peter was returned to his time.[22] Peter then had a nightmare about him becoming a villain and involving himself with organized crime, but this had no further consequences once he woke up (except that he had missed one class).[23]
Criminal el Alfiler organized an assassin army to go after el Hombre Araña, and created a giant robot, el Destructor, his plans being killing el Hombre Araña, and then destroying or enslaving humanity. Superhero Diabólico found out el Alfiler's plan and stole a small sonic key used to control el Destructor, but knew not how to use it. Diabólico went to Peter's home to warn him about this plan and recommended that Peter temporarily abandoned his civilian identity and focused on being el Hombre Araña full-time until the threat was over; Peter was reluctant to do this, as Gwen would snoop in. Diabólico then sent Gwen an anonymous note saying that el Alfiler had kidnapped Peter and only el Hombre Araña could save him, so as Gwen did not notice Peter's absence. El Hombre Araña then easily defeated the assassin army, but then Gwen went to him, asking for his help saving Peter - and insisting that he take her with him. Unable to change her mind, el Hombre Araña took Gwen to el Alfiler's lair, confronting more assassins and saving her life, and finally confronting the huge Destructor. Gwen held the key and, when she worried about el Hombre Araña's chances, they key transmitted her emotions to the robot. Understanding the process, el Hombre Araña used it so that Gwen's despair would make it disappear. Gwen was impressed at el Hombre Araña's courage, and el Hombre Araña then met with Diabólico, who would disguise as Hombre Araña to accompany Peter back to Gwen. They were unaware that el Alfiler had monitored the fight with hidden cameras and concluded that el Hombre Araña loved that woman, meaning that el Alfiler could use her in a plot against him.[18]
Supervillain Doctor Infierno went to New York City explicitly to destroy el Hombre Araña. The hero confronted him, fearing Infierno would commit any further villainy otherwise. Infierno demonstrated his superiority by easily defeating el Hombre Araña, but the villain then left because he felt killing el Hombre Araña was not worth his time at that moment, and instead went to do some other things he found more important - both knowing that he could kill el Hombre Araña later if he decided to do so. While humiliated in front of the police (who had also been defeated by Infierno),[3] el Hombre Araña kept on his activities chasing Steves, a criminal who had stolen plans of an American secret weapon, through the desert. They both fell into a time-displaced area that alien invaders from "Hor-Mi-Ga" intended to use as their base to attack Earth. The aliens had used their technology to revert time on Earth, so that they'd confront only primitive men instead of the more advanced contemporary humans. El Hombre Araña caused a fire on their base and, as fire was anathema to the species, they abandoned their plan altogether.[24]
A criminal then impersonated el Hombre Araña, robbing banks in disguise and harming el Hombre Araña's reputation, much to Jameson's delight. The criminal expected the police to apprehend the real Hombre Araña, at which point he'd abandon the identity. However, the real Hombre Araña defeated the impostor and sent him to jail, after which Peter enjoyed some R&R with Gwen - who was upset because she still disliked el Hombre Araña.[10]Personality
- Peter's fondest wish is marrying Gwen, inviting all of their friends and acquaintances to the ceremony,[12] but he dares not to reveal his secret identity to her, and believes that only by stopping his heroics he'd be able to achieve his goal - yet he is unwilling to stop being a superhero as long as other people need him.[6]
- Although Peter claims to be very much in love with Gwen, and she is sure he wouldn't change her for any other girl, he openly joked about being with actress Claudia Cardinale and, when Gwen purported Cardinale was more beautiful than she was, Peter did not argue the point.[11] In a time-travel adventure, Peter met and kissed a future historian named Karla, and went back to his time thinking that, while he loved Gwen, he may have also come to love Karla.[22] Peter also met a time-displaced cavewoman, (unnamed) fiancé of caveman chief Zor, and found her very attractive, thinking that her glance was similar to Gwen's;[14] this engaged woman believed she had fallen in love with Peter, but Peter apparently did not reciprocate her feelings.[25] The villain Satánica captured el Hombre Araña but decided to change her plans and not kill him, apparently because she felt attraction toward him.[5]
- Peter does not seem to be romantically interested in Mary Jane Watson. However, Peter's friend Harry Osborn did, which led to Harry being increasingly hostile toward Peter,[8] culminating on a boxing match that Peter won.[19] Harry did not stay mad at Peter after that, and the two of them vacationed together with the rest of their friends,[9] but still Harry and "Flash" Thompson were frequently angry at Peter and Gwen, who went on dates together conveniently "forgetting" that the gang had made plans for all of them.[15]
- Although Peter claims to be very much in love with Gwen, and she is sure he wouldn't change her for any other girl, he openly joked about being with actress Claudia Cardinale and, when Gwen purported Cardinale was more beautiful than she was, Peter did not argue the point.[11] In a time-travel adventure, Peter met and kissed a future historian named Karla, and went back to his time thinking that, while he loved Gwen, he may have also come to love Karla.[22] Peter also met a time-displaced cavewoman, (unnamed) fiancé of caveman chief Zor, and found her very attractive, thinking that her glance was similar to Gwen's;[14] this engaged woman believed she had fallen in love with Peter, but Peter apparently did not reciprocate her feelings.[25] The villain Satánica captured el Hombre Araña but decided to change her plans and not kill him, apparently because she felt attraction toward him.[5]
- El Hombre Araña is particularly reluctant to reveal his secret identity. He claimed that the first person he trusted with that secret was Karla, a 23th-century historian girl he wooed while in a time-travelling adventure to her time.[22] The superhero Diabólico knows el Hombre Araña's identity (but not vice versa); apparently Diabólico discovered it on his own, without el Hombre Araña actively telling him.[18]
Attributes
Powers
- Lie Detection: By hearing a person's heartbeats, el Hombre Araña can tell whether that person is lying,[9] although this power is not always trustable.[8][note 7]
- Spider Sense: Like his Earth-616's counterpart, el Hombre Araña has a spider sense, called "sentido arácnido", that warns him of impending danger.[6] It can also be used to track enemies,[4][15] sometimes to their lairs.[1] By using his so-called "arachnid instincts" ("instintos arácnidos"), he can move safely in darkness.[7] This sense does not detect hidden cameras or other monitoring devices.[9]
- Superhuman Agility: El Hombre Araña's agility, balance and body coordination are beyond the natural physical limits of a human athlete.[4]
- Superhuman Strength: El Hombre Araña is superhumanly strong,[6] able to batter several enemies at once, or a very strong one like Kraven el Cazador.[4] If tied up, he can break up his ropes with some difficulty.[2] His strength, however, is not enough to damage robots[6] or well-armored villain Doctor Infierno.[3]
Abilities
El Hombre Araña is an excellent melee fighter,[14] trained in boxing and other martial arts,[19] who can easily overcome a trained enemy, especially in a one-to-one combat - yet can be overcome by a numerically superior enemy. However, he is particularly resolute and has sworn to fight delinquents and tyrants.[2]
Peter Parker is gifted in the fields of science, standing out as a top student in high school and college. His grades systematically impressed his classmate Mary Jane Watson, who predicted a bright future for him.[8] His teachers talked about him with scientist acquaintances,[22] and one of his physics teachers recruited him as his assistant for a chemistry project while he was still in university.[1]
El Hombre araña has several other skills, including swimming and survivalism (Once he was able to cause a wildfire and send it in the direction he wanted, based on the grass and the wind)[14] He knows about police procedure, predicting how hard the authorities will be against a given prisoner;[4] and he accepted to be a professional actor (admittedly, portraying himself).[8] Unlike his Earth-616's counterpart,[26] el Hombre Araña can drive a car.[18]
Charismatic and attractive, el Hombre Araña has caught the eye of more than one lady[5] and managed to convince his girlfriend Gwen to forget her anger with promises of later dates.[1]Weaknesses
Paraphernalia
Equipment
- Web-Shooters: El Hombre Araña uses wrist-based web-shooters that shoot an adhesive fluid which he uses in a number of ways: He creates artificial vines to move through the city,[5] he uses it as a lasso to ensnare enemies,[14] and occasionally he improvises items such as a bullet-resistant shield.[7] Some villains like Satania (who apparently has no superhuman powers) have escaped after being tied up with his web,[7] and at least once el Hombre Araña was tied up with his own web.[5] Electro's electricity-based attacks have proven strong enough to burn away el Hombre Araña's webs.[6]
Transportation
- Web-Swinging: el Hombre Araña uses his web-shooters to travel by swinging on web-lines.[5]
Notes
- Earth-TRN911 apparently replicates the events in Earth-616's Peter Parker's life up until Amazing Spider-Man #102 (published and translated as Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #122); from that point onward Mexican publisher La Prensa printed 45 issues with original stories about el Hombre Araña in his university days, with Marvel's approval, to satisfy Mexican readers. Per the available sources, Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #65 reprinted Amazing Spider-Man #65, where Peter Parker and Harry Osborn moved together. However, on Earth-TRN911, Peter clearly lives not with Harry, but with his Tía May (although not in a house, but in a departamento or flat), as seen in Sorprendente Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #128 (where Harry's home is seen as different to Peter's), Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #129, and Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #143.
- On Earth-TRN911, there is no reason to think that Gwen Stacy suffered a violent death. Last thing we know, she continued her romance with Peter Parker, the story implying that it was leading to a happy wedding (although Peter was not eager to reveal his secret identity to her).
- Similarly, the stories leading to Norman Osborn's (apparent) death and Harry becoming the Green Goblin were never published by La Prensa, so there is no reason to believe Harry became el Duende Verde on Earth-TRN911.
- For reasons unclear, although this stories reflect Peter Parker's university years, Peter is not living with Harry Osborn. Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #65, which reprints and translates Amazing Spider-Man #46, should depict the moment where Peter moves with Harry. However, Peter is seen living with Aunt May in Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #128, Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #129, Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #143 and others - per #128, explicitly in an apartment, unlike the several-floor house May owns in Earth-616; and Harry is seen living either alone or with his father in Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #58.
- On Earth-616, Peter worked as a freelance photographer. Here, Jameson apparently expects Peter to also write the articles[2] and threatens to fire him several times.[8][13]
- In Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #148, the doctor checks that Peter's blood group and Aunt May's are different from hers, so he can't donate blood to her. However, in Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #12 (which reprints Amazing Spider-Man #10), Peter donates his blood to May because they are the same blood group.
- Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #172 shows a long dream sequence (most of the issue) where el Hombre Araña becomes a criminal, only to wake up in the end. This must have happened in a yet-unnumbered alternate reality.
- ↑ In Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #150, el Hombre Araña is said to be approximately 170 centimeters tall - around 5'7"; even if on Earth-616, Spider-Man is 5'10"
- ↑ The initial stories reprinting Steve Ditko's and John Romita's art depict Peter as brown-haired; but he is consistently black-haired since at least Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #128
- ↑ El Hombre Araña's stories published by La Prensa in El Sorprendente Hombre Araña simply reprinted translated versions of Amazing Spider-Man and other Marvel series up until Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #122, reprinting Amazing Spider-Man #102. From that point on, the series continued with original stories created by La Prensa's José Luis Durán.
- ↑ In Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #172, Peter misses a class and hopes that Gwen can tell him the lesson, proving that they go to the same class.
- ↑ This is something unusual for university students of science, and far more likely in high school. This is because the story adapts Amazing Spider-Man #8, which takes place in Peter's high school years, replacing a couple characters (Harry Osborn instead of Flash Thompson and Mary Jane Watson instead of Liz Allan), notwithstanding the fact that this story had been translated and published for the Mexican readers in the same series as Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #8
- ↑ The story arc starts in Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #154 and apparently continues in Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #155 and maybe Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #156, but the author of this article can't access those last issues. In Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #157, the story is different and the status quo seems to have been restored, with Peter and Gwen back in New York.
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #153 seems to be an adaptation of Daredevil #9, changing Daredevil with el Hombre Araña and Matt Murdock with Peter Parker, with a few more details like Peter visiting Lichtenbad to improve Tía May's health instead of Matt visiting Lichtenbad to cure his blindness. Particularly, there's a moment where Peter discovers that another character is lying by hearing their heartbeat, a superpower that Daredevil has but Spider-Man has not. However, in Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #149, el Buitre openly lies at el Hombre Araña (by offering him a movie deal he intended not to fulfill as a cover for a trap) and el Hombre Araña believes him, unable to see that el Buitre was lying.
See Also
Links and References
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #169
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #159
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #177
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #129
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #137
- ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #135
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #148
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #149
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #153
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #180
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #157
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #128
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #163
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #178
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #165
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #109
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #147
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #173
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #150
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #154
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #155
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #171
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #172
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #178–179
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man (MX) #179
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man #130