The teenage Spider-Man Miles Morales has his own extensive, fan-favorite cast of supporting characters as he balances school and superhero antics. Of all the familiar faces Miles has gathered along the way, his best friend is classmate Ganke Lee. No matter which universe Ganke's in, the self-proclaimed man in the chair who assists Miles from a safe distance and generally provides advice and support as a good friend.

Now, we're taking a closer look at the amiable Ganke, both in the Ultimate and main Marvel Universes and how he influenced the creation of a similar character, Ned Leeds, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe alongside a teenage Peter Parker.

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Who Is Ganke?

Created by Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli in 2011's Ultimate Comics Ultimate Spider-Man #2, Ganke is a classmate of Miles at their private school, the Brooklyn Visions Academy, and the teenage superhero's best friend. After being bitten by a genetically-engineered spider, Miles tells Ganke, who encourages Miles to become the new Spider-Man after the publicized death of Peter Parker. This suggestion is poorly received by the general public, with many bystanders considering Miles' use of a Spider-Man costume similar to Peter's being in poor taste of the departed hero's memory; after Nick Fury gives Miles his own custom Spider-Man costume, Ganke proclaims his friend to truly be his own Spider-Man.

Following the reality-altering events of the comic book crossover Secret Wars, Miles' corner of the Ultimate Universe is merged with the main Marvel Universe, integrating Ganke and his background into the mainstream reality. Ganke, like Miles, has no memory of his initial history in the Ultimate Universe but continues to be Miles' best friend, confidante and most vocal supporter.

What Does Ganke Do?

Miles Morales and Ganke

As the first person Miles revealed his superpowers to, Ganke has constantly encouraged his friend to become a superhero, realizing that Miles' new abilities came from the spider bite and not an activated X-gene as Miles had initially believed. Continuing to support Miles as Spider-Man, Ganke became a bit more active in Miles' superhero double life after his integration in the main Marvel Universe including his role with the team the Champions.

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Ganke learns a local YouTube video blogger Danika Hart has been posting videos all about Miles as Spider-Man while his identity remained unknown to her. Ganke served as an anonymous source while using the pseudonym "Ned" as a nod to the character he influenced in the MCU. Eventually, Danika and Ganke enter a serious romantic relationship, with Danika agreeing to keep Miles true identity a secret after Ganke accidentally revealed it to her after they had been dating for some time.

How Ganke Inspired Ned Leeds

While Ganke Lee himself doesn't appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the MCU's incarnation of longtime Spider-Man supporting character Ned Leeds -- introduced in Spider-Man: Homecoming and its sequel Spider-Man Far From Home -- bears striking similarities to him. Learning about Peter's superhero secret when he enters his room unannounced in Homecoming, Ned dubs himself Peter's "guy in the chair" as he provides remote assistance monitoring activity from a computer in the high school media center as Peter faces off against Shocker and Vulture.

Killed by Thanos' Infinity Gauntlet snap at the end of Avengers: Infinity War and restored to life by the surviving MCU heroes the finale of Endgame five years later, Ned is seen quietly reuniting with Peter by the end of the latter film. In Far From Home, Ned is part of Peter's class that goes on a summer field trip to Europe where he enters a brief romantic relationship with Betty Brant while struggling to maintain Peter's secret identity as he battles Mysterio and the fake Elementals across the continent.

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