For decades, Spider-Man's relatable personality and life experiences have cemented him as one of Marvel fans' favorite characters. Creating a down-to-earth hero was the original idea Stan Lee and Steve Ditko had in Amazing Fantasy #15. Whether it's being late to class or having relationship troubles, Spidey has experienced everything the readers have.
Spider-Man's popularity remained because he continually faced and overcame his hardships. In order to raise the stakes, Spider-Man needed to face bigger threats. However, rather than create more powerful enemies every time they needed to create tension, sometimes Marvel did things to weaken Spider-Man instead.
10 Spider-Man Can't Save Loved Ones
Spider-Man: Bloodlines #1 By JJ and Henry Abrams, Sara Pichelli, Elisabetta D'Amico, Dave Stewart, Joe Caramagna, Nick Lowe, And Kathleen Wisneski
Fans may remember when JJ Abrams took a stab at comics in 2019's Spider-Man: Bloodlines. In Issue #1, written by JJ and Henry Abrams, with art by Sara Pichelli, Spider-Man lost Mary Jane Watson to Cadaverous' hand.
Spider-Man being unable to save a loved one isn't a new concept. Spider-Man #121, by Gerry Conway, Gil Kane, and John Romita features the famous death of Gwen Stacy. However, the trend of killing Spidey's loved ones not only cheapens Gwen's death as a crucial moment in Spidey's history, but it also risks making him look less capable of a hero.
9 Doc Ock As The Superior Spider-Man
Superior Spider-Man #1 By Dan Slott, Ryan Stegman, Edgar Delgado, Chris Eliopoulos, Ellie Pyle, Stephen Wacker And Tom Brevoort
In 2013, Peter Parker witnessed the death of his long-time enemy Doc Ock, only for Otto Octavius to hijack Spidey's body and become the Superior Spider-Man. The run would feature Otto being a ruthless, but more efficient version of the Wall-Crawler.
The Superior Spider-Man storyline made a problematic implication that anyone could do a better job than Peter Parker. Somehow, Marvel writers often resort to someone picking up the Spider-Man mantel and being better than the original. It's more sour knowing that one of Spider-Man's dastardly villains did a better job cleaning up the town.
8 Spider-Man's Frequent Battles With Guilt
Amazing Spider-Man #538 By J. Michael Straczynski, Ron Garney, Bill Reinhold, Matt Milla, Cory Petit, Axel Alonso, And Michael O'Connor
Spider-Man: One More Day, by J. Michael Straczynski, Joe Quesada and Danny Miki is the subject of controversy for many fans. The run dissolved Peter and Mary Jane's marriage due to Spider-Man making a deal with the devil to save his dying Aunt May.
Peter Parker has a tendency to place guilt on himself for things he can't have changed. This guilt then leads him to make rash decisions, the most infamous being his decision to erase his marriage. Each time Spider-Man decides everything is his fault, he takes two steps backward, and it makes him appear like a less mature hero.
7 Spider-Man Loses To His Foes Before Stopping Them
Web Of Spider-Man #31 By J.M DeMatteis, Mike Zeck, Bob McLeod, Janet Jackson, Bob Sharen, Rick Parker and Jim Salicrup
Kraven's Last Hunt, by J.M DeMatteis and Mike Zeck is a classic in Spider-Man's history. It shows a darker side of Marvel with a twisted tale more reminiscent of DC Comics' Batman narratives. Kraven's Last Hunt opens with the villain of the Kraven the Hunter defeating Spider-Man and replacing him.
Kraven spends the rest of the arc fighting crime as the "new and improved" Spider-Man. Kraven doesn't have Spider-Man trademark abilities, and yet, he defeated Spidey with relative ease. While Spider-Man's defeats lay the groundwork for intruiging stories, some tales make him appear much weaker than he should be.
6 Venom's Existence
Amazing Spider-Man #300 By Dave Michelinie, Todd McFarlane, Bob Sharen, Rick Parker, and Jim Salicrup
Debuting in Amazing Spider-Man #300, by Dave Michelinie and Todd McFarlane, Venom was quickly solidified as Spider-Man's evil twin. However, as time has gone on, it's become clear that Eddie Brock and his suit are better than Spider-Man in nearly every way.
Venom's stronger, faster, and his webs are tougher than anything Peter has concocted. Spider-Man often relies on surprising his enemies, but his spider-sense doesn't work on Venom, leaving him susceptible to similar sneak-attacks.
5 Breaking Up With MJ
Amazing Spider-Man #23 (Vol. 6) by Zeb Wells And John Romita Jr.
Marvel just can't seem to stop breaking up everyone's favorite comic couple. The trend appears to be continuing in Amazing Spider-Man #23, by Zeb Wells and John Romita Jr, as the issue seeks to explain just what's separated Peter and Mary Jane this time.
It's a trend that gets tiresome because Mary Jane Watson is the one constant in Spider-Man's life. She's been through it with him. It's also the one relationship Peter actively works to maintain. To see writers immediately jump to break them up always feels like a detriment to the wall-crawler's character.
4 The Reboots
Ultimate Spider-Man #1 By Brian Michael Bendis, Bill Jemas, Mark Bagley, Art Thibert, Steve Buccellato, Richard Starkings, and Ralph Macchio
The 2000's brought many changes to Marvel Comics, as they moved away from their usual 90s trends. One decision included rebooting their entire comic universe to better sync with the films being developed at the time. Ultimate Spider-Man #1, by Brian Bendis and Mark Bagley, saw Peter Parker being reduced to a 15-year-old and starting over as a teenager with high school problems.
To millennial fans, the stories are fondly remembered. However, it this change reduced Spider-Man to a street-level crime fighter. Spider-Man was no longer facing off against cosmic threats with the Avengers. Instead, he was back to fighting crime as far as Manhattan Bridge, which greatly reduced what the Web-head was capable of.
3 The Movie Adaptions
Spider-Man: Homecoming By Jon Watts
As far as superhero movies go, the wall-crawler has probably been treated the best. The Sam Raimi films were roaring successes, along with the Marc Webb films and Spidey's eventual foray into the MCU. However, none of Spider-Man's adaptations have ever nailed just how powerful he is as a superhero.
The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1, by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko saw Spidey take on and defeat The Sinister Six all by himself. Spider-Man #98, by Howard Mackie and John Romita Jr. saw him lift the Daily Bugle on his shoulders. The films have led many to think Spider-Man is just a kid who can shoot webs, when in reality, he's one of Marvel's strongest heroes.
2 Spider-Man's Death
Ultimate Spider-Man #160 By Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Bagley, Andy Lanning, Andrew Hennessy, Justin Ponsor, Cory Petit, Mark Paniccia, and Sana Amanat
Although it led to the arrival of Miles Morales, Ultimate Spider-Man's death was another event that damaged the wall-crawler's reputation. It's also not the first time Marvel has killed off Spidey. The Web-Slinger has met his demise in many alternate time-lines.
The death of Peter Parker in Ultimate Spider-Man #160 came off as another example of the original Spider-Man being seen as the weaker version of the character. He's killed off gruesomely, then days later, a new character comes out of nowhere and takes up the mantle.
1 The Spider-Verse
The Amazing Spider-Man #9 By Dan Slott, Olivier Coipel, Giuseppe Camuncoli, Wade Von Grawbadger, Cam Smith, and Justin Ponsor
Beginning with the comic of the same name by Dan Slott, the Spider-verse is a massive idea that eventually grew into a major franchise. The concept of alternate Spider-Men spread to various forms of media to varying degrees of success. However, it completely cheapened the concept behind the original comics.
When Ditko and Lee created Spider-Man sixty years ago, the comics focused on the idea that Peter Parker was special, despite being an outcast. Peter Parker was the one nobody paid attention to, yet was granted amazing power to do amazing things. Now, there are unlimited amounts of Spider-Men and women who all practically have the same origin and powers. This makes Peter Parker seem utterly irrelevant when a sea of Spider-people exists.