WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Spider-Man: Life Story Annual #1, on sale now
J. Jonah Jameson might have the claim to one of Spider-Man's most enduring enemies, with the loudmouth news editor's passioned cries against Spider-Man often providing plenty of conflict for the Wall-Crawler -- especially in terms of the effect it had on the public's perception of him. But although the Earth-616 incarnation of the character has been afforded enough depth and growth over the years to become a better man, one version of the character suffered a far more tragic life and death.
In Spider-Man: Life Story Annual #1 by Chip Zdarsky, Mark Bagley, Andrew Hennessy, and Matt Milla, a variant of J. Jonah Jameson who never escaped the repercussions for helping create the Scorpion is revealed to have had his whole life destroyed by his obsession with Spider-Man -- leading to a final, bittersweet triumph that comes in his final moments.
Like in the core Marvel Universe, the J. Jonah Jameson of Spider-Man: Life Story was an early antagonist to the Wall-Crawler. A frequent and vocal critic of the superhero, Jameson eventually used his funds to help create the Scorpion and the Spider-Slayers. But unlike the core universe incarnation of Jonah, the Life Story variant of the character was forced to face life long consequences for his part in creating the Scorpion. In 1966, on the eve of his retirement from the New York Police Department, George Stacy is informed of Jameson's role in the Scorpion's creation and promptly arrests Jonah. Jonah goes on to spend the majority of the rest of his life in prison -- with his obsession over Spider-Man fueling him and keeping him alive.
Jonah is able to increasingly convince himself that all of his woes come about because of Spider-Man more than even himself. Even when his son John tries in vain to convince him that Spider-Man is a hero who has saved John's life multiple times, Jonah can't separate the masked hero from the criminal who killed his wife years earlier. Jameson spends years behind bars writing his memoirs, forming something of a friendship with Norman Osborn. His fury over Spider-Man even clouds his judgment during his last outreach directly to Peter Parker in the aftermath of Gwen Stacy's death -- prompting Peter to beg Jonah to just be a better man. Jonah spends almost twenty years in prison in the long run, losing contact with his son and only being released as an old man in 2001.
Jonah's final present from the then-dead Norman was an upgraded Spider-Slayer armor, seemingly capable of contending with an older and slower Spider-Man. But rather than give in to temptation and attack Spider-Man again, Jonah used the suit to face off with the Scorpion -- finally coming to terms with the fact that Spider-Man was always just a man that Jonah fixated on instead of confronting his own inner flaws and demons. Jonah ultimately refuses to allow his greatest mistake to remain unfixed, and ultimately uses Scorpion's own tail to stab him in the chest, killing him. Escaping the Spider-Slayer armor, Jonah is shocked to realize he'd fought all the way back to the roof of the Daily Bugle -- and promptly has a heart attack from the strain of the battle, dying alone with one final apology to the world on his lips.
It's a supremely tragic telling of Jonah's life, and a true indicator of just how far his vendetta with Spider-Man could have taken him. The core Marvel Universe J. Jonah Jameson was able to always keep himself above water when it came to his hatred for Spider-Man and has even become an ally to him now that he knows the truth about Spider-Man and Peter Parker being one and the same. But Spider-Man: Life Story Annual #1 is a reminder of how close he came to having his life completely devoted to Spider-Man in the worst way possible -- and the effect that it could have had on his career, his family, and his health.