Marvel’s New Spider-Man Resets a Key Piece of Lore About Peter’s Family

Warning: Spoilers for Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) #11 ahead!

The death of Spider-Man’s Uncle Ben, alongside his oft-misquoted philosophy, “with great power there must also come great responsibility,” set the tenor for Spider-Man’s entire career. Yet a seemingly off-hand remark between Spider-Man and Ben Parker in Marvel’s Ultimate Universe has given readers a reason to doubt Spider-Man’s entire ethos, forcing readers to wonder how Ben Parker would have reacted to his nephew becoming Spider-Man.

Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) #11 – written by Jonathan Hickman, with art by David Messina – concludes with Peter Parker meeting his Uncle Ben at Aunt May’s memorial, in a moment that pays off the creative decision to invert Ben and May’s roles in the fledgling Webslinger’s life.

Ben reveals he is aware of, and approves Peter’s activities as Spider-Man, and goes so far as to say that “[May] would love what you’re doing [as Spider-Man] too.” There’s one major problem with this: mainstream universe May Parker canonically hates Spider-Man, viewing him as a reckless vigilante who often causes more harm than good.

Ultimate Uncle Ben’s Survival Is Changing Everything Readers Know About His Role In Spider-Man History

Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) #11 – Written By Jonathan Hickman; Art By David Messina; Color By Matthew Wilson; Lettering By Corey Petit

It was established as early as The Amazing Spider-Man (1963) #1 that May Parker completely buys into the Daily Bugle’s anti-Spider-Man propaganda, causing tension between her and Peter throughout the Spider-Man franchise. While she has somewhat mellowed over the decades, even comics as contemporary as The Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #60 feature Aunt May upbraiding Spider-Man for her belief that he continually puts Peter in danger. It’s even worse in Marvel’s original Ultimate Universe: when May discovers Peter is Spider-Man in Ultimate Spider-Man (2000) #99, she kicks him out of her house in a rage.

May’s absolute contempt for Spider-Man isn’t just a character feature: it’s a near Multiversal constant. This is taken to its logical extreme in Spider-Society (2024) #2, in which it’s revealed that one universe’s May Parker’s hatred of Spider-Man prompted her to become a villainous version of Madame Web, waging war upon versions of Spider-Man across the Multiverse – and nearly succeeding. When a character trait is so strong that it can be leveraged into a supervillain origin story, it becomes very difficult to dismiss as a defining element of said character.

Ultimate Spider-Man Proves Uncle Ben Is More Supportive Than Any Version Of Aunt May

Ben Can Support Spider-Man, May Can Only Support Peter

Ben’s words to Peter in Ultimate Spider-Man #11 are incredibly ironic because all evidence points to May’s name being invoked in vain; she would emphatically not approve of what Peter is doing as Spider-Man. This emphasizes a major difference between Ben and May: while both dearly love and care for Peter, Ben is ultimately more forgiving than May, and would have served as a kinder influence in Peter’s life than his aunt has been. The few occasions in the multiverse when Ben survives May go on to prove that he would support Peter as Spider-Man when May would not.

This is borne out by What If? (1977) #46, which expressly sets out to ask “What if Uncle Ben had lived?” In this alternate universe, May is shot instead of Ben; while Peter still becomes Spider-Man, his secret identity is exposed to his uncle incredibly early on. While Uncle Ben initially buys into the Daily Bugle’s disapproval of Spider-Man, he quickly comes to terms with Peter’s actions as Spider-Man as being born out of grief for May and supports his nephew’s endeavors from then on. This aligns with his Ultimate universe counterpart’s actions, even nearly fifty years later.

The Role Of Spider-Man’s Aunt And Uncle In His Lore Emphasizes The Complex Nature Of Family Legacies

Living Out The Wishes Of Others Is A Slippery Slope

This is all to say that Ultimate Spider-Man #11 asserts not to take loved ones for granted. The body of evidence suggests that mainstream Ben Parker would be as supportive as his Ultimate counterpart if he were to live, but it can’t be assumed that the same applies to Aunt May. The Ultimate versions of Ben and Peter are quick to assume that May’s wishes align with theirs, and this assumption comforts them, but readers know that this is ultimately a false reading of May Parker’s wishes. Viewed through this lens, the already tragic scene becomes even more sobering.

Ben Parker is the linchpin of Spider-Man lore: both his teachings and his death directly shaped Peter Parker into the hero he became. With that in mind, Ultimate Spider-Man #11 forces readers to stop and think about Ben and May Parker as two very different individuals and what they would have wanted for Peter – and what they never had the chance to say. Marvel’s latest version of Spider-Man candidly examines franchise lore to ask what, precisely, makes a hero, and if that path is truly what Peter’s loved ones would desire him to take.

Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) #11 is available now from Marvel Comics.