Marvel’s New Spider-Man Ben Reilly is Becoming The Superior Version

Warning! Spoilers ahead for Amazing Spider-Man #75

In the latest issue of Amazing Spider-Man, a new era has begun with Spider-Man Beyond, one seeing Ben Reilly returning to New York as an all-new Wallcrawler. While the original Spider-Ma, Peter Parker, is naturally confused, his clone soon explains that he’s become one of the first corporate-backed superheroes, courtesy of a sponsorship from the Beyond Corporation. Now, unlike the dark version of Spider-Man from when Dock Ock carried the mantle, Ben Reilly has a chance to become a genuine Superior Spider-Man over Peter Parker’s traditional Webslinger.

In Amazing Spider-Man #75 from writer Zeb Wells and artist Patrick Gleason, Ben Reilly meets with Peter to explain that he was approached by the Beyond Corporation to become a new Spider-Man. Apparently, during Doc Ock’s tenure as the self-proclaimed Superior Spider-Man, he trademarked the name and likeness of the Webslinger, something the Beyond Corporation has taken advantage of as they now have own said trademark. Offering Ben a ridiculous amount of money to be their Spider-Man, there’s very little Peter Parker can really do besides simply allowing Ben to be Spider-Man as well and share the name.

However, Ben’s corporate backing gives him access to a vast wealth of resources and new tech unavailable to the often broke Peter Parker. Not only does Ben’s Spider-Man have a team that helps him monitor the city, but he also has a store of high-tech gadgets and an advanced spider-suit, effectively putting him more on par with heroes such as Iron Man or even DC’s Batman. As such, Ben Reilly has a chance to be a true Superior Spider-Man going forward, armed with tools and weapons that could surpass the abilities of Peter Parker himself.

That being said, a new suit and gadgets don’t make someone a hero. Power and responsibility play much bigger roles, as Peter Parker knows all too well. However, Ben Reilly also knows this as he’s Peter’s clone with the same memories of Uncle Ben. All in all, it certainly seems as though Reilly truly wants to make as much of a difference and positive impact on the world as Peter Parker does. He might even be able to do more thanks to his corporate sponsor.

In any case, it looks like Ben Reilly is going to get his shot at being a Superior Spider-Man in the coming issues. Unfortunately, Ben and Peter’s first team-up as dual Spider-Men didn’t work out so well due to the fact that the original Spider-Man’s suit wasn’t as protected as Ben’s, resulting in Peter suffering from radiation poisoning by the end of this issue. With Peter Parker most likely being out of commission for an indefinite amount of time, it looks as though it’s going to be up to Ben Reilly to keep New York safe as its new (and perhaps superior) Spider-Man.

About The Author

Kevin Erdmann
(2531 Articles Published)

Kevin Erdmann is one of Screen Rant’s staff writers. With a major in Cinema Studies and a minor in Comics and Cartoon Studies from the UofO, Kevin is pretty sure he’s writing for the right site. While Kevin is a huge Marvel fan, he also loves Batman because he’s Batman and is a firm believer that Han shot first. Disney also shares a big part of his fan patronage. Kevin lives in Oregon with his wonderful wife and sinister cat who is no doubt currently plotting his demise.

More From Kevin Erdmann