The First Version of Spider-Man Was a Woman

Spider-Man is without question the most famous web-slinger to ever grace the pages of comics as we know it. However, Peter Parker wasn’t the first spider-themed hero to debut in the comics, as more than 20 years before Marvel’s Spider-Man’s first appearance a character named the Spider Queen came before him.

Over the years, there have been hundreds of Spider-related characters thanks to the popular Into The Spider-Verse series. The first Spider-Man was Peter Parker, who debuted in Amazing Fantasy #15 by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko back in 1962. While that character has remained a key cog in the pop culture machine, the Spider Queen actually appeared in The Eagle #2 more than two decades before the iconic web-crawler. While she might have not stood the test of time the Spider Queen was the first Spider hero in comics.

The Spider-Queen first appeared in the Fox Features comic The Eagle #2 by Elsa Lisau. Originally a scientist named Shannon Kane, she was the wife of Harry Kane, a brilliant scientist who was a chemist for the U.S. government. However, when enemies of the country killed Harry and stole his scientific findings, Shannon discovered a spider-web fluid formula her husband had been working on. The fluid is essentially webbing that can stick to walls and allows her to swing. She devises her own special bracelets and becomes the hero known as the Spider Queen.

Spider Queen’s reign taking down street-level thugs wouldn’t last particularly long, as she appeared in three issues of The Eagle in backup stories before being forgotten for nearly 50 years. In a great twist, Marvel actually introduced Shannon Kane in the wartime story The Invaders #1, as the character retained her core origin and an updated suit. So, how did Marvel get the rights to the character? Well, since she debuted in the 40s she later became public domain, allowing the comic publisher to use her in their stories. The Invaders #1 brought in a handful of public domain heroes into the Marvel Universe including Stroman and the Human Meteor.

It’s unclear whether the Spider Queen ultimately inspired Lee and Ditko’s creation, but it’s quite the coincidence that she swung on webs and created her own gauntlets to swing on webs as a costumed hero. Regardless, the Spider Queen found a new life in the pages of Marvel Comics decades after debuting, last appearing in Avengers 1959 in 2012. It’s unlikely that would be the last time the Spider Queen has appeared in comics – let’s just hope it’s not another 50 years before we see her again.

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Liam McGuire
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Lead writer for Screen Rant’s comic team. [email protected]. Find me on Twitter @LiamRMcGuire for comic news and reporting.

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