History Comicbook / SpiderMan

* DrivenToVillainy: Several, most notably Lizard and most strongly Hobgoblin 2112.

* EgomaniacHunter: Kraven the Hunter is able to hunt down and kill everything and anything up until he gets to Spider-Man; this ''sole'' failure is what ends up having him obsessively spend lifetimes hunting after Spidey as a result.
* ElectricSlide: Electro does this constantly as a FastAsLightning means to get around. Sometimes he may end up ''being'' electricity in the wires he slides down.

* EntitledBastard: J. Jonah Jameson manages to constantly paint Spider-Man in a negative light, create Scorpion, gets into fights and kidnappings with other villains -- and Spidey ''still'' covers for him every time.

* FaithInTheFoe: Spidey has been framed for murder, again. And Abe Jenkins, formerly The Beetle, now MACH-1, is certain of his innocence because he knows who Spidey is as a hero.

* FanserviceCharacters: [[MsFanservice Mary]] [[FanserviceModel Jane]] [[HeadTurningBeauty Watson]] and [[MsFanservice Felicia]] [[HeadTurningBeauty Hardy]]/[[ClassyCatBurglar Black]] [[SexyCatPerson Cat]] both provide {{Fanservice}} in the majority of their appearances in the franchise. Given that MJ is a model and actress and Felicia's [[SpyCatsuit choice of clothing]] as well as being a [[ClassyCatBurglar sexy cat thief]] and a [[FemmeFatale seductress]], it's not surprising.

* FixFic: ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'' and the follow-up ''ComicBook/OneMoreInTime'' were intended as this by the editorial thing though fans questioned if there was anything broken that needed fixing to begin with. Creator/RogerStern's "Hobgoblin Lives" was likewise one which fixed the tangled mess left when he couldn't complete the story he had planned.
* FormulaWithATwist: Spider-Man was the first attempt to create a prominent superhero who was also a flawed, but developing KidHero. Creator/StanLee wanted to avoid the practice of making a KidHero into a KidSidekick, and also wanted the character to naturally grow older and wiser. While heroic to a fault, Peter Parker was very much still a teenager with selfish concerns, personal insecurities, and life lessons yet to be learned.
* FreudianExcuse: Several villains were revealed to have these in their backstories. The trope is applied literally in the cases of Doctor Octopus and Electro, who had coddling and stifling mothers, respectively.

* GeneticEngineeringIsTheNewNuke: Modern versions of the story typically have the spider that bites Peter be genetically engineered rather than radioactive.
* GenreBusting: Spider-Man as a whole is a superhero story that is also a classic {{Bildungsroman}}, a high school drama, romance story of all kinds (from teen romance all the way to epic melodramatic StarCrossedLovers stuff), kitchen sink working-class drama, a ScrewballComedy, science-fiction, and horror.

* MsFanservice: Any of Spider-Man's girlfriends qualify as this with examples like Betty Brant, Gwen Stacy, or Carlie Cooper, but Mary Jane Watson and Black Cat [[WorldsMostBeautifulWoman pretty much rank #1 on the list]].

* SeductiveSpider: The Queen is a villainess with mystical control over spiders, and is an extremely sexy woman who uses both her beauty and mental powers to seduce and control others. She once chose Spider-Man as her "mate"; unfortunate for him, as he was both married at the time and "mating" meant that ''he'' [[MisterSeahorse would be the one impregnated]], not the other way around.

** ''ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderManJMichealStraczynski'' attempted to be [[DarkerAndEdgier edgy]] when it devoted a 12-part series that ran across multiple ''Spider-Man'' titles and ended with Peter Parker getting his eye ripped out by Morlun before getting killed. Of course, no matter how much the arc attempted to convince the readers that Peter was truly dead, he ended up coming back with more organic powers, as well as a new suit built for him by [[ComicBook/IronMan Tony Stark]].

* AnimalMotifs: Spidey and a good portion of his {{rogues gallery}}, to wit: the Vulture, the Chameleon, the Scorpion, the Rhino, the Beetle, the Jackal, Dr. Octopus. Likewise, Kraven the Hunter, while not having animal powers famously wears a jacket made out of lion fur. Sometimes {{lampshade|Hanging}}d in stories such as ''ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderManJMichaelStraczynski'', and other times deliberately invoked in-universe with Scorpion, who received his powers and codename so he could hunt Spider-Man: in real life, scorpions prey on spiders.

** The hero's rogues gallery contains several enemies who follow this pattern to go with their animal motifs. In fact, for a time this was almost the only type of foe Spidey fought. Rhino, Vulture, Doctor Octopus, Kangaroo, Scorpion, Leap Frog, Puma, and Razorback are a very short list of villains who, through one method or another, tend to fight using the same kinds of attacks and tactics as the animals they're patterned after. How effective this is varies.
* ArachnidAppearanceAndAttire: Spider-Man is a notable example for being very colorful. Except when he's wearing his black costume. Notably, while Spider-Man is usually joking, laughing, and having a good time while fighting bad guys, when he ''stops'' quipping and gets serious, pissed, or seriously pissed, he becomes an absolutely ''terrifying'' opponent. When Peter's the "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man," he defies this trope. When he drops the "friendly" part, he pretty much codifies it.
** There's also Venom, Carnage, and Toxin as symbiotes that copy Spidey's powers, and the various [[ComicBook/SpiderWoman Spider-Women]].

** ''ComicBook/SpiderGwen'' and ''ComicBook/{{Silk}}'' as well.

* ArtEvolution: Spidey is almost never depicted as the original "boy in a Lucha costume" after [[ComicBook/{{Spawn}} Todd McFarlane's]] run.
** Ditko's work noticeably improved further into his run. When he was plotting his own stories, his work became more visual.

** Spider-Man is fundamentally a street-level superhero like Daredevil and originally his adventures had a realism because TheSixties to TheNineties was TheBigRottenApple era of New York City (where real events like the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_blackout_of_1977 1977 blackout]] occurred in the page), a time of high crime statistics where the idea of multiple street-level superheroes in a single city had a little verisimilitude. Since the era of Giuliani and gentrification, however, street crime level has dropped down while highly restrictive gun laws have been put into effect. Now of course the presence and activity of supervillains do not depend on that for explanations, but fundamentally the reduction of crime should mean that Spider-Man's status as a street-level hero being so important as to make demands on his personal and professional life needs more justification than "[[BrooklynRage it's New York]]".
** The issue of gentrification and high costs in New York, and the challenge to the print media by online and the rise of cellphones and the internet has also meant that Peter's old job as a photographer for a newspaper and being the guy who "takes pictures of Spider-Man" and making a sufficient living off of that (despite being paid low by JJJ) and still living in New York, makes it harder to accept. It was already dated in TheOughties that Creator/SamRaimi's adoption of the same came off to more than a few observers as AnachronismStew (and Raimi made it work by artificially mixing different aspects of New York history). Creator/DanSlott's run had Jameson become the Mayor of New York which essentially updated their dynamic.
** [[invoked]]Likewise, the idea of "Peter taking pictures of Spider-Man" which is a beloved trope and central to his dynamic of JJJ suffers because TechnologyMarchesOn. In TheSixties through TheEighties, when all photography was done on film and professional photographs were shot manually with analog controls (i.e. selecting f-stop, exposure, ISO with fingers and in-camera in the middle of a shot), it was believable that a superhero like Spider-Man would be too fast to capture and needed an insider as it were to provide the pictures, which made it possible for Peter to gain exclusive rights to Spider-Man's still photographs. But this made it harder with the digital revolution and impossible in the smartphone age, as such the trope started fading in comics in TheNineties and TheOughties and has disappeared in TheNewTens.
** Ben and May Parker in the comics belonged to "the Greatest Generation" and Ben was several years older than Richard, his younger brother (who is Peter's father). This kind of background made sense at that time owing to the trials of the Depression, the war years (Ben was a serviceman), and the generation gap, but after adopting ComicBookTime, both Ben and May became older as Peter grew younger, making it more of a stretch, leading to recent comics to try and write May into a younger person.

* AxCrazy: Carnage, Venom to an extent. And Green Goblin who should never be left out.

* BackFromTheDead: Between Carnage and The Green Goblin, it would seem that death is more of an inconvenience than anything. Though the Goblin is notable for lasting twenty-odd years, which seeing as he is an {{arch enemy}} is probably a record. Aside from a few cases of impostors and hauntings, Uncle Ben has, however, remained the only Marvel character who [[KilledOffForReal hasn't]] come back.
** Gwen Stacy hasn't come back either. [[CloningBlues Except as a clone.]] [[{{Retcon}} Probably.]] And no, [[Comicbook/SpiderGwen alternate universe version]] doesn't count.
* BackstabBackfire: After the Green Goblin killed Gwen Stacy, Spidey tracked him down and beat him nearly to death. Spidey was so angry that he wanted to kill the Goblin, but at the last minute stopped himself. He thought that Osborn was no longer a threat, but Osborn, who was still able to remotely control his goblin glider, positioned it behind Spider-Man and hit the gas, hoping to impale him. Spidey dodged the glider and it hit Osborn instead, killing him. [[{{Retcon}} At least, that's how the story originally went.]]

** ComicBook/{{Morbius}} is an AntiVillain who became a [[OurVampiresAreDifferent genetically modified vampire]], with bat genes and an [[LooksLikeOrlok Orlok-like appearance]].

* BigBrotherMentor: ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} has been this to Spider-Man from time to time. Overlaps with HeterosexualLifePartners. Likewise originally Johnny Storm.
* BodyHorror: The Tarantula is subjected to an attempt to give him spider powers. It gradually turns him into a monstrous mutated tarantula and he commits SuicideByCop.

** Spider-Man's origins as a KidHero in high school are given a huge amount of emphasis in the character's portrayal in various media, including recent movies and animated series. Considering this was one of the things that originally made him so unique and relatable, it makes sense to a degree. However, Peter actually graduated from high school and went to college (the fictitious Empire State University) in ''Amazing Spider-Man'' #28 -- only two and a half years after his first appearance. The classic period of Spider-Man as WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld lasted a very short time indeed, and most of his comic exploits from then on were as an early 20s young man, with it taking ''thirteen'' years for him to graduate college.

* ButtMonkey:
** Some writers seem to think that the biggest appeal of Spider-Man is that things constantly go wrong for him. As a result, we get countless stories of Peter suffering humiliation, lack of money, sickly aunt, girl trouble, and just all around unpleasantness, to the point that reading the stories can actually get a little depressing. Note that after John Romita Sr. started working on the title with Creator/StanLee, the book became much LighterAndSofter than it had been recently, a move which led most fans to label it as the golden age of Spider-Man.
** J. Jonah Jameson, the Shocker, the Jason Macendale Hobgoblin, and others have all shared this role at different times over the years.

* CarnivalOfKillers: "Identity Crisis" is about Spider-Man being framed for murder and a $5,000,000 bounty on his head, dead or alive. Eventually, he assumes several different costumed identities so he can keep up the superhero game without being harassed, but before he thought of that he was fighting off dozens of bounty hunters every day. The guys after the 5 mil ranged from mundane gun nuts and thrill seekers (like the Hunters) to professionals (like the Dealy Boys) to actual costumed villains (like Override and Aura).
* CatGirl: Western costumed variant in the Black Cat.

** "With great power, there must also come --great responsibility". What it means to have power and to use it in a socially and morally responsible way.

** Everyone has some kind of secret, either a big one or a small one, and there's always more to people than you assume. Just as the world assumes little of Peter Parker and Spider-Man, Peter himself often underestimates or misjudges people around him.
** You have to work for everything in your life, whether it's your job, your superhero calling, your marriage, your relationships. People are complicated, messy, and demanding, and you have to be there for them and make things work and never take people for granted.
* TheChosenMany: According to Araña's series and the ''The Other'', ''Grim Hunt'', ''Spider Island'', and ''Spider-Verse'' arcs, Peter is one of a group of arachnid-themed super-powered individuals empowered by a mystical force called the Web of Life, and is ''the'' [[TheChosenOne Champion]] of the totemic spider deity behind the Web of Life, succeeding Ezekiel Sims and to be succeeded by Anya Corizon in the event he turns evil.
* ClothesMakeTheSuperman: The Vulture, Shocker, The Rhino, Mysterio, technically Doctor Octopus. Subsequently, Venom and the other symbiotes.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Mary Jane, in her earliest appearances, and her ridiculous lingo. It was the 1960's, but nobody ever talked like that, ''ever''. Nobody outside a straitjacket, anyways...
** White Rabbit is another example of this trope.

* TheCommissionerGordon: One of the things that set Spider-Man apart was the fact that he never really had a FriendOnTheForce unlike Batman did or the support of the press that Superman did, which made his superhero[=/=]civilian life balance literal murder many times over. That said there were figures who did play this role for Spider-Man but they never lasted long:
** Captain George Stacy was the first character who really played this role for Spider-Man in the comics. He was friendly and tried to play down some of Peter's issues with authority. Then he dies and while George Stacy in his deathbed revealed he was Peter's SecretSecretKeeper and approved of him, his death ended up making Spider-Man look bad within the police force and in the eyes of Gwen (who blamed him for her father's death).

** Most recently, there's Captain Yuri Watanabe, who dons the identity of Wraith and becomes a vigilante in her own right.
* ConceptsAreCheap: In lesser stories, "WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility" becomes this. It was never really Peter's BadassCreed as later comics made it out to be. It was just a caption voiced by the narrator in ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 in classic Creator/StanLee dated PurpleProse. But the attempt to make this Spider-Man's ethos often leads to much fuzziness about what powers and responsibilities mean, leading to much InformedAttribute.
* ContinuityReboot: ''One More Day'' is essentially the [[ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths COIE]] of ''Spider-Man'' dividing the history of 616 Spider-Man into two distinct eras (Pre and Post-OMD). Of course, EIC Quesada and others at Marvel disagree (since it's part of their brand identity [[OrwellianRetcon they do not]] ContinuityReboot like DC and they are sure not to call it reboots when they do it). According to Quesada every story Pre-OMD still happened the same way but Peter and MJ weren't married but rather lived together. But as JMS and others note, the post-OMD retcon fundamentally altered and changed the characters and moments of multiple stories for more than twenty years.
** For instance a flashback to ''Kraven's Last Hunt'' from Post-OMD issues implies that it was Uncle Ben's memory that gave him the HeroicResolve to come out of the grave when in the comic it was MJ and her role as his newlywed wife that gave him his strength. Likewise, Quesada also claims that Baby May never happened when that was a major part of the entire ''The Clone Saga''. Creator/NickSpencer's Spider-Man which opens with a ShoutOut to Matt Fraction's "To Have and to Hold" (an annual that celebrates Peter and MJ's marriage and is fundamentally about it) alludes to it being a dream Peter had about how things should be, which alludes to the fact that the marriage was crucially relevant to several stories that no longer work with a substitute.
** JMS pointed out in interviews that as far as he was concerned, his entire run on Spider-Man is erased, since the stories he wrote and the consequences it had no longer make any sense after the reboot. ''The Other'' a story where Peter tussled with Morlun and ended up with organic webbing at the end, now exists Post-OMD in an altered version where apparently Peter still battled with Morlun but did not die, and still had mechanical shooters, as described in ''Spider-Verse''.

** Post-OMD, Harry Osborn somehow still being alive all this time but OutOfFocus is something that Marvel writers never fully explained since doing so would have to get them to explain what happened in ''Revenge of the Green Goblin'' a story arc where Norman tries to torture and gaslight Peter into becoming the Goblin after his revival, an action that was inspired by Harry's death during his exile to Europe and simply doesn't make sense in tone and motivation with Harry somehow still being alive through it all. Writers have simply not alluded to this elephant in the room and merely bypassed it.

* CriticalPsychoanalysisFailure: Creator/StanLee and Marcos Martin's non-canon story "Identity Crisis" (not to be confused with the in-canon 616 story of the same name), has Spider-Man going to a psychologist Dr. Gray Madder (a pun on gray matter) and talking to him about his identity issues, which involve the constant changes and endless retcons to his supporting cast and rogues, such as his Aunt May being alive and dead, his marriage to MJ being retconned in and out, her being pregnant and not, Green Goblin dying and coming back, {{lampshad|eHanging}}ing the bizarre changes to Spider-Man continuity that actually drives Dr. Gray Madder nuts and has ''him'' going to a shrink.

* DamselOutOfDistress: Go ahead and try to kidnap Mary Jane...call us when you stop hurting from the smackdown she'll give you.

** Our dashing hero normally makes YouFightLikeACow remarks, which never fails to piss off his enemies -- and he very well knows this.
** Venom too, though he's much more of a LargeHam spewing out BlackComedy.
* DeathByOriginStory: Uncle Ben. His murder is what makes Spider-Man decide to become a crime fighter.
* DeceasedParentsAreTheBest: Peter's parents were agents of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}} and once saved ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}'s life. Likewise, Uncle Ben was a World War II veteran and a great Dad.
* DistaffCounterpart: At last count, Spider-Man has had no less than five of them, including [[ComicBook/SpiderGirl his own daughter]]. Unlike most versions, none of them had any major connections to Peter and stood on their own. In fact, in an odd inversion, when the second Comicbook/SpiderWoman was introduced in ''ComicBook/SecretWars1984'', the Marvel EIC at the time wanted him to have a black costume similar to hers. Thus, the black costume was made, leading to the creation of Venom years later. Some of the villains would get this too, including Sandman and the Scorpion.
* DistressedDamsel: All of Spider-Man's girlfriends and love interests at some point or another. Gwen Stacy is most famous for the fact that Spider-Man didn't save her. MJ, on the other hand, often fights like a wildcat when someone non-superpowered tries to grab her.

!!In General
* ComingOfAgeStory: Comics scholars generally see ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 to ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #149 (the Lee-Ditko, Lee-Romita, and Conway-Romita era) as an extended coming-of-age saga where Peter Parker gets superpowers at age 15, briefly use them for profit, then after failing to help stop a criminal who later kills his Uncle Ben, making him commit so becoming a Superhero and learn responsibility by becoming the caretaker and provider for his Aunt May, working for a living, and going to high school at the same time. The "Master Planner" arc was the period in which Peter ended his youth and became a college-going young adult, he would later form a serious relationship with Gwen Stacy before additional tragedy ends up leading to a [[InnocenceLost loss of innocence]], where his adult social circle is marked by tragedy and broken friendships (Gwen and Harry respectively). Most notably, Conway's final issue in his run, Issue 149, has Peter finally passing his [[SexAsARiteOFPassage rite of passage]] when it ends with what is strongly implied to be him and MJ having sex together, finally losing his virginity and becoming a man.
* DarkerAndEdgier: The tone of the Spider-Man comics in the original 100 issues run of ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' was generally light-hearted and grounded but it could vary within issues to something comedic to dark, angsty, and violent stories. Creator/GerryConway's run on Spider-Man was significantly darker than Lee and Romita's (featuring major character death, psychological breakdowns, and breaking up of friendships), and writers after him also balanced extremes in Peter's life.
* GoodColorsEvilColors: In the first 25 issues of ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', almost all of the many classic villains debuted incorporate the color green. Chameleon, Vulture, Tinkerer, Doctor Octopus, the Sandman, the Lizard, Living Brain, Electro, the Big Man, Mysterio, The Green Goblin, and the Scorpion all had green as a part of their overall look (Kraven the Hunter was the most notable exception). Even villains Spidey fought from other comics like Doctor Doom, the Ringmaster and the Beetle all prominently sported green. The creators may have realized this eventually, as many of the classic villains who debuted in the next 25 issues (Crime-Master, Molten Man, the Looter, the Rhino, the Shocker, Kingpin) started to subvert the trend.
* IApprovedThisMessage: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #611, ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} claims to have ''ComicBook/BlackestNight'' symbols on his toenails ("My feet are a rainbow of power!") with a footnote reading "I'm Creator/GeoffJohns and I approve this message -- Creator/GeoffJohns, former ''[[ComicBook/TheAvengers Avengers]]'' writer".
* LighterAndSofter: When John Romita replaced Steve Ditko, Peter Parker's existence became less of a CrapsackWorld as a result.
* TookALevelInBadass: Electro was given a major power increase in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #425 to allow him Magneto-esque control over electromagnetic energies.
* TokenMotivationalNemesis: The nameless thief who took Uncle Ben's life isn't mentioned for over a decade until he returns and dies in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #200. His only identified name is 'Carradine', and, thanks to the film, most fans have taken to calling him Dennis Caradine.

!!Lee & Ditko's run (Issues 1-38)
-> See ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderManLeeAndDitko

!!Lee & Romita Sr.'s run (#39-109)
* DivingSave: In ''Amazing Spider-Man #90'', Captain George Stacy saves a child from falling rubble while Spider-Man is battling Doctor Octopus. [[TakingTheBullet He doesn't]] [[HeroicSacrifice make it.]]
* DoesHeHaveABrother: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #59, Mary Jane Watson is saved for the first time by Spider-Man. Afterwards, she asks him: "Don't you have any brothers?", making her the first woman to flirt with him both in and out of costume.
* HypocriticalHumor: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #66, Spider-Man, of all people, tells Mysterio to ''Skip The Sarcasm''.
* KnockoutGas: Lampshaded in "The Amazing Spider-Man #46", Just as Spider-Man is wondering where to start looking for The Shocker (A vibration based villain) He spots a cop in a police call box reporting strange tremors, causing Peter to say.
---> Spider-Man: "Boy! if it had happened that easy in a movie, I'd say it was too phony!"
* MerlinSickness: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #73-75, the villain Silvermane (with the help of Doctor Connors/The Lizard) decodes a tablet that has the secret to eternal youth on it. Silvermane makes the potion and drinks it. However, in a cruel twist of fate, he promptly becomes a teenager, then a child, then an infant, then dies. Until he returns.
* MultiArmedAndDangerous: In ''The Six Arm Saga'', Spider-Man attempted to get rid of his superpowers... but the attempt failed rather spectacularly, giving him ''six'' arms.
* RoguesGalleryShowcase: ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #100 features Spidey briefly battling various enemies, who call him out on his various insecurities, usually one that they share, finally culminating in his speaking with the recently deceased Captain George Stacy.

!!Gerry Conway's Spider-Man (#110-149)
* CoolCar: This trope was spoofed and subverted in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #126, in which a car company gave Spidey the Spider-Mobile for publicity reasons. It was a dune-buggy that could race up walls and came complete with web-cannons. Since Spidey can webswing and crawl up walls on his own, he saw no reason to take it except for the paycheck the company gave him for their product placement. The vehicle was destroyed in the same story.
* FallingIntoHisArms: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #127, the Vulture snatches and drops ComicBook/MaryJaneWatson, but she's safely caught by Spidey.
* GuessWhoImMarrying: ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #131 [[http://superdickery.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1119:with-this-ring-i-thee-web&catid=29:confounding-comic-covers-index&Itemid=32#content centered on the nuptials of the widow May Parker and one Dr. Otto Octavius.]]
** [[ComicBook/DoctorOctopus Doc Ock]] was actually marrying May because she was the heir to a private nuclear reactor. He didn't even realize that Spider-Man was her nephew until after he unmasked in ''Civil War''. [[ContinuityNod Brilliantly]], he then went into a rant about how stupid he was not to figure it out and how he should have kept up the marriage facade for far longer. It is however implied that he actually likes her.
** An early continuity nod had Aunt May, shortly after learning Peter's secret identity, witness a fight between Spidey and Ock, and ''finally'' realise who Octavius was. However, this was a RetCon imposed by the RuleOfFunny; in the Silver-Age stories Aunt May, despite her CloudCuckooLander tendencies, was quite aware of who Otto was. One could say it was a case of the StockholmSyndrome at work as she first developed feelings for him when he charmed the socks off her while holding her and Betty Brant hostage. She found his polished manners much better than those of "that awful Spider-Man".
* RealPlaceBackground: Marvel actually got into trouble for this in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #138. Ross Andru, Gerry Conway's collaborator, was fond of taking photographs and inserting real architecture into his backgrounds. However, for one issue he used a real house in Queens and made it into the location of the Mindworm. Readers in that area however recognized the house and immediately went over and pestered the owners about its unintended celebrity as the lair of the Mindworm which led the owners to sue Marvel and settle, and after that Marvel saw fit to disguise their use of locations better.
* UnexpectedInheritance: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #131, Aunt May inherited a ''nuclear power plant.''
* VillainOverForDinner: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #131, Aunt May almost marries Doctor Octapus.

!!Wein and Wolfman's run (#151–180)
* CantDefaultToMurder: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #161-162, Spider-Man was forced to team up with ''ComicBook/ThePunisher'', Spidey enforced his No-Killing rule by making Frank use rubber bullets. Frank complied, both because they didn't have any time for arguing and because this was ''very'' early in Frank's history, before he became the ''Creator/GarthEnnis''-molded BloodKnight he is now. Of course, a rubber bullet to the head or throat is just as lethal, and an experienced Marine like Frank could have swapped out magazines holding real bullets without Spidey ever noticing. Other heroes, such as Captain America or Daredevil, have also tried to make Frank refrain from killing when teaming up with him. He doesn't always comply.
* FurnaceBodyDisposal: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #151, Spider-Man disposes of the body of the first clone of Peter Parker (created by the Jackal) by dumping it down a smokestack into an industrial incinerator.
* PsychoPsychologist: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #180, Spidey furiously unmasks the Green Goblin to find not Norman Osborn, nor Harry Osborn, but rather Harry's psychologist Dr. Bart Hamilton. Under hypnosis, Harry had told Hamilton about his being the Goblin and where the Goblin's glider and costume were stashed, encouraging Hamilton to try a little supervillainy.
* SkyscraperMessages: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #151'', Shocker does this by blacking out various electrical grids to spell out his name as part of a scheme to extort one million dollars from New York City.

!!Dennis O'Neill's run (#207-223)
* SiblingFusion: ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #208 introduces twin brothers Hubert and Pinky Fusser. Both worked at the same company but in different professions; Hubert was a scientist while Pinky was a janitor. An accident occurs during one of Hubert's experiments causing the two brothers to merge together into a being known as Fusion the Twin Terror.

!!Roger Stern's run (#224-251)
* TaughtByExperience: In ''Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut!'', Juggernaut tells Spider-Man that he learned from all the times when he was beaten by getting his helmet yanked off, so he welded it on with a laser torch
* AndIMustScream: At the end of ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #230, the Juggernaut is buried in tons of concrete.
* TheCallKnowsWhereYouLive: In ''Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut!'', Madame Web calls both ComicBook/DoctorStrange and the Daily Bugle to contact Peter.
* EasyAmnesia: In ''Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut!'', Madame Web is left with amnesia after being removed from her life support chair by the Juggernaut.
* TheHeavy: Juggernaut is sent by Black Tom Cassidy to capture Madame Web finesse.
* HerCodeNameWasMarySue: ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #246 has a series of characters: Felicia Hardy, J. Jonah Jameson, Mary Jane Watson, and Spider-Man have a series of fantasies about their idealized realities. Felicia Hardy sees herself and Spidey as glamorous international spy-adventurers and Spider-Man is secretly Creator/CaryGrant. Jameson sees himself actually beating Spidey in a straight-up fight. MJ sees herself as a successful and famous movie star. Peter Parker sees himself saving Jameson with him admitting he was wrong, and then being invited to join both the Avengers and the Fantastic Four.
* ImplacableMan: The Juggernaut. He shakes off everything Spider-Man throws at him and just keeps going in a straight line towards Madame Web.
* YouCantThwartStageOne: Spider-Man fails to stop the Juggernaut from reaching Madame Web.
* TheNeedless: Juggernaut states that he doesn't require air, which is good when he is buried under cement.
* VillainousFriendship: Juggernaut and Black Tom Cassidy are genuinely good friends, so in the aftermath of ''Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut!'', Tom confidently waited for his friend to reemerge... and then started getting concerned when he didn't (because Juggernaut was trapped under tons of concrete). He maintained a vigil on his yacht until he was finally forced to leave for his own safety.
* WalkDontSwim: In ''Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut!'', the Juggernaut gets impatient while sailing to New York and just jumps off the boat and walks directly there.

!!Tom [=DeFalco=]'s run (#252-285)
* BigDamnHeroes: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #261, Spider-Man appears just in time to save Harry Osborn from a fight with the Hobgoblin.
* ADayInTheLimelight:
** Tom [=DeFalco=] wrote ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #259, focusing on Mary-Jane's backstory which had been hinted at earlier but never elaborated.
** ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #248 focuses on Tim Harrison, a terminally ill child who was a huge fan of Spider-Man.
* FromBadToWorse: Played for laughs in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #266, when after a few incidents, both the Toad and Frog-Man decide they want to be his sidekick. Just when Spidey tempts fate by saying things can't get worse, the Spectacular Spider-Kid shows up. Spidey concedes things are worse. It's left open as to whether their new super-team of The Misfits is yet worse.

!!David Michelinie's run (#290-388)
* AlasPoorYorick: The cover of ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #346 has Venom holding up a skull covered with shreds of fabric in a familiar pattern.
---> '''Venom:''' Alas, poor Spider-Man - [[GallowsHumor I ]]''[[GallowsHumor killed ]]''[[GallowsHumor him well!]]
* ArtEvolution: Mark Bagley's issue as guest penciller, ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #345, was rather rough and the proportions were off and Bagley didn't quite have the character design right. But by the time he'd grown into his role as a regular penciller, his work was so iconic that it was featured on just about every piece of Spider-Man merchandise.
* CoverIdentityAnomaly: When Peter Parker's parents return from the dead, May realizes they're imposters when they refer to the wrong date for their anniversary, indicating that they somehow don't know about their secret wedding several months prior.
* CurbStompBattle: ComicBook/DoctorDoom delivers an incredibly one-sided one to Spider-Man in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #350, where the Latverian tyrant wipes the floor with him, reduces him to a pulp, and basically forces him to bargain for his life or face certain death.
* ILied: One case where this Trope actually saved a man's life: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man #318-319, the Scorpion was hired by [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Justin Hammer]] to kidnap General Musgrave, an Army Intelligence Officer at a ceremony. Spidey intervened, but it looked like Scorpion would get away with his hostage, until he found out Lance Bannon was taking some great photos of the fight, meaning the fight was helping J. Jonah Jameson (a guy the Scorpion ''absolutely hated''). He changed his mind, and said he would ''kill'' Musgrave unless Jameson surrendered to him in an hour. Jameson refused to cooperate (mostly because he had been kidnapped and [[MasterOfDisguise replaced by the Chameleon]] during this time) but when the hour was up, the Scorpion changed his mind again, and bolted, taking Debevick with him, leading to this:
-->'''Musgrave :''' But you said you'd kill me!\\
'''Scorpion:''' Seriously, General, I wear a tail, I call myself the Scorpion, do you really expect a guy like ''me'' to tell the truth??
* PostMortemComeback: The entire robot-disguised-as-parents plan was set in motion by Harry Osborn (Green Goblin II) sometime before his death. It gets even better because while Harry eventually forgave Spider-Man and moved on, the last time he was seen (prior to One More Day) was here, on a videotape he'd made, gloating over an enraged Spider-Man.

!!J. M. [=DeMatteis=]' run (#389-406)
* TenMinuteRetirement: Inverted in the mid-90s story "Peter Parker No More", in which Spider-Man suffers a mental breakdown after one emotional hit too many, and decides to all but give up his civilian identity, spending all his time in costume.
* {{Tuckerization}}: [=DeMatteis=] based and named Ashley Kafka after a friend of his, Frayda Kafka.

!!J. Michael Straczynski's run (#500–545)
-> See ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderManJMichaelStraczynski

!!Dan Slott's run (#546-801)
-> See ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderManDanSlott

* ComicBook/ScarletSpider

* ComicBook/SpiderWoman

* HerCodeNameWasMarySue: Creator/RogerStern's ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #246 has a series of characters: Felicia Hardy, J. Jonah Jameson, Mary Jane Watson, and Spider-Man have a series of fantasies about their idealized realities. Felicia Hardy sees herself and Spidey as glamorous international spy-adventurers and Spider-Man is secretly Creator/CaryGrant. Jameson sees himself actually beating Spidey in a straight-up fight. MJ sees herself as a successful and famous movie star. Peter Parker sees himself saving Jameson with him admitting he was wrong, and then being invited to join both the Avengers and the Fantastic Four.

* CapitalismIsBad: In ''Marvel Knights Spider-Man'', Norman Osborn mocks Peter with classist insults, for being a loser who works as a high-school teacher despite his great talent, which Spider-Man retorts by pointing out that Norman could well have cured cancer with all his wealth and connections if he actually cares about improving lives. Norman then replies that he only said it to hurt Peter by his values, because he on the other hand as he puts it, "I don't give a rat's ass".

* NotMeThisTime: The series kicks off with a story in which Aunt May is kidnapped. Spider-Man immediately confronts ComicBook/NormanOsborn, who's in prison, demanding he return her. Osborn says he had nothing to do with it, ''because he's in prison.'' Of course, being imprisoned (or even dead) has not stopped Osborn on other occasions. [[spoiler: And it turns out that he really was responsible.]]

* HerCodeNameWasMarySue: Roger Stern's ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #246 shows Felicia Hardy, Jameson, Mary Jane, and Peter Parker having a series of fantasies about their ideal world, in each of them they are larger-than-life, special, important, and come up on top.

[[folder:The Avenging Spider-Man]]
* TheBreakfastClubPosterHomage: In ''The Avenging Spider-Man'' #12, Peter and ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} explores Peter's dreams to find out who is trying to infiltrate his brain. At one point, Peter dreams characters into ''The Breakfast Club'', which is introduced [[https://i1.wp.com/www.bleedingcool.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/115.jpg?resize=600%2C447&ssl=1 with a shout-out]] to the original poster. Peter is Brian, redheaded love interest Mary Jane is Claire, jock frenemy Flash is Andrew, Deadpool himself is Bender...and he doesn't know who Allison is, so the person impersonating her must be the villain. It turns out to be Hypno-Master.

-->-- ''The Narrator'', '''Amazing Fantasy #15''', complete full closing caption. Written by Creator/StanLee.

* BadButt: Venom and Carnage in the '90s cartoon, so so much...
-->'''Cletus Kassidy:''' [[NeverSayDie I'd eat you for breakfast.]]\\
'''Eddie Brock:''' [[ThreatBackfire Oh yeah,]] [[RegretEatingMe well, I'd give you indigestion...]] [[LameComeback man.]]

* TheAdjectivalSuperhero: Spidey might have the most adjectives. He has Amazing, Spectacular, Sensational, and his favorite Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. He was called the Bombastic Bag-Man, when he borrowed a Fantastic Four costume with a paper bag as a mask. When Venom acted as him during Dark Reign, Venom was called the Sinister Spider-Man. He is also the Avenging Spider-Man, as a member of the Avengers. And the Fantastic Spider-Man as a member of the FF. And the Superior Spider-Man when Otto takes over as Spider-Man. There's also ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan''.
* AlwaysSaveTheGirl: Subverted with Gwen Stacy in "ComicBook/TheNightGwenStacyDied".

** Mark Bagley's issue as guest penciller, Amazing #345, was rather rough and the proportions were off and Bagley didn't quite have the character design right. But by the time he'd grown into his role as a regular penciller, his work was so iconic that it was featured on just about every piece of Spider-Man merchandise.
* ArtisticLicensePhysics: During the first Sinister Six fight, Spidey grounds himself to make himself immune to Electro's electricity blasts. This actually would make him much ''more vulnerable'' to them. This was corrected in at least some reprints, including Marvel Tales.

* BookEnds: In a sense. [[http://marvel.wikia.com/File:Amazing_Fantasy_Vol_1_15_Variant_Original_Ditko_Cover.jpg This]] was intended to be the cover of ''Amazing Fantasy #15''. Many years later, it ended up being [[http://marvel.wikia.com/File:Amazing_Spider-Man_Vol_1_700_Steve_Ditko_Variant.jpg a variant cover]] for ''The Amazing Spider-Man #700''.

** Spider-Man's origins as a KidHero in high school are given a huge amount of emphasis in the character's portrayal in various media, including recent movies and animated series. Considering this was one of the things that originally made him so unique and relatable, it makes sense to a degree. However, Peter actually graduated from high school and went to college (the fictitious Empire State University) in Issue 28 of the Lee[=/=]Ditko ''Amazing'' run -- only two and a half years after his first appearance. The classic period of Spider-Man as WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld lasted a very short time indeed, and most of his comic exploits from then on were as an early 20s young man, with it taking ''thirteen'' years for him to graduate college. Adaptations tend to emphasize the high school element to the degree that it has arguably become LostInImitation. Brian Michael Bendis took this to the logical extreme in the ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'' comics, where 200+ issues were written and completed over a span of a decade without Peter or his class graduating from high school. Meanwhile, the recent Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse films feature the webhead being played by Tom Holland, the youngest actor yet to play Spider-Man, and he's still in high school as of his seventh movie appearance (three of those being solo films) and 6 years of real-time.
** The BettyAndVeronica LoveTriangle between Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy, and Mary Jane Watson that everyone remembers was actually ''very'' short, only lasting a few issues (44-52) before Peter settled on Gwen and Mary Jane became BetaCouple with Harry Osborn, though she would still flirt with Peter and make passes at him later on, which Gwen usually replied with cutting barbs. Her teasing and flirting dialed down when she realized his commitment to Gwen was serious and then MJ was PutOnABus returning semi-regularly from Issue 87 where her dynamic with Gwen was closer to VitriolicBestBuds or "frenemies".

* ChicAndAwe: Peter reluctantly agrees to go on a blind date with the niece of one of his aunt's friends. He avoided it for weeks beforehand, assuming that the girl needed to go on blind dates cause something was wrong with her. He hears his aunt talking about the girl and opens the door... only to gasp as he sees a red-headed model, Mary-Jane Watson, for the first time.

** ''ComicBook/TheKingpin'' was conceived as a homage to Sydney Greenstreet, a character actor in many Humphrey Bogart films where he often played heavy-set bad guys and gangsters. The Greenstreet resemblances were dialed down after Creator/FrankMiller got to him, however.

** For instance a flashback to ''Kraven's Last Hunt'' from Post-OMD issues implies that it was Uncle Ben's memory that gave him the HeroicResolve to come out of the grave when in the comic it was MJ and her role as his newlywed wife that gave him his strength. Likewise, Quesada also claims that Baby May never happened when that was a major part of the entire ''The Clone Saga''. Nick Spencer's Spider-Man which opens with a ShoutOut to Matt Fraction's "To Have and to Hold" (an annual that celebrates Peter and MJ's marriage and is fundamentally about it) alludes to it being a dream Peter had about how things should be, which alludes to the fact that the marriage was crucially relevant to several stories that no longer work with a substitute.

* ADayInTheLimelight: Different characters related to Spider-Man, such as supporting cast members, villains, and second-tier heroes who first appeared in spider-books have all been developed over the years via subplots and main story-lines or even spin-off mini-series.
** Gerry Conway's late 1980s, early 1990s ''Spectacular Spider-Man'' run was built upon the concept of "A Day In the Limelight", as far as his run centering around Joe Robertson, a longtime supporting cast member of Spider-Man. Similarly, the only Spider-Man stories by loathed writer Howard Mackie that are liked by fans are the ones that had Howard focusing on the supporting cast members.
** Tom [=DeFalco=] wrote quite a few issues focusing on Mary-Jane's backstory which had been hinted at earlier but never elaborated. Matt Fraction's "To Have and to Hold" is entirely about her and it's considered one of the great Spider-Man stories.
** "The Kid Who Collected Spider-Man" focuses on a single-shot ''Spider-Man'' character.

* EarnYourHappyEnding:
** The original "If This Be My Destiny" Master Planner arc was this for Spider-Man's entire high-school arc. His Aunt May is sick, he has to fight the Master Planner (Doctor Octopus), and he's just starting in college. Despite being at his lowest ebb with virtually no way to fight back, Peter overcomes the odds, defeats and scares Doctor Octopus and exposes him as the Planner, he finally gets one over JJJ (negotiating a raise), maturely gives up on Betty Brant and passes by, and saves his Aunt. It was the first unambiguous triumph Spider-Man had after many half-hearted back-and-forth failures in the early run and it's still one of the few outright positive moments in all the books.

* FanserviceCharacters: [[MsFanservice Mary]] [[FanserviceModel Jane]] [[HeadTurningBeauty Watson]] and [[MsFanservice Felicia]] [[HeadTurningBeauty Hardy]]/[[ClassyCatBurglar Black]] [[SexyCatPerson Cat]] provide {{Fanservice}} in their appearances throughout the comics. With MJ being a model and actress and Felicia's [[SpyCatsuit outfit]] as well as her profession as a [[ClassyCatBurglar sexualized cat thief]] and a [[FemmeFatale seductress]], it comes with the job.
* FestivalEpisode: In ''ComicBook/UntoldTalesOfSpiderMan'' #19, teenage Peter Parker is taking pictures of a festival for J. Jonah Jameson.
* FormulaWithATwist: Spidey was the first attempt to create a prominent superhero who was also a flawed, but developing KidHero. Creator/StanLee wanted to avoid the practice of making a KidHero into a KidSidekick, and also wanted the character to naturally grow older and wiser. While heroic to a fault, Peter Parker was very much still a teenager with selfish concerns, personal insecurities, and life lessons yet to be learned.

* GrandTheftMe: The premise of Dan Slott's ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'' is Doc Ock pulling this on Spidey.

* InformedAbility: Some [[AllThereInTheManual Marvel Databooks]] states that Spidey can lift and support the weight of around 10 tons, and yet [[DependingOnTheWriter many writers]] had Spidey struggle with situations that his SuperStrength could easily do the work; common examples are when he is saving people from some catastrophe that wrecked the city, so there are civilians stuck in cars (inside or under them) and debris, much of the time he is struggling to lift some car or piece of concrete that can't weight over a ton and half. It seems Peter can only do justice to his informed strength when he is in {{Determinator}} mode, he has supported the weight of collapsing buildings more than once, which in itself is much more than he could possibly endure. Of course, databooks aren't always reliable.
* InsecureProtagonistArrogantAntagonist: Peter was just a 16-year-old kid who was still trying to figure out being a hero and having superpowers on top of being a high school student and keeping up with his grades and trying to have some sort of social life. Meanwhile, he was put up against adult villains like ComicBook/TheKingpin, a mob boss who confidently ran a vast criminal empire or the MadScientist ComicBook/DoctorOctopus. While Spider-Man has grown substantially more confidant over the years, he tends to revert to this whenever he's put up against some of his more powerful foes, like [[ComicBook/NormanOsborn the Green Goblin]] or Morlon, since they know his secrets and are exceptionally dangerous foes.

* MonsterModesty: Spidey has had several monstrous villains over the years. While some employ NonhumansLackAttributes, we do get characters like [[LizardFolk The Lizard]] and [[RodentsOfUnusualSize Vermin]], two monster characters who have varying degrees of intelligence and enjoy running around in torn up pants (and a [[BadassLabcoat lab coat]] in the Lizard's case).

** Just about every adaptation featuring him has gone out of their way to invert this for Venom, making his dislike of Spidey and / or Peter much more personal, if not any more well-founded.
** Green Goblin's early motives was become New York's crime lord, humiliating Spider-Man, and then after being hit with EasyAmnesia, he goes dormant as reformed!Norman Osborn, resurfaces to murder Gwen Stacy, goes underground in Europe and plots ComicBook/TheCloneSaga [[MissingStepsPlan for, profit?]] and then since returning he has become even more erratic than usual.
* MsFanservice: All of Spider-Man's girlfriends are this like Betty Brant, Gwen Stacy, as well as Carlie Cooper but [[Characters/MarvelComicsMaryJaneWatson Mary Jane Watson]] and [[Characters/BlackCatMarvelComics Black Cat]] are the [[WorldsMostBeautifulWoman cherries on top of the beauty cake]].
* MutualEnvy: The Spider-Man[=/=]Human Torch Trade Paperback ''"I'm With Stupid"'' shows their relationship through the years, with the last story, "I'm With Stupid" pointing out the good things they have: Spidey gets to be near all the hot women and also be able to follow Reed without needing a translation into "normal," Johnny gets to have the trappings of fame and go to various universes Spidey would do anything to go to. Or the perks of power "with NONE of the responsibility."
* {{Narcissist}}: A trait that nearly all Spider-Man characters to some level have showed at different times:
** Peter after being bitten by a spider, decides to court celebrity and fame as a performer rather than his use his newfound superpowers and changes for [[ReedRichardsIsUseless scientific analysis and research]]. While Uncle Ben's death teaches him why this isn't good, he still retained a narcissistic streak well into his later years such as Roger Stern's "The Daydreamers" where he dreams about winning the Pulitzer, the Nobel, joining the Avengers and the Fantastic Four at the same time with both of them fighting each other over him, and of course Jameson kisses his boots and grovels at his feet. This changes after his marriage with Mary Jane where both of them realize their HiddenDepths and he becomes more genuinely selfless. Post-OMD, he retains some sense of it, such as insisting to Mary Jane that it's okay for him to lie to Carlie Cooper for his double life because he wants her to love him for "plain ol' Pete" only for her to dump him, as MJ more or less predicted she would, when she finds out that he lied to her. And as Peter {{Lampshades}} in Nick Spencer's issues, he rather liked the fame and adulation that came with being a CEO of a company with unearned wealth and degree.
** Even his work as Spider-Man has an element to it. Peter's main angst as Spider-Man is primarily how his guilt affects him and him personally, and how it screws up his life, and how his attempts to help others causes problems for him because he's misunderstood or he's unlucky. His reaction to Goblin killing Gwen is how Norman killed "his woman". In Slott's "No One Dies", his excessive concern and grief over losing loved ones leads him to add a new HeroicVow which Mary Jane points out is excessive and grandiose since he's a superhero and not god and that his great sensitivity tends to make him lose sight of what he is actually capable of and what his actual responsibilities are.
** Narcissism is also a trait and flaw for many of Peter's supporting cast one which they overcome. Flash Thompson goes from selfish jock to a dedicated serviceman inspired by Spider-Man to serve something bigger than himself. Gwen Stacy in Ditko's run started out as a self-absorbed IceQueen before mellowing out to an overly sensitive girl in Lee-Romita's run. J. Jonah Jameson is of course almost supremely self-absorbed and self-centered even when he is doing good, acting noble, and serving something bigger than himself, with his narcissistic side co-existing with his heroic side.
** Mary Jane is interesting for someone who others see as this, and who also tells herself that she is one many times, but actually proves to be more consistently selfless than most. After walking out on her broken home and abandoning her sister to make something of her life, she became devoted to her Aunt Anna and even her neighbor May Parker, notably being friendly and visiting them even when Peter is too busy. Her decision to stick by Peter in ''The Night Gwen Stacy Died'' even after she lashes out at him. Her support and encouragement of Peter being Spider-Man during one of his "Spider-Man no more" phases when they were friends (thinking out how she, the most irresponsible person she knows, prefers Peter continuing to remain the most responsible man person she has ever met), and ultimately becoming a very devoted, faithful, and loving wife to Peter. Post-OMD, MJ lapses to her pre-character development narcissism but her selfless streak returns from time to time (such as encouraging Peter to find love and happiness even if she is still in love with him herself), helping her boss Tony Stark and flirting with superheroics even when she doesn't want to.

* NotSoDifferentRemark: In regards to Alpha, MJ points out to Peter their similarities. Deep down, Peter knew that if it weren't for the tragedy of losing Uncle Ben, he'd probably be doing exactly the same things Alpha was doing then.

* TheOneWhoMadeItOut: Some of the stories (at least before the Creator/DanSlott era[[note]]Where Peter is a CEO businessman[[/note]]) and adaptations of ''Spider-Man'' deal with Peter's {{Angst}} about the fact that being Spider-Man is delaying or hurting his ambitions and plans for his career or attempts to live up to his potential. This is also part of the arc of his supporting characters.
** It was in the background of the ''If This Be My Destiny--'' story which heightens the isolation and loneliness Peter faces with Aunt May dying, struggling to pay bills, coming of as aloof, while the final panel has the doctor noting how Spider-Man gets credit while TheRealHeroes like Peter get little reward. This was part of the reason why Peter initially avoided being set up on a date by Aunt May for the as-yet unseen Mary-Jane because he was drawn to the wider social circle of Empire State University while he felt that Aunt May's match would be a little too typical for his sake (he was wrong of course).
** ComicBook/NormanOsborn in his revival often taunted Peter for being an underachiever who more or less still lives in the same way he did as a young man, was still poor and came of as an underachiever. Doctor Octopus in the ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'' initially expressed the same views.
* OutdatedOutfit: Mary Jane for one, but the early Creator/SteveDitko-drawn issues are especially bad for this. Seeing almost all the adult men wearing fedoras, teenage boys wearing bow ties, and girls wearing long skirts is especially jarring by today's standards.

* PairTheSpares: It's fairly common for supporting cast members to get bounced around like this. Harry Osborne used to date Mary Jane, but ended up marrying Peter's high school love interest Liz Allen after she hooked up with Peter. Similarly, Flash Thompson has dated Mary Jane, Gwen Stacy, Black Cat, Liz Allen, and Betty Brant, though only Betty and the Black Cat were exes at the time..

** Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley explicitly modeled Ultimate Peter on Romita's version, and their Peter is a fairly good-looking teenager. In the film versions, Creator/AndrewGarfield looks the most like the handsome Peter of the comics, while both Tobey Maguire's and Tom Holland's version of Peter, resembles the original version of Peter [[TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse who could pass for nearly anyone on the street]].

* ReadTheFinePrint: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man #14'', Spidey signs a contract to appear in a movie. When the producer gives up on the idea to start another movie, he reveals that, according to the fine print, Spidey doesn't "get any money until the picture is completed". Spidey will never be paid for his work in the film because it'll never be [[ExactWords completed]].
-->'''Spider-Man:''' You're not related to J. Jonah Jameson by some chance, are you?

** A number of famous stories and plots use real-life places and monuments. Most notably, Gwen Stacy died at the George Washington bridge (though confusingly Romita Sr. modeled it on the Brooklyn Bride in the issue) and it's not uncommon for real life tourists and visitors to treat the real bridge as a memorial to her fictional death. Likewise, Peter and MJ's famous MakeOutPoint is the top of the Empire State Building, celebrated as their spot since the Wedding annual, and revisited in Matt Fraction's "To Have and to Hold" as well as ''Spider-Island''.
** Marvel actually got into trouble for this in Amazing Spider-Man Issue #138. Ross Andru, Gerry Conway's collaborator, was fond of taking photographs and inserting real architecture into his backgrounds. However for one issue he used a real house in Queens and made it into the location of the Mindworm. Readers in that area however recognized the house and immediately went over and pestered the owners about its unintended celebrity as the lair of the Mindworm which led the owners to sue Marvel and settle, and after that Marvel saw fit to disguise their use of locations better.

** This is also the case of Spider-Man's supporting cast. Most obviously Flash Thompson, Peter's high school bully who via CharacterDevelopment becomes a better person, apologizes to Peter and later dies a hero. Then there's J. Jonah Jameson who Peter respects for his good qualities and HiddenHeartOfGold but begrudges for his dislike of Spider-Man and his smear tactics. Though even JJJ has turned around now after Peter revealed his identity to him.
* RunTheGauntlet: Spidey's first battle with the Sinister Six was one of these, where he was forced to battle the Vulture, Electro, Kraven, Sandman, Mysterio and Doctor Octopus one after another to save Aunt May and Betty Brant.

* SaveTheVillain
** In ''ComicBook/UntoldTalesOfSpiderMan'' #15, Spidey saves his long-time antagonist J. Jonah Jameson from being framed by the mob. And was neither the first nor last time. Spidey has saved Jonah's behind so many times - with absolutely no gratitude from Jonah after all of it - you have to wonder why he bothers.
** Shortly before the Gathering of Five arc, Spidey actually had to rescue ComicBook/NormanOsborn, and this Trope can be combined with WhatYouAreInTheDark for that occasion. ComicBook/TheKingpin sent Nitro the Living Bomb to assassinate Osborn, which resulted in him, Spidey (in his civilian identity as Peter Parker) and Norman's little grandson Normie trapped in an elevator that was about to collapse, both of them pinned. Norman, being the MagnificentBastard he is, actually took this time to gloat a little, telling Peter that he had no idea whether or not the security cameras were still working, and telling him that any displays of SuperStrength by Peter could possibly give him away to anyone who was watching. Of course, Norman was just as strong, but claimed he was unwilling for that very reason. (Or maybe he was waiting until the last second, or was ''actually'' unable to free himself, just too proud to ask for help. We may never know.) Eventually, Peter had to take the chance to save Normie (and found out quickly that the security cameras had been quite broken by the explosion) and might have considered leaving his enemy to fall. But when Normie begged him to save his grandfather, he relented, and helped get Norman out. ''Even then'', Norman couldn't help but goad him a little, telling him that if he had done nothing he would have been victorious in their feud. (And this would be a ''very'' large turning point in it; Norman would perform the Gathering of Five to gain more power to prevent things like this again, would be driven far more insane, his identity of the Goblin would be revealed, and his enmity with Spider-Man would become ''much'' deadlier than before.)
* SeductiveSpider: The Queen is a villainess with mystical control over spiders, and is an extremely sexy woman that uses both her beauty and mental powers to seduce and control others. She once chose Spider-Man as her "mate"; unfortunate for him, as he was both married at the time and "mating" meant that ''he'' [[MisterSeahorse would be the one impregnated]], not the other way around.
* SneakingOutAtNight: Originally, Peter Parker would often sneak out of his house at night to fight crime without his Aunt May finding out. In the comics, this angle was dropped once he entered college and moved out. Many adaptations that use his younger iterations where he's still a teenager (e.g. ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'', or cartoons like ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' and ''WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan2012'') sometimes use this trope, partially to get some drama out of it. One common example is Spidey thinking that he needs to wrap up a fight quickly so he can be home before May discovers he's gone.

** Until Issue #38 or so, Spider-Man had organic real-time CharacterDevelopment going from 15-year-old teenager to high school student, to freshman at college similar to other Marvel characters at the time which averted ComicBookTime. When this EarlyInstallmentWeirdness ended (mostly because it became clear that Stan Lee's trope-playing and trope-defying approach which he saw as best a temporary fad, had led to a lasting series of IP), Marvel adopted a new approach called "the illusion of change" as a result of which Peter Parker's aging and situation has frozen into more or less what it was since he was in college. He's at best in his mid-twenties and has been so since the late-60s.

** Lee-Romita's arc was more episodic but the overall theme was to give Peter a social circle and a series of friends, and try and have Peter get some direction for the future. Peter also struggles in this arc with his duties as superhero and as friend and boyfriend (to both Harry Osborn and Gwen Stacy), getting neurotic because he keeps lying to them. This story arc gets resolved three times. The first is when Captain George Stacy, his second father figure after Ben's death and Spider-Man's first friendly authority figure dies, which also throws a wrench in his relationship with Gwen. Harry Osborn's drug issues which creates problems in his friendship with him, and then after Stan Lee left, it ends conclusively in Conway's ''The Night Gwen Stacy Died''.

** Roger Stern who came over more than fifty issues after Conway left during which Spider-Man was run by Len Wein and Marv Wolfman who tended to avoid big story-arcs, dealt with Peter in the midpoint of his youth. Where after leaving college he goes to graduate school and is considering becoming a serious scientist. He also introduced the Felicia and Peter romance and towards the end the love-triangle between them and MJ. Likewise, Stern introduced the Hobgoblin mystery and the overall thematic arc is what people think of and expect of Spider-Man such as Felicia imagining Spider-Man as being a more sophisticated man than her, and Spider-Man as an object of wish fulfillment and heroism. The theme of masks and social roles is also dealt with deeply.
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: The infamous death of Gwen Stacy. Spidey caught her by the leg with his web to keep her from falling, only for the inertia from the sudden stop to snap her neck and kill her.
* TakeThat: A big one early in the ''Big Time'' storyline towards those who disguise their racism through being adamantly against immigration. The Goblin biker gang justifies their idolization of a known criminal by saying Norman Osborn also was a good businessman who made jobs for "good, white Americans," instead of Asgardians.
** Dan Slott takes one at ''ComicBook/BrandNewDay'' in ''Amazing Spider-Man'' #789. Peter, now crashing in Mockingbird's apartment and at one of the lowest ebbs of his life, is the recipient of a attempted moral-boosting speech by Bobbi:
-->'''Mockingbird:''' C'mon. It's been weeks. ''I've'' found a new job. New digs. It's ''your'' turn. Time to get on with your life. [[ComicBook/BrandNewDay Brand new day!]]\\
'''Peter:''' [[PunctuatedForEmphasis Don't. Say. That.]]
** The same issue also mocks the infamous "Ask Me About My Feminist Agenda" T-shirt from Mockingbird's solo run. She ribs Peter about the clothes he's wearing (unseen heretofore to the audience) saying that it's '''not''' a good look. The POV switches over to a shot of Pete on the couch, wearing said shirt and retorting that it's Mockingbird's.

** The entire point of "The Gauntlet" story arc was this, giving each of Spidey's classic villains a revisit and making them more dangerous then they had been before.
** "The Origin of the Species" arc gives one to Spidey after he almost loses it when he's tricked by the Chameleon to think Lily Hollister's baby was killed while he was trying to protect the baby from villains trying to sell it to Octopus. He then starts to hunt all villains in town to avenge the baby and find the one responsible.
** MJ, during her character development and switch from friend to romantic interest. She started packing heat, took fighting lessons, and became far more practical and pragmatic in danger. Notable in the Newspaper comics, when Stan Lee got criticized for always making her a DistressedDamsel, so instead he turned her into a badass who often saves Peter's behind, which may or may not be the reason for her becoming a badass in comics too.

** Used as FateWorseThanDeath in one version - It turns out [[ComicBook/{{Venom}} Eddie Brock]] has cancer which, through hormonal imbalance, causes fits of rage, ruining his life. The symptoms also attract the symbiote to him. The symbiote wants to take over Peter but ends up attached to Brock and unable to switch hosts again. It has the power to stop the cancer from spreading but can't afford to cure it as it relies on it for food - this leaves Brock superpowered, angry and in constant pain - for the rest of his life.
** A minor but very creepy villain Styx was at one point called "living cancer" - he was a victim of PlayingWithSyringes trying to find a cancer cure by way of AcquiredPoisonImmunity - by exposing him to mutagens. Instead it gave him a power to make anything he touches wither and rot. The experience also twisted his mind - if his ability wasn't limited to reach, he would be an OmnicidalManiac.
* TrueLoveIsBoring: Outright ''stated'' by WordOfGod as the reason behind the {{Retcon}}ning of Peter and Mary Jane's divorce. And even before ''One More Day'', writers and editors tried to break up, kill off, or otherwise end Peter and MJ's relationship time and time again. Also one of the reasons Gwen Stacy was killed. Nobody at Marvel was ready for a married Spider-Man yet, though in the case of Gwen, her being boring was also a reason (since MJ isn't, it's a lot harder to keep her out of Spider-Man's life).
* UnbuiltTrope: While obviously later writers didn't get the memo, the original Clone Saga by Creator/GerryConway was a {{Deconstruction}} of characters coming BackFromTheDead, being fixated on TheLostLenore, and not dealing with grief in a mature way. In that story, Prof. Miles Warren who became the Jackal (and who was intended as a one-time villain who died at the end of the story) is a stand-in for fans of Gwen Stacy who hounded Conway and others for killing off the character, and who likewise blamed Peter Parker and not the Green Goblin for her death. While the Gwen who came back is revealed later to be a clone, initially Peter and everyone assumed she was real, and Peter's still conflicted about Gwen's return because he's not [[CharacterDevelopment the same person]] who loved her anymore, he has moved on and his feelings for MJ are stronger than his grief for Gwen, because unlike Miles Warren, who had a lecherous and creepy obsessive fixation for Gwen (putting her on a pedestal and fixating on her looks), Peter's at heart a normal and optimistic guy and indeed he overcomes his CloningBlues when he realizes that since he's now in love with Mary Jane, he's the real deal since the clones are all fixated on his past with Gwen. In other words, Conway's story is a proto-deconstruction to a number of comic tropes that came afterwards (i.e. DeathIsCheap, StatusQuoIsGod, DoppelgangerReplacementLoveInterest especially as it came to be seen in the wake of ''ComicBook/TheDarkPhoenixSaga'') and why even should Gwen return, his feelings he once had for her would not be enough to renew a relationship which contrasts heavily with Cyclops dumping Madelyne Pryor for the revived Jean Grey even when he had married and had a child with her. It also contrasts completely against the spirit and intent of the second and more notorious Clone Saga which was a stunt intended to return Peter "back to basics" and reverse his CharacterDevelopment.
* VillainOverForDinner: Aunt May and Mary Jane have a tendency of being visited by Spidey's foes in civilian garb.
** Venom visited them both, although Mary Jane knew who and what he was and spent a long time terrified of him. He visited Aunt May as "a friend of Pete's". However, it has to be noted that due to Venom's twisted sense of fair play, neither Mary Jane or May were ever in any danger. Venom never made any threatening moves towards either of them, and Eddie Brock even chatted with May in a very friendly manner and helped her with household chores. Brock even gave Peter his word that he would never harm Aunt May. Later MJ took out the Chameleon when she [[SpottingTheThread realized that he wasn't Peter]].

* WhamLine: ''Amazing Spider-Man 698:''
-->'''Doc Ock:''' "No...'' [[GrandTheftMe I'm]]'' [[GrandTheftMe Peter Parker]]."
** For those who don't understand, Doc Ock, at death's door, reveals that he's Peter Parker, and the Peter Parker we've been following for the last issues was, in fact, Doc Ock in Peter's body. And now, he can't do anything to stop him.

* WithGreatPowerComesGreatPerks: How Peter was before the fateful day when he learned WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility.
* XCalledTheyWantTheirYBack:
** In one story, Peter is going undercover at a club for {{Vampire Vannabe}}s. He dresses in what he thinks is appropriate goth-gear, only for an [[Literature/TheTwilightSaga Edward Cullen]] lookalike to taunt "The nineties called, they want their vampire back!"
** "[[GodwinsLaw Hitler]] called, he wants his look back." That was Aunt May from ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan''. At J. freaking Jonah freaking Jameson.

* TenMinuteRetirement: Occasionally Spidey will get sick and tired of [[WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld juggling the demands of heroics and ordinary life]] for the benefit of [[HeroWithBadPublicity an unappreciative world]] and hang up the web-shooters until something spurs him into action again.
* AbnormalLimbRotationRange: One of Spidey's lesser-known powers, famously emphasized by Todd [=McFarlane=] during his run.

* AesopCollateralDamage: The origin of Spider-Man is all about this: he [[BystanderSyndrome refuses to stop a fleeing criminal]], and subsequently Uncle Ben is killed by that criminal, teaching our hero that valuable lesson that WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility.

* BodyHorror:
** In "The Six Arms Saga", Spidey created a formula to rid himself of his spider powers, which instead caused him to sprout four extra arms. On no less than three separate occasions he has been forcibly turned into a man-spider hybrid. As if the poor guy didn't have enough to deal with...
** The Tarantula is subjected to an attempt to give him spider powers. It gradually turns him into a monstrous mutated tarantula and he commits SuicideByCop.
* BoxingLessonsForSuperman: During one arc, Spider-Man lost his "spider-sense" ability. After struggling to defeat enemies who he'd normally have no problems handling he realised just how much he'd relied on it in battle and decided to get training in martial arts from Shang-Chi, The Master of Kung-fu. Together they created "The Way of the Spider", a unique martial art based around Spider-Man's unique combination of superpowered strength, speed, and agility to compensate for the loss of his spider-sense. When Spider-Man regained his spider-sense he was able to combine his spider-sense with The Way of the Spider to make him an even more dangerous opponent than he was before the loss.

* CartesianKarma: This is Peter's problem after he gets his body back following the ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'' arc, in which Doctor Octopus controls his body. Many of his prior relationships are strained, especially that with his former lover, ComicBook/BlackCat, who has made a FaceHeelTurn and doesn't care that it was Octavius in Peter's body when she was attacked.

* CoolLoser: Peter Parker after high school. He becomes a handsome, good-looking, and muscled guy (and indeed is often called hunk by many girls) but he still remembers and defines himself in the time he was a nerd. He also has little difficulty in attracting girlfriends but a hard time holding on to them.

* DatingCatwoman: Literally, with the Black Cat becoming Spider-Man's girlfriend for a while before getting back together with and later marrying Mary Jane.

* DependingOnTheWriter: Just how strong is Spider-Man? Current canon says he can lift about 25 tons, previously it was 10 tons, but he's been regularly shown struggling with weights that were far lower than that (such as being unable to fully lift a passenger car off the ground) or being physically outmatched by the Kingpin (who's only a BadassNormal). The latter is usually explained as Spider-Man holding back so as not to injure Kingpin, but that doesn't explain why he's shown being unable to escape being grappled. On other occasions, Spider-Man has been shown performing feats of strength that greatly exceed his state limit, like holding up an entire building.

* FailureHero:
** Peter defines himself by his failure to save Uncle Ben, and later Gwen Stacy, and later instances of Peter trying and failing to save people he cared about (such as Jean [=DeWolff=]) triggered a violent NoHoldsBarredBeatdown from him. Marvel also tried to back away somewhat, noting that after killing off Gwen Stacy, Marvel realized that they could not do that to Peter's other LoveInterest, since they felt it would make him too much of a failure that Spider-Man's fun quippy personality would not be possible to maintain.
** He can't even escape it in other Creator/MarvelComics; take one appearance in ''ComicBook/SheHulk'', where he managed to take Jameson to court for libel, but had to call the whole proceeding off because if Jameson went down, Peter Parker would have to go next, as he had supplied Jameson with the pictures the Daily Bugle had used for their slanderous stories.
** For long term readers, ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'' more than ''ComicBook/TheNightGwenStacyDied'' has made Peter this for all time. Noting that Peter's run after that is more or less of a guy stuck in a LotusEaterMachine as a result of a pact with ''ComicBook/{{Mephisto}}'' that he is not even aware of.

* FirstGirlWins: Spider-Man's earliest love interest Betty Brant didn't become his long-term love and the two characters have basically settled into being "best friends". Gwen Stacy was his first real relationship and the first girl he fell in love with, while Mary Jane Watson was the first girl Peter proposed to, and the only one to say yes (which remains true even Post-OMD since the wedding nearly did happen) for the time being.
* FriendsWithBenefits: Shortly after ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'', Spidey tried having this with the Black Cat. It didn't last long.
* FromShameHeroism: Peter Parker tried to turn his newfound powers into a means of making money. But when the fight promoter stiffs him on the payout, Peter turns his back when the promoter is robbed, letting the thief escape. This comes back to bite him hard, when he comes home to find his Uncle Ben murdered. Enraged, Peter dons his Spider-Man costume and pursues the robber, only to find that the man who murdered Uncle Ben is the same robber he chose not to stop, earlier. Now, Peter serves as Spider-Man because he fears that not acting to help others could cost him even more.

* AHandfulForAnEye: Spider-Man gives his opponent a faceful of webbing to temporarily blind them, he does it so much it’s practically his SignatureAttack. He first used this tactic during his first rematch against ComicBook/DoctorOctopus.
** And basically every subsequent encounter with him, to the point that the good doctor began [[ItOnlyWorksOnce treating his goggles with a special solvent]].
** '''No villain''' is safe from this attack, even Thanos who got [[https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS_HTxwLvqDv6ENAPC8BVz1LEA3shuC36j0wPL3tUaqqjDbBTwuURskUZH6WQ a facefull of webbing]] in ''ComicBook/TheInfinityGauntlet'' as part of Spidey’s DynamicEntry into the scene. Another time Spider-Man was ballsy enough [[http://media.comicbook.com/uploads1/2015/02/spider-man-infinity-abyss-122450.jpg to do it to one of Thanos’s replicants who was in the shape of Galactus]].
** Subverted when Spider-Man does it to ComicBook/IronMan, Tony just uses the vents in his helmet to burn the webbing off.
** Its also mostly useless against those who can simply tear it off, a la Incredible Hulk and Hercules. Mister Hyde also attempted this, but it turns out his SuperToughness is not upto mark, resulting in him [[FacialHorror tearing skin off his face]].

* HeroesWantRedheads: The woman Peter eventually married and his most prominent love interest to date, is the redheaded Mary Jane. However, if you look at his list of girlfriends you will find that a lot of them [[EveryoneLovesBlondes tend to be blonde]] (Liz Allan, Gwen Stacy, Felicia Hardy, Carlie Cooper according to some artists).
* HeroWithBadPublicity: To the point where he's the trope picture. He saves countless people, the entire city, and even the entire universe many, many, ''many'', times, but he will still not get the credit he deserves. This has dialed down in recent years since while JJJ continues to harbor an irrational (almost obsessive) hatred for Spider-Man, the average New Yorker is as likely to think of Spider-Man as a great, if not the greatest, hero as they are to think of him as a menace. Even JJJ has admitted, at times and usually under extreme duress, that Spider-Man is at least trying to do good.

* InterclassFriendship: During the early days of the series, Peter Parker, living with his widow Aunt May Parker, was friends with Harry Osborn, son of [[CorruptCorporateExecutive evil businessman]] Norman Osborn. Sadly, the friendship falls apart thanks to Harry learning his dad was the Green Goblin and Peter was Spider-Man and thinking he killed him. Indeed, in Peter's circle in college, the only one of his friends who shared his working-class background was ComicBook/MaryJaneWatson.

* JackOfAllStats: Various other heroes outrank Spidey in combat skill, intelligence, speed, reach, or strength, but he's got enough skill in all these areas to handle most situations and bad guys.

* JuxtaposedHalvesShot: During UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks, when Peter Parker's Spidey Sense is triggered while he's in civvies, we often see his face half normal and half in his costume's mask.
* ALessonLearnedTooWell: Peter Parker gets told that "with great power comes great responsibility." Cue years later, where his family and friends never get any personal time, because he can't let go of his mission to protect the general public by stopping super-villains.
* LikesClarkKentHatesSuperman:
** Both of Peter's first love interests Betty Brant and Gwen Stacy liked Peter but hated Spider-Man with Gwen even believing and repeating Jameson's screed against the wall-crawler and blaming him for her father's death.
** Jameson was a jerk to both Peter and Spider-Man (and actually to most people), but he did like Peter more, and during ''Civil War'' proclaimed betrayal that someone who [[LikeASonToMe he saw as his own son]] had been essentially lying and undermining him all these years.
** Aunt May in the classical era loved Peter but hated Spider-Man albeit she mellowed down later, and in ''Amazing Spider-Man 400'', claimed to have been a SecretSecretKeeper for some time. When this was retconned it was back to the same old same old until JMS had her learn his secret leading her to overcome her suspicions over Spider-Man, making up for it (by cancelling her subscription to the Daily Bugle), becoming closer to Peter, and then when that was retconned, her Post-OMD version on the whole has no animus against Spider-Man's identity, and likewise, Spider-Man now has public favor anyway.
* LovesMyAlterEgo: Spider-Man [[InvertedTrope inverted this]] dynamic originally owing to the fact that unlike Superman and Batman, both of whom are more charismatic figures than their civilian alter-egos (in the classical era certainly), Spider-Man started out as a HeroWithBadPublicity and weirdo, who is distrusted by the press. For most of Peter's run, a major hurdle for his girlfriends and stress in their relationships with him, wasn't them liking Peter but if they were able to look past the general sentiment and public opinion against his alter ego and see him for the hero he was.
** Both Betty Brant and Gwen Stacy liked Peter but hated and distrusted Spider-Man, with the latter blaming him for the death of her father. ComicBook/MaryJaneWatson, Peter's long-term love interest was the first one to admit outright that Spider-Man was cool, and she would flirt with both Peter and Spider-Man during their early interactions. In addition, a later {{Revision}} has it that she always knew, but didn't say anything. In the original context, [[WhatYouAreInTheDark the fact that MJ liked Spider-Man at his most distrusted and went against public opinion and general sentiment to express that view]], meant that [[ZigZaggedTrope she actually did like]] the real Peter Parker, contrary to the general trope.
** [[ComicBook/BlackCat Felicia Hardy]] is more conventional, in the Silver Age Lois Lane sense of preferring Spider-Man over his bland alter-ego but putting a new wrinkle in that it's based not on ignorance but knowing Peter's double life and still liking Spider-Man over "plain ol' Peter". Black Cat proves compatible as Spider-Man's sidekick and partner but not in his civilian life, which needless to say confuses Peter to no end.
** Interestingly, in the case of Felicia Hardy vs. Mary Jane, there's a divide between which Alter Ego of Peter's they prefer with their preferences reflected in their favorite Spidey costumes. Felicia likes Peter's "Black Symbiote" look (which has colors similar to her outfit), while Mary Jane likes Peter in his classic red and blue (and red of course being her signature color).
** After the CosmicRetcon of ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'' attempts were made to claim that ''Mary Jane Watson'', of all people, only ever loved Peter because [[SecretSecretKeeper she knew he was Spider-Man all along]]. To say that this would be [[OutOfCharacter contradictory]] to her previous characterisation or ignorant of the original context, would be an [[DerailingLoveInterests understatement]]. When [[ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderManNickSpencer Nick Spencer]] took over the franchise from Dan Slott, one of the first things he did was affirm that MJ always loved Peter Parker for who he is, recognizing that Peter and Spider-Man weren't separate individuals but essentially the same person.
** In a non-romantic sense, Eugene "Flash" Thompson is a huge fan of Spider-Man while usually being a bully to Peter and thinks he's the coolest guy on the planet, albeit as Peter notes, not usually for the right reasons in that he likes Spider-Man for being strong powerful and beating people up i.e. seeing him as another kind of bully. Generally, he grows out of it and he ends up friends with Peter in his older years and cites Spider-Man as an inspiration for joining the army and becoming a serviceman. In ''Go Down Swinging'', Flash learns Peter is Spider-Man and dies shortly after but calls out Peter as his friend and hero.

* MoneyDearBoy: [[invoked]] This is what Peter Parker first thought of using his spider-powers for, before it resulted in Uncle Ben's death. Even then, the first issue of his regular series features him attempting to join the Fantastic Four because he thinks the members get paid.

** Peter's own motives can also be questioned. After being bit by Spider-Man he tried to make money, create web fluid, learnt his aesop about power and responsibility, and alternates all his time caring for Aunt May, studying in college, and saving the world, without any long term plans to "fight crime", help his family or advance his social career, aside from just helping around with fighting crime. The attempt by writers to spin new material out of a guy who's more or less still static and stuck in the same place when he was still bitten by the spider is arguably one of the reasons for the more controversial storylines later on.

* NotAllowedToGrowUp: Poor Peter Parker will probably never hit his 40s. In the regular 616 Continuity, Peter is exactly 30 years old, and out of college while ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'', the cartoon adaptations and other continuity focused entirely on his high-school days. Early Marvel Universe comics averted ComicBookTime and had the characters advance and age in the comics, this applied to the Fantastic Four, Doctor Strange, and the X-Men. As such Peter remains a mid-20s to early-30s guy in the mainstream comics largely for the sake of GrandfatherClause even if editors and writers have said that he's essentially an adolescent character and KidHero, and on account of LostInImitation stated above, the Spider-Man of the PopCulturalOsmosis is either a teen hero or a college kid. As such, while Peter ''has'' grown up from a teenager to a young adult, the writers generally try to enforce StatusQuoIsGod to keep Peter's lifestyle and personality young and relatable. For example: Peter was, at the time of his introduction, around the same age as the original X-Men, yet all of them are already in their early-mid thirties while Peter was only in his mid-twenties after ''Civil War'', and only come 2022 did he ''finally'' turn 30 years old in his [[ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderMan2022 900th issue]]. Likewise, Spider-Man was already a hero when the Avengers were a start-up, and in Issue #3, Iron Man is the one coming to him asking for his help (alongside the Fantastic Four and the X-Men) only for Peter to insist he's busy whereas more recently the Avengers and Iron Man are established as senior figures to him. As a side effect, this means that all Spidey stories set in between the Seventies [[labelnote: Note]]when Peter was 20-something and attending college[[/labelnote]] to the 2000's took place over a period of ''at most'' five or six years InUniverse, which is really rather cramped.

* OneWingedAngel: Sometimes, Spider-Man mutates into a spider-like monster.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: Spidey will usually toss off a steady stream of jokes and one-liners during a fight... unless he's ''seriously'' ticked off, in which case whoever he's fighting is about to have a really bad day.
** Played with at least once, with him being silent, eliciting a few OhCrap reactions, and at least one classic Spider-Foe quickly giving up. Turned out Spidey simply had a sore throat from a cold and couldn’t talk normally.

* OutsideRide: When he needs to get somewhere faster than he can [[BuildingSwing web-swing]], Spidey uses his enhanced athletic abilities to catch a ride and his [[WallCrawl clinging power]] to hang on.

* ProjectileWebbing: Spider-Man relies heavily on his famous palm-held web-shooters, which shoot large quantities of webbing to produce both thick ropes with which to swing from buildings and nets with which to trap villains. This trope is also employed by most other spider-themed superheroes, such as ComicBook/ScarletSpider and ComicBook/SpiderGwen.

* ReallyGetsAround: Peter Parker possibly has had more girlfriends than any superhero simply because his comics were among the first superhero stories took romance and relationships seriously (unlike Superman who at time spent most of his time [[{{Superdickery}} messing over Lois and/or Lana]] in his LoveTriangle until TheEighties). He has most famously been in relationships with Betty Brant, Gwen Stacy, Black Cat, Debra Whitman, as well as many other minor one-time girlfriends in-between while having a major on-and-off relationship with Mary Jane Watson before their marriage. After OMD, Peter once again hits the dating scene and goes through a number of dead-end relationships before recently returning once again to MJ.
* RecklessPacifist: All very well when Spidey's dealing with supervillains, but sometimes he seems to forget how much ordinary people can take.

* RichSuitorPoorSuitor: Shows up all the time in many (overlapping) love triangles:
** During his period in high school, Peter often felt insecure about his crushes (Liz Allan, Betty Brant) because his rivals (Flash Thompson, Ned Leeds) were simply better matches owing to him being a struggling working-class student with an aunt to care for, and hardly had time and resources to show the girls a good time. Of course eventually Liz had feelings for him anyway but nothing came of it, while Betty and Ned Leeds had a troubled marriage before the latter's death.
** This is gloriously inverted when Peter gets to college and becomes the lust-object for the gorgeous ladies -- Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson. Gwen is the rich suitor he met in college and whose Dad was a respected and well-off city official, and MJ was the poor suitor from the same Queens neighborhood who his Aunt tried to set him up on a date with. Peter and Gwen hit it off since Peter found MJ flaky, unpredictable, and insensitive at the time, but eventually after Gwen's death, he and MJ fell for each other and had a long relationship before breaking up later, and then picking up their relationship after that which led to their marriage.
** MJ for her part could have had Harry Osborn and his inherited wealth for the taking but she chose Peter instead, breaking up with Harry over his drug habit, and still pining for Peter even after Gwen and he are in a serious relationship. After Gwen's death, she and Peter grew closer and fell in love which so upset and enraged Harry that he placed a bomb in his apartment to kill both Peter and MJ, with Peter saving both at the last moment.
* RomanticRibbing: Spider-Man's relationship with the Black Cat was often written this way, with the two frequently trading snarky comments about the other's quirks such as Peter's focus on responsibility or Felicia's StickyFingers. Sometimes this would escalate into outright hurtful insults when the writers wanted real drama. Felicia and Peter still retained their habit of ribbing each other after they broke up.

* SamaritanSyndrome: ''Big time.'' After [[DeathByOriginStory Uncle Ben]], Pete has taken much more responsibility for the safety of New York than a hero of his modest power set should have. Other heroes respect the hell out of him for it, but consider it unhealthy.

* SarcasmFailure: Spider-Man is famous for his [[YouFightLikeACow habit of quipping his way through fights]]. If he's not joking, it probably means the villain has ''really'' pissed him off, and is in for quite a bit of pain.

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome:
** The infamous death of Gwen Stacy. Spidey caught her by the leg with his web to keep her from falling, only for the inertia from the sudden stop to snap her neck and kill her.
** The strain of trying to maintain his personal life and super heroing really starts to pile up on Peter. Between being unable to socialize, keep up with his studies, and enduring the constant scorn of the press via his own boss he eventually gives it up. Albeit temporarily.
** In ''Amazing Spider-Man'' issue #4, Spider-Man spies some no-good crooks casing a jewelry store and swoops out of the sky to punch their lights out....only for them to run to the nearest police officer and complain. Peter mentally facepalms for picking a fight with them before they've actually broken any laws.
*** Although immediately after Spidey swings away, the cop tells the men to leave the area and not to come back. He's an experienced beat cop and can tell at a glance they're up to no good.
--->'''Cop:''' You guys have got larceny written all over you.
** Peter's goals after he discovers his powers is finding a way to monetize it, which emphasizes the social-material dimension on superheroics in a way the likes of Superman and Batman never did[[note]]The former doesn't need to make a living since his parents in Kansas own property and are self-sufficient, and Clark has a job in the Daily Planet, and as Superman doesn't really need to feed himself to survive anyway. While Batman is of course filthy rich[[/note]]. Even after Uncle Ben's death due to neglecting to stop a burglar, when Peter understands the importance of responsibility, he's poor enough that he is constantly trying to find a way to earn a living, such as working as a performer in ''The Amazing Spider-Man #1'' and later trying to monetize his web-shooters.

* TalkingIsAFreeAction: Spidey has a reputation for panels mostly dedicated to the protagonist talking. Sometimes it's done artistically -- Spidey will be drawn in several places in the same panel to showcase his agility, so presumably he has more time to say all that. Other times it's really an InnerMonologue. But one way or another, that's a ''lot'' of talking. Fortunately, it works for the character; Spider-Man [[YouFightLikeACow is known for using witty banter]] to annoy the hell out of his enemies (and hide his own insecurities) during battle. In fact, he came off as more "emo" in [[Film/SpiderManTrilogy the movies]] because it's hard to work this battle tactic into a live-action fight scene.
* TearsOfRemorse: In the penultimate panel of his origin story.
* TeenGenius: He designed his web fluid while still in high school and later designed the Spider-Tracer (which inspired the development of the real tracing bracelet).

* {{Thememobile}}: {{Deconstructed|Trope}} with the Spider-Mobile, a vehicle that Spider-Man reluctantly endorsed in the early 1970s. He drove it into the East River almost as soon as he got it, and is hideously embarrassed whenever someone reminds him of it. Part of a RunningGag that Peter, being a native New Yorker and being able to webswing since he was 15, never learned to drive.

* ATrueHero: Peter Parker's [[ClassicalAntiHero human flaws]], relatively modest powers, and [[WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld everyday problems and responsibilities]] often (both in-universe and out) see him as one of the greatest heroes because he shows that anyone can become a hero. In particular, in ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'', both J. Jonah Jameson and Captain America come to see Peter as the truest hero of all because he is the one that [[SmallStepsHero puts saving lives above more grandiose goals]] and is willing to sacrifice his own safety or personal needs to help others.
* TrueLoveIsBoring: Outright ''stated'' by WordOfGod as the reason behind the {{Retcon}}ning of Peter and Mary Jane's divorce. And even before ''One More Day'', writers and editors tried to break up, kill off, or otherwise end Peter and MJ's relationship time and time again. Also one of the reasons Gwen Stacy was killed. Nobody at Marvel was ready for a married Spider-Man yet, though in the case of Gwen, her being boring was also a reason (since MJ isn't, it's a lot harder to keep her out of Spider-Man's life).
* TwoPersonLoveTriangle:
** Both Betty Brant and Gwen Stacy liked Peter more than Spider-Man who they blamed for the death of their brother[=/=]father, which was an inversion (since originally Lois disliked Clark but preferred Superman). Later, [[DatingCatwoman Black Cat]] barely tolerated Peter Parker's presence, but was hot to trot for Spider-Man any time, the catch is that Black Cat knows that they are one and the same person and chooses Spider-Man in full knowledge. This goes back a long way with him; at the end of a very early adventure, Peter Parker calls Liz Allen on the phone to ask for a date only to have her tell him she's already told off his rival Flash Thompson and wants him off the line as well, since she's anticipating a call from Spider-Man. As she slams down the receiver, he laments that "Only a guy with ''my'' nutty luck could end up being his own competition!"
** Also, in her early mainstream appearances, Mary Jane flirted both with Peter Parker and Spider-Man (when he rescued her) and often expressed admiration or attraction to Spider-Man. Years later, it was revealed that MJ knew that the two are one and the same all along. Making things interesting, MJ actually didn't want a serious relationship with Peter ''because'' she knew he was Spider-Man and she knew the issues with dating a superhero but her feelings for Peter were too strong for her to keep away entirely, especially after Gwen's death.
* UnbuiltTrope: While obviously later writers didn't get the memo, the original Clone Saga by Creator/GerryConway was a {{Deconstruction}} of characters coming BackFromTheDead, being fixated on TheLostLenore, and not dealing with grief in a mature way. In that story, Prof. Miles Warren who became the Jackal (and who was intended as a one-time villain who died at the end of the story) is a stand-in for fans of Gwen Stacy who hounded Conway and others for killing off the character, and who likewise blamed Peter Parker and not the Green Goblin for her death. While the Gwen who came back is revealed later to be a clone, initially Peter and everyone assumed she was real, and Peter's still conflicted about Gwen's return because he's not [[CharacterDevelopment the same person]] who loved her anymore, he has moved on and his feelings for MJ are stronger than his grief for Gwen, because unlike Miles Warren, who had a lecherous and creepy obsessive fixation for Gwen (putting her on a pedestal and fixating on her looks), Peter's at heart a normal and optimistic guy and indeed he overcomes his CloningBlues when he realizes that since he's now in love with Mary Jane, he's the real deal since the clones are all fixated on his past with Gwen. In other words, Conway's story is a proto-deconstruction to a number of comic tropes that came afterwards (i.e. DeathIsCheap, StatusQuoIsGod, DoppelgangerReplacementLoveInterest especially as it came to be seen in the wake of ''ComicBook/TheDarkPhoenixSaga'') and why even should Gwen return, his feelings he once had for her would not be enough to renew a relationship which contrasts heavily with Cyclops dumping Madelyne Pryor for the revived Jean Grey even when he had married and had a child with her. It also contrasts completely against the spirit and intent of the second and more notorious Clone Saga which was a stunt intended to return Peter "back to basics" and reverse his CharacterDevelopment.
* UnrequitedLoveSwitcheroo:
** At start of the story Peter has a crush for Liz Allan. However, she is Flash's girlfriend and initially considers Peter something of a loser, even taking part in the general ridicule that Peter endures on a daily basis. After, she hears an ailing Peter had donned a Spider-Man costume in order to save Betty Brant from Doctor Octopus and develops a crush on him. By this time, however, Peter's interest has waned considerably, as he notes that Liz never showed any real interest in him until he began dating Betty Brant and assumes that Liz's feelings are little more than a schoolgirl crush.
** After OMD, Peter and MJ were on the outs. She moved on and developed a relationship with others while Peter wasn't ready to move on. Peter eventually decided to start a relationship with Carlie Cooper, while MJ started to reevaluate her feelings for Peter and eventually came to the realization that she still loved him during ''Spider-Island''. The pair slowly tried getting back together, only for the events of ''Superior Spider-Man'' to drive them apart again. After Peter got his body back, MJ had already moved on and started a relationship with another man before again flirting with each during "Go Down Swinging" until she saw his Spider-Man outfit, but they are officially back together in Nick Spencer's run.

* WarriorTherapist: Spider-Man has done this as a way to help villains such as The Lizard or Vermin. More often than not, he actually uses this in a way that is normally reserved for villains or anti-heroes: he humiliates them verbally, making them reckless. It has been revealed that a number of his foes have actually suffered some mental trauma because of this, but many of them were crazy already.

[[folder:The Amazing Spider-Man

* TenMinuteRetirement: Occasionally Spidey will get sick and tired of [[WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld juggling the demands of heroics and ordinary life]] for the benefit of [[HeroWithBadPublicity an unappreciative world]] and hang up the web-shooters until something spurs him into action again. Inverted in the mid-'90s story "Peter Parker No More", in which Spider-Man suffers a mental breakdown after one emotional hit too many, and decides to all but give up his civilian identity, spending all his time in costume.

* CantDefaultToMurder: In a 1970s-era story when Spider-Man was forced to team up with ''ComicBook/ThePunisher'', Spidey enforced his No-Killing rule by making Frank use rubber bullets. Frank complied, both because they didn't any time for arguing and because this was ''very'' early in Frank's history, before he became the ''Creator/GarthEnnis''-molded BloodKnight he is now. Of course, a rubber bullet to the head or throat is just as lethal, and an experienced Marine like Frank could have swapped out magazines holding real bullets without Spidey ever noticing. Other heroes, such as Captain America or Daredevil, have also tried to make Frank refrain from killing when teaming up with him. He doesn't always comply.

* CoverIdentityAnomaly: In the early 1990s arc where Peter Parker's parents return from the dead, May realizes they're imposters when they refer to the wrong date for their anniversary, indicating that they somehow don't know about their secret wedding several months prior.

* DarkerAndEdgier: The tone of the Spider-Man comics in the original 100 issues run was generally light-hearted and grounded but it could vary within issues to something comedic to dark, angsty, and violent stories. Creator/GerryConway's run on Spider-Man was significantly darker than Lee and Romita's (featuring major character death, psychological breakdowns, and breaking up of friendships), and writers after him also balanced extremes in Peter's life.

* FurnaceBodyDisposal: Spider-Man disposed of the body of the first clone of Peter Parker (created by the Jackal) by dumping it down a smokestack into an industrial incinerator.

* GoodColorsEvilColors: In the first 25 issues of Amazing Spider-Man where many classic villains debuted, almost all of them incorporate the color green. Chameleon, Vulture, Tinkerer, Doctor Octopus, the Sandman, the Lizard, Living Brain, Electro, the Big Man, Mysterio, The Green Goblin, and the Scorpion all had green as a part of their overall look (Kraven the Hunter was the most notable exception). Even villains Spidey fought from other comics like Doctor Doom, the Ringmaster and the Beetle all prominently sported green. The creators may have realized this eventually, as many of the classic villains who debuted in the next 25 issues (Crime-Master, Molten Man, the Looter, the Rhino, the Shocker, Kingpin) started to subvert the trend.

* HerCodeNameWasMarySue: Roger Stern's "The Daydreamers" (Amazing Spider-Man #246) shows Felicia Hardy, Jameson, Mary Jane, and Peter Parker having a series of fantasies about their ideal world, in each of them they are larger-than-life, special, important, and come up on top.

* HypocriticalHumor: In one of the earlier issues, Spider-Man, of all people, tells Mysterio to ''quit it with the sarcasm.''

* LighterAndSofter: See "DarkerAndEdgier". The first notable example was when John Romita replaced Steve Ditko and Peter Parker's existence became less of a CrapsackWorld as a result.

* ARiddleWrappedInAMysteryInsideAnEnigma: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #26, the narrator asks, "Can Spider-Man solve this dark riddle, cloaked within a grim puzzle, hidden beneath the shadows of a deadly enigma?"
* RoguesGalleryShowcase: The original "Sinister Six" story was this more than anything, as the story featured Spider-Man fighting each of his enemies one on one rather in a group.
** Played more straight with issue #100, which, [[LateArrivalSpoiler if you haven't read it]], features Spidey briefly battling various enemies, who call him out on his various insecurities, usually one that they share, finally culminating in his speaking with the recently deceased Captain George Stacy.

** ''ComicBook/KravensLastHunt'' made Kraven a badass after several decades of being a loser villain. Similarly, Electro was given a major power increase in ''Amazing Spider-Man'' #425 to allow him Magneto-esque control over electromagnetic energies, Harry Osborn when he's AxCrazy, Roderick Kingsley when he became Hobgoblin.

* TokenMotivationalNemesis: The nameless thief who took Uncle Ben's life isn't mentioned for over a decade, until he returns and dies in the 200th issue of ''The Amazing Spider-Man''. His only identified name is 'Carradine', and, thanks to the film, most fans have taken to calling him Dennis Caradine.

* UnexpectedInheritance: Aunt May once inherited a ''nuclear power plant.''

** Aunt May almost got married to Doc Ock once. She also '''took out the Chameleon''' disguised as Peter Parker with poisoned cookies because [[SpotTheImposter she knew he wasn't the real Peter]].

[[folder:The Amazing Spider-Man]]
* ArtisticLicensePhysics: During the first Sinister Six fight, Spidey grounds himself to make himself immune to Electro's electricity blasts. This actually would make him much ''more vulnerable'' to them. This was corrected in at least some reprints, including Marvel Tales.
* ChicAndAwe: Peter reluctantly agrees to go on a blind date with the niece of one of his aunt's friends. He avoided it for weeks beforehand, assuming that the girl needed to go on blind dates cause something was wrong with her. He hears his aunt talking about the girl and opens the door... only to gasp as he sees a red-headed model, Mary-Jane Watson, for the first time.
* CoverIdentityAnomaly: In the early 1990s arc where Peter Parker's parents return from the dead, May realizes they're imposters when they refer to the wrong date for their anniversary, indicating that they somehow don't know about their secret wedding several months prior.
* CurbStompBattle: ComicBook/DoctorDoom delivers an incredibly one-sided one to Spider-Man in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #350, where the Latverian tyrant wipes the floor with him, reduces him to a pulp, and basically forces him to bargain for his life or face certain death.
* DemandOverload: InUniverse. In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #533, when Spider-Man publicly revealed his secret identity, the Internet broke down because too many people were trying to do a name search on "Peter Parker" simultaneously.
* DramaticDislocation: In ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #575, Spider-Man does this in order to put a ''dislocated jaw'' back into place after battling Hammerhead. Proportionate strength of a spider + metal garbage bin = ''ow''.

* IronicNickname: Tom Taylor's first issue in Volume 2 of ''Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man'' {{Lampshades}} this when after Spidey saves a little girl and her father, the small child slaps his spider emblem on his chest out of her dislike for spiders:

[[folder:Alternate Continuity]]

[[folder:Storylines in the Main 616 Continuity]]

!!Tropes for 616 Comics in General

* AbsurdlyHighStakesGame: One issue had a somewhat lighter-hearted version of this. The New York superheroes have a yearly poker game with twenty dollar stakes with the winner donating their winnings to charity. Then along comes ComicBook/TheKingpin with a ridiculous amount of money. There's nothing really at stake more than pride and a good cause, but that doesn't mean it's any less entertaining to watch Spider-Man and Kingpin play out the final round with ludicrous piles of chips each. (Spidey won- his Spider-Sense means that [[ParanormalGamblingAdvantage he always knows whether or not someone's bluffing]].)

* AlasPoorVillain: Harry Osborn, the second Green Goblin in the later-retconned but still well-remembered story "Best of Enemies" in ''The Spectacular Spider-Man'' Issue #200.

* ArtStyleDissonance: ''Spectacular Spider-Man #86'' was published during Assistant Editor's Month, so the gimmick of that issue was that Bob [=DeNatale=] threw out Al Milgrom's artwork in favor of that of Creator/FredHembeck, whose style is far from realistic. The issue's storyline was that the Fly realised he was losing his humanity and sought revenge upon J. Jonah Jameson and Spider-Man, and the humor is limited to Spidey's usual wisecracks (apart from the humor stemming from Hembeck's art, like the Fly having Xs for eyes when Spider-Man punches him). After the Fly is defeated, Danny Fingeroth (the actual editor of the comic) returns and puts an end to the cartoonish artwork. You can see images from this issue [[http://www.supermegamonkey.net/chronocomic/entries/peter_parker_the_spectacular_s_73.shtml here]].
* ArtisticLicenseLaw: During one StoryArc, the father of Spider-Man's foe Sandman is framed for the murder of an alternate reality Ben Parker, and given a quick death sentence. When the governor (or maybe NYC's mayor) learns that Sandman's going to break out his father, he orders the immediate execution of the man, something that violates a wide range of laws and civil rights protections, and nobody involved in law enforcement bothers to say 'you can't do that; it's illegal'.

* TheBreakfastClubPosterHomage: In ''The Avenging Spider-Man'' #12, Peter and ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} explores Peter's dreams to find out who is trying to infiltrate his brain. At one point, Peter dreams characters into ''The Breakfast Club'', which is introduced [[https://i1.wp.com/www.bleedingcool.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/115.jpg?resize=600%2C447&ssl=1 with a shout-out]] to the original poster. Peter is Brian, redheaded love interest Mary Jane is Claire, jock frenemy Flash is Andrew, Deadpool himself is Bender...and he doesn't know who Allison is, so the person impersonating her must be the villain. It turns out to be Hypno-Master.
-->'''Deadpool:''' What a weirdo. You couldn't be dreaming of ''Film/MeanGirls''?

* CoversAlwaysLie: The cover of ''The Spectacular Spider-Man'' #256 shows the White Rabbit riding a mechanical rabbit that is firing Gatling guns. In the story, there is a mechanical rabbit with a different design that is only used for transportation.

** Subverted with The Queen. Despite her beautiful appearance and her flirting, Spider-Man is not attracted to her at all and finds her disgusting, but that doesn't stop her from forcing herself on him. However, all of New York thought this trope was being played straight when the News captured the first kiss between them and assumed it was Spider-Man who initiated the kiss with his new adversary.

** [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sensational_Spider-Man_%28vol._2%29#.22The_Last_Temptation_of_Eddie_Brock.22_.28Issues_38-39.29 Eddie Brock is dying of cancer.]] [[ByronicHero Alone, and forgotten except as a remorseless monster to the public at large,]] [[OhCrap and the remnants of his old]] [[TheSymbiote "pal"]] [[ByronicHero are floating around in his head telling him]] that he still has one chance at revenge by killing a comatose May Parker or just disappearing off the world with nothing to show for it. Or he can just sit in his bed waiting to die with Venom tormenting him until the end of his wasted life. [[http://media.comicvine.com/uploads/3/31005/1080771-last_temptation_9_super.jpg Instead,]] [[TakeAThirdOption he]] [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled cuts himself trying to remove the remnants of Venom from his blood]] and it works. After Spider-Man saves him, he tells the remnants of the symbiote to shut up. After being exonerated for the crimes he committed as Venom, he met Mr. Li, who offered him a job. Eddie accepted, and when Mr. Li touched him, the remnants of TheSymbiote were fused to his immune system, turning him into Anti-Venom.
* EnlightenedAntagonist: Enigma aka Tara Virango from ''Peter Parker: Spider-Man'' (issues 48 and 49, ''The Big Question'' and ''The Big Answer'') is a woman from Bangladesh who gained supernatural powers and a mystical connection to the Buddhist goddess Tara after being infected with a nano-virus (she is a survivor of an environmental disaster during which her native village was exposed to the viral outbreak). She starts out as a semi-antagonist to Spider-Man, having stolen the precious Star of Persia diamond and even physically attacking Peter on one occasion. However, he soon learns that her motives are noble: she seeks to prove that the outbreak was not an accident, but a deliberate release of a biological agent ordered by the {{Corrupt Corporate Executive}}s of the company that developed the virus (and the reason why she stole the diamond was that she wanted to demand a large compensation to the survivors to be paid as ransom for it). Once Spider-Man realizes the truth, he joins Enigma's side and helps her defeat the corporate executives.

* AFoggyDayInLondonTown: Knight and Fogg were two British super-powered contract killers who appeared in ''The Spectacular Spider-Man'' #165-167 back in 1990. The latter saw himself as the personification of the London fog and [[SuperSmoke could transform his body into a gaseous form]] that obscured his opponents' sight; his favorite method of attack was to strangle his targets from afar with his partially solidified hands.

* GeniusSerum: In the story, "Flowers for Rhino", the dim-witted Rhino is tired of being treated like a joke and undergoes a dangerous surgical procedure to greatly increase his intelligence. He eventually becomes so smart that he thoroughly trounces Spidey in a fight and uses an algorithm to determine his SecretIdentity. But he soon begins experiencing IntelligenceEqualsIsolation as he simply grows bored of everything and can only see the numbers and science behind the world around him instead of enjoying it for what it is. As a result, he ends up getting another surgery to revert his intelligence and make him dumber than he already was.

* HowMuchDidYouHear: In ''Amazing Fantasy Vol. 2 #15'', Spider-Man realizes that in the famous cover of ''Amazing Fantasy #15'', he pretty much declared his real name in the presence of the guy in his armpit. Fortunately for him, [[SpeechBubblesInterruption the guy was screaming too loudly to hear it]].
-->'''Spider-Man:''' Um...you didn't hear that thing I just said, right? You know? About how the world may mock... [[BlahBlahBlah yadda yadda yadda]]?

* ItsCuban: For fun, mob boss Kingpin invites himself to a superhero poker game bearing a BriefcaseFullOfMoney to sweeten the pot. If the heroes win, they can donate it to a charity. If Kingpin wins, he'll buy a boat to rub their loss in their faces, as well as a Cuban cigar:
-->'''Kingpin:''' Which I shall obtain ''illegally''.

* MistakenForCheating: When he first fought The Queen she easily defeated him before [[ForcefulKiss forcibly kissing him while he was unconscious]]. This public make out was captured on the News, but all of New York assumed that ''Spider-Man'' was the one who kissed Queen. Aunt May accidentally revealed the kiss to Mary Jane before she found out herself and Mary Jane gave Peter a hard time for awhile because of the kiss.

* SavedByTheChurchBell: Famously, Spider-Man used church bells to remove the corrupting Venom symbiote from himself in ''Web of Spider-Man'' #1. The process nearly killed him and he could only go through with it by reminding himself of the people he needed to make up to, like Aunt May, Mary-Jane, and Harry Osborn.

* SeductionProofMarriage: One story has Spidey get kidnapped by a sultry villainess that offers him "anything he wants". He request a solid cage thingy so she'll leave him alone as he was HappilyMarried to MJ at the time. Mary Jane herself being a glamorous actress and model who has guys drooling after her and likes to party and dance gets a lot of unwanted attention by men who think they will come and sweep her off. In "To Have and To Hold", a SHIELD agent who was formerly her bodyguard in Los Angeles where they were friendly in a period where she and Peter were briefly separated tries to signal an interest in her which she rebukes:
-->'''MJ:''' Is that what you think we were? You work my security detail for a few months and now -- now you’re Mr. S.H.I.E.L.D. man here to rescue me from my big, bad life? He’s my husband. You’re just some dude.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Retroactively done with the ''Amazing Fantasy Starring Spider-Man'' mini-series, which bridged the gap between ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 and ''Amazing Spider-Man'' #1. In the second issue of the series, Peter meets Joey Pulaski, a teenaged superheroine who he became friends with. She ends up being sent to jail after Spider-Man turns her in for committing a number of crimes, and for the rest of the mini-series, Spider-Man is devastated by the memory of her. Of course, since she was created in the mid-nineties, and her story set between those published in the early 60s, her existence begs the question "why haven't we heard of her until now?". The only time she ever appears is in the one story, and her existence is never explored again.
** This happens a lot with these retroactive issues. The other villains in the same mini-series (a man named Undertaker and a supervillain named Supercharger), despite being Spider-Man's first supervillains, never get any mention (indeed, the Chameleon is still toted as Spider-Man's first supervillain in the comics), and the original villains for ''Untold Tales of Spider-Man'' generally have never reappeared. The exception to this is The Scorcher, (Spider-Man's first black villain), who died within the series.

* FreakLabAccident: How Andy Maguire, soon-to-be Alpha, got his powers in a parallel to Spidey.

** Exaggerated in the "Learning to Crawl" side series published after Peter got his body back from Otto Octavius. Set in the days right after Peter first got bit, and focusing on his earliest trials of being Spider-Man and engaging with another budding superhero/villain named Clash, the series features art that's a deliberate throwback to the Lee/Ditko era, while simultaneously talking about posting Spider-Man's first fight with Crusher Hogan on [[BlandNameProduct MeTube]], texting, going viral, etc.

* ShooOutTheNewGuy: Alpha certainly seems to come off as this. Andy has many parallels to Peter, with the major differences being he was an average, underachieving nobody[[note]]Peter at least had the whole 'science geek' thing going for him[[/note]] before he got his powers and after he got them, he never really learned to be [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility responsible]] with them like Peter had, using them to become famous. He was even given a bit of hype before his appearance ''and'' became Spidey's sidekick only to be promptly de-powered by Spidey himself after one mistake too many in the third issue he appeared in, seemingly dropping off the face of the earth. In fact, one of the fuels for his rashness was an in-universe comment on his fansite calling him ''ThePoochie''!

* WithGreatPowerComesGreatPerks: How Peter was before the fateful day when he learned WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility. Paralleled with Andy/Alpha who plays this trope straight, much to Peter's regret (and slight envy).

At its debut, this Creator/MarvelComics tale was a landmark in comic book characterization. He actually [[CharacterDevelopment seemed like a real person]], with day-to-day worries. Peter Parker was unpopular in his high school (though not without his supporting cast of friends). He and his aunt were poor, due to the death of their breadwinner. To get by, he had to sell pictures of his super-hero self to a man who only used them as a way to [[HeroWithBadPublicity smear and tear down Spider-Man's reputation]], in a nice inversion of the Clark Kent[=/=]{{Franchise/Superman}} situation. Of course, he persevered, and with his powers, his native intelligence, and his nifty [[AppliedPhlebotinum web-shooters]], he went on to battle a bevy of strange supervillains. Spider-Man was in many ways JackOfAllStats of the Franchise/MarvelUniverse. While he wasn't the fastest, strongest, smartest, or most skilled hero there was, Spidey possessed enough of all these qualities to be able to handle a wide variety of situations and villains.

* '''Dennis O'Neill's Spider-Man''' (1980-1981) : A brief run of 16 issues between ASM #207-223, O'Neill (known for his work on ''Franchise/{{Batman}}''), moved Peter Parker to the ''Daily Globe'', a rival of the ''Bugle'', and shuffled his regular cast. His run is mainly notable for introducing the villains Hydro-Man and Calypso, as well as Madame Web, a blind psychic who would in later stories and adaptations become an occult center in Spider-Man's mythos.

* MutualEnvy: The Franchise/SpiderMan[=/=]Human Torch Trade Paperback ''"I'm With Stupid"'' shows their relationship through the years, with the last story, "I'm With Stupid" pointing out the good things they have: Spidey gets to be near all the hot women and also be able to follow Reed without needing a translation into "normal," Johnny gets to have the trappings of fame and go to various universes Spidey would do anything to go to. Or the perks of power "with NONE of the responsibility."