In 1994, Marvel Comics revived a 20-year-old Spider-Man history, creating one of the company's most controversial and complicated events ever. Spread across six co-active series, the two-year-long “Clone Saga” was considered one of the franchise's biggest marketing failures; however, Even in the chaos, the Clone Saga introduced several series staples and left a lasting impact on Peter Parker and Spidey's lore.
This guide will offer a complete and thorough analysis of
the classic Spider event
albeit without the complicated delivery method that Marvel initially chose.
Aside from the aforementioned issue about the uneven division of the story between 19 different ongoing series, the Clone Saga's biggest flaw is the almost absurd use of retcons in its own story. Yes, clones, genetically modified actors, and fake deaths have become the basis of the Clone Saga. This guide will have to acknowledge some of these retcons, as they are unfortunately part of the plot itself. That said, behind the unorthodox narrative, the story itself has its merits.
Marvel's infamous 1990s "Clone Saga" arc began with a callback to a 1970s storyline
To read: Amazing Spider-Man #149 – Written by Gerry Conway; Art by Ross Andru
To understand the 1994 Clone Saga, readers first need to look at the story that started it all, Amazing Spider-Man #149published in 1975. Several years after Gwen Stacy's death, Peter Parker's first love shockingly reappears, only to be quickly revealed to be a clone. Investigating, Spidey discovers a cloning facility controlled by the Jackal, who also created a genetic duplicate of Peter Parker. Spider-Man and the Jackal clash, causing a huge explosion. Ultimately, Parker's clone dies, leaving Spider-Man to bury the other.
Originally, this was supposed to be the end of it. Only Gerry Conway
brought Gwen Stacy back
because he wanted to solidify the importance of her death. More than a decade later, he released The Amazing Spider-Man #149, which delegitimized the original cloning process. Conway has since admitted that she was effectively leaving a warning to other writers to leave Gwen's death alone. Of course, there are few permanent deaths in comics and Conway didn't want Gwen to be part of that cycle. Unfortunately, in 1994, everything he feared would come true as Marvel embarked on what would become the Clone Saga.
The Clone Saga Act 1: Peter Parker's dead clone returns and turns Peter Parker's world upside down
To read: Amazing Spider-Man #216 – Written by Tom DeFalco; Art by Todd DeZago and Sal Buscema
In 1994 Amazing Spider-Man #216, readers finally saw
Peter Parker has reached his breaking point
. For years, Marvel destroyed his psyche, making him believe Spider-Man was a separate person. In this issue, her relationships are dwindling and Aunt May has fallen ill. As Spider-Man, Peter discovers another Peter already in May's hospital room. The two face each other on the hospital roof until the second Peter reveals he is the clone from the 1975 story, He currently calls himself Ben Reilly.
Peter's mental health continues to deteriorate, turning the pinnacle of heroism into a neurotic, unstable mess. Some time later, Ben Reilly returns as the Scarlet Spider, immediately damaging Spider-Man's name by accidentally breaking Spidey's peace.
according to Venom
. Meanwhile, Peter continues to grow more unstable. He asks Daredevil for help, before being poisoned by the Vulture. Upon waking up, Spider-Man discovers that Doctor Octopus has decided to save him. Before any thanks can be given, however, a third Spider-Man suddenly appears and kills Doc Ock.
Clone Saga Act 1½: Ben Reilly vs. Kaine rivalry, explained
More clones enter the mix
During the canonical five years between the cloning boom and Ben's reunion with Peter, an entirely different and necessary plot was reconfigured into the story to justify Ben's existence. After surviving the explosion, Ben sets out on an independent journey to define his own identity, while still maintaining
Memoirs of Peter Parker
. Along the way, Ben meets another unstable-looking Peter Parker, who also turns out to be a clone. This clone, who calls himself Kaine, is Jackal's first attempt to clone Peter. An imperfect specimen, unlike Ben, Kaine's genetics were degrading, slowly killing him.
The two clones have clashed repeatedly over the years. Kaine hated the love and respect that Peter Parker had and hated that Ben Reilly had the chance to feel it. Their fight became a Shakespearean epic as Kaine consistently tried to take down Reilly. In one memorable story, Kaine kidnaps and stages the death of Reilly's girlfriend. He also kills
Son of Kraven the Hunter
. Finally, Kaine tracks down Parker and Reilly, kills Doc Oc, and plans to kill his “brothers” as well. Kaine is defeated, all three Peters later band together after discovering that the Jackal also survived the explosion years earlier.
Clone Saga Act 2: Marvel's most iconic hero undergoes a prolonged identity crisis
Will the real Peter Parker please stand up?
When all three Peter Parkers confront the Jackal in his old laboratory, he releases another clone named Spidercide, who also believes to be Peter Parker. Spidercide is defeated, but before Jackal escapes, he reveals that Ben Reilly is in fact
the real Peter Parker
while Parker was the clone. This would later be reconfigured as a lie, but at the time Spider-Man the comics treated the previous information as if it were true. For about a year, Ben took control of Peter's life, while Peter went it alone, more mentally shaken than ever.
The Jackal eventually resurfaces and Peter and Ben (currently calling each other opposite names) team up to investigate. The pair finally corner the Jackal, who reveals himself to be Norman Osborn, who had not died in real life twenty years earlier. Instead, Osborn planned it all in one long ploy to destabilize Peter's mind. Parker, Reilly and
the Green Goblin's fight
tragically leading to Ben's death. As the hero is impaled, his body dissolves into goo, proving that Peter was the original all along.
Spider-Man: The Clone Saga final conclusions
A complicated history with a complex legacy
After 125 standalone issues, spread across 19 series and told over the course of two years, the Clone Saga ended with only a few noteworthy developments and even more questions. Questions regarding Aunt May's health and Peter and MJ's daughter were continually swept up until the even more controversial Story of a last day. However, the first important note is that the Clone Saga solidified the Green Goblin as Peter Parker's true enemy. The inconceivable efforts Osborn went to to destroy Spider-Man are beyond villainous.
In retrospect, the Clone Saga has a largely negative reputation among Marvel fans; Although it can be praised for its ambition, the end result was a telenovela convolution.
Speaking of villains, Kaine Parker continued to serve as an on-again, off-again villain to Peter Parker and Ben Reilly. However, Kaine has recently found his redemption and reconciled with his past and his brothers. Likewise, Ben Reilly persisted as a notable Spider-Man character and currently shares a series with Kaine called Abyss: Curse of Kaine. Although the Clone Saga is still considered one of of Spider-Man most complicated and controversial stories of all time, its impact on Wall-Crawler remains worth discussing to this day.
In retrospect, the Clone Saga has a largely negative reputation among Marvel fans; Although it can be praised for its ambition, the end result was a telenovela convolution. Although characters from the saga, notably Ben Reilly and Kaine, remain part of the franchise to this day, the actual details of the plot and their place in history Spider-Man tradition, are territories that few Marvel writers dare to tread, even today. This sometimes makes the story's legacy difficult to navigate; to some extent, that legacy is still in flux, to be determined.
The complete Clone Saga is now available from Marvel Comics.