Spider-Man gained his powers from a radioactive spider bite that mutated his blood, but the full extent of his mutation is much stranger than anyone expected. Spider-Man’s blood is radioactive and all of his bodily fluids are also radioactive, including sperm. As disturbing as this may be, what’s even more alarming is that scientists have proven that this could actually happen. No, seriously – it’s possible, if not entirely likely.
As Diana McCullum shared with Gizmodoyour book Superhero Sex Life: Wolverine’s Immortal Sperm, Superman’s Porn Career, The Thing and Other Supersexual Issues Explained investigates Spider-Man’s unique physiology, providing information from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
Internally contaminated people can expose those close to them to radiation from the radioactive material inside their bodies. The bodily fluids (blood, sweat, urine) of an internally contaminated person may contain radioactive materials. Contact with these bodily fluids may result in contamination and/or exposure.
In a time of turbulence, the controversial comic Spider-Man: Reign by Kaare Andrews shows Peter breaking down in front of Mary Jane’s grave. He confesses that the origin of her cancer was loving him. As the two had been married for over a decade, your physical and intimate relationship was the source of your cancer. Every time they kissed or made love – especially the latter – Peter exposed her to more and more radiation. And, of course, this radiation ended up taking his life.
Spider-Man’s radioactive sperm ended up killing Mary Jane in a dark timeline
Page Spider-Man: Reign #3 by Kaare Andrews, José Villarrubia and Chris Eliopoulos
Spider-Man: Reign is set in a dark universe where most of the heroes are gone and evil reigns supreme. Peter Parker has long since retired from fighting crime, as he suffered a breakdown due to the death of his wife, Mary Jane, who died from several types of cancer that had spread throughout her body. While this fate is certainly a tragic end for Mary Jane, it is made even worse by the reveal that his cancer was caused by his love Spider-Man. It’s hard to imagine that a spider bite when Peter was a teenager could result in his wife’s death nearly forty years later, but that’s exactly what happened, and real-life science backs it up.
The CDC stated that people exposed to radiation can transmit that radiation through material inside their bodiessuch as blood, saliva and even semen. Still, it’s hard to believe that radiation is actually enough to cause someone to die from cancer. Peter and Mary Jane were together for over a decade, and many fans may believe that after all this time, Spider-Man’s radioactivity would eventually wear off. Unfortunately, that’s not how it works.
Spider-Man will be radioactive for the rest of his life
Spider-Man’s own body is a horrible fate for a hero
Fortunately, there are a study conducted by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs known as the Semen uranium concentrations in Gulf War veterans exposed to depleted uranium: correlations with other body fluid matrices. This study is exactly what it says. A group of thirty-five Gulf War veterans were taken and had their bodily fluids tested for traces of radioactivity. Not only did their semen register radioactivity, it also scored higher than scientists expected, and this test was carried out eighteen years after they were originally exposed to radioactivity.
The real ramifications of how superhero characters get their powers are often not taken into consideration. In the end, It’s all fictional: The Hulk can be exposed to a huge amount of gamma radiation and come out of it just fine. The Fantastic Four can be exposed to strange space radiation and gain incredible powers. Spider-Man can be bitten by a radioactive spider and gain incredible abilities.
Very rarely do readers need to think about the downsides of these real-world situations, but of Spider-Man The most horrific story shows that having radioactive semen is a serious threat. Science supports this tragic story, so perhaps Marvel needs to delve a little deeper into sex education.
Spider-Man: Reign #3 is now available from Marvel Comics!
Source: Gizmodo