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In Amazing Spider-Man, Ben Reilly has swung back into action as Marvel’s primary web-slinger, but his return comes with some disturbing conditions.
WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Amazing Spider-Man #77, on sale now.
Ben Reilly has only just taken the reins as the new Spider-Man following Peter Parker’s injury and subsequent coma. But in that short time, it has already become apparent that this new job has some serious conditions that affect both him and his personal life. His girlfriend is protected in the lap of luxury, but she can’t really leave her apartment (which could present an altogether different kind of problem later) and Ben’s status as Spider-Man is conditional depending on his performance, which the Beyond Corporation has not been too impressed by as of late.
After a combat training session in Amazing Spider-Man #77 (by Kelly Thompson, Sara Pichelli, Nolan Woodard, VC’s Joe Caramagna), Ben was taken aside by Beyond’s head of Super Hero Development division, Maxine Danger. She reviewed his performance over the last few days, and her blunt way of speaking and attempts to stop Ben from interrupting her made it very clear who was in charge here. Still, she spun it to make it seem as though she wasn’t giving Ben a hard time but simply trying to discern if he was the right man for the job.
As Maxine explained, Beyond had invested a lot of time and resources into its corporate-sponsored Spider-Man, providing him with the best equipment and also a home and safety for his girlfriend, Janine. But Ben’s relatively normal behavior, such as removing his suit or turning off his comms during more personal matters, struck her as the erratic actions of someone who didn’t believe he was capable of being Spider-Man like the corporation did.
She made it seem like she was asking him if he was all in, which Ben confirmed, but the subtext of the conversation could still be understood. Maxine’s actions make it clear that Beyond wants to keep tabs on Ben at all times and complete control over when he is and is not in costume. The troubling implications of that aside, Maxine also subtly hinted that Beyond was prepared to find — or already had — a replacement ready should Ben turn out to not meet their standards.
Ben’s reaffirmation that he wants to be Spider-Man seems to have swayed her, but the entire exchange made it clear that Ben’s claim on Spider-Man is notional. He asked Peter for his blessing to be the Marvel Universe’s Spider-Man, but he can really only hold on to it so long as he meets a corporation’s conditions, and he’s already started slipping in their eyes.
Beyond that, there is the personal life to be worried about. Beyond provided Ben with a luxury apartment to stay in for free while he is Spider-Man, even allowing Janine to stay there and be protected. But as Janine pointed out, it’s a gilded cage, since the army of security that keeps people from getting in also limits who Janine can interact with.
In a more sinister mindset, it also keeps her and Ben from getting out. Should Ben and the Beyond Corporation turn on each other, the organization has the perfect leverage to use against him in the form of the person he loves most. They would only have to turn that security on Janine to force Ben to obey, either to get him in line or to simply strip him of the Spider-Man suit for good. And with the track record of corporations in the Marvel Universe, it’s not hard to imagine how much the Beyond Corporation could take away from Ben Reilly.
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