Ben Reilly

• Clone of Peter Parker
• No Known relatives
• Clone "brothers" of Kaine & Spidercide
• 1st App.: Amazing Spider-Man #149
• 1st Chronological App.: Web Of Spider-Man #117 (Backup story)
• Death: Spider-Man #75

Ben Reilly was originally an unnamed clone of Spider-Man who made his debut in Amazing Spider-Man #149...His life was short-lived though as he was thought dead after an explosion...Spider-Man took the clone's body and threw it in a smokestack at a Brooklyn Incinerating Plant 2 issues later and was thought to be long forgotten. The clone's creator Miles Warren tried for some time to clone Peter Parker and his first clone was a failure because of clone degeneration. This clone turned out to be Kaine...His next clone was a success and was soon programmed to be sent out into the world as Spider-Man...Years went by until a mysterious man began calling Peter's Aunt May at her home to see how she was stating that he was an old friend of the family and after she went into the hospital, the mystery man hopped onto his motorcycle and headed straight for New York City to see her...Of course this caused a problem when the real Peter Parker was at his Aunt's side and the two eventually met face to face!

The ensuing couple of 27 month's worth of Spider-Man comics would go on to become known as The Clone Saga and it's impact on the history of Spider-Man, good and bad, would be huge...Ben went through a couple of phases in his life as Spider-Man's clone. First, he was just simply a clone...Second, he was the mystery man calling Aunt May and visiting her in the hospital...Third, He was just Ben Reilly (First referenced in Spider-Man #51) after his Uncle Ben and May's maiden name... Fourth, he was the Scarlet Spider, which gave him own identity as he dyed his hair blonde, took a job at The Daily Grind coffee shop and tried to make a life for himself...The fifth and last is when he took the mantle of Spider-Man which also included a new costume.

Through all the changes he went through, he was always an interesting character who always tried to find an identity for himself, but unfortunately Ben died in the historic Spider-Man #75 as he jumped in front of the Green Goblin's glider and was impaled by it leaving many fans saddened. To this day, fans are still clamoring for Marvel to bring back the closest thing Peter Parker ever had to a brother.