Spider-Man is certainly the most important and famous superhero of the Marvel Comics publishing house. Born in 1962 by Stan Lee, Spider-Man (Spider-Man for Americans) is the story of shy student Peter Parker who is bitten by a spider contaminated by radioactive rays during a scientific experiment. The sting changes the genetic code and transforms the frail boy into an individual with characteristics equal to those of a spider if he had the human size, a real spider man. He can make prodigious leaps, his hands and feet acquire the ability to adhere to any surface and this allows him to climb the walls of the skyscrapers of Manhattan, he also has a surprising balance and a sense of spider that warns him of impending dangers. As a good biochemistry student he invented a sticky and very resistant liquid similar to the spider's web, which thanks to the devices applied in the wrists, he is able to spray and use as a rope to climb on anything and to imprison the captured criminals.

Peter Parker initially decides to become a circus phenomenon, earning his living as an acrobat, but soon there was an episode that made him realize that this was not the path of his destiny. One day his uncle Ben was murdered by a thief whom Peter had previously refused to capture. From this he understood the great responsibility he had towards the weakest, who every day suffer the violence of criminals and super-criminals. So he decides to wear the clothes of Spider-Man and hide his true identity. Peter had a great affection for his elderly uncle Ben (his father's brother), because together with his wife May they adopted him after the death of his parents, who were killed in Algeria at the hands of a spy and criminal organization.Peter lives with his elderly Aunt May who is in poor health and continues his university studies and engaging in odd jobs. After noticing the big talk in all the newspapers about Spider-Man's exploits, he decides to take pictures with the self-shutter, when he goes into action as the super hero, and then sells them to the Daily Bugle, of the grumpy JJ Jameson , bitter denigrator of climbing walls in tights (that's how he defines it), therefore hunting for exclusive photos. Inside the Daily Bugle, Peter meets Betty Brant, the director's personal secretary. Pretty and intelligent, Betty is a simple girl, which will make shy Peter Parker fall in love and a beautiful but tormented love story blossoms between the two. Peter Parker, in fact, is often forced to disappear suddenly, to transform into Spider-Man, this too will contribute to their division. In the university environment, Peter is constantly confronted with the classic "all brawn and no brain" Flash Thompson, a football champion who makes fun of him by striding with the girls in the collage. He does not know, however, that Peter Parker is actually his idol par excellence: Spider-Man. Within the university environment, Peter Parker meets Harry Osborn, an insecure and complex boy who will become his greatest friend and the very blonde Gwen, a former high school miss. Gwen is a charming girl, with a strong character, but she will feel attracted to Peter Parker's indifference towards her. When between the two it seems that some tender may be born, a beautiful and dynamic redhead Mary Jane Watson appears, which arouses the envy and jealousy of the girls of the group and of Gwen in particular, given the attention towards her by the guys from the group.

But Peter Parker must also face all the numerous super criminals that theSpiderman, in the order we remember: the Chameleon, the Vulture, Doctor Octopus, the Sand Man, Lizard, Electro, the Duri, Mysterio, Kraven the hunter and Molten. Spider-Man's enemy # 1 is represented by Goblin, the green elf, or the industrialist Norman Osborn, Harry's father is the only one, in fact, to have discovered the secret identity of Spider-Man. We also remember the mighty Rhino, the rhino man, the deadly Shocker, with electric discharge and the powerful Kingpin, the emperor of crime. Among the many enemies ofSpiderman there is also the journalist Frederick Foswell or the Big Man, a former crime boss arrested by Spider-Man, who once released from prison, promising not to devote himself to crime anymore, is hired by JJ Jameson. His contribution to the newspaper is very valuable, because thanks to his knowledge and passing himself off as the Guercio (remember the song of 883, "They killed Spider-Man"?), He can obtain information on the shady traffic of the underworld. He actually suspects the true identity of photographer Peter Parker, but fails to unmask him. The stories of Spider-Man are inspired by the historical vicissitudes of the years inherent in its publication. There are the themes of the 60s such as the Vietnam War (protagonist the braggart Flash Thompson), student protest, the drug phenomenon, pollution and more. All these social problems will affect the fate of Peter's group of friends. Friend Harry Osborn, the insecure boy, will throw himself into LSD out of desperation of not being loved by Mary Jane. Harry's father finds in Spider-Man the scapegoat for this misfortune, therefore, disguised as a Goblin, he kidnaps his beloved Gwen and kills her, despite Spider-Man's vain attempt to save her. Harry's father also dies (the Goblin mask will later be worn by other characters as well), but this story will profoundly mark Peter Parker's already troubled and problematic sensitivity. In the modern era, the phenomenon of genetic engineering could not fail to appear, this issue sees the protagonist none other than the professor of the University of Peter and Gwen, Miles Warren, alias the Jackal, specialized in biogenetics. Shocked by the death of the blonde student and also attributing the blame to Spider-Man, he decides to clone both her and Peter. Spider-Man will also be able to unravel this intricate story (which will however have a sequel). Despite all these ups and downs, our protagonist manages to get his degree in science, but to lose his job at the Daily Bugle, due to a bad nervous breakdown of the director JJ Jameson. Here an exceptional shoulder appears; it is the Black Cat, aka Felicia Hardy. Hardy is a beautiful, sensual and transgressive girl and she devotes herself to the underworld to emulate the deeds of her father, a criminal for whom she feels a feeling of hate and love. She acts disguised as a cat woman and falls in love with Spider-Man whom she sees as an ideal companion, but good Peter will be able to bring her back to the right path. The two fall in love and will make a steady couple in many adventures against super criminals, but will be destined to separate as they are "too distracted" to deal with the super problems of society.

The woman in Peter Parker's life is actually Mary Jane, who has always known her true secret identity. The two get married. In this period we remember an enemy with a psychological profile, very dark and profound: the Kraven, who will give us breathtaking stories full of twists. In the episodes of the 90s theSpiderman he has to deal with really dangerous super-criminals, who feel his fatigue and psychological stability. It should be remembered:Venom, a psychopath fond of human brains, Carnage, a very violent unscrupulous creature, the Red Spider, or its income clone, the return of the original Goblin and many others.

The Spider-Man stories have also been featured in numerous cartoons and movies. In Italy we got to know them thanks to the "Supergulp, comics on tv" program broadcast in 1978.

As far as editorial publications are concerned, the Spiderman magazine was introduced in April 1970 as a fortnightly by the Corno Editorial, but ended in the summer of 1984, due to the bankruptcy of the publishing house. It will resume from n. 1 in May 1987 for the Star Comics publisher. In April 1994 Marvel Comics opens its own office in Italy (with the same editorial director of Star Comics, Marco Lupoi) which will publish all the American Marvel productions. From number 141, today's Spider-Man series bears the MARVEL ITALIA logo.

Since July 1999, the series has restarted with a new number 1

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