I have long waited for this moment. Since I first read what most considered to be the worst story arc in Spider-Man history, I have begged for this. Ben Reilly’s return, not just to comics in general, but to the role of Scarlet Spider.
When first introduced in "The Clone Saga," Ben Reilly was to become a new side character for Spider-Man to play off of, and in the early issues of that arc, it was apparent that Ben was going to become more to Peter Parker than just a throw away character, which seemed to be a commonality in the 90s. Unfortunately, this all exploded when the big wigs at Marvel decided to swap out the clone (Ben Reilly) for the real deal (Peter Parker).
Ben Reilly was considered the worst character ever
What made this worse was the fact they claimed that Ben was, in fact, the real deal, and that the Spider-Man character that fans had read for 20+ years was in fact a clone. The nerd rage exploded, there were boycotts, and eventually Marvel killed off the character and claimed it was all a lie orchestrated by one of Peter's oldest foes, thus, marking Ben Reilly as one of the most scathing stains in Spider-Man history. Fast forward through several teases, other characters taking up the mantle, and general excitement flowing from the fans about the possible return of Ben Reilly; Marvel is ready to try once more with the character.
Scarlet Spider's return has already been foreshadowed
Ben Reilly's return has recently been theorized with the recent “Dead No More: The Clone Conspiracy #3,” revealing Ben’s surprising return to the universe. When I say surprising it’s only because the last time we really saw the character he was a degenerated pile of goop.
However, everything was neatly (albeit a little too conveniently), explained as to how he was back.
Is there still life left in Scarlet Spider?
With writer Peter David only giving away a few small details concerning Ben’s return as the Scarlet Spider, one detail will surely create a lot of discussion amongst fans. Kaine Parker (another clone of Peter Parker) who once upon a time wore the guise of Scarlet Spider, will also be appearing in the new book "Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider." No official word about his role in the book has been revealed, but rest assured, it is going to be interesting to see these two characters interact after all they have been through. April is going to be an exciting month for Scarlet Spider fans.
