The Path Traveled Unseen, Because It's Lame

Live, from the Biology Graduate Student office, it's Reporting On Marvels and Legends Saturday post!

As I alluded to in my reviews, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man has fallen from my pull list. Well, it hasn't been crossed off yet, but that's because I forgot to do it. I'm with the fellows at Comics Should Be Good, it boggles the mind that Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #10 and X-Factor #9 were written by the same person. Are we sure the Spidey title isn't being written by Todd MacFarlane in an attempt to destroy David's rep?

But before I turn away from my second Spider-Man title of the year (dear god, that's depressing), I wanted to take advantage of a little something David introduced in this issue.

So the *shudder* Hobgoblin of 2211 told Spider-Man that there are six critical points in his life. Moments so important, they are the source of a myriad number of alternate realities, depending on how things go, and how Peter reacts. Uncle Ben getting shot was one. Gwen Stacy dying was another. What are the other four events?

For the purposes of this, I'm going to assume that at least one of the events hasn't occured yet. Aw screw it, I'll say two haven't happened yet. So here's my guesses for the other two:

The second time he lost to Stilt-Man. That's right, Spidey lost to Stilt-Man twice, and the second time around he didn't have the excuse of being sick. That's so humiliating, I'm sure it had a devastating effect on his psyche. Oh, you want me to be serious?

Fine, his "death" at the hands of Kraven. I'm still not sure what Kraven did that enabled him to put Spider-Man in a coffin for two weeks, and Spidey could be alive after that (chemically-induced coma? It was on House last night), but irregardless, it made Spidey darker, and probably more neurotic. The time he spent dead also bit him in the butt during the Clone Saga, as Kaine had killed people during that two-week period to frame Ben Reilly. Why he didn't consider that this would implicate Peter, who he actually wanted to protect (believing Peter to be a clone like himself, whereas Reilly was the hated original), I can't say. Brain damage? At any rate, Peter lacked a usable alibi for those two weeks, what with being six feet underground and all. Plus, I'd say it put a strain on his marriage, which had just begun. And, for better or worse, it seems to have introduced a darker strain of stories to the Spider-Man universe. And this has the added effect of diffusing the impact of The Other, since Peter's already "died" once, so what's the big deal that it happened again?

For the second one, I'll vote the death of his daughter. We've already seen what happens when she doesn't die, but is instead abducted by agents of Norman Osborn. She becomes Spider-Girl, Peter loses a leg, Norman Osborn finally dies and stays that way. Peter becomes a police scientist, etc. And that's just the universe we've actually been shown.

So what are your picks for the "Important Intersection Points In Parker's Life"?