Spider-Man's Suit

Spider-Man's Suit
Name	Spider-Man's Suit
Aliases	The Spider Suit, Spidey-Suits, Spider Protector
Owners
Current Owner(s)	Hobie Brown, Peter Parker, Miguel O'Hara, Miles Morales
Previous Owner(s)	Ben Reilly, Otto Octavius/"Peter Parker",
Origin
Origin	Originally made by Peter Parker to be his wrestling costume.
Reality	Earth-616
Lead Designer	Peter Parker
Place of Creation	Aunt May's House
Creators and Appearances
First	Amazing Fantasy #15 (June, 1962)
First	Amazing Fantasy #15 (June, 1962)

 They're not-- The pajamas are part of the gig. Keep your identity a secret--to help protect the ones you love, y'know? 

—Tony Richards

History

These are the suits worn by the webslinging hero: Spider-Man.

Traditional Red and Blue Suit

First appearance: Amazing Fantasy #15

This is the traditional suit that Spider-Man has used throughout his career. It is made from a skintight cloth, most likely Spandex or similar. The costume is mostly blue with red gloves, boots, mid-section, and mask. Peter designed a web pattern that covers the red portions of the suit, starting at the mask. The suit also has a black spider in the center of the chest and a larger red spider on the back, both of different designs. The mask has plastic lenses with a chrome covering that allow Peter to see out, without letting others see in. The lenses also protect Peter's eyes from dust particles and the glare of the sun while he is swinging through the city. In addition, the mask helps to conceal Peter's identity by muffling his voice, thus making it unrecognizable to others. He also wears a twin set of web shooters on his wrists under the gloves. A web cartridge belt is also worn under the suit, which has a spider-signal on the buckle. The suit also contains a special ear-piece that protects Spider-Man from the effects of Hobgoblin's sonic attack. Spider-Man has recently updated the lenses of the suit to protect himself from Iguana's hypnotic stare.

Symbiote Suit

The Symbiote

First appearance:

Black Suit: Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #8; Amazing Spider-Man #252

As a Symbiote: Amazing Spider-Man #258

During the Secret Wars, Spider-Man's costume was torn during battle and he was sent to a machine that would repair it. Unknown to Spider-Man, the machine was actually a prison that contained an alien symbiote, which copied Spider-Man's thoughts about the costume worn by Spider-Woman, and created a duplicate of it.

Both during and after the Secret War, Spider-Man learned that the costume could respond to his thoughts, change its shape, and create a seemingly unlimited amount of organic webbing. However, after wearing the suit for some time, he began to feel unusually tired and consulted his friends, Reed Richards and Jonathan Storm. Richards said that the suit was actually an alien creature and that it was taking him web-swinging every night while he slept. Spider-Man then had Mr. Fantastic and the Human Torch remove the costume using both a sound wave generator and fire, as its only weaknesses are loud sound waves and intense heat, and locked it in a protective case. The suit eventually escaped and hung itself in Peter's closet, disguised as one of his red and blue costumes. Unfortunately, Peter grabbed the symbiote and it reattached itself to him, which forced Spider-Man to use the bells housed in Our Ladies of Saints church to remove the suit. Many issues later, the suit secretly found and bonded to Eddie Brock, who became Venom.

Black Cloth Suit

Non-Symbiote Black Suit

After Spider-Man removed the symbiote suit, his girlfriend, the Black Cat, made him a non-living duplicate, as she thought it was "sexier" than his red and blue suit. While the two suits were used interchangeably initially, the black suit eventually became Spider-Man's primary suit after his red and blue suit was destroyed. The suit also provided Spider-Man with an extra advantage of stealth in the night, due to its dark color. These also had the unintended benefit of intimidating his opponents.

However, after Venom's attack on Mary Jane Watson, she forced him to abandon the suit for good. Thereafter, he only occasionally wore the black suit as a last resort, when his red and blue suit was out of commission. He returned to wearing the black suit for a brief period of time after his Aunt May was dying in a hospital due to an attempt on Peter's life by Wilson Fisk. With Kraven's resurrection, Spider-Man uncovered a copy of the suit left as a taunt by Kraven while searching for his clone, Kaine, and wore it while defeating the Kraven family.

Bombastic Bag-Man Suit

It's best not to ask

First appearance: The Spectacular Spider-Man #256

Twice Spider-Man has been forced to abandon his usual costume. When he lost the symbiote costume, Spider-Man was forced to use an old Fantastic Four costume, with a paper bag mask and a "Kick me" sign on his back. He was then sent into action as "The Amazing Bag-Man". Another time without his suit, he was forced to go into action as "The Bombastic Bag-Man".

Electro-Proof Suit

File:Electro-Proof Suit 001.jpeg

Electro-Proof Suit

First appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #425

This rubber insulated suit was created by Spider-Man in order to protect himself from Electro's enhanced powers in a battle alongside X-Men. After the fight, Spider-Man improved the suit by adding additional padding and styling.

The Spider-Man of Earth-1610 would later use this suit to fight his Earth's version of Electro.

Captain Universe's Suit

First appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #329

When a lab accident granted Spider-Man the Uni-Power, his costume was cosmically changed into the Captain Universe outfit. This form gave him incredibly enhanced senses, strength, speed, flight, and limited telekinesis.

Spider-Armor

MK I

File:Spider-Armor MK II.jpg

MK II

MK III

MK IV

First appearance:

MK I: Web of Spider-Man #100

MK II: Amazing Spider-Man #656

MK III: Amazing Spider-Man #682

MK IV: Amazing Spider-Man (Vol. 4) #1

When the New Enforcers attacked New York using high-caliber firearms, Spider-Man created an armored spider-suit. Composed of a pseudo-metallic compound Peter developed at Empire State University, the suit slowed him down, but defended him from the firearms. During battle, the suit was destroyed by acid. There have also been new models for the suit: MK II, MK III, and MK IV armors.

Ricochet's Suit

Ricochet

First appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #434

When Norman Osborn and The Trapster framed Spider-Man for murder, Peter Parker created four separate costumed identities to clear his name. The suit showcased Peter's acrobatic abilities and stored bouncing disks which Peter could use as weapons.

Hornet's Suit

Hornet

First appearance: Sensational Spider-Man #27

The second identity used by Spider-Man to clear his name was the Hornet suit. It was a battle armor that provided additional protection and utilized a jet pack designed by Hobie Brown, as well as sedative darts once used by Ben Reilly.

Dusk's Suit

Dusk

First appearance: Spider-Man #91

The third identity used by Spider-Man to clear his name was the Dusk costume. It was adapted from a suit Spider-Man had acquired in the Negative Zone. The suit allowed Spider-Man to blend into the shadows and fly.

Prodigy's Suit

File:Peter Parker (Earth-616) from The Spectacular Spider-Man Vol 1 257 0001.gif

Prodigy

First appearance: The Spectacular Spider-Man #257

The final identity used by Spider-Man to clear his name was the Prodigy costume. It consisted of gold armor and a bulletproof vest that made Spider-Man appear even stronger. Because his face was partially exposed Peter had to use makeup and a fake nose to fool people.

Iron Spider Armor

Iron Spider

First appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #529

Before the events of the Superhuman Civil War, Tony Stark fabricated a new red and gold costume for Peter, utilizing much of the same technology used for his Iron Man suit, with the main difference being the suit's mesh-like quality. This new suit provided Peter with advantages he never had before in other costumes, such as radio transmission scanners and receivers, multiple biological sensors for himself and others (such as EKG readings, pulse rates, etc.), multiple vision settings, deflection of small caliber firearms, enhanced strength and limited gliding capabilities. The Iron Spider costume also provided Peter with three retractable pseudo-arms, named waldoes, though they weren't ideal for fighting. If Peter ever felt that he would like a change of pace in his appearance, Stark also built in a feature for the costume to change its appearance at Peter's will. This was an ideal feature for Peter because he never had to worry about trying to hide his suit in public.

Despite all of these new advantages, Peter was still concerned with features in the suit not disclosed to him, and the possibility that they may be used by Stark to control him. These fears came to fruition when Peter realized that he made the wrong choice in the Civil War, and while attempting to flee preemptively from Stark, the two fought. Iron Man initiated an override feature built into the Iron Spider costume to disable Peter. Foreseeing this confrontation, and much to Stark's surprise, Peter had built in an override for Stark's override and ceased using the suit. Peter's concerns were confirmed once more when they faced off again and Stark told Peter that the suit gave him a rare opportunity to examine Peter's "Spider-Sense".

This costume was replicated and given to three clones of Michael van Patrick, who became known as the Scarlet Spiders.

Fear Itself Suit

Spider-Man Fear Itself

First appearance: Fear Itself #7

During the Serpent's War many heroes were given armor made by Tony Stark and the Dwarves of Nidavellir to battle Cul Borson and his Worthy. Spider-Man was given one of these armors, and was later destroyed by Tony Stark under Odin's orders. It is unknown what features it had but it was made using Uru so it is presumed that the suit was extremely durable. The suit had two gauntlets, one on each wrist, which was equipped with blades on each arm which that could be used as a melee weapon. The suit also changed the appearance of Spider-Man's red and blue suit to an all blue one with bright neon blue lines replacing the black webs on his normal suit.

Stealth Suit

Peter's original design

File:Peter Parker (Kaine) (Earth-616) as Scarlet Spider.JPG

Kaine's version

First appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #650

Spider-Man created this suit to combat the Hobgoblin's sonic screams; the suit warps light and sound around it, rendering it invisible.

It was later used by Kaine to defeat Spider-Queen. The costume's new color was a consequence of the suit being locked in that design, which was made on purpose by Madame Web, who wanted it changed for what the Scarlet Spider (Ben Reilly) meant in Kaine's past.

Originally Kaine could not make the suit change colors until he concentrated hard enough to change it back to its original colors.

Future Foundation Suit

First appearance: FF #1

This suit was created for Spider-Man when he joined the Future Foundation following the death of the Human Torch. It is made from Unstable Molecules, thus it can repair itself, never get dirty, and change its appearance.

Scarlet Spider (Ben Reilly)

File:Scarlet Spider.jpg

Ben Reilly as Scarlet Spider

First appearance: Web of Spider-Man #118

During his career as the Scarlet Spider, Ben Reilly, Spider-Man's Clone, donned a blue sleeveless hoodie with a spider insignia and a completely red bodysuit. He also wore his web-shooters and utility belt outside his costume, as opposed to Peter who wore them underneath.

Spider-Man (Ben Reilly)

Ben Reilly's Spider-Man suit

First appearance: Sensational Spider-Man #0

When Spider-Man's clone, Ben Reilly, took over as Spider-Man, he created his own version of the classic red and blue costume, extending the spider motif's legs with a different design on the boots and gloves.

Scarlet Spider (Joseph Wade)

File:Joseph Wade (Earth-616).jpg

Joseph Wade (Scarlet Spider II)

A man named Joseph Wade was transformed by Carolyn Trainer, an assistant of Doctor Octopus, into a virtual reality being due to an accident. He took on the guise of Scarlet Spider II and appeared in an all-silver Spider-Man costume with red eyes and a red symbol.

Scarlet Spider (MC2)

File:Felicity Hardy (Earth-982) 0001.jpg

MC2 Scarlet Spider

First appearance: Spider-Girl #37

In the MC2 reality, Felicity Hardy, daughter of the Black Cat, fights crime as the third Scarlet Spider. She uses a costume similar to Ben Reilly's Scarlet Spider costume, but with a silver vest.

Blood Spider

File:Blood Spider (Earth-616) 001.jpg

Blood Spider

First appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #367

Blood Spider was a copy of Spider-Man created by the Red Skull and Taskmaster. It donned a costume similar to the black symbiote costume, but with a webbing storage tank on its back with loose wires leading to its wrists. The suit was said to have micro-suction cups to allow him to cling to walls.

Spider-Man 2099

File:Miguel O'Hara (Earth-928) 001.gif

Miguel O' Hara, Spider-Man of the year 2099

First appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #365

Miguel O'Hara, Spider-Man of the year 2099, donned a costume similar to the original Spider-Man's, but with a more skull-like spider and much more blue throughout. This costume was made of Unstable Molecule Fabric (similar to the costumes of the Fantastic Four) and also featured a cape made of a web-like material called Lyte Byte and a different skull-like mask. This outfit was originally worn during a Day of the Dead festival.

All-New, All-Different Spider-Man 2099

All-New, All-Different Spider-Man

First appearance: Spider-Man 2099 (Vol. 3) #1

When Miguel joined Parker Industries, Peter created a new Spider suit for him. This version glows red, and can change color. The suit material is Unstable Molecules bonded to kevlar to increase durability immensely. It has better-integrated "light byte" material to improve gliding, and thrusters integrated into the boots for launch. Distance offensive capabilities are provided by "spider-saucers" running down the sleeves and integrating into the gloves, and the suit also has on-board sensors for complete vicinity readings.

Spider-Man 2211

File:Max Borne (Earth-9500) 0001.jpg

Spider-Man of the year 2211

First appearance: Spider-Man 2099 Meets Spider-Man #1

Max Borne is the Spider-Man of the year 2211. His costume had a different color scheme and no webbing marks, but had the same patterns. His mask was a mechanical helmet and he had four red mechanical arms similar to Doctor Octopus' mechanical arms.

Ultimate Spider-Man (Miles Morales)

File:Spider-Man (Earth-1610) from Ultimate Comics Spider-Man Vol 2 1.png

Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man

After officially becoming Spider-Man, S.H.I.E.L.D. gave Miles a new red and black costume because his makeshift costume was considered to be in "Bad Taste." After the death of his mother at the hands of Venom, Miles ripped up his costume yelling "No More!" One year later, Spider-Woman gave him a new suit and a set of Web-Shooters.

Ultimate Symbiote Suit

First appearance: Ultimate Spider-Man #34

The symbiote costume has an almost identical appearance to the Earth-616 version. The costume was the result of Richard Parker and Eddie Brock, Sr.'s search for a cure for cancer.

File:Ultimate venom.jpg

Eddie Brock with the symbiote suit as Venom

Peter found that this new suit enhanced his strength, gave him the ability to mentally generate webbing, and made him immune to bullets. However, he quickly discovered that it also made him increasingly violent, and the suit even grew a set of teeth during an encounter with a thug. After getting electrocuted (which nearly killed Peter), the suit separated itself from him. Peter later destroyed the sample of the cure that Eddie was keeping. However, Eddie had another sample and used it to become Venom.

Superior Spider-Man

Superior Spider-Man's 1st suit

First appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #700

During Doctor Octopus's seemingly final days, he switched bodies with Peter Parker. In the final battle with between the two, Peter Parker supposedly died in Octavius' body. During the battle, Peter showed Otto his experiences and memories as Spider-Man, causing Octavius to vow to become a superior Spider-Man. Octavius then assumed the identities of both Peter Parker and Spider-Man. To make himself a better Spider-Man,

Superior Spider-Man's 2nd suit

Octavius designed a new suit similar to the original Spider-Man suit, but with some modifications, these being that blue on the original costume was now replaced with black, the design of the symbol on the back was changed, the web design on the mask (mainly around the nose) was changed, the design of the belt is spikier, the lenses on the mask were now made of glass and could show a Heads-Up Display, all of the fingers on the gloves have retractable claws on them, and the big toe on both boots is separated from the rest of the foot and both have retractable talons. He further modified it, lacing carbonadium in the mask to prevent a mind-switch, a built-in communications device to activate nano-spider-tracers, and creating "spider-arms" on the back; as a possible homage to his previous identity.

Notes

According to the book Spider-Man: The Ultimate Guide by Tom DeFalco, Peter had heard that his school's dance team were throwing out old bodysuits, snuck into school after dark, found one that fit him, obtained two one-way mirrors from the Drama Department's prop closet (for his mask lenses) and spent an hour silkscreening the web pattern onto the bodysuit in the art room. With this, he created his first Spider-Man costume.

See Also

• 4431 appearance(s) of Spider-Man's Suit
• 6 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Spider-Man's Suit
• 602 minor appearance(s) of Spider-Man's Suit
• 16 mention(s) of Spider-Man's Suit
• 9055 image(s) of Spider-Man's Suit

Links and References

• Spider-Man (Peter Parker)