Every Marvel Comic Cover Recreated in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Including a Controversial One
Spider-Man: Brand New Day lives up to its name by giving the Spider-Man movie franchise a whole new lease on life. And yet, the title of the film also feels totally ironic, since Brand New Day has more throwback Easter eggs than any other Spider-Man movie that came before it. The mix of nostalgia and modern dramatic storytelling is making critics and audiences all praise Brand New Day as one of the better Spider-Man movie experiences they’ve had, with many poignant reminders of how much Spider-Man has meant to the world, and for how long.
In fact, director Destin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi, Wonder Man) created an entire pocket of Easter egg tributes dedicated entirely to recreating classic Spider-Man comic book covers in the film. Some of them you probably know, others you probably don’t, which is why we’ve made a list of them all.
5) Spectacular Spider-Man #142
In a hard-boiled two-part crime story, Tombstone threatens Peter Parker’s loved ones over a confession recorded by Daily Bugle editor Joe Robertson. Spider-Man tries to battle Tombstone in Atlanta, while some larger mastermind crime figures strike at Robertson and other Spider-Man supporting characters in New York. It also features the Punisher, who gets in trouble when his mind is hijacked by a villain called the Persuader, making him the unwitting hitman of a mastermind criminal known as the Arranger.
Brand New Day recreates the cover as part of its montage about Spider-Man’s career as a local NYC hero over the course of four years. The only regret here is that Marvel cast Marvin Jones III (DC’s Black Lightning) as Tombstone, and fans were certainly hoping to see more of him than a brief montage moment. There’s also a nice nod to this issue with the Punisher’s arc in Brand New Day.
4) The Amazing Spider-Man #221
Ramrod is an obscure Spider-Man villain with good reason: he’s pretty ridiculous. A construction crew member who became a cyborg after a grave injury, Ramrod was coerced into supervillain work under threat of being killed. In Amazing Spider-Man issue #221, Peter runs afoul of Ramrod, who is very upset that he didn’t get booked for a gig as a country singer (true story) and decides to retaliate against the locals, leading to several bouts with Spider-Man.
Brand New Day recreates the covers sv where Spider-Man battles Ramrod on the campus of Empire State University, the college that Peter Parker attends. That context obviously had to be changed for the movie, but it still works.
3) The Amazing Spider-Man #345
Boomerang proves to be a real snake in the grass in this issue, which is primarily about another one of Spider-Man’s foes, Cardiac. Cardiac is attacking a chemical corporation’s operations, which eventually draws the ire of industrialist Justin Hammer. Using a ship for of chemicals as bait, Hammer lures both Spider-Man and Cardiac to the location, where Boomerang is perched in wait, ordered to kill whoever wins the fight between Spidey and Cardiac. Instead, Boomerang tries to prove his mettle by attacking both targets at once, and ends up losing.
Brand New Day only gives Boomerang the appropriately brief moment that he barely deserves. But it is a gorgeous recreation.
2) The Amazing Spider-Man #134
1970s Marvel Comics tried to litigate the volatile socio-political shifts of that era, including down in South America. Enter “Tarantula,” a disgraced South American anti-fascist revolutionary who becomes a spider-themed mercenary, complete with poison-tip spikes in his shoes. For his first criminal act, Tarantula invades a cruise Peter Parker is on with his friends, trying to ransom them off for a million dollars. Of course, Spider-Man just happens to be there to take on the villain. The seemingly pulpy superhero vs. supervillain tale had a controversial side-scene moment, as this was the issue where Peter Parker’s best friend and roommate Harry Osborn finally discovers he is Spider-Man. It also ends on a cliffhanger featuring the Punisher, who appeared frequently in Spider-Man books at the time.
Brand New Day gives Tarantula more of a spotlight than Marvel Comics has the last few years; although more spider vs. spider action wouldn’t have hurt. The MCU also stripped away many of the regrettable South American stereotypes that came with Tarantula.
1) Amazing Fantasy #15
On June 5, 1962, Marvel Comics co-creators Stan Lee and Steve Ditko would change the world forever, with just one issue of a comic book, which told one of the greatest superhero origin stories ever. Mild-mannered high school geek Peter Parker gets bitten by a radioactive spider while visiting a lab, gets strange powers as a result, and initially tries to use them to enhance his own celebrity, fame, and wealth. However, after failing to stop a robber (as it wasn’t “his problem”), Peter’s life is forever scarred when that same robber ends up killing his beloved Uncle Ben. Peter hunts down the killer and is prepared to dole out the ultimate justice – only to realize his own Karmic error led to his uncle’s death. From then on, Peter (as Spider-Man) would embody the notion that “With great power comes great responsibility.”
Brand New Day culminates its montage of Peter’s four-year career as NYC’s Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man with a slow-motion homage to the comic that started it all. The only shame is that Stan Lee wasn’t here to cameo as the man Spidey is carrying. RIP.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is now in theaters.
