Spider-Man: Homecoming Characters With More Meaning Than You Realized

Now that Spider-Man has come home to the MCU, longtime Marvel fans can rest easy.
The new Spider-Man is a hit, and we're sure to see more of Tom Holland in the red and
blue webs in the years to come.
But while everyone knows about the importance of Peter Parker, Aunt May, and Adrian Toomes,
there are lots of other characters hanging out in this movie who may prove to be much
more important than you might've suspected.
Strap in, nerds, and let's chat about the characters from Spider-Man: Homecoming with
more meaning than you realized.
Oh, and do you feel that tingling?
That's your Spidey Sense warning you about the Spidey Spoilers about to fly at your eyeballs.
Michelle
The ending reveal of Michelle's true identity — that she's "MJ" to her friends" — points
to the coming importance for the character in Peter Parker's life.
As fans of both the comics and the movies know, Peter and MJ's stories have been intertwined
for years.
She's first mentioned way, way back in 1964's Amazing Spider-Man #15.
But it took two years before fans (and Peter) finally got a look at her face, which first
showed up in Amazing Spider-Man #42 in 1966.
As the years went on, MJ became Peter's on-again, off-again girlfriend.
In the '80s, she took their relationship to the next level when she revealed that she'd
figured out his secret identity in Amazing Spider-Man #257.
Meanwhile, there were more than a few hints in Homecoming that indicated MJ has feelings
for Peter — and may even know his secret…
"Where are you going?
What are you hiding…
Peter?"
Eventually, Peter and Mary Jane married in 1987's Amazing Spider-Man Annual #21.
Twenty years later, in the critically divisive One More Day storyline, Peter literally sold
his marriage to Mary Jane to the devil to keep his old, decrepit Aunt May from croaking
after she was shot by bad guys.
Needless to say, this new movie MJ has a lot of weird times to look forward to.
Ned
Ned Leeds in the comics doesn't much resemble the Ned we got in Homecoming.
Leeds started out as a Daily Bugle reporter back in the 1960s, and soon became a romantic
rival for Peter.
Both of the guys were interested in the same girl — Betty Brant — and eventually Peter
backed off, while Ned and Betty wound up getting married.
But the union was not meant to last, because the villain known as Hobgoblin brainwashed
Ned into becoming another Hobgoblin — all so he could have a fall-guy to take the blame
if the cops got too close.
Eventually, Leeds would get pathetically murdered in a hotel room while dressed up as Hobgoblin.
Poor, dead Ned.
But that's not all!
Many fans have pointed out that the Ned we get in the movie bears a strong resemblance
to Ganke Lee, the best friend of Ultimate Spider-Man, Miles Morales.
It's not entirely clear why the movie's producers decided to smoosh these two characters together
into one.
But if he turns out to have more in common with his namesake than his lookalike, our
friend Ned better watch out for brainwashing machines.
Seriously.
Aaron Davis
On the subject of Ultimate versions of characters, Donald Glover plays Aaron Davis, who gets
mixed up with Adrian Toomes and his gang of super-weapon salvagers.
In the comics, that name belongs to the Prowler, who happens to also be the uncle of Miles
Morales.
In fact, it's because of the Prowler's extra-legal shenanigans that Miles gets his spidery powers.
In Homecoming, Davis hears about climbing gear on offer from the Vulture's gang, and
also mentions later that he's got a nephew in the city he cares about.
So don't be surprised to see Davis make a comeback in a sequel — right along with
the movie version of fan-favorite Miles Morales.
Mac Gargan
Spider-Man's had a lot of villains over the years, and few have been as persistent as
Mac Gargan.
Originally, Mac assumed the identity of the costumed bad guy the Scorpion.
Fun fact: the Scorpion was the result of mad science gone wrong, all bankrolled by The
Daily Bugle publisher J. Jonah Jameson.
Because Mac got stuck in the Scorpion suit, he's long held a grudge against Jameson, as
well as Spider-Man.
Years later, he bonded with the alien symbiote — the one that tried to eat Peter Parker
back in the '80s — to become the new Venom.
The partnership didn't last too long, and eventually ol' Mac went back to being the
Scorpion.
Considering he put in an appearance during the Ferry scene and during the mid-credits
scene in the prison, not to mention his scorpion tattoo, chances seem good that he'll be back
with a much larger role to play in a Spider-sequel.
Shocker
In Homecoming, we get not one, but two incarnations of classic Spidey villain the Shocker.
The first one bites the big one when he crosses the Vulture, so Herman Schultz takes on the
vibro-knuckles to become the second Shocker.
Comic fans know that Herman Schultz is the Shocker's real name from the comics.
But while he's a mainstay of Spider-Man's rogues gallery, Shocker's never really been
an A-list villain.
That's just kinda what happens when your costume consists of a brown V-neck that goes down
to your crotch and a yellow quilt on your face.
The Tinkerer
Adrian Toomes' mechanically inclined hench-guy is Phineas Mason — better known in the comics
by his villainous alter ego, The Tinkerer.
Okay, as far as intimidating super-villain names go, the Tinkerer isn't that good.
But it's still better than Paste Pot Pete, right?
And Stilt-Man.
Everyone's better than Stilt Man.
The Tinkerer first appeared all the way back in 1963's Amazing Spider-Man #2 — which
also happened to be the first appearance of the Vulture.
Since that time, he's hung around in the background of the Marvel Universe, inventing gadgets
and upgrading devices for plenty of bad guys.
That includes dudes like Big Wheel, the Grizzly, and the aforementioned Stilt Man.
Because, seriously, you can never have too much Stilt Man.
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Spider-Man: Homecoming Characters With More Meaning Than You Realized

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