The latest chapter of The Clone Conspiracy delivered the series' most shocking twist yet.
Warning: this article contains spoilers for The Clone Conspiracy #3!
After reconnecting with Spider-Gwen and learning about the other universes that have been ruined thanks to the Parker Industries/New U alliance, Peter set out to put a stop to the jackal's cloning operations once and for all. But he was in for quite a shock when he discovered that the man underneath that helmet isn't actually Miles Warren. It's Peter's clone brother, Ben Reilly.
Ben Reilly reveals himself. Art by Jim Cheung (Marvel Comics)
Ben wasted no time before offering a Faustian bargain to Peter. Join forces with New U, and Uncle Ben can live once more.
Jackal makes his offer. Art by Jim Cheung. (Marvel Comics)
In a story that's already seen the resurrection of Gwen Stacy and pretty much every dead Spider-Man supporting character and villain, this is easily the most significant development yet. Ben died at the tail-end of the Clone Saga in 1996, and apart from the occasional alternate universe appearance, he's remained dead ever since. How exactly he returned to life and why he's taken such a villainous turn remain to be seen, although the upcoming Amazing Spider-Man #22 will shed more light on Ben's story leading up to The Clone Conspiracy.
In light of this major development, Marvel held a press call today with writer Dan Slott, editor Nick Lowe and associate editor Devin Lewis to shed more light on the significance of Ben's return and how it'll impact the remaining few months of The Clone Conspiracy. During the call, it was revealed that the main crossover will be followed up with an epilogue issue called The Clone Conspiracy Omega, which will feature three new stories that focus on the immediate fallout of the crossover.
Scroll down to find out what we learned during the call, and to see new previews of The Clone Conspiracy #4 and Amazing Spider-Man #22.
The Clone Conspiracy #4 cover by Gabrielle Dell'Otto. (Marvel Comics)
As we mentioned, Ben Reilly has been gone for 20 years, which is a pretty long time for any comic book character to stay dead. Slott revealed that there's a reason Ben hasn't returned before now. It turns out that he wasn't the first writer to tackle the subject. Another creative team had dibs on resurrecting Ben Reilly for several years, but eventually that story fell by the wayside. In fact, Christopher Yost and Ryan Stegman's Scarlet Spider comic came about as an offshoot of that aborted storyline.
Even when Ben was freed up, Slott noted a certain reluctance to make that plunge, describing him as "a bullet in the gun." Slott also noted that he first considered reintroducing Ben during Spider-island (another Jackal-heavy story), but held off until The Clone Conspiracy.
Both Slott and Lowe were adamant that, despite Ben's questionable actions during the course of Clone Conspiracy so far, readers shouldn't view him as the villain of this story, nor Peter the hero. Lowe said, "All he’s been doing is helping people. Bringing people back from the dead, which is creepy, but if someone offered me my grandparents back, I would love to have time with them now that I’m older. And that’s nothing compared to the loss that many people reading this have suffered. But for Jameson to have his wife back? Rhino and his wife? Get out of here. When you actually think about what he’s offering, and what he’s doing, is that the behavior of a villain? You tell me.”
“There’s a whole generation of Spider-Man fans for whom Ben Reilly is their Spider-Man,” said Lewis. “I probably like Ben Reilly more than Peter Parker. [Lowe cut in at this point with the obligatory "How dare you?"] I don’t know if there was ever any hesitation, but there was certainly an earnestness to do it right, and do Ben justice, since there are those fans who love him.”
The Clone Conspiracy Omega cover by James Harren. (Marvel Comics)
In addition to discussing the Ben Reilly reveal, the main purpose of the call was to reveal The Clone Conspiracy Omega #1, which will be released after the conclusion of the core mini-series in March. Omega will feature three stories set in the aftermath of The Clone Conspiracy. Two of these stories will be co-written by Slott and Christos Gage, with one of them focusing on a violent clash between Spider-Man and Rhino (who doesn't look to be emerging from The Clone Conspiracy in a very happy mood). According to Lowe, this fight will rank among the most brutally violent in the history of the two characters.
The second Slott/Gage story will specifically set he stage for Amazing Spider-Man #25, the first post-Clone Conspiracy chapter of the series. “No one leaves this story untouched,” Slott said. “There’s so much going on, so much powerful material, that we needed the Omega to tell everybody’s story and bring this all home, and show where Spider-Man’s world is going.”
Finally, the third story will set the stage for a new mystery series spinning out of the events of The Clone Conspiracy. Lowe didn't want to reveal more than that, saying only that it's "written by one of the finest writers in Marvel history, drawn by one of the finest artists in Marvel history."
It sound slike Slott has big plans for Amazing Spider-Man following this crossover. He put to rest any rumors that The Clone Conspiracy is his swan song with the franchise, saying “You’re never getting rid of me! All those strands of the tapestry have been laid out in a new way, and will build into something even more.”
The Amazing Spider-Man #22 cover by Alex Ross. (Marvel Comics)
Slott noted that the next few chapters of the crossover, both in The Clone Conspiracy and The Amazing Spider-man, will focus more on the emotional reactions characters like Peter have to seeing so many resurrected friends and enemies. We specifically asked how much the two books will focus on the return of Gwen Stacy and the reveal that she holds a grudge against Peter for failing to save her from Green Goblin all those years ago. “People have been bringing a lot of their expectations and their personal interpretations to the fold,” Slott said. “We haven’t really seen Gwen and Peter have a face to face about this. We’ll see more of that in Amazing #23. The cards will go on the table.”
Before that, however, Amazing Spider-Man #22 will take a closer look at Ben Reilly and trace his journey from the end of the Clone Saga to his new role as master cloner. Slott said, “If you’re someone who was a die-hard fan in the ’90s, Amazing #22 is going to be a really important issue,” specifically telling retailers to point readers to that issue if they have questions about Ben's new status quo.
Both issues #22 and #23 will feed directly into Amazing Spider-Man #24, the finale of the Clone Conspiracy tie-in arc. Lowe said, “After you read #22, the events of #24 will seem all the more inevitable, without giving anything away.”
Jesse is a mild-mannered writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter, or Kicksplode on MyIGN.
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