Spider-Woman #3

History

Spider-Woman Vol. 3 was written by John Byrne — who also co-created Mattie Franklin — with interior art by Bart Sears, and edited by Ralph Macchio under editor-in-chief Bob Harras. The series launched in May 1999 as a direct continuation of the three-part Amazing Spider-Man crossover that introduced both Mattie Franklin and Charlotte Witter, and issue #3 is the point at which the book pivots away from the Charlotte Witter arc to introduce its own new villain pair. The series ran for 18 issues before cancellation in December 2000, with Byrne maintaining both writing and a strong conceptual throughline throughout, including a running gag in which Mattie changes costumes across issues #2–5.

Trivia · 8 facts

• First appearance of Flesh (Donna Bliss) and Bones (Bess Bliss): twin sisters transformed by a mystical curse into a skin-suit creature and a living skeleton, respectively — introduced here as antagonists aligned with Gray Dolman/Shadrac.
• Titled 'Skin and Bones'; released July 7, 1999 with a September 1999 cover date — written by John Byrne and penciled by Bart Sears, with inks by Randy Elliott and Raymond Kryssing, colors by Michael Atiyeh, and edited by Ralph Macchio.
• Shadrac (Gray Dolman), the ancient fire-skeleton entity who received a portion of the Gathering of Five's gifts, appears here — his history as a 700-year-old mystic who possessed Greg Herd's body is the connective tissue linking this issue back to the Spider-Man 'Gathering of Five' crossover.
• Supporting cast in this issue includes J. Jonah Jameson, Marla Jameson (both appearing in the context of their role as Mattie's surrogate family), Jessica Drew (depowered), Julia Carpenter, Madame Web (Cassandra Webb), and Detective Phil Rodriguez.
• Flesh and Bones are depicted as former anorexic models who, guilt-ridden after failing to help their overweight sister Bonnie during a heart attack, voluntarily accepted a curse that literally reduced them to skin and bones — a body-horror origin that became one of the series' most unsettling threads.
• Issue #3 falls within the four-issue costume-change stretch (#2–5) in which Mattie Franklin adopts a different Spider-Woman costume each issue, a deliberate creative choice by Byrne that underscored the character's unsettled, still-forming identity.
• Flesh and Bones go on to become recurring villains throughout the series, with their full origin not revealed until issues #16–17 ('The Origin of Flesh and Bones'), suggesting Byrne had a long-term plan for them from their debut here.
• Spider-Woman Vol. 3 ran 18 issues (July 1999–December 2000) before cancellation due to mediocre sales; Mattie Franklin's next major appearance came in Brian Michael Bendis's Alias #16–21.

Cast · 39 characters

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