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Cover: Alan Weiss

The Amazing Spider-Man #209

Name: The Amazing Spider-Man #209
Brand: Marvel
Availability: InStock

Oct 1980 · Marvel · 0.50 USD

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“To Salvage My Honor!”

★ 1st appearance — Calypso

About this Issue

Amazing Spider-Man #209 marks the debut of Calypso Ezili, the Haitian voodoo priestess whose psychological manipulation of Kraven the Hunter gave that villain a richer, more tragic dimension and indirectly helped set the stage for 'Kraven's Last Hunt.' Though Calypso entered the Marvel Universe in a relatively modest Bronze Age story, her role as an obsessive enabler of Kraven's worst impulses proved durable enough to outlast her creator's run, eventually graduating to lead-villain status in Todd McFarlane's landmark 'Torment' arc (Spider-Man #1–5, 1990). The issue also represents a creative bridge moment for the title, produced during Denny O'Neil's brief but distinctive tenure between the Marv Wolfman and Roger Stern eras, when the book was actively reaching for new corners of Spider-Man's rogue gallery. Calypso's live-action debut in Sony's 2024 Kraven the Hunter film confirmed that a character introduced without fanfare in a single Bronze Age issue had grown into one of the Kravinoff family's defining supporting players.

In "To Salvage My Honor!", Kraven the Hunter returns with a twisted challenge, demanding a public duel with Spider-Man—complete with a front-page headline to make it official. Debra Whitman turns to Peter Parker, urging him to rise to the occasion and prove his worth, while Kraven and Calypso plot their next move with deadly intent. Written by Denny O'Neil and illustrated by Alan Weiss, with inks by Janson, Bob McLeod, Rubinstein, Bob Wiacek, Milgrom, and Weiss himself, and colored by Bob Sharen, this 1980 issue features a cover by Alan Weiss that captures the tension in full.

writer Denny O'Neil · artist, inker Alan Weiss · inker Janson · inker Bob McLeod · inker Rubinstein · inker Bob Wiacek · inker Milgrom · colorist Bob Sharen · letterer Mark Rogan · cover Alan Weiss

ComicBooks.com Value

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Raw (Fine) $8

CGC 9.8 · 368 in census $123

CGC 9.6 · 342 in census $69

CGC 9.4 · 199 in census $51

CGC 9.2 · 102 in census $36

CGC 9.0 · 87 in census $32

CGC 8.5 · 63 in census $25*

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CGC 8.0 · 45 in census $22*

CGC 7.5 · 32 in census $20*

CGC 7.0 · 21 in census $20*

CGC 6.5 · 16 in census $20*

CGC 6.0 · 15 in census $20*

CGC 5.5 · 8 in census $20*

CGC 5.0 · 3 in census $20*

CGC 4.5 · 3 in census $20*

CGC 4.0 · 2 in census $20

CGC 3.5 · 2 in census $20*

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CGC 9.8 ▾ $160–$300 5 listings

CGC 9.8 $160 CGC 9.8 $162.5 CGC 9.8 $189.99 CGC 9.8 $229 CGC 9.8 · Newsstand $300

CGC 9.6 ▾ $69–$99 2 listings

CGC 9.6 $69 CGC 9.6 $99

CGC 9.4 ▾ $74.99–$120 5 listings

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CGC 9.2 $73 CGC 9.2 $94.99

CGC 9 ▾ $49.99–$75 3 listings

CGC 9 · Newsstand $49.99 CGC 9 · Newsstand $65 CGC 9 $75

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Raw / ungraded ▾ $3.5–$449 34 listings

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History

The issue falls squarely within Denny O'Neil's roughly year-long stint on Amazing Spider-Man — a run situated between the tenures of Marv Wolfman and Roger Stern, during which O'Neil tended to introduce offbeat new characters and use villains not typically associated with Spider-Man. Alan Weiss stepped in as penciler, with a large inking team (Klaus Janson, Bob McLeod, Joe Rubinstein, Bob Wiacek, and Al Milgrom) finishing the pages, suggesting a somewhat rushed production schedule common to the monthly grind of the era. Al Milgrom served as both inker and editor, with Jim Shooter as Editor-in-Chief, and the book shipped with an October 1980 cover date at a cover price of fifty cents. No specific editorial or behind-the-scenes documentation about the genesis of Calypso's character has surfaced publicly beyond what is attributable to O'Neil and Weiss.

Trivia · 8 facts

First appearance of Calypso Ezili (Calypso), the Haitian voodoo priestess and lover of Kraven the Hunter, created by writer Denny O'Neil and penciler Alan Weiss.
Full production credits: script by Denny O'Neil; pencils by Alan Weiss; inks by Klaus Janson, Bob McLeod, Joe Rubinstein, Bob Wiacek, and Al Milgrom; colors by Bob Sharen; letters by Mark Rogan; edited by Al Milgrom; Editor-in-Chief Jim Shooter.
The cover and interior art were both drawn by Alan Weiss — one of the few issues during O'Neil's run where Weiss handled penciling duties.
Spider-Woman (Jessica Drew) makes a cameo appearance; Debra Whitman, Barney Bushkin, and Rupert Dockery also appear as supporting characters.
Calypso is introduced in this issue primarily as a psychological manipulator goading a reluctant Kraven back into hunting Spider-Man; she does not demonstrate voodoo powers until her second appearance in Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #65.
The issue was published in three contemporary formats: a Direct Edition, a Newsstand Edition, and a Mark Jeweler Advertisement Insert Variant.
The story was later reprinted in Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 20 (2018), and also received international reprints in Scandinavian editions (Spindelmannen and Edderkoppen) in 1981.
Calypso's character evolved significantly after this debut — Todd McFarlane transformed her into a full supernatural threat in Spider-Man #1–5 ('Torment,' 1990), and she received her live-action debut portrayed by Ariana DeBose in Sony's Kraven the Hunter (2024).