The Amazing Spider-Man #253
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeAmazing Spider-Man #253 is the first appearance of the Rose, a calculating, mask-wearing crime lord who would antagonize Spider-Man across the better part of the following three years of stories. The issue lands squarely in the middle of the Alien Costume Saga — the second chapter in the title after the black symbiote suit debuted in #252 — making it a narrative and character-introduction milestone for one of Marvel's most consequential mid-1980s storylines. What gives the Rose particular long-term weight is that his hidden identity became a deliberate editorial mystery: writer Tom DeFalco originally conceived the character without a secret identity in mind, then decided to retrofit one inspired by reader enthusiasm for the Hobgoblin whodunit, but left the book before the reveal could be made. That unresolved thread wound through multiple Spider-titles until a subsequent writer finally exposed the Rose as Richard Fisk, the Kingpin's own son — a revelation that recontextualized the character's every earlier appearance as an act of covert patricide.
In "By Myself Betrayed!", Peter Parker finds himself tangled in a high-stakes scandal while covering a pro football quarterback accused of throwing games for a new mob boss known as the Rose. With Aunt May reeling over Peter's decision to drop out of school and Robbie Robertson stepping into a new role at the Daily Bugle, Spider-Man faces his first true confrontation with the Rose in a battle that tests his limits. Written by Tom DeFalco and illustrated by Rick Leonardi, with inks by Bill Anderson, colors by Glynis Wein, and letters by Joe Rosen, the cover by Rick Leonardi captures the tension of a 60-cent comic in 1984 that delivers a gripping blend of sports drama and superhero action.
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Tom DeFalco scripted the issue with pencils and cover art by Rick Leonardi, inks by Bill Anderson, colors by Glynis Oliver, and lettering by Joe Rosen, under editor Danny Fingeroth and editor-in-chief Jim Shooter. The book went on sale March 6, 1984, with a June 1984 cover date, placing it one issue after the debut of Spider-Man's alien black costume in #252 — a deliberate editorial one-two that paired a dramatic new visual identity for the hero with an equally new villain to fill the emerging crime-lord role. DeFalco has stated he designed the Rose as a 'middle management' crime figure who relied on hired muscle rather than personal combat, distinguishing him from the brawling heavies already crowding the Spider-Man rogues gallery; the character's enigmatic lilac mask was added to make him visually distinctive rather than to signal a secret identity. DeFalco was ultimately fired from the title before he could name the Rose himself, and a subsequent creative team retroactively assigned the identity to Richard Fisk, the Kingpin's son who had previously appeared as the Schemer beginning in Amazing Spider-Man #83 (1970).
Trivia · 9 facts
- First appearance of the Rose (villain), a masked mid-level crime lord who becomes a recurring Spider-Man antagonist for approximately three years following this issue.
- Written by Tom DeFalco, penciled and cover-drawn by Rick Leonardi, inked by Bill Anderson, colored by Glynis Oliver, lettered by Joe Rosen; edited by Danny Fingeroth.
- Story title: 'By Myself Betrayed!' — on sale March 6, 1984, with a June 1984 cover date.
- The issue is the second chapter of the Alien Costume Saga, with Peter Parker actively using and marveling at the black symbiote suit he brought back from Battleworld in the immediately preceding issue (#252).
- Also features the first appearance of Wendy Thorton, a Daily Bugle sports reporter who accompanies Peter Parker on assignment to cover a professional football game.
- Peter Parker tells Aunt May in this issue that he has dropped out of graduate school — a personal-life development that carried forward into subsequent issues.
- The Rose's true identity (Richard Fisk, son of the Kingpin, previously introduced as the Schemer in Amazing Spider-Man #83) was not revealed in this issue; DeFalco left the title before making the reveal, and a later writer confirmed the identity in a subsequent Spider-Man comic.
- The issue has been reprinted in Spider-Man: Birth of Venom (2007), Spider-Man: The Complete Alien Costume Saga (2014), and as an Amazing Spider-Man #253 Facsimile Edition (Marvel, released February 21, 2024).
- Bruce Banner and the Hulk, indexed in this catalog entry, do not appear in this issue according to any source consulted — see Flagged section.
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Reprints
Reprinted in L'étonnant Spider-Man #157/158 (1984), Spiderman #68 (1985), Strange #196 (1986), Edderkoppen #12/1986 (1986), Spindelmannen #12/1986 (1986), L'Uomo Ragno #40 (1990), Obras Maestras #5 (1992), Marvel Tales #267 (1992), Spider-Man: Birth of Venom #[nn] (2007), Spider-Man: The Complete Alien Costume Saga #1 (2014), Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man #24 (2022), The Amazing Spider-Man No. 253 Facsimile Edition #[nn] (2024), Spider-Man: The Complete Black Costume Saga Omnibus #[nn] (2024), Spider-Man – Sagan om den svarta dräkten #[nn] (2025), Die Spinne #112, El Hombre Araña / El Asombroso Hombre Araña #373, Σπάιντερ Μαν [Spider-Man] #165, Σουπερ Σπαϊντερμαν [Super Spider-Man] #16
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