The Amazing Spider-Man#400

The Amazing Spider-Man #400

Apr 1995 · Marvel

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★ Death — Aunt May★ Milestone — Spider-Man★ Key event — Spider-Man

About this Issue

Published in April 1995 at the height of Marvel's divisive Clone Saga, Amazing Spider-Man #400 stands as one of the most emotionally resonant single issues in the series' history — the culmination of Aunt May's 33-year role as Peter Parker's surrogate mother, rendered with quiet, domestic gravity rather than superheroic spectacle. Writer J.M. DeMatteis structured the issue around a devastating one-two punch: May's revelation on the Empire State Building that she has long known Peter is Spider-Man, followed by her peaceful death at home surrounded by family — a farewell so carefully crafted that it functions, almost paradoxically, as a self-contained character study planted inside one of the most chaotic crossover events in Marvel's history. The retcon that later recast the deceased May as a genetically engineered impostor (orchestrated by the resurrected Norman Osborn) did not erase the issue's narrative weight; in the alternate MC2 timeline, where Spider-Girl's adventures are set, the death in this issue is treated as permanent and canonical, with May 'Mayday' Parker named directly in her memory.

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History

J.M. DeMatteis took over Amazing Spider-Man with issue #389 and inherited a title already deepening into Clone Saga continuity; he scripted the lead story 'The Gift' as a deliberate character piece that would stand apart from the crossover machinery surrounding it, dedicating it explicitly to Stan Lee, Steve Ditko, and John Romita Sr. — the three architects of Aunt May as a character. Marvel dressed the anniversary number in quintessentially mid-1990s gimmick packaging: the standard direct-market edition featured an embossed die-cut tombstone overlay cover by Mark Bagley and Larry Mahlstedt, while a limited white-tombstone variant (printed in a run of 10,000) was also released. The 72-page giant-size issue contained two additional back-up stories: 'A Shock to the System,' scripted by DeMatteis with art by John Romita Jr. and John Romita Sr., establishing Ben Reilly's solo origin five years in the past; and 'The Morning After,' plotted by DeMatteis with a script by Stan Lee and art by Tom Grummett and Al Milgrom, set the morning after Uncle Ben's murder.

Trivia · 10 facts

Published April 1995 by Marvel Comics; cover-dated April 1995; 72 pages; written by J.M. DeMatteis, pencilled by Mark Bagley, inked by Larry Mahlstedt (with Randy Emberlin on pages 32–33), lettered by Bill Oakley.
Lead story titled 'The Gift' depicts the death of Aunt May Parker — Peter Parker's surrogate mother and one of Marvel's oldest recurring supporting characters, present since Amazing Fantasy #15 (1962) — marking the first in-continuity death of the character in the main 616 universe.
Key dramatic beat: Aunt May reveals to Peter, atop the Empire State Building, that she has known for years he is Spider-Man, allowing the two characters a moment of full, mutual honesty before her death.
Ben Reilly (the Scarlet Spider, Peter Parker's clone) appears throughout but is unable to join the family inside because of his ambiguous status as a clone; he watches May's final days from outside a window, tortured by shared memories he cannot claim.
The issue closes with Peter being arrested by Detectives Raven and Trevane for a murder committed by Kaine, and Ben Reilly unmasking himself to Mary Jane Watson-Parker — a plot beat that continues directly in Spider-Man #57.
Back-up story 'A Shock to the System' (art by John Romita Jr. and John Romita Sr.) presents the origin of Ben Reilly, set five years in the past, establishing his name and the beginning of his years-long wandering exile.
Back-up story 'The Morning After' (plotted by DeMatteis, scripted by Stan Lee, art by Tom Grummett and Al Milgrom) is set the morning after Uncle Ben's murder and is one of Stan Lee's only scripting contributions to Amazing Spider-Man during the 1990s.
The death was later retroactively voided in the main 616 continuity: Osborn revealed that the 'May' who died was an actress infused with May's genetic matrix, while the real Aunt May had been held captive — though the death stands as valid in the MC2 alternate timeline, where Peter's daughter May 'Mayday' Parker is named in her memory. The issue was reprinted in the Spider-Man: Clone Saga Omnibus (2016).
Three cover editions exist: a standard direct-market edition with a gray embossed die-cut tombstone overlay, a newsstand edition without the overlay, and a white-tombstone limited variant printed in a stated run of 10,000 copies.
The lead story carries a dedication 'with deep respect and admiration to Stan Lee, Steve Ditko and John Romita, Sr.' — the three creators who originated Aunt May as a character.