The Spectacular Spider-Man #96
Spectacular Spider-Man #96 occupies a precise narrative pivot in the Alien Costume Saga: it is the first issue of the title in which Peter Parker has already surrendered the alien symbiote to Reed Richards, closing the black-costume chapter in this series and returning Spider-Man to his classic red-and-blue in these pages. The issue simultaneously delivers the climax of Al Milgrom's six-issue Answer/Silvermane/Kingpin story arc, culminating in the Answer's apparent self-sacrifice — a dramatic exit that kept the character absent from Marvel continuity for nearly nine years. As part three of 'The Final Answer!' it also weaves in the early seeds of Mary Jane Watson's knowledge of Peter's secret identity, a subplot with long-reaching consequences for the Spider-Man mythos.
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Al Milgrom took over as writer, penciler, and cover artist on Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man beginning with issue #90 (May 1984), handling the title through issue #100, with Jim Mooney inking and Danny Fingeroth editing under editor-in-chief Jim Shooter. Issue #96 was the direct continuation of a tightly serialized arc Milgrom had been building since #91, folding in the Answer — a villain he himself created — alongside Cloak, Dagger, Kingpin, and the cyborg Silvermane. The issue was released in August 1984 with a November 1984 cover date, situating it squarely in the thick of the cross-title Alien Costume Saga that ran across Amazing Spider-Man, Marvel Team-Up, and Spectacular simultaneously.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Story title: 'The Final Answer!' Part 3 of 3 (cover date: November 1984; on-sale: August 1984); written, penciled, and covered by Al Milgrom, inked by Jim Mooney, edited by Danny Fingeroth.
- First issue of the Spectacular Spider-Man title set after the alien symbiote has been separated from Spider-Man (following Amazing Spider-Man #258); the final page reprises the symbiote-in-containment scene from that issue, with the symbiote shown imprisoned in Reed Richards' Baxter Building lab.
- Concludes the Answer's original six-issue story arc (PPSSM #91–96): Aaron Nicholson apparently sacrifices his physical form to save Dagger's life when Silvermane drains a fragment of her soul, seemingly disintegrating — an exit that kept the character out of comics until Lethal Foes of Spider-Man #1 (September 1993).
- The Answer (Aaron Nicholson) was created by Al Milgrom and first appeared as a shadow cameo in PPSSM #91 (June 1984) and in full in PPSSM #92 (July 1984); his power set adapts situationally to whatever ability is required in a given moment.
- Features a large ensemble clash: Spider-Man, Black Cat, and Cloak versus Silvermane, Kingpin, and the Answer at the Kingpin's headquarters, with Dagger as the captive at stake — the Kingpin had sought to use Dagger's light energy to cure his catatonic wife Vanessa Fisk.
- A secondary subplot follows Mary Jane Watson privately processing the revelation that she has always known Peter Parker is Spider-Man, while Flash Thompson and Betty Leeds are caught up in the chaos of the Asgardian-warrior blizzard crossing New York (a tie-in to the concurrent Thor/Avengers storyline).
- Reprinted in Spider-Man: The Complete Alien Costume Saga Book 2 (Marvel, collecting PPSSM #96–100 and Annual #4, Marvel Team-Up #146–150, Amazing Spider-Man #259–263, and Web of Spider-Man #1) and in the Spider-Man: The Complete Black Costume Saga Omnibus.
- Published with a Mark Jeweler advertisement insert variant and a Canadian newsstand edition carrying a 75¢ cover price (vs. the standard 60¢ U.S. price).
Cast · 23 characters
Full credits
Full plot ⚠ may contain spoilers
▸ Reveal full plot — may contain spoilers
The Answer delivers Dagger to the Kingpin, but Spider-Man, the Black Cat, Cloak and Silvermane are not far behind. The Answer revives Dagger by using his life force, but disappears in the process.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).