Getting bitten by a radioactive spider made Peter Parker a superpowered hero, becoming Spider-Man and using his incredible abilities to make the world a better place. However, one superpower from Spider-Man's early days didn't stick around very long... at least in its weird, inexplicable, original form.
Spider-Man was given numerous physical abilities that most comic book fans can rattle off without difficulty. He has superhuman strength, agility, can stick and climb walls, can sense incoming danger via his Spider-Sense, and uses projected webs to traverse across New York City. In recent comics his powers have been tweaked, giving him a sense not unlike the Jedi's use of the Force. But not every new addition has stood the test of time. Back in the 1960s, Stan Lee and Steve Ditko had Spidey escape the grasp of the Green Goblin using a unique ability... Chest Expansion.
In Amazing Spider-Man #14, the Green Goblin made his first appearance in a story where he faced off against Spider-Man for the very first time. In the book, the Green Goblin tricks Spider-Man into signing up to star in a film about the hero for $50,000. Once he arrives on set, a group of villains including Montana and Ox attacks him. Montana manages to snare Spider-Man with his lasso, but he manages to escape with his chest expansion powers.
Yes, you read that correctly, Spider-Man uses his power of chest expansion to break free from Montana's lasso. He later dispatches of the group of bad guys by attaching his webbing to tumbleweed and creating a dust storm to blind the bad guys and escape for the timing (the 1960s were... weird). The chest powers weren't a one-and-done power for Spidey, either. Later, in The Amazing Spider-Man #27, Spidey is chained up by the Green Goblin after getting knocked unconscious. When he wakes up, he performs a similar expansion -- only this time, placing emphasis on his muscles, proclaiming that he "feels like Steve Reeves, in one of those Italian costume movies!"
It makes sense why Spider-Man's chest expansion powers didn't become as iconic as his Spidey Sense or web-shooters. Spidey has had a lot of powers with varying degrees of staying power. The powers don't make a ton of sense and are kind of terrifying when you think about it. Peter Parker can expand the muscles in his chest at his own will? It's one of those convenient powers that is suspiciously designed to make a hero get out of a very specific situation.
Classic Spider-Man tales like Amazing Spider-Man #14 are the perfect blend of heartfelt storytelling about responsibility and being a hero with a healthy dose of cheesiness. Spider-Man getting chest expansion powers is an ability better left in the characters vault, even if it made for some funny moments during the character's earliest adventures.