In the comic book fandom, people are always interested in seeing who superheroes are dating. One of the most well known relationships in the comic book world is the one between Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson.
There are several lucky fictional civilians who get to date superheroes and one of those ladies is Mary Jane Watson.
Created by Stan Lee and John Romita Sr., Mary Jane Watson, typically called MJ, was first mentioned in The Amazing Spider-Man #15. It wasn’t until The Amazing Spider-Man #25 until she made her first partial appearance, with The Amazing Spider-Man #42 marking her first full appearance.
Peter Parker, on the other hand, has been the focus of the comic books since Spider-Man’s appearance in Amazing Fantasy #15. Spider-Man was created by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and the late Steve Ditko.
His powers include climbing up walls, flying through the cities on his web fluid, and basically doing everything a spider can. Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Holland are mainly the three associated with the character, but there have been plenty of others who have voiced the character.
With Mary Jane being introduced to the fold of the comic book, it was only a matter of time before she would form some type of a relationship with Spider-Man.
Just like any normal relationship, Mary Jane and Peter have gone through high and low points in their relationship but none the less love each other.
Here are the 25 Things Only True Fans Know About Spider-Man And Mary Jane's Relationship.
They Both Had Rough Childhoods
It seems like all superheroes have some sort of a traumatic past. Whether it be the passing of a loved one or sometimes even an entire planet, superheroes often have a rough time growing up.
Peter Parker was no exception. He had to go live with his Aunt and Uncle at a young age, and to make matters even worse, he lost his Uncle when he was only a teenager.
Mary Jane might not have become a well-known superhero like Spider-Man but she also had a troubled past growing up in an abusive household.
This isn’t really seen in the comic books but can certainly be seen in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man.
Mary Jane Doesn’t Always Need Spider-Man To Save Her
Mary Jane was often seen as a damsel in distress in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy but that is not always the case.
During one storyline in the Spider-Man comic books, Mary Jane accepts a position at Stark Industries. With the help of Betty Brant and Harry Osborn, Mary Jane discovers that Augustus Roman is actually a villain named Regent.
Regent is able to quickly overpower Spider-Man and Iron Man, who are both in need of saving.
Suiting up in Peter’s Iron Spider suit, Mary Jane comes to save the day and helps release Stark and Parker.
Peter Parker Had To Propose To Her Twice
The question, “Will you marry me?” is often one of the hardest questions someone can ever ask their significant other. While Spider-Man had battled several thugs and criminals up to this point, it was even hard for him to ask Mary Jane to marry him.
Mary Jane turned Peter down not once, but twice.
Mary Jane initially flat out denied his proposal, claiming that marriage wouldn’t suit her since she was a free spirit. Peter asked her once again later on but she didn’t accept right away.
Mary Jane had to assist her sister Gayle since she had been unjustly sent to prison. However, she then came home and accepted Peter’s proposal.
Spider-Man Gave Mary Jane A Life-Claiming Illness
Spider-Man: Reign sees our favorite web-slinger in a dystopian future struggling with life as an old man.
The four-issue comic book tells the tale of Peter Parker returning to the role of Spider-Man and also explains how Peter was responsible for Mary Jane’s passing. Spider-Man’s blood isn't just radioactive, but all of his bodily fluids are too.
This meant that when Peter and Mary Jane became intimate, he unknowingly gave her cancer.
Reign was an odd and incredibly dark comic book that is unlike most of Spider-Man’s usual stories.
Mary Jane Is Just As Smart As Peter Parker
Mary Jane is often not given as much credit as she should be. In the comic books, she was often seen partying it up, while in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy, she was seen as nothing more than a damsel in distress.
While this may be the case for certain Spider-Man storylines, there are several others which show a Mary Jane who is just as smart as Peter Parker.
In one Spider-Man story arc, Mary Jane pursued a psychology degree, and in a different tale, she began working for Tony Stark.
The Fictional Couple Got Married In Real Life At Shea Stadium
Shea Stadium saw some fascinating moments while the ballpark was open. Before it was replaced by Citi Field, Shea Stadium not only was the home of the New York Mets, but it also hosted a concert for The Beatles.
It was even the place where Spider-Man and Mary Jane tied the knot.
In accordance to the big day in the comic books, the two characters were married in real life, with Stan Lee officiated the wedding.
Captain America, Hulk, and several other heroes and villains were present on the big day.
The Prowler Helped Convince Mary Jane Peter Wasn’t Spider-Man
There have been several instances in which Peter Parker has revealed his identity as Spider-Man. One of these moments happened in The Amazing Spider-Man #87 while Peter Parker has the flu.
Not realizing that his illness is a simple case of the flu, Spider-Man becomes depressed and reveals his true identity to his friends and Mary Jane.
Soon after realizing his mistake, Peter Parker asks Hobie Brown, aka The Prowler, to dress up as Spider-Man to prove that he actually is not Spider-Man.
Mary Jane Was Not His First Love
Even though Mary Jane Watson may be the most iconic love interest of Peter Parker, she was not the first.
It may be a surprise to some, but Gwen Stacey was actually Peter Parker’s love interest long before Mary Jane was.
While Betty Brant may be Peter’s first girlfriend in the comics, Gwen Stacy dated Peter long before Mary Jane did.
Gwen Stacy first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #31 and dated Peter for a good portion of time until her passing thanks to the Green Goblin in issue #121.
Mary Jane Was Once Spider-Man
Alternate realities are often explored in the comic book world. In certain realities, Peter Parker isn’t the one who becomes Spider-Man.
In two instances, Mary Jane Watson has taken on the name Spider-Woman. The first time was during the Marvel Mangaverse reality and again during the Exiles series.
There have been several women who have taken on the mask of Spider-Woman, but Mary Jane Watson is one of the most intriguing since she is usually just associated with being a love interest for Spider-Man.
Mephisto Erased Their Marriage
In the comic book world, nothing is ever set in stone. There always seems to be a way to reverse storylines and undo those that don’t bode well with readers.
One of these storylines was the marriage of MJ and Peter Parker. In the series One More Day, Aunt May gets shot and the only way to save her is by making a deal with the demon Mephisto.
Long story short, Mephisto agrees to save Aunt May’s life but only if he can erase Peter Parker and Mary Jane’s marriage from existence.
This storyline stuck and Peter and MJ are now only married in an alternate reality.
They Have A Daughter Named Anne-May Parker
Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows focuses on an alternate reality where Mary Jane Watson and Peter Parker are still married and actually have a child together.
The child’s name is Anne-May Parker and she is seemingly named after their Aunts Anna and May.
Anne-May went by the name of AMP and later Spiderling after she developed her own set of Spider Powers.
Spiderling has all of the same powers as her father and has the personality traits of both Mary Jane and Peter Parker.
Peter’s Superhero Role Often Strains Their Relationship
Like most relationships, Peter Parker and Mary Jane’s relationship was never perfect. This only became more clear after Mary Jane discovered that Peter was the famous web-slinger.
Much like spouses of police officers, Mary Jane constantly worried whether Peter would make it home since he went out every night to fight crime.
This proved to be a real issue in the relationship, especially since Spider-Man fought bad guys who were far too dangerous for the police to handle.
Peter’s superhero role often strained their relationship, and it isn’t hard to see why.
Mary Jane Was Supposed To Appear In The Amazing Spider-Man-Man 2
While Emma Stone appeared as Gwen Stacy for the love interest of Peter Parker in both of the Amazing Spider-Man movies, Mary Jane was also supposed to make an appearance.
Shailene Woodley was supposed to appear as MJ in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and even filmed scenes for the role.
However, her scenes were ultimately cut from the final movie.
One of the complaints that fans and critics of the film had was that there was too much crammed into the movie between the villains, character development, and teases for future films.
Having Woodley appear as Mary Jane would have only made this issue worse in the grand scheme of things.
Mary Jane Fought Alongside Peter As Red Sonja
Red Sonja may be known as a character from the Conan the Barbarian comic books, but she also made appearances in the Spider-Man comic books.
Famous for her skimpy and impractical metal bikini, Red Sonja found herself in the present day and possessed Mary Jane Watson.
While Red Sonja at first attacks Spider-Man, they later pair up in order to defeat the evil sorcerer names Kulan Gath.
Red Sonja and Spider-Man, of course, end up victorious but it wasn’t an easy win, especially after Venom came into the picture.
Mary Jane In Spider-Man: Homecoming?
Spider-Man: Homecoming marked Peter Parker’s second appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe following his role in Captain America: Civil War.
Being able to have Spider-Man in the MCU was a huge win for Marvel and Disney, since Tom Holland as Spider-Man has been well received by fans and critics.
While Holland played Peter Parker, Zendaya played a character named Michelle whose nickname was MJ.
It still hasn’t been confirmed if she is the MCU's version of Mary Jane or not, but her nickname makes this seem like a safe bet.
Peter Was Originally Supposed To Have A Different Wife
While many love Mary Jane as Spider-Man’s love interest, others believe that Gwen Stacy is his true love. There will always be debate over which character is better for Peter, but there are some solid arguments for Gwen Stacy.
Gwen Stacy was originally written to eventually be Peter Parker’s wife.
It was only after Mary Jane was introduced that the writers found more chemistry between Peter and Mary Jane and thought that Mary Jane was more interesting to write about.
Peter Parker was originally supposed to marry Gwen Stacy but Mary Jane was just too much of a jackpot to pass up.
Peter Cried When Mary Jane Played Cinderella In First Grade
This secret may come straight from Sam Raimi’s original Spider-Man, but it’s none the less heartwarming. In an emotional scene, Mary Jane goes into her backyard because her family members are yelling at each other.
Peter happens to be taking out the garbage at the same time and the pair have a conversation with each other about their future.
Mary Jane reveals that she wants to be an actress on stage and Peter thinks it’s a great idea.
He even confessed that he cried like a baby when she played Cinderella in first grade. Heartwarming or cringeworthy? You be the judge.
Their Aunts Were Responsible For Getting Them Together
Most people know of Peter’s Aunt named May Parker, but not as many people have heard of Mary Jane’s Aunt Anna.
In the comics, Peter Parker initially didn’t want anything to do with Mary Jane Watson.
He figured that since his Aunt was trying to get them to date, he wouldn’t be attracted by Mary Jane.
Thankfully, Aunt May pushed them to meet and they became one of comics most iconic couples.
What makes this even more interesting is that the same thing happened between MJ and Aunt Anna as explained in the Parallel Lives graphic novel.
MJ’s Face Was Purposefully Hidden In The Comics
Movies and TV shows often keep a new character’s appearance hidden for as long as possible. Gareth Edwards did this with Godzilla in 2014 and Home Improvement did this with the character Wilson back in the '90s.
Mary Jane was initially supposed to be an ongoing joke in the Spider-Man comics much like Wilson in Home Improvement, but that all went out the window when her face was finally fully revealed.
Needless to say, Peter Parker and the Spider-Man comics could have been very different if the writers would have kept her on as a joke.
Peter Parker Had Multiple Relationships Besides Mary Jane
Mary Jane is no doubt one of Spider-Man’s most well-known love interests, but there have been many others. For someone who is supposed to be a nerd underneath the mask, Peter Park certainly got a lot of action.
While his relationships with Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane are often explored in movies, he has also had several other relationships.
It’s hard to pinpoint exactly how many girlfriends Spidey has actually had, but Betty Brant, Black Cat, Kitty Pryde, and Emma Frost are some of the most notable women.