Marvel just announced it is revisiting the Spider-Man Clone Saga, one of the character's most famous - and most controversial - story arcs, except this time it won't be Peter Parker dealing with an onslaught of imposters and doppelgangers; it'll be Miles Morales. And some of the creatives behind the project are saying this new story might be even more controversial than the first.
While most of the Clone Saga storyline took place in Spidey books from 1994-1996, its roots actually date back to 1975's Amazing Spider-Man #149, which saw Peter's biology professor clone Parker and have the two Spider-Men fight to the death. In the end, one of the clones was seemingly killed in an explosion, though it's not made explicitly clear which version of Parker it was. While this already may seem confusing, it's barely the tip of the iceberg of weird that would follow a couple decades later. 1994 saw the release of Web of Spider-Man #117, which introduced Ben Reilly, who claimed to be the original Spider-Man, having survived the explosion and implying it was actually Peter Parker that was the clone. Reilly served as the Web Head for a while before, in yet another twist, it was revealed that Parker indeed was the original Spider-Man and Reilly was the clone the whole time. Reilly would take on the role of the Scarlet Spider and countless more Spidey clones were thrown into the mix, including the villainous Spidercide. Even by comic book standards, the whole ordeal was somewhat of a convoluted mess and left a lot of fans with a bad taste in their mouths over it all.
This new Clone Saga is set to kick off with the release of the oversized anniversary issue Miles Morales: Spider-Man #25 in April. The story - written by Saladin Ahmed with art from Carmen Carnero - will see three Miles Morales clones hell-bent on turning Miles' life upside down and promises to be the culmination of Ahmed's celebrated run on the series. Miles will face his greatest threat yet as many of the previous issues' past villains and storylines come together for the epic event.
Considering Ahmed has been handling Miles Morales: Spider-Man since its launch in 2018, it will likely (hopefully?) be less confounding than the original Saga, as there will have been fewer cooks in the proverbial kitchen for this one. According to Marvel, "after months of buildup, the Clone Saga will be the culmination of many of the ongoing story threads that have been haunting Miles since the very beginning of Ahmed’s run."
Ahmed himself said that "Miles' Clone Saga is a story that has been months, even years, in the making. We've been planting its seeds throughout the series, from the horrors of being abducted by the Assessor to the confrontations and sacrifices of the Ultimatum epic. Moments from the past will come back to haunt Miles, and the events of the story will ensnare everyone from his baby sister to Peter Parker (who knows a thing or two about dealing with clones)." Ahmed added that the repercussions of this saga will be felt in the Spider-Man universe for years to come.
Though, while this Clone Saga may offer a more cohesive storyline, it will apparently be no less divisive than the original that split fans' opinions in the mid-90s, at least not according to the books' editor Nick Lowe, who said, "if you thought the first ‘Clone Saga’ was controversial, wait until you read what Saladin and Carmen do.”
So this is big news for fans of Miles' Spidey and will no doubt, one way or the other, send shockwaves across the comic book community. The first Spider-Man Clone Saga definitely left a sour taste in many fans' mouths, but considering Ahmed's work on the Miles series so far, and the fact that he'll seemingly have more individual control over this new Saga, hopes are high.
Source: Marvel