Spider-Man has had his share of problematic romantic relationships. From the time he dated notorious cat burglar Felicia Hardy (aka the Black Cat) to the time he went out with the brainwashed X-Men mutant Marrow, Spidey’s made some questionable dating choices. However, none of these girlfriends shocked Spider-Man as much as when he discovered his girlfriend was the daughter of the burglar who killed his Uncle Ben!
The story took place during Spider-Man’s infamous “Clone Saga” during a point where Peter Parker’s clone Ben Reilly (formerly the Scarlet Spider) took over as Spider-Man. While Ben was technically not the original Peter Parker, both he and Peter came to see each other as brothers and considered Ben Parker their shared uncle. Moreover, Ben believed he was the original Peter Parker at this point, making his reaction to his girlfriend’s identity just as genuine.
How the Burglar Continued to Darken Spider-Man’s Life
All Spider-Man fans are familiar with how Peter Parker, having just acquired his spider-powers, arrogantly let a burglar slip past him during one of his original TV appearances. Later that night, Peter discovered the burglar had tried to rob his house and killed his Uncle Ben in the process. Horrified that his irresponsibility had led to his uncle’s death, Peter vowed to always use his powers to help others from then on.
What many fans do not know, however, is that the burglar re-appeared in Peter’s life years later in The Amazing Spider-Man #200. After being released from prison, the burglar (whose name was still unknown) teamed up with Spider-Man villain Mysterio who was running a scam at the nursing home where Peter’s Aunt May was staying. The two faked May’s death to gain ownership of her house which the burglar revealed he had tried to rob years ago after learning of a treasure buried there. When Spider-Man investigated, Mysterio drugged him with a chemical that temporarily removed Peter’s powers.
The burglar later cornered Peter at Aunt May’s home, thinking he could use him to guide him to the treasure. Upon seeing the man, Peter flew into a rage and nearly beat him to death even without his spider-powers. The burglar got the upper hand, however, and managed to tie up Peter, only for Peter to escape and track down the burglar as a (still powerless) Spider-Man. When the burglar asked Peter why Ben Parker meant so much to Spider-Man, Peter unmasked and revealed his identity. Convinced that Peter would kill him, the burglar suffered a fatal heart attack, ending their story… or so it seemed.
When Ben Reilly Met Jessica Carradine
Years later, when Peter’s clone Ben Reilly took over the mantle of Spider-Man in The Sensational Spider-Man #1, he met an attractive woman named Jessica Carradine at the coffee shop where he worked. Jessica and Ben shared an instant chemistry, partly thanks to Jessica’s interest in becoming a photojournalist. However, Jessica was also strangely obsessed with Spider-Man and always dressed in black as if she were in mourning. When Ben asked Jessica about her family, she said her father was “the greatest guy you could ever hope to meet” but that he had died while she was in her teens, leading her to be raised in foster homes.
Jessica and Ben began dating, but when Ben discovered Jessica’s interest in Spider-Man, he managed to get a blurry photo of Jessica and her father. Later, Peter (who at the time thought he was a clone of Ben), enhanced the photo and discovered Jessica’s father was the burglar who killed their Uncle Ben. Shaken, Ben discovered Jessica believed her father was wrongfully convicted and that Ben Parker had threatened her father with his gun and accidentally shot himself. Worse, since she knew Spider-Man was with her father when he died, she believed Spider-Man had murdered her father.
While Ben wasn’t the Spider-Man who had seen Jessica’s father die, he still tried to convince her Spider-Man was innocent. Things got more complicated, however, when Jessica managed to snap a photo of Spider-Man unmasking and discovered he was Ben Reilly. This put Jessica into a traumatized state – she was in love with Ben but wanted to destroy Spider-Man. Ben almost managed to convince her of his innocence, but when he asked her to destroy the photos, she angrily decided the photo gave her the power to expose his identity and decides to send it to the Daily Bugle.
Moments later, however, Jessica saw Ben nearly die saving some kids from a burning building. Realizing that Spider-Man was a hero, she gave Ben back the photos, telling him she wouldn’t let her hate ruin his life. Ben never saw Jessica again, but in a final scene, the reader saw Jessica – now dressed in white – placing some flowers at Ben Parker’s grave to apologize for her father’s deeds and her own anger.
What Jessica Carradine Adds to the Spider-Man Mythos
The Clone Saga was a controversial Spider-Man storyline, causing many subplots like Ben and Jessica’s relationship to be largely overlooked. In truth, the story probably would have had more impact if Peter had been the one to date Jessica (prior to marrying Mary Jane). Even so, the storyline did offer one big change to the Spider-Man mythos.
Ever since his first appearance in Amazing Fantasy #15, the burglar has remained an anonymous figure. While Peter apparently knew the man’s real name in The Amazing Spider-Man #200, readers only knew him as “The Burglar.” Thanks to Ben and Jessica’s story, however, the burglar finally received a name.
In a brief scene in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3, Peter Parker sees a mug shot of his Uncle Ben’s killer, which offers the name “Dennis Carradine.” A clear reference to Jessica Carradine, the name serves to humanize the burglar – not so much for his sake, but for the sake of his family. While the burglar may have hurt Peter Parker more than any villain Spider-Man ever faced, Spider-Man refuses to let his hate spill over to people like Jessica. This in turn lets Jessica turn away from her own hate – and discover in her own way how great power also requires great responsibility.