From a Fan's Perspective: Spider-man

So let's start from the beginning. We all know the origin of Spider-man, the nerdy kid, the spider bite, Uncle Ben, etc. Peter Parker's life would be a whole lot easier if he didn't do the superhero thing, because being a normal person and a superhero sucks for the majority of time. Relationships have been sacrificed, his own career too, but he chooses to do it because it's his sense of responsibility that drives him. It all goes back to Uncle Ben's immortal line, "With great power comes great responsibility." Peter would feel responsible if he didn't stop a crime he could have prevented. If it is within his power to do so, he will do so no matter what. When it comes to helping people he is selfless in every sense and this is why I think he's the greatest superhero ever.

We all know he has great abilities, sticking to walls, super strength, his often regarded over-powered spider sense. However people often forget that he is a very prodigious scientist. He invented spider web fluid, he invented the dispenser, and he invented a ton of other cool gadgets too and often from everyday junk. It might seem all so far-fetched but what's more unbelievable, a guy who can swing from building to building in the middle of Manhattan catching bad guys or a genius kid who can invent stuff and make a cool costume?

Spider-man works alone, not because he wants to, nor because he has to. Quite contrarily, if someone he trusted could help him, he would gladly accept in a heartbeat, but a majority of the time, even if he had that luxury, he would still be conscious of their safety first because he knows any person who would help him is automatically put in danger because of him—which is why he is almost always hesitant about asking for help. It's also why the mask is so important to him. Bearing this part of his life alone is part of his responsibility. Even when he does let his loved ones know the truth of his secret identity, he is always guarded about letting them know too much about what this life brings to him because protecting them is more important than anything.

Now back to the most important trait of Peter Parker, his empathy. It's the one stand out thing that I think sets him apart from most super heroes. I relate to his empathy the most and admire him the most because of it. Peter Parker grew up as an outsider. He's smart without being socially inept, and he can sense when something is going wrong with other people. If Peter Parker didn't have super powers, he would still be an outsider helping people or wanting to help people. As Spider-man, this sentiment is carried out exponentially. He is a superhero that is publicly lambasted by J. Jonah Jameson on a, if not daily, weekly basis. He's not doing this for fame or infamy though. He isn't trying to be accepted by anyone. He just wants to help where help is needed.

His greatest villains have all been people he knows, or has gotten to know and a lot of the times he is not trying to defeat them with just violence alone. He tries to talk them down, deescalate, understand why they do what they do and if it's more than just petty greed, he will use his empathy to try and save them from themselves, using his intelligence to out think his opponent and resolve things non fatally. It doesn't always end up that way but nonetheless Spider-man has never killed anyone and it's not because he has a no kill code that Batman has. It's because he cares and feels responsible for the people he arrests and does not judge them, it's not what he is out to do.

Spider-man is my favourite superhero because on the grand scheme of things he is always about the people on the streets, not just fighting crime, but actually engaging and helping others, no job too small. He doesn't fight battles in space. He doesn't have villains who want to destroy the planet or literal gods trying to take over the world. He is all about stopping crime, stopping people getting hurt, and saving people from danger or from themselves. His strong sense of responsibility is his engine and his empathy is his compass. This is why I love Spider-man.