One of the most beloved ing characters from Spider-Man comic books is his Aunt May. Movie fans know about her, as she has been played by three different actresses in the three separate Spider-Man franchises, getting younger as the years go on. In the comics, Aunt May has typically been older, although more recent portrayals have her looking younger than she has in the past.
In the comics, Aunt May raised Peter Parker as a child, and she has been his moral com along the way. May has also gone through some tough times in her life, from losing her husband to almost dying herself more than once. Through it all, Peter Parker has May there to help him in his toughest of times and she is always one to put him in his place when he gets a little too big for his own good.
Aunt May Was Unable To Have Children
Aunt May and Ben Parker's marriage played out in flashbacks throughout Spider-Man comics, and things were not always easy for the couple. In Amazing Spider-Man Family #7, the story revealed that May and Ben tried to have children of their own but May miscarried and learned she couldn't have children in the future.
When Peter Parker's parents died, May and Ben took him in and raised him as their own. At first, May wasn't sure about being a mother, but she warmed up and became Peter's most fervent protector.
Aunt May Secretly Knew Peter Was Spider-Man
For most of his career as Spider-Man, Peter Parker hid his secret identity from his Aunt May. This was because he believed his aunt was old and frail, and she was sick a lot when he was early in his career. The last thing that Peter wanted to do was put Aunt May's health at risk due to her worries about him.
However, May knew that Peter was Spider-Man, but she never let on that she knew the secret. Peter finally learned when the burglar who killed Uncle Ben returned, and May revealed the truth. This was retconned and then brought back more than once, but in the end, May always learned that Peter was Spider-Man.
She Was Deathly Afraid Of Spider-Man
For most of his early career as Spider-Man, Peter Parker had to both hide his identity from those he loved and cared about and watch as many of them hated Spider-Man, not knowing that he was the man behind the mask. For May, it was different.
May was scared to death of Spider-Man, and she would often faint when the Wall-Crawler was near. When she revealed to Peter that she knew he was Spider-Man, she itted that her fear of Spider-Man was because she felt he would cause harm to come to Peter.
Aunt May Inherited An Island Once
There have been many times in Spider-Man's life where villains have targeted his Aunt May. In one case, it had nothing to do with her being Peter Parker's aunt, and instead had everything to do with an island that she inherited.
With the knowledge that she now owned an island, it was obvious someone would want to take advantage of the elderly woman. That was Doctor Octopus, who began to woo her and the two prepared to get married in one of the best Spider-Man comic issues of the 1970s, just so Ock could own the island and use it for his own plans.
The Same Man Who Killed Uncle Ben Came Back For Aunt May
In Amazing Spider-Man #200, Peter Parker's most horrific moment came back to haunt him. The burglar who killed Uncle Ben was back and he was now targeting Aunt May. In this story, May died but it turned out to be a ruse, as the burglar had just had her kidnapped.
The reason for this was because a mobster lived in May and Ben's house before they moved in and had buried valuables behind the walls. This burglar learned about it and wanted them for himself. When Spider-Man came to stop him, the burglar died of a heart attack and May revealed they had found the valuables, but they were all destroyed at the time.
Aunt May Died Once In The Comics
Aunt May not only seemed to have died in Amazing Spider-Man #200, but she also died in front of Peter Parker and it looked like she was gone for good. This happened in one of the best Spider-Man comics of the 1990s, Amazing Spider-Man #400 and May had been sick for a while. In one of Spider-Man's most tragic moments, he held her hand while she died.
However, this was retconned later as it turned out Norman Osborn had kidnapped May and replaced her with a "genetically-altered actress" who impersonated her and died on Peter's watch.
Peter Gave Up His Marriage To Save Aunt May's Life
During the Civil War storyline, Spider-Man revealed to the world that he was Peter Parker when Iron Man convinced him it was the right thing to do. However, after the war raged on, Spider-Man switched sides, but this put May in danger since everyone knew she was Peter's aunt.
A sniper Kingpin hired shot Aunt May and she was dying. When Mephisto showed up, he offered Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson the chance to save May's life if they dissolved their marriage. They agreed, May lived, and One More Day began.
Aunt May Married J. Jonah Jameson's Father
Aunt May finally remarried years later and it was to the father of one of Spider-Man's most hated antagonists. For years, J. Jonah Jameson wanted nothing more than to destroy Spider-Man's name while at the same time looking after Peter Parker. This made it complicated when May began to date John Jonah Jameson Sr.
John asked May to marry him and the two got married, and J. Jonah Jameson himself presided over it as the mayor of New York City. For a short time, Peter Parker and J. Jonah Jameson were related. Sadly, John succumbed to a rare hereditary disease and died.
Aunt May Runs A Homeless Shelter
Aunt May has taken a hands-on job in helping the community by running a charitable business known as F.E.A.S.T., which was set up to help homeless and underprivileged people. May worked at the shelter, not knowing that it was actually a cover for Mister Negative to run his criminal activities out of.
Even after the truth came out, May kept it up and running. She has since taken complete control of the center, running it with the help of Peter Parker's roommate Randy Robertson.
Aunt May Developed Cancer
Aunt May's future might not be long for Marvel Comics. In Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man Vol. 2 #1, May learned that she had cancer. She hid this from Peter, but then she finally let him know about the cancer diagnosis.
This revelation took place in 2019 and that is when she began her chemotherapy sessions. It would make sense in the grand scheme of things. Mephisto made a deal with Johnny Blaze to save his father only to watch him die a different way. If Peter and Mary Jane made a deal with him to save Aunt May, and she died from a cancer battle, it would be par for course with Marvel's devil.