Summary

• Peter Parker sets up mental barriers and physical defenses to prevent Doctor Octopus from stealing his body again.
• Doctor Octopus is determined to become the Superior Spider-Man once more, despite Peter's efforts to stop him.
• Peter Parker sees this as a redemption opportunity and is ready to face the villain who ruined his reputation.

Warning! Contains spoilers for Superior Spider-Man #4!Marvel is revisiting one of its most controversial Spider-Man stories, and giving Peter Parker a second chance at facing the villain who originally defeated him. The 2012 storyline "Spider-Man: Dying Wish" by Dan Slott, Richard Elson and Humberto Ramos was incredibly polarizing. It saw the death of Peter Parker as Spider-Man lost his mind and body to Doctor Octopus. Now the villain is trying this scheme once again.

The first three issues of Superior Spider-Man by Dan Slott and Mark Bagley have seen Peter Parker end up being captured by Doc Ock. In a preview for Superior Spider-Man #4 by Slott and Bagley shared by Superior Spider-Man, but this time, it seems, Peter Parker is ready for him.

After having his body stolen once already, Peter claims to have set up mental barriers and physical defenses to prevent any future mind-swapping attempts. Unfortunately, Otto seems completely unphased by this and successfully drags Peter into the mindspace, and prepares to steal his body once again.

Doctor Octopus is Trying to Steal Spider-Man's Body (Again)

One of the most controversial stories in Spider-Man's history, "Dying Wish" marked the start of the Superior Spider-Man era. While dying of an untreatable cancer, Doctor Octopus manages to trap Peter Parker and steal his body. Desperately, Peter tries to enact every villain contingency Doctor Octopus has and every favor in the criminal underworld to get his body back. Tragically, it doesn't work, and Peter Parker dies in Doc Ock's body. What followed is several years of Otto Octavius learning to be a hero as he becomes his own version of Spider-Man. Eventually, Peter gets his body back, but it looks like Doctor Octopus is trying the same trick again.

During the time Doctor Octopus is in control of Peter's body, he makes his own friends and people important to him. One of these is Anna Maria Marconi, who became a major love interest for Otto. When Maria is kidnapped by the Green Goblin, having no other choice, Otto surrenders Peter's body back to Peter's consciousness. Now, Anna has been kidnapped again by the villain Supernova, and it seems Otto is determined to rescue her himself this time. His success will depend entirely on whether Peter's new defenses will truly be able to keep Otto out.

Spider-Man Will Not Let His Darkest Era Repeat Itself

Doctor Octopus' Superior Spider-Man is a toxic hero who has no issues using lethal force against people he feels deserve to die. He attempts to kill Flash Thompson, nearly kills Scorpion, and badly wounds several others. Doc Ock regaining control over Peter's body would be disastrous, but this is also a moment of redemption for Peter. Because he failed to prevent Doctor Octopus the first time, plenty of people got hurt, and his reputation was ruined. Now Spider-Man's most controversial storyline is getting another go, and this time, Peter might come out the winner.

Superior Spider-Man #4 is on sale February 14 from Marvel Comics!

Source: Monkeys Fighting Robots