In the latest issue of Amazing Spider-Man, the web-slinger gets a new job that comes with a new suit that provides a new upgrade to a classic weapon.
WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Amazing Spider-Man #61 by Nick Spencer, Patrick Gleason, Edgar Delgado, and VC’s Joe Caramagna, on sale now.
A need for a quick infusion of cash has given Spider-Man a brand new job as well as some improvements to his equipment. Now outfitted with a sleek new suit, Peter Parker’s web shooters have also been enhanced, coming with a few new tricks and even a new sound: they now go THWEP instead of THWIP.
The change in Spider-Man’s look is more than just cosmetic; it is part of a recurring pattern that happens whenever the web-head dons a new suit. With a great suit comes great enhancements in the world of Peter Parker.
Spider-Man’s new suit has given him a definitive edge in combat. It comes with surveillance technology that enhances his spider-sense, making it easier for him to avoid danger. But the change that still has yet to be fully explored is the web shooters. They’re thicker in design now, which can only mean they have more tricks. One example seen so far is “web-mucking,” a brand new ability that allows him to shoot highly compressed shots of webbing, ensnaring multiple foes with one shot. What’s even more impressive is that this type of webbing seems capable of even holding foes that can change their molecular structure, such as Hydro-Man.
But this isn’t the first time the web shooters have changed in conjunction with a new suit. A good example is in Sam Raimi’s “Spider-Man” trilogy. The webs that Peter Parker generated were organic instead of artificial in the film universe. Another enhancement similar to the web-muck was the “impact webbing” used by the Scarlet Spider. Instead of a string of webbing, Scarlet Spider was able to launch a ball of webbing that exploded upon impact, encasing its target.
The list goes on from there. Impact webbing managed to make into the Marvel’s Spider-Man video game alongside some other enhancements such as electric webbing, but all these changes usually occur in conjunction with a suit change.
There is a likely reason why Spider-Man’s web shooters usually change alongside his costume. Spidey’s costume changes are often symbolical of a personal development in his life. Maybe he’s joined a team or suddenly he’s become rich. In this case (and several others) it is because he got a new job and he’s implementing the benefits into his suit. But at the end of the day a costume change is cosmetic. There needs to be a reason to get excited about this new suit. New tricks with the web shooters accompanying the change usually suffice. And given that Peter’s only just started working with this new suit, there may be more new web-tricks to come.
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