Who Is Spider-Man’s Love Interest in the Comics? Explained
Peter Parker always had a hard time juggling his secret superhero life and his need to have normal human relationships. Despite that, it was hard to resist the charms of several women he dated throughout his long comic book history. We’ve mostly had the chance to witness Spider-Man’s transformation from an awkward teen into a true superhero, and with it came many notable names regarding his love life. Let’s see who is Spider-Man’s love interest in the comics.
Spider-Man’s love interest in the comics is currently Mary Jane Watson, and the relationship is back on track to be serious. Mary Jane Watson is considered to be his primary love interest in multiple timelines and storylines. Besides M.J., Spider-Man’s other iconic and most notable love interest in the comics is Gwen Stacy. Although briefly, Spider-Man dated numerous other women throughout the history of the character.
Now that we’ve covered the most important info, it’s time to analyze all of Peter Parker’s romances in the comics. If you’re interested and want to know more, keep reading!
Who was Spider-Man’s first girlfriend?
Forget about Mary Jane and Gwen for a moment because Spider-Man’s first official girlfriend was Betty Brant. Betty worked as a secretary in the Daily Bugle at the same time when Peter Parker first got employed there. The two became fast friends and eventually decided to bring their relationship to another level, so technically, Betty was Spider-Man’s first girlfriend.
One of the altercations with Doctor Octopus led to the tragic death of her brother. She cared deeply for Peter, and the feelings were mutual. The two eventually split up because Peter’s attention was caught by other women. This leads us to one of the most iconic love stories in comics in general.
Spiderman’s greatest love interests: Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson
While Betty Brant was Peter’s first girlfriend, when it comes to true and pure love, the first goes to Gwen Stacy. When Peter and Gwen first met, they were rather cool and disdained toward each other. They eventually figured out they had so much more in common, and the two started a relationship. What seemed to be the greatest love story soon turned into a heartbreak since Gwen Stacy died during a battle with Green Goblin.
It was Peter’s webbing that technically killed her, as he stopped her from free-falling too suddenly, which caused her neck to snap. The Night Gwen Stacy Died shocked the world and suddenly introduced the notion that superheroes might not always be there to save their loved ones. Gwen Stacy was apparently killed off because she was too nice, and Mary Jane Watson should be brought to the forefront of the events because she was a more interesting character.
And this leads us to Mary Jane… Peter’s current and other iconic love interest. Peter and Mary Jane started dating briefly after a blind date set up by his aunt. Mary Jane was way out of Peter’s league, but the two managed to hit it off. He eventually chooses to date Gwen Stacy, and Mary Jane settles with Harry Osborn.
This fact alone led to many unfortunate events and eventually led to Norman regaining his Green Goblin memories which led to Gwen dying. Mary Jane was there to console Peter as he mourned, and through the ordeal, the two became close once again and started dating. This led to a series of breakups and on-again-off-again dating. Peter and Mary Jane were married, and then the marriage was erased by Mephisto, but then they started dating again and became quite serious once again. It’s a confusing and tiring romance, but it’s iconic nonetheless.
When it comes to the question of who was Peter Parker’s greatest love, Mary Jane or Gwen Stacy? I would say both. Both played an important part in his life and shaped different parts of his personality. Since Gwen is dead, we can only assume what would happen.
Spider-Man’s other notable love interests
Black Cat / Felicia Hardy
Black Cat first appeared as Spider-Man’s villain. She has a truly tragic backstory that initially moved her to master martial arts and acrobatics. Even though at first strongly opposed to Spider-Man, the two managed to get to know each other better and a relationship formed between the two.
Black Cat consequently became known as more of an antihero than a villain. The relationship was short-lived as Black Cat wasn’t as interested in Peter Parker as she was in Spider-Man persona.
Silk / Cindy Moon
Silk and Spider-Man got their powers from the same spider on the same day. And the thing that eventually brought them together were pheromones that resulted in a shallow albeit passionate relationship. It was a short fling that taught them that even if they won’t make it as a couple together, they still do great when they’re fighting crime together. It was an interesting but short-lived dynamic.
Carlie Cooper
Carlie was a police officer, and Spider-Man was also fighting crime. The two met after Mephisto erased his marriage with Mary Jane. They hit it off soon and started a relationship. She was his first serious and big love after the Mary Jane thing, but Peter was adamant about keeping his identity secret. Carlie eventually did find out who Peter was, and it destroyed their relationship.
Michelle Gonzales
Michelle ended up on this list not because she was notable but because she was hated. What started as a one-night stand evolved into a possessive and overall bizarre relationship that was luckily ended by the Chameleon.
Kitty Pryde
This relationship is the result of Ultimate Universe, in which Kitty Pryde and Peter dated. Kitty and Peter got together after they broke up with their respective partners, and they functioned well as a couple and even better as partners. There was a downside to being a famous couple, however, as Peter’s identity was in jeopardy if Kitty was to get close to him while he was living his life as Peter Parker.
This drove a wedge between the two, and Peter broke it off to start dating Mary Jane again.
As you can see, even though Spider-Man is mostly associated romanticly with Mary Jane and Gwen Stacy, he dated plenty of gals throughout his long publishing history. There are plenty of other women (especially superpowered ones) that didn’t make this list. Having said that, the original statement still stands; in the context of comic books and most other media that adapted Spider-Man, Mary Jane is his primary love interest, followed by Gwen Stacy.
