Spider-Man to celebrate 50th anniversary with new sidekick

Spider-Man celebrates his 50th anniversary in 2012, and the official 50th anniversary issue, No. 692, will be released Wednesday.

In that issue, Spider-Man will get a sidekick. As reported by Fox News, a 15-year-old named Andy Maguire will receive powers in a way that will seem familiar to longtime Spidey fans.

In the story, an invention of Peter Parker’s malfunctions and zaps Andy Maguire, who is visiting Horizon Labs on a field trip. When Andy develops powers, Peter’s sense of responsibility leads him to mentor the teen.

“Part of it is that Spider-Man is grown up,” Axel Alonso, editor-in-chief of Marvel Entertainment, told Fox News. “He’s older, more seasoned, but young at heart. He’s still a young man, but he’s been around. It’s interesting because it flips the paradigm. Teen hero Spider-Man is now responsible for this teen hero sidekick. He’s responsible because one of his inventions caused this kid to get his powers. He’s directly responsible for the responsibility this kid now has with his new powers. He feels he has a responsibility to make sure this kid walks the right path, which won’t prove easy.”

Andy Maguire shares a first name with the actor currently playing Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield) and a last name with the previous holder of the role (Tobey Maguire).

The “Alpha” storyline will continue in “Amazing Spider-Man” No. 693. Though Peter Parker is now taking on a teen sidekick, Spider-Man himself is notable as one of the first teen heroes to headline his own comic book.

---