Ben Reilly is falling back into his worst tendencies thanks to one of Marvel’s most powerful villains.

Chasm: Curse of Kaine #3 brings readers deep into the sewers beneath New York City, where Janine Godbe, better known as Hallow’s Eve, is running for her life from a superpowered threat she knows all too well. As it turns out, it is none other than her beloved Ben Reilly who has set his sights on Hallow’s Eve. Worse yet, Ben Reilly doesn’t even know why he is hunting her down, nor that the Eternal Druig is the one manipulating his every waking thought.

• Written by STEVE FOXE
• Art by ANDREA BROCCARDO
• Colors by BRIAN REBER
• Letters by VC’s JOE CARAMAGNA
• Design by CARLOS LAO
• Main cover art by MARK BAGLEY & DEAN WHITE
• Variant cover art by ALESSANDRO CAPPUCCIO & RACHELLE ROSENBERG

Although Ben Reilly has been a part of the Marvel Universe for decades, it is only in recent years that he took up the mantle of Chasm. While serving as the Beyond Corporation’s very own Spider-Man, Ben was subjected to various experiments, resulting in the fracturing of his psyche. This gave rise to a deep-seated hatred for Peter Parker, which in turn drove Ben to confront the man he was cloned from. Rather than recovering the memories that had been stolen from him, however, Ben was thrown into a sea of psychoactive goo, ushering in his transformation into the villainous Chasm.

Janine’s return after years of incarceration also came as a result of the Beyond Corporation’s interest in Ben. It was the Beyond Corporation who arranged her early release from prison, just as it was Ben’s transformation into Chasm that set up her own eventual transformation into Hallow’s Eve. When Ben aligned himself with Madelyne Pryor, Janine was given a bag of magical masks, each with its own superpowered properties, and each of which has helped Janine come into her own as Marvel’s latest unexpected antihero.

Druig’s recent interest in Ben Reilly comes as something of a surprise, especially considering the malevolent Eternal’s typically far grander schemes. First seen in 1977’s Eternals #11 by Jack Kirby, Druig has often found his own ambitions putting him directly at odds with his fellow Eternals. This was most recently an issue during the events of 2022’s A.X.E.: Judgment Day crossover event, which saw Druig’s attempts to wipe out all of mutantkind ended up inadvertently ushering in literal Celestial judgment for the entire planet.

Chasm: Curse of Kaine #3 is on sale now from Marvel Comics.

Source: Marvel Comics

Spider-Man

Since his first appearance in 1962, Spider-Man has almost always been Marvel Comics’ most popular character. Known for his sense of humor and bad luck as well as his selflessness and super-strength, Spider-Man has helmed countless titles over the years, Spider-Man’s most prominent comics include The Amazing Spider-Man, Web of Spider-Man, and Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man.

Peter Parker was the original Spider-Man but the Spider-Verse has become an important part of the character’s lore in recent years. Multiversal and future Spider-Men include Miles Morales, Spider-Gwen, Miguel O’Hara and Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham. This provided the premise for the popular Spider-Verse film trilogy, which makes Miles its primary hero.

Spider-Man is also the basis of several live-action film franchises and numerous animated television series. He is one of the most recognizable characters in the world. While he’s changed a lot over the decades, Steve Ditko and Stan Lee gave the world an unforgettable hero when they created Spider-Man.