Spider-Man #60

Issue Details

Synopsis

THE TRIAL OF PETER PARKER PART 3 - THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE! Having tracked down Kaine, Stunner overpowers him and intends to kill him in order to avenge the death of her beloved Doctor Octopus. Since Spider-Man was attempting to bring Kaine to justice to clear Peter Parker of a murder charge, he tries to get between the two. Stunner is furious that Spider-Man is interfering, especially after Doctor Octopus saved his life, and strikes him away. As the pair struggle, Kaine attempts to put his hand on Stunner's face and give her the Mark of Kaine. Unfortunately, Spider-Man recovers and splits the two apart again. Spider-Man tries to convince Kaine to come with him, explaining that he is needed to clear his name. However, Kaine isn't interested and tells the wall-crawler to go back to his wife and unborn child and leave Ben Reilly to rot in prison.   Stunner slams Kaine into an abandoned building where the two start to fight. Their fight compromises the structural integrity of the building. Although Spider-Man tries to pull Stunner out, Kaine drags the wall-crawler before he can. Pulling free, Spider-Man goes digging through the rubble for Stunner. When he finds her, the web-slinger is shocked when she suddenly vanishes. Kaine tries to use this opportunity to escape, but Spider-Man goes after him. Kaine warns Spider-Man that he is far stronger than the hero and he will defeat him in an all-out fight. Spider-Man agrees but manages to knock Kaine out with an unexpected sucker punch and webs him up. Meanwhile, at the courthouse, District Attorney Blake Tower is concluding his final arguments. Watching these proceedings is Mary Jane, who is showing her support even though nobody knows that the man on trial is actually Ben Reilly, Peter's clone. Tower insists that Peter Parker is guilty and demands that the judge give the maximum sentence.   While outside, Spider-Man tries to drag Kaine into the courtroom to force him to confess to the murders that Peter Parker has been accused of. Unfortunately, Kaine breaks free and tries to fight himself free. News of the battle quickly reaches the courtroom, much to the show of Mary Jane and Ben Reilly. Also hearing this is Jacob Raven, who pulls out his gun, hoping that Spider-Man finally captures Kaine. Meanwhile, Spider-Man and Kaine's battle take them into a vacant courtroom, where the pair battle it out. Kaine is furious that Spider-Man would assume that he knows nothing about suffering. Kaine decides that fighting off the wall-crawler isn't enough, that he needs to show him the truth. Kaine then takes off his mask, revealing the horribly scared face of Peter Parker. Kaine then explains that he is not just a clone of Peter Parker, but Miles Warren's first attempt at cloning him. He explains that he is suffering from the same degeneration factor that plagues Warren's other clones. However, even though the Jackal tried to kill him, Kaine turned out to be much stronger than the real Spider-Man and managed to escape. He explains that he vowed to watch over Peter's life to make sure that it turned out happy and that nobody would ever interfere in it, it is why he spent years hunting down Ben Reilly, and later framing him for murder.   Still, Spider-Man refuses to let Ben Reilly go down for a crime he did not commit and is willing to reveal his true identity in order to prove him innocent. The wall-crawler storms into the courtroom and is about to remove his mask in front of everyone gathered. Kaine, not wishing Peter to throw his life away, stops him by demanding that he has a confession to make. Blake Tower is outraged by this interruption and demands that the judge have Kaine and Spider-Man arrested until they can complete the trial. However, Kaine isn't phased by the district attorney's demands and slams his head onto a nearby table. He then threatens to snap Blake's neck if they do not listen to him. Kaine then admits to the murder of Jacob Raven's partner, and to prove it he uses his Mark of Kaine to burn a hand imprint into to the table that matches the marks left on all his victims. Despite this, Kaine refuses to allow himself to be arrested, fighting off the police officers on the scene. He then decides to make himself Ben Reilly's executioner and lunges at him, ready to kill the man he has haunted for years. ... The Trial of Peter Parker concludes in Spectacular Spider-Man #226.