Richard and Mary Parker
Richard and Mary Parker | |
---|---|
The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #5 (November 1968) Full appearance: Untold Tales of Spider-Man #1 (May 1997) | |
Created by | Stan Lee Larry Lieber |
In-story information | |
Full name | Richard Laurence Parker Mary Teresa Parker (née Fitzpatrick) |
Place of origin | Queens, New York |
Team affiliations | Central Intelligence Agency S.H.I.E.L.D. |
Supporting character of | Spider-Man |
Richard and Mary Parker are fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are the parents of Peter Parker, the superhero known as Spider-Man.
Richard and Mary Parker have been adapted to appear in several animated television series and video games. Campbell Scott and Embeth Davidtz portrayed the characters in the films The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014). Emma Roberts portrays Mary Parker in the Sony's Spider-Man Universe film Madame Web (2024).
Publication history
Richard and Mary Parker were created by
In The Amazing Spider-Man #365 (August 1992), Spider-Man's 30th anniversary, they reappeared. Two years later, however, in #388 (April 1994), they were revealed to be
In the novel Mary Jane, it is said they died in a plane accident while going to
Fictional character biographies
Captain Richard Parker, a decorated soldier of the United States Army Special Forces and younger brother of Ben Parker, was recruited by Nick Fury, the future director of S.H.I.E.L.D., to the C.I.A.
Mary Fitzpatrick was the daughter of O.S.S. agent "Wild Will" Fitzpatrick. She attended the best schools and eventually followed in her father's footsteps, becoming a C.I.A. translator and data analyst.
Richard and Mary met on the job, fell in love, and married. Originally they eloped, later having a more elaborate service, fooling many. Mary became a field agent like Richard, giving them both an easy cover as a married couple. They were assigned to investigate Baroness Adelicia Von Krupp, who had captured an agent of a "friendly power" (who turned out to be Logan, aka Wolverine, then a Canadian operative called "Agent Ten" and who would eventually become an ally of their son Peter who would grow up to become Spider-Man). They rescued Logan from the Baroness and Baron Wolfgang von Strucker. After that mission, they discovered Mary was pregnant; Logan was actually the first person to congratulate the Parkers, commenting later that he never saw an agent as tough as Richard Parker go that white that fast.[1]
Their son, Peter, was often left in the care of Ben and his wife May when Richard and Mary were away on missions. When Richard and Mary ultimately died, Peter was raised by them.
While on a mission to investigate Albert Malik, the third Red Skull, they posed as traitors and double agents to infiltrate his criminal organization in Algeria, ultimately being discovered. Malik had an assassin kill the two by sabotaging their airplane and causing it to crash.[2] They were subsequently declared missing in action/presumed dead, as two burnt bodies were found in the remains.[3][volume & issue needed]
After death
Richard and Mary's son, Peter, grew up to become Spider-Man. Although he has only vague memories of his parents and no memory of their militaristic history, his aunt and uncle share photographs and happy memories with him, but not their belief that they had been traitors to their country. When Peter discovers this, he travels to Algeria. He finds Malik who sends the Finisher to kill Spider-Man. Spider-Man turns the Finisher's missile against him, killing him, but not before revealing that Richard and Mary were in fact innocent. Spider-Man returns to America with evidence and clears his parents' names.[2]
Richard and Mary Parker were revealed to have a daughter named
Life Model Decoys
Years later, the
Strip away the veneer of society and civilization and you'll find a devil inside all men. ... That prison was overrun with devils, Peter. Sadistic evil men who'd do anything—no matter how twisted, how immoral—to break a man down. Destroy his soul ... Oh, sure there are good men in the world. Your uncle Ben was one of them. And look where it got him. Dead. Shot down like a dog. And knowing my brother, he was probably looking up at the scum who did it—trying to understand why. But when it comes to the devils, Peter—there is no why. No rhyme or reason. ... Use whatever means possible to stop the madness—before it swallows you up. ...
— Richard Parker
When Shriek uses her psychic powers to turn the whole town against Spider-Man and the other super-heroes, "Richard" remarks that the "moral, orderly" world he remembered while in prison "was just an illusion! The evil was here—all along — festering beneath the surface!" — inviting a sharp rebuke from Peter's wife, Mary Jane[10] (when exposed as frauds, some of his "parents'" cynicism rubs off on the "son" — with Spider-Man becoming unusually brutal against his enemies and developing a "Spider" alternate personality).
Ambiguities in Marvel documentation
The nature and timing of Richard and Mary Parker's fate are somewhat ambiguous in
It is also ambiguous how old Peter was when his parents mysteriously disappeared: some accounts have it happening in his infancy; Another, more comprehensive book on the Marvel Universe (also released in 2004) asserts that Peter's only clear memory of his (real) parents was of the moment they were boarding the fateful plane and he promised them he would be a "good boy" for Aunt May and Uncle Ben. Most Spider-Man stories in the main continuity are vague about Peter's exact age when he was effectively orphaned.
Other versions
1602
In
Bullet Points
In the alternate timeline of Bullet Points, Ben is killed a few months into his relationship with May Parker. Richard and Mary promise to "always be there for her", a vow which was later broken.[18]
House of M
In the alternate reality created by the Scarlet Witch during the House of M storyline, Peter and Gwen Stacy name their son Richard in name of Peter's father.
Marvel Mangaverse
Richard has not appeared or been mentioned in the
MC2
In the alternate reality of
Trouble
The 2003
Ultimate Marvel
In the
In
Later, in issue #103, Dr. Otto Octavius (who created multiple clones of Spider-Man) reveals that "Richard Parker" was a clone, later confirmed when Susan Storm runs a test on Richard's DNA and finds it identical to Peter's. Apparently, the cloning process severely aged Richard. Though his memories were false, Richard loves Peter like a son and asks the Fantastic Four in particular Sue Storm to look after him before passing away.
In issue #4 of
One day, while Pym and Banner are testing a possible match to the serum, Richard is just outside the lab being visited by his wife and recently born son, Peter. Having just tested the serum on himself, Banner transforms into the Hulk and goes on a rampage, destroying the complex. Richard and Mary are caught in an explosion and severely injured.[20]
Artist
Spider-Geddon
During the "Spider-Geddon" storyline, a version of Richard and Mary Parker were riding an airplane provided to them by Wilson Fisk that is carrying them over the Savage Land until it was rigged to crash by Fisk. The two of them were killed in the crash while their son Peter was parachuted out of the airplane, taken in by giant spiders, and became the Savage Spider-Man.[22]
In other media
Television
- Illusionary versions of Richard and Mary Parker appear in the Spider-Man episode "Doctor Strange".
Film
- Richard and Mary Parker appear in The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), respectively portrayed by Campbell Scott and Embeth Davidtz.
- Scott and Davidtz reprise their roles of Richard and Mary Parker in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014). Here, it is revealed that Richard fled Oscorp to prevent his discoveries from being used in the production of biological weapons, and that Oscorp's genetically engineered spiders were created using his DNA.
- Mary Parker appears in Madame Web (2024), portrayed by Emma Roberts. She is Ben Parker's sister-in-law and is pregnant with Peter. She mentions her husband Richard is traveling to Shanghai.[23][24]
Video games
Richard and Mary Parker appear in Ultimate Spider-Man, with Richard voiced by Loren Lester and Mary having no dialogue. This version of Richard worked with Eddie Brock Sr. (Eddie Brock's father) to create the Venom suit as a possible cure for severe illness. Subsequently, the two lost ownership of the suit to Trask Industries and were killed in a plane crash caused by Brock Sr. losing control of the Venom suit and killing the pilot.
Novels
In the
References
- ^ Stern, Roger (w), Romita, John (p), Milgron, Al (i), Mattsson, Steve (col), Starkings, Richard (let), Brevoort, Tom (ed). "There's a Man who Leads a Life of Danger!" Untold Tales of Spider-Man, vol. 1, no. -1 (July 1997). Marvel Comics.
- ^ a b Lee, Stan (w), Lieber, Larry (p), Esposito, Mike (i), Simek, Artie (let), Lee, Stan (ed). "The Parents of Peter Parker!" The Amazing Spider-Man Annual, vol. 1, no. 5 (November 1968). Marvel Comics.
- ^ Spider-Man: Unmasked
- ^ Spider-man: Family Business #1. Marvel Comics.
- ^ a b The Amazing Spider-Man #366. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The Amazing Spider-Man #388. Marvel Comics.
- ^ a b The Amazing Spider-Man #389. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Spider-Man Unlimited #1–2; Web of Spider-Man #101–103; The Amazing Spider-Man #378–380; Spider-Man #35–37; Spectacular Spider-Man #201–203. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The Spectacular Spider-Man #201. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Spider-Man #37. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The Amazing Spider-Man #366. The entire Richard-and-Mary-Parker LMD storyline lasts from The Amazing Spider-Man #363 (last page) to The Amazing Spider-Man #389.
- ^ The Amazing Spider-Man #364. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Spider-Man, 2004. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The Spectacular Spider-Man #178–183. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The Spectacular Spider-Man #180. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The Spectacular Spider-Man #181. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Marvel 1602 #1
- ^ Bullet Points #1 (2006). Marvel Comics.
- ^ Ultimate Origins #3 (2008)
- ^ Ultimate Origins #4 (2008)
- Wizard: The Guide to Comics#180 (2006).
- ^ Vault of Spiders #1. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Phillipson, Daisy (February 9, 2024). "A huge Madame Web spoiler has been confirmed". Dexerto. Archived from the original on February 9, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
- ^ Phillipson, Daisy (February 12, 2024). "Madame Web cast: All actors & characters". Dexerto. Archived from the original on February 12, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2024.