- “My uncle used to say no one's tougher than New Yorkers.”
- ―Peter Parker to Norman Osborn[src]
Benjamin Franklin "Ben" Parker is a posthumous character who is mentioned in the Marvel Comics animated series, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, in a parallel universe to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He was the uncle to Peter Parker, the brother to Richard Parker, and the husband to May Parker.
He is based on the character with the same name from the Marvel Comics and was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.
Background[]
Ben Parker grew up with an older brother named Richard who married a woman named Mary, while Ben married a woman named Maybelle "May". While Ben and May did not have any kids of their own, they became close with their nephew Peter, especially after raising him after his mother died and his father wound up in jail.
In a different universe to the mainstream MCU (earth-616), according to the comic book tie-in to the series, Uncle Ben's death occurs before Peter got bitten and gained his spider powers. Additionally, Ben's death in the universe of this series is due to illness, instead of being shot by a burglar.
Role in the series[]
Peter mentions uncle Ben to May on his first day of freshman year, in the first episode. Peter praises his aunt for sticking by him and being so optimistic about life, even after Ben's death. In the second episode, May is seen clearing things out as a way to deal with her husband's death and Peter finds Ben's old camera which still has pictures on it, and his old bowling shirt. Peter later uses Ben's camera while on a roof, waiting for crime to take place around the city.
May later lets Peter, Harry and Nico use Ben's old VHS tapes as entertainment while they hang out. She even lets them watch the more adult-appropriate ones as she will be out of the house for a while. Peter then mentions Ben again in the fifth episode when he quotes his uncle, to which Norman Osborn praises Ben's words of wisdom.
Uncle Ben's quote, "with great power, comes great responsibility" is referenced by Norman Osborn in the episode "Tangled Web", who quotes "with great power, comes great respect", when he advises Peter. A photo of Ben is also visible for the first time in the MCU. Peter later mentions to Pearl that Ben used to take him to Coney Island, and went six times during one summer.
In the season one finale, May visits Ben's brother, her brother-in-law, Richard, in jail, revealing he is alive in this universe.
Trivia[]
- The episode "The Parker Luck" evidently shows that Ben was a bowler, which is a reference to the 2012 film, The Amazing Spider-Man as that version of the character was also shown to have enjoyed the sport, even having bowling trophies in the house.
- Unlike any of the other variants of the character, Ben did not die from being shot by a thief, but instead succumbed to an unidentified illness before the events of the series.
- He is also currently the only version of Uncle Ben to have his brother Richard outlive him.
Gallery[]
See also[]
External links[]
Ben Parker on the Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki
Ben Parker on the Marvel Database
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