Spider-Man is also
strongly against killing anyone. He's the most pacifistic person of the Marvel Heroes due to his kindness and nobility, valuing every life and taking responsibility for every action. He takes this to a massive extreme after
the Spider-Slayer murders J. Jonah Jameson's wife and, haunted by it all, declares no more lives will be lost if he's around.
Comic Books
- In Spider-Man Noir, Peter carries a revolver in his masked identity, and uses it to kill the Vulture when he threatens Aunt May. The fact May is as horrified by him as the Vulture is what convinces him to adopt his mainstream counterpart's morals.
- In Superior Spider-Man, Massacre is executed by Spider-Man (secretly Otto Octavius) after going on a bloody killing spree. Wolverine defends Spider-Man's actions by noting that Massacre was a particularly vile and depraved villain and that most of the Avengers have used deadly force at one point or another.
- This ended up being a problem during Spider-Verse as the Inheritors were dropping Spiders left and right and there was a problem between the Amazing and Superior Spider-Men with the idea of killing. In fact, many Spiders with them, including Spider-Man Noir and the Scarlet Spider, could and would kill and the Superior Spider-Man was pretty much counting on it.
- By the time of All-New, All-Different Marvel, Spider-Man has abandoned the 'no more lives will be lost when he is around' line of thinking, telling Mockingbird that it was an "impossible dream" and that he'll just try to save those he can when he can. However he still generally avoids lethal force personally.
- Spider-Man actually did once kill someone by accident (sort of). In 1987, a one-shot issue called Spider-Man versus Wolverine had the two teaming up in Europe along with Wolverine's ex-girlfriend Charlie, a secret agent who is being hunted by the KGB. Charlie asks Wolverine to kill her so she can't be captured by their enemies, but Spidey stops him before he can and they end up duking it out. When it's over, Wolverine seemingly sneaks up behind Spider-Man, who is still angry, and punches him with spider-strength, thinking he can take it...only to realize it was actually Charlie, having intentionally snuck up on him knowing he would lash out. Charlie dies, effectively committing Suicide by Cop, and Spidey is left traumatized. To this day, this remains the only time Spider-Man has ever killed anyone.
- That being said, this line of thinking does definitely not apply to Symbiotes, since Peter's negative experience with the race has caused him to view them as Always Chaotic Evil monsters, often crossing the line into Fantastic Racism. On one occasion, Peter even advocated killing off all Symbiotes of an invading force just to save the people of Earth, despite the fact the Symbiotes were used as weapons entirely against their will.
- That said, while Spidey tries to abstain from killing, push him far enough (usually by killing an innocent or one of his friends in front of him) and he has ways of making you wish he killed you. He once used his wall-cling power to viciously rip up the face of a member of the Kravinoff's after they'd killed Maddie Franklin. And when he learned Stan Carter was the Sin-Eater, he delivered a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown of the man that would have killed him, had Daredevil not intervened, and still left the man crippled for the rest of his life.
- The Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows: Averted and played straight. Averted when Peter does not hesitate to kill Venom/Eddie Brock to defend his family; although he regrets it having to do it, he does not regret the deed itself. He also kills Dr. Octopus later on, while searching for supplies to make a device that would stop Annie's powers from being detected. Played straight when Peter seems like he is going to kill Regent, he instead knocks him out and gives him to the newly rebuilt SHIELD, lead by Hawkeye. That said, when MJ asks him if he would have killed him to protect their daughter, Peter doesn't respond while MJ silently realizes that he would have.
- His vow against lethal force isn't unique among his fellow Spider-Totems. Miles Morales and Spider-Gwen also abhor the idea of taking a life.
