Pryde and the Spider

Over the years Peter Parker has dated many women. Some of those women are very familiar, like Mary Jane, Spider-man’s red-headed wife. Gwen Stacy, Spider-Man’s greatest love. Or even Felicia Hardy, AKA The Black Cat, Spidey’s some time girlfriend. But did you know Spider-man used to date a member of the famous superhero group, the X-Men? Yes, you read that right. Peter Parker and Kitty Pryde, also known as Shadowcat, used to be a couple, albeit in the Ultimate Universe, where we have a younger Peter Parker and where the characters are different than their regular Marvel universe counterparts.

Pryde and the Spider: The Relationship That Wasn’t Meant To Be

Out of Nowhere!

By Migs Acabado

Way back in the early 2000s til the mid-2000s, Ultimate Spider-Man was the most popular Spider-Man book. It successfully put Spider-man back on the list of best-selling monthly titles. Writer Brian Michael Bendis put a lot of surprises and shocks in the book, like having the Green Goblin throw MJ instead of Gwen off the bridge and surviving the fall, and the Venom suit being created by Peter and Eddie Brock’s father. After the Ultimate Hobgoblin Saga, Peter and Mary Jane broke up in a very emotional story. Then in 2005, it was teased in an issue of Wizard Magazine  that Peter wouldhave a new girlfriend. What I didn’t know was that Bendis would pick a character outside Spider-man’s world.

I was so surprised when I found out that Peter’s new girlfriend was Kitty Pryde! I thought you could never do that. (After finding that out, my 16 year old self thought: “Hey, if Parker can do that, I can also date the girl from the other Catholic School.” But I should’ve warned my 16 year old self that you should not apply what you learned in comics to your real life.) In an awesome story from the Ultimate Spider-man Annual called “More than You Bargained For,” Peter is dealing with his breakup with Mary Jane and Kitty Pryde is also dealing with her breakup with Bobby Drake (Iceman). Kitty decided to call Peter Parker since she has a big crush on him. They decided to meet up, and they had a date in the mall. At the end of the story, they hook up and became a couple. In the succeeding issues of Ultimate Spider-Man, Kitty Pryde was regularly featured. Peter even helped her and the X-Men defeat Deadpool and the Reavers when they captured the team. 

MJ became jealous of their relationship when the news became public that Spidey is dating Kitty Pryde. Then after the Clone Saga, Peter realized that he still loves MJ and broke up with Kitty, ending their relationship.

I was big fan of their relationship. Even though it wasn’t perfect and problems like not being able to see each other when Peter is out of his costume or the distance between where they live often gets brought up, I still wanted them together! For me, Peter found a perfect girlfriend that he doesn’t have to worry about. She can protect herself and doesn’t whine that her boyfriend is Spider-Man. I was mad at Bendis when he decided to end their relationship, which lasted for only a year. At the end of the Clone Saga, Kitty rushed to Peter’s aid but she saw MJ and Peter together. That scene is really heartbreaking, and I thought Peter came off as a jerk. If you want to return to your ex, at least have the decency to inform your current girlfriend that you don’t want to be in a relationship anymore. 

During that time, Aunt May had already found out that Peter is Spider-Man. It would have been nice to see how she and Kitty would have interacted. Following the Clone Saga, Kitty moved to Peter’s school since she left the X-Men. It would have been nice to see them as a couple during that time — what they could have done to hide their relationship and how would they interact with MJ. I really wish Bendis had made it last for a couple of years. I know Peter and MJ will eventually be together, so he should have explored all the possibilities in the Peter/Kitty relationship while he could. But despite being cut short, it was fun when it lasted. For Kitty Pryde, Peter Parker is the one who got away.