Amazing Spider-Man #20
The Coming of the Scorpion! OR: Spidey Battles Scorpey!
As Peter walks home from school, his Spider-Sense tells him that someone is following him home and he tries to figure out who, but comes up empty. Meanwhile, J. Jonah Jameson is at The Daily Bugle and sees an article about a scientist who can create artificial mutations in animals. Jameson realizes he can use this to get rid of Spider-Man. Gargan and Jameson visit the laboratory of Dr. Farley Stillwell, where Jameson offers the doctor $10,000 to make Mac Gargan stronger than Spider-Man. After the transformation, the doctor outfits Mac with a scorpion outfit, complete with an incredibly deadly tail.
Spider-Man revisits The Daily Bugle to investigate, and as he leaves, he's attacked by Scorpion. Back at the lab, Dr. Stillwell realizes the awful mistake he's made, and figures out that Mac Gargan will lose himself and become more and more evil as time goes on. At the Bugle, Spider-Man and Scorpion fight, and Spider-Man gets his own webbing thrown back at him and lays defeated. Scorpion, elated with his victory, defies Jameson and runs away to start his money-making crime spree. Dr. Stillwell catches up with Scorpion and tries to cure him. In desperation, he climbs up a building after Scorpion, but loses his grip and falls to his death. Scorpion and Spider-Man trade blows until Spider-Man gets knocked down again and hears Betty Brant scream.
Scorpion knows that J. Jonah Jameson is the only person alive who knows his true identity, and realizes he must kill him, as well. Spider-Man defeats Scorpion, but Jameson comes out as the hero for catching Scorpion in his office, with no one knowing his true origin.
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, Aunt May, J. Jonah Jameson, Betty Brant, Flash Thompson, Liz Allan, Scorpion, Ned Leeds
Continuity Notes
We learn in this story that the person following Peter since last issue is private investigator Mac Gargan, hired by J. Jonah Jameson to explain how Peter gets exclusive photos of Spider-Man. In Amazing Spider-Man #2, Peter told Jonah that would only sell his photos to him as long as he never asked how he got them. Peter eventually devises a reasonable explanation in Amazing Spider-Man #46 in order to stop the Bugle staff from investigating him.
