Amazing Spider-Man #186
Chaos Is -- the Chameleon!
News has gone out that District Attorney Blake Tower had cleared Spider-Man of any wrongdoing in the deaths of George Stacy and Norman Osborn, much to the chagrin of J. Jonah Jameson. Spider-Man himself is the last person to learn of this, and it comes as a shock and a surprise.
However, not everyone is pleased with Spider-Man's new found fame, and so a mysterious foe from Spider-Man's past has hired the Chameleon (who has new shape-shifting technology) to ruin Spider-Man's reputation. Spider-Man "saves" the Chameleon who was posing as a suicidal man, as Spider-Man is making his exit the police tell him that D.A. Tower wants to see him. After visiting Aunt May in the hospital, her doctor tells Peter that if he cannot afford to keep her in the hospital, she will have to go to an old age home. Later, at his apartment, Peter is visited by Betty Brant who has decided to leave Ned Leads for good, and the two spend the whole night up talking.
Realizing that he's running late to meet with D.A. Tower, Peter shoos Betty out of her apartment and swings to Tower's office where he learns the good news much to his surprise and joy. When he's met by the press, he tells them that he'll have an official press conference in Central Park later.
Speaking with the media later, Spider-Man is attacked by the Chameleon who has come to Spider-Man disguised as an old woman, dropping the disguise only long enough for people to think that Spider-Man and old woman unprovoked. This brings great joy to J. Jonah Jameson who is watching the telecast from home. However, Spider-Man manages to capture the Chameleon and remove his hologram inducing belt and makes him confess. Spider-Man is cleared of attacking an old woman and the crowd carries him away cheering, much to Jameson's horror.
Jameson isn't the only one who has it in for the Wall-Crawler though, as the mystery man who hired the Chameleon vows to destroy Spider-Man soon enough.
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, J. Jonah Jameson, Joe Robertson, Betty Brant, Aunt May, Flash Thompson, Chameleon, Spencer Smythe (unidentified), Blake Tower
Continuity Notes
Betty mentions her past relationship with Peter Parker (Amazing Spider-Man #7-30) and her marriage to Ned Leeds in Amazing Spider-Man #156.
Spider-Man is cleared of suspicion in the deaths of George Stacy (Amazing Spider-Man #90) and Norman Osborn (Amazing Spider-Man #122).
Blake Tower mentions that Doctor Octopus had "died" off the coast of New York "a few months ago". This is a reference to the novel Spider-Man: Mayhem in Manhattan. Naturally, Doctor Octopus survived. Where this fits into continuity is dubious at best as no official placement has been made.
Spider-Man is approached by a woman who represents a comic book company and pitches the idea of the wall-crawler fighting heavy weight champ Leon Spinks. This should be considered a topical reference per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616. This is also a tongue-in-cheek reference to the comic book Superman vs. Mohammad Ali that was published the same year as this comic.
Spider-Man mentions how he gave free rights to the Electric Company. Spider-Man regularly appeared on the television show that ran from 1971-1977, Marvel also spun off his appearances on the Electric Company in Spidey Super Stories. Although the Electric Company is long off the air, it's reference here would not be considered a topical reference as all television shows featuring Marvel characters exist on Earth-616 as though they are relatively new.
