If This Be My Destiny...!
| "If This Be My Destiny...!" | |
|---|---|
Cover to The Amazing Spider-Man #33, depicting Spider-Man trapped under heavy machinery. Art by Steve Ditko. | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| Publication date | December 1965 – February 1966 |
| Genre | |
| Title(s) | The Amazing Spider-Man #31–33 |
| Main character(s) | Spider-Man Doctor Octopus |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Steve Ditko Stan Lee |
| Artist(s) | Steve Ditko |
| Letterer(s) | Art Simek |
| Colorist(s) | Stan Goldberg |
| Editor(s) | Stan Lee |
"If This Be My Destiny...!", also known as the "Master Planner Saga", is a story arc in the Marvel Comics series The Amazing Spider-Man. The three-part story was written by Stan Lee and drawn by Steve Ditko, and it was published in issues #31–33 (1965–1966). The story arc is regarded as one of the best stories featuring Spider-Man. It is famed for a four-page sequence at the beginning of issue #33 in which Spider-Man is trapped under heavy machinery and agonizingly lifts it in the air. The scene has been adapted in other works featuring Spider-Man, including the 2017 film Spider-Man: Homecoming.
The story follows Peter Parker, the superhero Spider-Man, as he investigates an anonymous criminal mastermind known as the Master Planner while tending to his Aunt May as she suffers from a life-threatening illness. When the Master Planner's henchmen steal the serum that could cure Aunt May, Spider-Man's pursuit of the Master Planner becomes more aggressive and he discovers that the Master Planner is his recurring villain Doctor Octopus. He defeats Doctor Octopus, escapes the villain's headquarters, and cures Aunt May with the serum.
"If This Be My Destiny" features Spider-Man's first day at Empire State University and introduces two major characters of his supporting cast: Harry Osborn and Gwen Stacy. It also progresses the storyline of Spider-Man's romance with Betty Brant as he chooses to push her away. The story continues the common theme in Spider-Man stories of having the character suffer personal misfortunes amid his heroism. It revisits the death of his Uncle Ben, which he feels guilty for not preventing, and his desire to avoid repeating his failure.