Polite Dissent

I’m feeling a bit under the weather this weekend, so I’m going to declare this “PSA Classic Weekend” and I’ll take a look back at some of the better PSA comic posts from the past two years here at Polite Dissent. First up is Spider-Man and Power-Pack, the infamous (and non-canon) story where Peter Parker reveals he was sexually abused by an older boy. Originally posted 14 November 2005.

Spider-Man and Power-Pack was a giveaway comic produced in 1984 by Marvel, the National Committee For Prevention of Child Abuse, and the NEA. Written to educate children about sexual abuse, this comic contains two stories.

The first is a Spider-Man tale written by Jim Salicrup and penciled by Jim Mooney. Peter Parker is in his apartment darkroom developing pictures when he hears something disturbing from the next apartment. Changing into Spider-Man, he swings over and finds that Tony, the son of the couple next door, has been abused by his babysitter Judy. Spider-Man wants Tony to tell his parents what happened but Tony is too scared.

Spider-Man tells Tony the story of a young man about his same age who lived with his aunt and uncle (could it be Peter Parker?). This young bespectacled boy was a bookworm and didn’t have many friends. He was pleased when a slightly older boy named Skip befriended him. Then one day, Skip pulled out some Girlie magazines (no really, that was the name of the magazine) and told Pete that they should “touch each other like the people in that magazine.” The young boy tells his aunt and uncle what happened and in the end everything works out. Spider-Man tells Tony that just like that other young boy, he should let his parents know what happened. Tony’s parents are very supportive and tell Tony that he did the right thing. They thank Spidey, but he tells them that there’s no need for thanks as Tony has already helped him. Web-swinging back to his apartment, Spider-Man realizes that helping Tony face his abuse has allowed Spieder-Man to face a dark chapter of his own past (an incident never mentioned again in any other Spider-Man comic book ever).

The second part of the comic is a Power Pack story by Louise Simonson with pencils by June Brigman and Mary Wilshire. Jane, a young school friend of the Power children, has run away from home because her father sexually abuses her. Jane told her mother what happened, but her mother didn’t believer her. The Power Pack are able to locate the runaway Jane and they bring her back to their house. Jane tells Mrs. Power what happened. After Mrs. Power consoles her, she gives Jane a number to call to get her family some help.

• SpiderFan on the Spider-Man portion of the story.
• Scott Shaw!’s Oddball Comics entry on this comic.
• The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe entry on Skip Westcott.