Spider-Man has gained a new villain just in time for the 1,000th issue of Amazing Spider-Man. And it’s his first cousin Cormac “Mac” Crane, Aunt May’s and Uncle Ben’s long-lost son!
For Amazing Spider-Man #1000, writer Joe Kelly and artist Pepe Larraz decided to shake up Peter Parker’s life by having Cormac be revealed to be Ravage, who uses his memory manipulation powers to cut Peter out of May’s life. But how did Cormac become Ravage? Why does he feel so threatened by Peter’s bond with Aunt May?
Who Is Cormac Crane?
Born Richard Benjamin Parker to May and Ben Parker following a series of miscarriages, it seemed like the Parkers finally got the child they always wanted. Unfortunately, the baby was born stillborn and was taken away by doctors. However, this isn’t what actually happened. Richard was switched with a different baby belonging to Liam Crane and Beatrix Thyssen. Raised by a wealthy family, Cormac wouldn’t learn about his true parentage until he was an adult targeted by the villain Torment, who was trying to eliminate Spider-Man’s entire family line.
Despite reuniting with his mother, Cormac felt robbed of the loving childhood Aunt May and Uncle Ben gave to Peter. When May suffers a stroke, Peter rushes to her hospital room, only to realize May has no idea who Peter is. She recognizes Cormac as her son, but Peter is a total stranger to her. Shortly after, Cormac attacks Peter in the hospital chapel while wearing a feathered, raven-like suit with a bird mask. He admits to causing May’s stroke in an effort to rip Peter out of her life.
When Cormac digs into Peter’s extracted memories, he sees Peter letting the burglar go, the same burglar who murdered Uncle Ben. That realization pushes Cormac over the edge. He blames Peter for his biological father’s death and decides Peter stole the life he should’ve had.
What Are Ravage’s Powers and Where Did They Come From?
Ravage’s power revolves around the ability to manipulate a person’s memories. He can invade someone’s mind, read the thoughts attached to each memory and can remove those memories. That is how Aunt May forgot only Peter while keeping the rest of her memories intact.
But Ravage can go the extra mile by taking those stolen memories and turning them into physical objects. During his brawl with Spidey, he wields a massive maul constructed out of May’s memories of Peter. He forces Peter to relive his certain moments of his life while watching it all unfold in real time.
But, where did these powers come from? The comic never explains how Cormac became Ravage. Is he a mutant? Was he given super-abilities from some super soldier experiment? Is his bird-like suit hiding some kind of device that lets him manipulate people’s minds? Considering that his powers play a key role in this arc, Amazing Spider-Man #1000 leaves his origin unaddressed. It’s possible that Kelly is waiting to address the source for Ravage’s powers for later issues.
Does Cormac Have Any Connection to Ravage 2099?
If the name “Ravage” sounds familiar, that’s because Cormac shares his moniker with Ravage 2099 or Paul-Philip Ravage, a human mutate Stan Lee and Paul Ryan created back in 1992 for Marvel’s 2099 imprint.
However, outside of sharing the same name, there’s no real connection between Paul-Phillip Ravage and Cormac Crane. Born in a heavily polluted, post-apocalyptic world, Ravage was the ex-CEO of Alchemax subsidiary ECO Central. Once a strong believer in the MegaCorps running the United States, Paul-Phillip began to question the violent methods the anti-pollution company used.
When he’s framed for murder, Paul-Phillip became a fugitive and soon found himself on the island Hellrock, where its radiation mutated him. Paul-Phillip would gain the ability to fire energy blasts, transform into a beast-like form that allowed him to regenerate from almost any wound. Unfortunately, Paul-Phillip was presumed dead when Doom 2099 covered Hellrock in liquid adamantium while Paul-Phillip was on it and chucked the island into space.
Unlike Cormac who’s using his powers to throw a temper tantrum, Paul-Phillip was a hero who tried his best to protect others. He suffered worse than Cormac did, yet he always found a way to accept his circumstances and move forward.
Ravage’s Debut Leaves a Lot to be Desired
Cormac’s debut as Ravage in Amazing Spider-Man #1000 is pretty messy. Everything about his arc feels half-baked, almost as if his story was rushed so there would be a big confrontation ready for when the milestone issue was released.
Also, there’s just one problem with his grand scheme. How will wiping Peter from May’s brain actually work when everyone in Queens knows Peter is her nephew who lived with her for years? Is Cormac going to mind-wipe every person who knows May’s existence in New York? Does he even have that level of power or will he learn the hard way that his memory manipulation powers have limits?
While Pepe Larraz’s art is gorgeous, particularly during the sequences where Cormac is viewing Spider-Man and Aunt May’s memories, Ravage’s big debut ends up feeling rushed and unpredictable in the wrong ways. Marvel promises he’ll stick around in future issues and hopefully his character will be fleshed out over time. If not, then Ravage will become an unwanted memory that’s been erased from readers’ minds.
