The 1978 2017 2023 Amazing Spider-Man Mighty Marvel Comics Calendar: May Misery

This is an expanded and updated version of a post originally published May 1, 2017.

Geez, Peter Parker...you don't know enough to come in out of the rain! What'll Aunt May say when you swing walk home soaking wet?

"May is a Dear Old Aunt" in The Amazing Spider-Man Mighty Marvel Comics Calendar 1978 (1977); pencils by Larry Lieber, inks by Frank Giacoia
(Click picture to Rainy-Day-Mondays-Always-Get-Me-Downsize)
SPIDER-MAN NO MORE! Until the next issue, at least. This month's calendar girl picture recreates the one of the most famous images in Marvel comics, the classic John Romita Sr. full page where Peter gives up being Spidey, tossing his costume into the trash. Earlier in the day, the same thing was done by Bottle-of-Wine-Man, Bottlecap Girl, Mr. Pack of Matches, and Captain Cigarette Butt.


Page from Amazing Spider-Man (1963 series) #50 (July 1967), script by Stan Lee, pencils by John Romita, Sr., inks by Mike Esposito, letters by Sam Rosen
How iconic is this iconic scene that is an icon? So iconic that it's been referenced by more Spider-Man comic book covers than you can count on one hand! That is, six:


Why, it was even immortalized in real life, in the excellent movie Spider-Man 2: Electro Boogaloo:


It's such a classic that frankly, comic books themselves can't stop homaging the image:


Okay, fair enough, that last one doesn't really count: instead of a costume in a barrel and the hero running away, the costume is running away and the hero's in a barrel! It's a switcharoo!

Plenty of comic books do the same on interior pages. And I thought these things copied Romita...on the outside!


And let us not forget Mike Haseloff's (of comics blog Secret Wars on Infinite Earths!) revealing classic "Namor No More!"

Yes, "Spider-Man No More" has even crossed over to all those destroyed-since-2015 alternate Earths that the Watcher used to peep in on. What If... trash cans throughout the multiverse got used for uniform disposal?!?


You can even toss away...BWAH!...your human skin! Ick! Stop that, Zombie Peter!


Yes, it's a comic book tradition everyone has to try once in a while! Even though it doesn't always work.


So, Spider-Man No More, won't you?