Spider-Man’s secret sibling is coming back.
This June, the Spider-Man books begin “The Chameleon Conspiracy,” where Spider-Man must deal with his old enemy, the master of disguise, the Chameleon, who’s embarking on his biggest score yet.
Luckily, Spidey has some backup of his own in the form of Teresa Parker, his superspy sister. This naturally may confuse some readers wondering exactly when only child Peter Parker even gained a sister.
Who is Teresa Parker?
2014’s graphic novel Spider-Man: Family Business by Mark Waid, James Robinson, Gabriele Dell’Otto, and Werther Dell’Edera, opened with Peter being ambushed by armed gunmen.
Escaping, Peter was rescued by Teresa Durand, who claimed to be his sister. Naturally, Peter believed it was some trick by one of his enemies, but her striking resemblance to him intrigued him.
Whisking Peter to Europe and the Middle East, Teresa explained that she had grown up adopted and never knew who her birth parents were. She was a CIA operative who found evidence indicating Richard and Mary Parker were her parents.
As Spider-Man fans know, Richard and Mary had been CIA operatives who got into scores of secret missions before being killed on assignment when Peter was a toddler. Teresa surmised that the pair decided she would be safer growing up with a different family.
On a mission, Richard and Mary had sealed away a massive robotic “Sleeper” in a vault that could only be opened by their DNA which was why Peter was being targeted. Peter was forced to reveal his Spider-Man identity while saving Teresa’s life.
They found the vault in Cairo being hunted by the Kingpin who also learned Peter was Spider-Man. When he threatened Teresa, Peter fired back, “But she’s not my sister. Is she?”
It turned out the villain Mentallo had used his psychic powers to make Teresa believe the “evidence” she found on her parents was real. He even altered her and Peter’s perceptions as the real Teresa looked nothing like Peter.
In the ensuing battle, Mentallo let out a mental blast that erased the memory of Peter’s secret identity from both the Kingpin and Teresa. She and Peter parted with both feeling sorry the “sibling” bond was fake.
However, the final page of the story was a flashback to a pregnant Mary teasing Richard on “the three of us,” hinting that just maybe the tale was true.
Teresa’s return
In 2017’s Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #1, Teresa unexpectedly returned. She had recovered her memories of Peter’s identity and needed his help.
Teresa had discovered her SHIELD unit, the Gray Blade, was involved in “Project Twilight,” a secret program to destroy superhumans. She stole files in hopes of exposing it.
Teresa used a flying suit to help Spider-Man in battle. As it turned out, Project Twilight was manipulated by the villainous scientist the Tinkerer to take out superhumans to pave the way for an invasion by the Vedomi aliens.
To gain information on how to beat the Vedomi, Peter, Teresa, and J. Jonah Jameson (an unlikely aide since Peter revealed himself as Spidey to him), went back in time to when Peter was starting as Spider-Man. During the adventure, Teresa tracked down a younger Nick Fury to ask about her parents.
With Fury’s help, Teresa found photographs along with her birth certificate and realized that she and Peter really were siblings. After returning to the present and defeating the Vedomi, Teresa decided to turn herself in for her actions.
Teresa vs Chameleon
Teresa was eventually released in recognition of helping save the world and rejoined SHIELD. She enlisted Peter’s help when the Chameleon captured her partner and lover David Albright.
Sadly, David had already been tortured and killed for information. This set Teresa after the Chameleon, who was in an alliance with mercenary the Foreigner to force a civil war between Silver Sable’s Symkaria and Doctor Doom’s Latveria.
While tempted to kill the Chameleon in revenge, Teresa settled for having him arrested.
This sets up the “Chameleon Conspiracy”, which runs through Amazing Spider-Man #67-69 and Giant-Size Amazing Spider-Man: Chameleon Conspiracy, all published weekly in June.
The Chameleon escapes, and he and the Foreigner are trying to steal the Infinity Formula, which grants someone virtual immortality. The Chameleon also wants revenge as he blames Spider-Man for the death of his brother, Kraven the Hunter.
Teresa wants payback too, and so Spider-Man has to work hard to keep his newfound sibling from crossing a dangerous line.
Hopefully, that sense of power and responsibility continues to run in the Parker bloodline.
The Chameleon Conspiracy begins in Amazing Spider-Man #67, publishing June 2.