Spider-Ham

Spider-Ham
Variant cover art for Amazing Spider-Man #528, featuring Peter Porker, The Spectacular Spider-Ham Art by Mike Wieringo and Karl Kesel
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Marvel Tails #1 (November 1983)
Created by	Tom DeFalco Mark Armstrong
In-story information
Alter ego	Peter Benjamin Porker
Species	Pig
Team affiliations	Web Warriors
Abilities	Enhanced strength, agility and durability Precognitive Spider-Sense Organic webbing Ability to cling to surfaces

Marvel Tails Starring Peter Porker
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
Format	Limited series
Publication date	November 1983
Number of issues	1
Main character(s)	Spider-Ham Captain Americat Hulk-Bunny Goose Rider

Spider-Ham (Peter Porker) is a fictional anthropomorphic funny animal parody of Marvel Comics' Spider-Man, created by Tom DeFalco and Mark Armstrong.

He first appeared in the one-shot humor comic book Marvel Tails Starring Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham #1, which was then followed by an ongoing bi-monthly series, Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham. The series lasted 17 issues, all of which were published under Marvel's Star Comics imprint. The character existed on Larval Earth, which was an anthropomorphic universe.

Peter Porker was born a spider (simply named Peter). He resided in the basement lab of May Porker, a slightly goofy animal scientist who had created "the world's first atomic powered hairdryer", hoping that "the introduction of nuclear fusion into America's beauty salons" would "revolutionize the hair care industry". After dousing her head with water and activating the dryer, May Porker accidentally irradiated herself, and in a fit of delusion, bit Peter, who then found himself transformed into an anthropomorphic swine much like May Porker herself. Running from the Porker homestead disoriented, Peter soon came to realize that he still retained a spider's abilities:

"This is astounding! Am I a spider with the limitations of a pig? Or a pig with the proportionate strength and agility of a spider? I've become something greater than either spider or pig... I've become a Spider-Ham!" - Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham #15 (May 1987)

After this startling series of events, Peter (who adopted the surname "Porker", that of his benefactor May Porker, who after the accident mentally attuned to a state in which she believed she was Peter's loving aunt) dedicated himself and his new-found abilities to fighting injustice and the occasional animal parody of established Marvel Comics villains. May Porker's scientific genius was transferred to Peter, giving him the know-how to devise his webspinner gauntlets to replace his lost natural ability. This story contradicted a detail in "Salad Daze" (Spider-Ham #6) where Peter Porker, in a vigil at May Porker's hospital bed, thinks back to his pre-Spider-Ham years when he was just a young pig being raised by his loving aunt.

Porker, in his spider-themed alter-ego's first adventure teamed up with Captain Americat, as they attempted to foil the nefarious plot of "The Marauder", in a series of events that led to the creation of the Hulk-Bunny (Marvel Tails #1, "If He Should Punch Me").