the black costume

The black costume originated in 1982 from an idea submitted by 22-year-old fan Randy Schueller, after Marvel ran a competition for aspiring writers and artists to elicit new ideas for the Marvel Universe.

Schueller's idea was to slightly upgrade Spider-Man's abilities and appearance: He would don a new black, stealth-like suit designed by Reed Richards and The Wasp of the Avengers. Composed of the same unstable molecules found in the Fantastic Four's costumes, this new suit would be more durable and stealth-like than the handmade red and blue costume.

The idea was purchased by Jim Shooter at Marvel for the sum of 220 US dollars (over 500 dollars today) and the opportunity to craft the story. Schueller submitted different versions of the story, but ultimately, Marvel took creative control.

Thought up in 1982 by fan Randy Schueller, Spider-Man's black suit would go from being a contest-winning design to one of the most influential costumes in comic history as it became a launching pad for Venom and the symbiote race in Marvel comics. Despite being short-lived during its initial run, Spider-Man would go on to don the black costume many times over the years, often providing for a darker, edgier, Spider-Man story. We break down each time Spidey traded his red and blue garb for the black suit.