Like many Marvel characters, Spider-Man's relationship with his parents is a tragic one. That said, his parents' lives aren't really explored in depth very often, at least not recently. But Marvel is taking a new look at Richard and Mary Parker, as the publisher has announced Spider-Man: Family Business. Written by Mark Waid and James Robinson and illustrated by Gabrielle Dell'Otto, Family Business focuses on Peter Parker learning more about his deceased spy parents, and discovering that he has a long lost sister.In an interview with USA Today, Waid described the tale -- which will see Peter go from New York City to Monte Carlo to Cairo -- as a "spy" story. It kicks off with the Kingpin attempting to expand his criminal empire, which leads to Peter Parker, the son of former CIA agents, finding himself under attack. As he's attempting to figure out what's happening, a woman in a convertible pulls up in front of him, and claims to be his long lost sister Teresa.

Before Peter can even process this, the two of them are forced to embark on a globe-trotting adventure to stop the Kingpin. Waid describes Teresa as "the anti-Peter. She's got it all together, she's smooth as silk. She's Modesty Blaise." The story will reveal more about Teresa, as well as Peter's parents and the circumstances behind their deaths. Waid shared his thoughts on why the story of Peter's parents is rarely explored:

"Peter is generally most interesting when he's as ordinary as possible, except for the spider bite. There's the one freakish thing that happened to him. One of the reasons we haven't explored a lot of untold secrets behind his lineage is the danger is obviously there to make it a little too convoluted and take away the everyman aspect of Peter.

"If you were to reveal that his parents were really Skrulls or reveal that Aunt May was really his mother and not his aunt, if you try to pull something like that it feels like you're pulling the rug out from the ordinary Joe that Peter is. We've successfully sidestepped this in this graphic novel."

The story, which takes place before the events that lead to the current Superior Spider-Man series, will also feature appearances by a few other notable Spider-Man villains, including Cyclone and The Rhino.

Spider-Man: Family Business follows the announcement of the upcoming Avengers: Endless Wartime, from creators Warren Ellis and Mike McKone, and continues Marvel's current initiative of releasing more original graphic novels, a strategy the publisher had previously resisted.

Spider-Man: Family Business arrives in stores May 2014.


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