2×14: The Final Nightmare

THE NEOGENIC NIGHTMARE
Chapter XIV

The Final Nightmare closes the mutation saga with a brutal symmetry: the hunter becomes the hunted, the thief becomes the diseased, and Spider-Man finally confronts the cost of science unbound. Adrian Toomes, having stolen Peter’s youth and strength, discovers that power taken is never pure. He mutates into the Man-Spider himself, burdened by the very curse he sought to escape. The predator who refused to grow old becomes the monster who cannot remain human.

The theme is restoration through deception. Dr. Curt Connors, torn between duty and desperation, tricks Vulture into believing he will cure him, only to return Peter’s youth and powers instead. It is a betrayal that saves, a lie that restores. Spider-Man’s relief at regaining his humanity is tempered by the knowledge that others — Vulture, Scorpion, even Connors himself — remain trapped in cycles of mutation and monstrosity.

The episode thrives on collapse. Farley Stillwell, haunted by the Scorpion he created, chooses destruction, igniting an explosion to erase Neogenic research forever. Connors succumbs once more to the Lizard, his duality unresolved. Scorpion rages against his curse, demanding freedom but finding only chaos. Every character is broken by science, each scarred by the pursuit of control over nature.

This finale is about closure, but not peace. Spider-Man’s mutation is cured, his body restored, his nightmare ended. Yet the victory is uneasy. The Neogenic experiments have left a trail of monsters, betrayals, and broken lives. The cure is personal, not universal. The nightmare ends for Peter, but the question remains: how many others will pay the price for science that sought to rewrite destiny?

The Vulture drains Spider-Man’s youth, stealing not only his vitality but his strength, leaving Peter aged and frail. Yet the theft is unstable — Vulture must feed again and again to sustain himself. Peter escapes, faking his own death to unsettle his enemy, but the cost is heavy. As an old man, he stumbles home, fearing the transformation may be permanent. At the same time, Vulture strikes Norman Osborn’s helicopter, abducting him, only to mutate into the Man-Spider himself, having absorbed Peter’s disease along with his stolen power. Peter, hiding behind the mask of a “relative,” calls Jameson to excuse his absence, before turning to Dr. Curt Connors for help.

Elsewhere, Farley Stillwell languishes in a mental hospital, haunted by visions of the Scorpion he once created. His nightmare becomes reality when the true Scorpion arrives, demanding Stillwell undo his mutation. Dragged to Connors’ lab, Stillwell finds Vulture already there, begging for aid with his own monstrous condition. A brief clash ensues, but desperation breeds alliance, and Scorpion and Vulture agree to work together, each seeking release from their curse.

On his way to Connors, Peter is nearly struck by a car, saved unknowingly by Aunt May, who fails to recognise her aged nephew. She offers him kindness, but he flees, driven by urgency. At the lab, he is ambushed by Scorpion and Vulture. Connors promises to transfer the mutated DNA back into Spider-Man, but deceives them — restoring Peter’s youth and powers while leaving Vulture burdened with the disease. Reborn, Spider-Man battles Scorpion, while Stillwell, consumed by guilt, triggers an explosion to obliterate the Neogenic research, determined to end the cycle of monsters he helped create.

The chaos forces Connors into his Lizard form, but Spider-Man saves him, ensuring all escape before the building collapses. In the aftermath, Peter breathes relief: his mutation disease is finally cured.