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Major spoilers for The Amazing Spider-Man #12 follow.

Boy howdy, them there Spider-Man comics sure are different than they used to be, huh? I don't know if you've been keeping up with ol' webhead's exploits over at Marvel Comics, but the real Peter Parker being off-planet at the moment is, like, the least crazy thing about the current Amazing Spider-Man run. For example, the former Green Goblin himself, Norman Osborn, is currently wearing the tights and defending New York under the name 'Spider-Man'" which has got all of Peter's allies riled up. For the most part, that's not a huge problem for Big Bad Ozzy, but according to the last issue, there's one Spider-Family member he just can't seem to shake: Gwen Stacy, AKA Ghost-Spider.

Let's back up a sec - a big theme of The Amazing Spider-Man #12 (available now, True Believers), is that Norman Osborn is picking up where Peter Parker left off after he was suddenly punched off-planet - no, really, that's what happened - but has decided to do it his way. Now, a more violent Spider-Man is swinging around Manhattan high-rises, although he's not doing it completely devoid of a conscience. In fact, most of the story's internal drama is Norman dealing with that sense of right and wrong, especially how much right he has to do to make up for all of the wrongs of his past.

Cut to the tail end of the issue, when Norman is confronted for his bloody crime-fighting by a host of the Spider-Family. Miles Morales, Araña, Silk, and Spider-Boy all start trading blows with the ex-Goblin on a rooftop, and after a moment, Norman starts getting the upper hand. Unfortunately for him, the last member of the Spider-Troupe arrives... and Norman cannot bring himself to fight Gwen Stacey.

In a series of visual flashbacks, Norman relives all the horrible moments between himself and the ex-girlfriend of Spider-Man in Marvel's main continuity. From their meeting to her history with his son Harry to, of course, the moment he killed her, these awful memories come flooding back to Norman's recently reactivated conscience and he surrenders to the wall-crawlers, pulling off his mask and revealing himself to the heroes.

If you've been following Spider-Man comics for a while, you know that there's an especially uncomfortable (but still canon) storyline called "Sins Past," which partially revolves around the relationship between the much older Osborn and the much younger Gwen. At the time it was coming out, readers were led to believe that the relationship ended with Gwen giving birth to Norman's children, mutant twins who became evil pawns of his larger plans.

Though that plot point was retconned, the story remains one of the most controversial of Spider-Man's history. But with an apparently regretful Norman Osborn floored by his sins against Gwen in the past, one has to wonder if it will come up in a future issue.

The Amazing Spider-Man #12 is out wherever you get your comics now. 

Marvel's most reliable superhero has proven he can do a whole lot more than just 'whatever a spider can.' Swing into Spidey's history with Popverse's...

• Best Spider-Man comic books 
• Spider-Man movie watch order
• Spider-Man's actors, ranked

Just watch out for that radioactive blood.