Our story starts with action right away, as Spider-Man
discovers a group planning a bank heist. He webs up three of the goons but the
fourth jumps out of the window before Spidey can see him, landing on an awning.
He activates a special chemical gas which changes the color of his clothes, and
switches hats, fooling Spider-Man into thinking he’s just a random old man. We,
however, learn it was the Chameleon in disguise, who ponders how wo get rid of
Spider-Man for good, back at his base. He then thinks of calling an old friend
of his, who would be perfect for the job, called Kraven the Hunter.
A week later, J. Jonah Jameson rushes to the docks,
with Betty Brant in tow, as he has learned that Kraven the Hunter is arriving
from Africa. Betty contacted Peter to arrive as well, where they find that
Liz Allan and Flash Thompson have come to see Kraven’s arrival as well. Betty gets
extremely jealous of how Liz acts around Peter. Jameson tries to get an
exclusive interview with Kraven, who is only interested in tracking his prey.
Just then, some of the loading cranes snap, allowing many of the wild animals
that arrived with Kraven to get loose. Peter changes into Spider-Man in order
to round up the creatures but finds that Kraven is already on the job,
wrangling some snakes and wrestling two full-sized gorillas. Feeling like he’s
not needed, Spidey switches back to Peter, but realizes he forgot to get any
photos of the event, much to Jameson’s chagrin.
Jameson asks Kraven what possessed him to come here,
and Kraven responds that after hunting all the animal kingdom has to offer,
he’s here to hunt Spider-Man himself. As Jameson and Betty head back to the
Bugle, Betty gives Peter the cold shoulder, leaving Peter to sulk in his rotten
luck. Back at the Chameleon’s lair, Chameleon provides Kraven with all of the
information he could gather on Spider-Man, so that Kraven can prepare for his
hunt. Not long later, Spider-Man hears a shot while out swinging and happens
upon some crooks, which he deftly takes out, with style. Unbeknownst to him,
the goons were set up by Chameleon, giving Kraven the chance to watch his prey
from afar, in order to study his movements.
As Spider-Man leaves, he swings upon Kraven who
swiftly attacks him. Kraven strikes Spider-Man, causing his shoulder to go
numb. Spider-Man, however, continues to fight back and Kraven is surprised at
his strength, quickly realizing that he cannot defeat Spider-Man in a fair
fight. Kraven then manages to scratch Spider-Man with a special potion, causing
Spider-Man to get all shaky and disoriented. Kraven escapes, so as to prolong
his hunt, choosing to pick off Spider-Man when he is fully weakened. Spidey heads
home to try and sleep off the effects of the potion. The next day, Peter is
feeling generally better, but his hands are still shaking uncontrollably.
Downstairs, Aunt May tells Peter that she’s set up a date for him, with the
niece of their neighbor, Mrs. Watson! Peter is unenthused and heads off to the
Daily Bugle.
Peter arrives at the Bugle to find that Betty is still
acting prickly towards him, when he hears Jameson discussing something with
Kraven. Jameson says that he wants anything Kraven does towards Spider-Man to
be strictly legal, as Peter worries about his next battle with Kraven. At
school, Peter’s hands are still shaking so bad that he drops and shatters some
test tubes, earning him a rare scolding from his teacher, and causing him to
fret the rest of the day. Peter then gets the idea to tag Kraven with his
spider tracer, so that he can turn the tables and sets out to find him.
Spidey’s shaking hands cause him to be unable to shoot
his webs accurately, forcing him to leap from building to building. Back at
their lair, Chameleon and Kraven plan their next move. Spidey swings around
until he gets a tingle from Kraven’s presence and spots him heading into a
park. Spider-Man follows Kraven, not knowing that he’s being followed by
seemingly a second Kraven! Kraven manages to drop a net onto Spidey, but Spidey
finds the weak spot and barrels his way out of it. One of the Kravens distracts
Spider-Man with a jungle drumbeat, allowing the other Kraven to attach a
magnetic bracelet to Spidey’s wrist and ankle. The two bracelets attract
towards each other, trying to pull Spidey’s wrist and ankle together, and are
outfitted with a bell, allowing Kraven to track Spidey’s movements.
Spider-Man avoids Kraven and his nets, before plunging
the park into darkness by messing with a circuit box in one of the lamp posts.
He then webs the bracelets so as to negate their function, before hearing
rustling in the bushes. He pounces and discovers that the first Kraven was
Chameleon the entire time, who declares that Kraven will still hunt him down.
Spider-Man then turns the tide on Kraven, finding him and shining his spider
signal on him, no matter how Kraven tries to hide and maneuver. Kraven tries
surprising Spider-Man with an attack, but Spidey is ready for that too. Out of
options, Kraven tries to escape to recuperate and plan anew, but he runs right
into a giant web net that Spider-Man had prepared.
The police take both the Chameleon and Kraven into
custody as Peter takes his photos to the Bugle. Jameson is ecstatic at the
photos of the Chameleon, as it wasn’t even known that he was back in the
country. Betty apologizes for her behavior, but Peter realizes he can’t go out
with her because of the date Aunt May arranged for him. He heads home, dreading
the date, but finds out that his arranged date couldn’t make it after all.
Elated, Peter tries calling Betty, who gives him the cold shoulder once more, then
Liz, who’s already out with Flash. The issue ends with Chameleon and Kraven
being deported but still vowing to return to hunt down Spider-Man one day.