‘We need some joy’: KCL Spider-Man reveals inspiration behind campus stunt

If you’re a student at King’s, chances are you’ve probably heard of our friendly campus Spider-Man. Always “swinging through” (metaphorically, we presume) to offer advice and plenty of laughter to students.

But behind the mask is a mystery that’s had people talking across campus. Who is he, and why did he start doing this in the first place?

The King’s Tab had the opportunity to sit down with the anonymous hero himself and find out exactly what motivated him to pick up the mask.

Speaking on the inspiration behind putting on the mask, he said: “There are so many students here at King’s. I just thought, we need some joy, we need some happiness”, pulling up a chair and squatting on top of it in typical Spider-Man style and bringing some of that joy to the students in the room who began smiling to themselves.

He added: “What better way to do that than Spider-Man? Because I feel everyone loves Spider-Man”, he explains from beneath the mask. And it appears he’s right, with the ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ trailer surpassing 718.6 million views within 24 hours and going on to become the first trailer to surpass the mark of 1 billion views.

He went on to explain why Spider-Man acts as a symbol of inclusion: “At King’s whatever you look like, you belong, and they’ll accept you”.

Since “anyone can wear the mask” perhaps the return of Spider-Man, whether it be on campus or the big screen, is exactly what society needs.

KCL Spider-Man appears to support this idea too, claiming that he has the power and of course responsibility of helping students. He shared one instance where “[he] met a first-year student who was shy and wasn’t making many friends, [he] took him for a walk around campus, sharing experiences as Spider-Man and as a student, then a few weeks later he was with a group of friends who all stopped for a photo”.

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A post shared by KCL Spider-Man (@kcl.spiderman)

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It seems that our campus Spider-Man truly captures the meaning of the mask, as well as the heart beneath the beloved character, Peter Parker.

He explained: “Peter is just as integral to why we love Spider-Man, he’s relatable. He’s just an ordinary guy trying to do his best”. With the trailer of Brand New Day hinting towards Peter being a financially struggling, overworked, unlucky in love, university student Peter seems to be more relatable than ever.

KCL Spider-Man then went onto detail his own struggles with having a dual identity, which is something he takes very seriously, even turning up to the interview in full costume and struggling to stay sat on the chair to uphold the illusion. “I’m quite secretive, a few of my close friends know. The friends I do have are quite trustworthy, there’s no major leaks yet”, he revealed.

This dual identity comes with a level of self-described responsibility, “people support it, people love it, I have that responsibility now, to help people where I can”.

However, the role doesn’t come without its fair share of criticism, although, thankfully in this universe, not from scathing journalists.

He said: “Most people find this a bit strange, it can be easy to let those people get you down and make you demotivated”, but instead he turns it into something positive, always being available for a friendly chat or advice. Though we don’t know how well he’d stand up against actual criminals, so maybe leave the phone thieves to campus security!

Featured image via @kcl.spiderman on Instagram