In DC Comics, one thing that made Robin so relatable to Batman is that they both had a similar story. After an incident involving his parents, Dick Grayson is left an orphan who holds a bit of revenge for the scum who killed them. Batman sees this orphan, can identify with the boy, and takes him in, eventually growing up to be Batman’s first sidekick and eventually his own stand-alone hero in Nightwing. Now, Marvel is celebrating it’s 50 Anniversary of Spider-Man, and while there’s currently a crossover mini-series in Spider-Men, it seems the web slinger will be getting his own partner in crime.

Today, Marvel revealed to Fox News that a scrawny teenager named Andy will make his way into the Amazing universe, and will become Spidey’s super sidekick named Alpha. But, why the Robin comparision? Well, Andy undergoes an eerily familiar transformation from mortal to superpowered:

In this story, we find that Peter Parker’s days as photographer for the Daily Bugle are behind him and he’s now a scientist at a research firm. Andy is part of a student field trip that visits Parker’s lab. He’s in the wrong place (or perhaps the right place) at the wrong time when Parker’s invention malfunctions and zaps him with great power. Parker – haunted by the way he got his own super abilities and how his failure to use them led to the murder of his beloved Uncle Ben so many years ago – feels an even greater responsibility to help young Andy. He feels he must help him discover his powers and teach him how to use them responsibly.

So, the team of Spider-Man and Alpha is born. Spidey has his own “Robin.”

The story and art come from Dan Slott and Humberto Ramos, respectively, and will hit stands in August. The issue will be an over-sized outing that will obviously “harken back to the legend that started it all”. Additional stories in the book will come from Dean Haspiel, Joshua Hale Fialkov & Nuno Plati as well.

Below is an eight page preview of the issue, just simply click on each page for a larger look: