It's hard to imagine any version of Dragon Ball universe as his abilities and overall aesthetic don’t seem to mesh with the explosive power of Dragon Ball’s martial artists, however, there is something of a Spider-Man-like character in Dragon Ball, but he’s a horror movie icon.
Peter Parker aka Spider-Man was transformed from a studious high-school boy into one of Marvel Comics' greatest superheroes of all time after he was bitten by a radioactive spider. After his DNA was irrevocably changed, Parker started to develop superpowers such as super strength, speed, the ability to crawl on/stick to walls, and web swinging. With these powers, Spider-Man committed himself to the life of heroism no matter the personal cost–something that cannot be said for Dragon Ball’s version.
In Dragon Ball Chapter 102 by Akira Toriyama, Goku, Yamcha, Krillin, and some of the other Z Fighters find themselves in a tournament that was seemingly crafted in Hell. Hoping for help in finding the last Dragon Ball, the Z Fighters seek out Fortuneteller Baba so that she could devine the ball’s location. However, Baba wanted an absurd amount of money for a single divination, so the Z Fighters all but gave up hope that she would be of any help to them. However, Baba then said that if they could beat her five fighters in tournament-style combat, she would give them a reading for free, a challenge the Z Fighters gleefully accepted. So, one after the other, the Z Fighters were successful in beating Baba’s otherworldly champions. But when it was Yamcha’s turn to step up to the plate, he found himself up against the horror movie icon: the Mummy.
As horror movie buffs are well aware, the original Mummy–while terrifying–isn’t known for agility, speed, or really any attribute that could make him comparable with Spider-Man. However, this version of the Mummy is nearly identical to the Wall-Crawler. Not only is this Mummy so fast that it is almost as if he can feel Yamcha’s attacks coming before they reach him, but he can use his bandages just as Spider-Man uses his webs. From using them to strike Yamcha from a distance to actually swinging around the arena, the Mummy shows just how useful his wrapping can be, and how much he appears to move like Spider-Man.
Obviously, Spider-Man is more than just the sum of his powers as he is a very specific and unique hero who can’t be easily replicated by some cheap knock off. However, while the Mummy doesn’t have Spider-Man’s personality, costume, or ideals, he does have his agility, fighting skills, and webbing abilities–making this horror icon Dragon Ball’s unofficial version of Spider-Man.
