I hate to admit it... and there is a major aside to this concession, but right now Kaine makes for a more interesting story. He's a killer with a checkered past that has a chip on his shoulders and a lot to atone for. Including the years he tormented Ben. Ben was essentially Peter, they were the same. Marvel did their best to make him a likable character in his own right during a time when the real deal was not striking the right chord with fans. Really, the differences from Peter we wanted them to explore with Ben make the most sense with Kaine. There is enough of a difference to justify a new title. I liked Ben as much as anyone in this thread, he was the first Spider-Man I read about back in the day. Ben will always be that likable hero who overcame being a nothing to reclaim his life. He was the same, but different in little ways. The comment before about Ben turning to dust is the most poignant. Marvel made sure he was gone and never coming back. They felt the need to make that statement to their fans at the time. Clone Saga fans should be happy about this. It's not Ben but it's so close it's almost painful we just didn't get exactly what we wanted. But it'll make for a better story. I'm confident of that.
And most importantly, Kaine's going to have to deal with what happened between him and Ben. Which means more Ben material. I can live with that.
Crazy to think this may have been in the works since they brought back Kaine in Web of Vol. 2 Issue 1.
It was not a fun time. 
