How Well Do You Know Spider-Man's Villains?
- by Andrew Pollard
- – on
- in The Geek Corner
When it comes to comic book characters, key to any great hero is having a great selection of villains to battle. An extensive and interesting rogues gallery is a vital element of a superhero's appeal to fans, and where some heroes struggle when it comes to having truly great opponents, Spider-Man is up there with Batman as having one of the greatest rogues galleries in the history of comics.
Spidey himself debuted way back in Amazing Fantasy #15, and his first appearance saw him tackle generic, run-of-the-mill goons. From there, though, the Wall-crawler's list of notable bad guys went from strength to strength, expanding from story to story as a whole host of newly-created rogues would be fleshed out and start to claim their place amongst comic book royalty.
Some of Web-head's foes have always been proverbial C-listers who are easily taken down, while others have gone on to dog Spider-Man for decades, striking him on a personal level that shocked readers to the core. And as ever, as the decades went on, more and more villains would enter the ranks, some of which were better than others.
The question here, however, is just how well do you know the annals of Spider-Man's rogues gallery? It's time to find out, as you get set to take a swing into the realms of comic book villainy.
Who Played The Sandman In Spider-Man 3?
In the comic book realm, the character of Flint Marko, aka The Sandman, was a villain who wasn't all that much of a villain at certain points in time. At times, he'd turn his back on his life of crime, and he'd even end up teaming with Spider-Man and Silver Sable to battle the bad guys. So, when the character turned up on the big screen in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 3, he was depicted as a sympathetic villain. Which actor played Sandman in that movie?
Who Is This Master Of Disguise?
Obviously, ol' Web-head has battled a whole host of nefarious, no-good villains over the decades, and one of his longest-standing rogues is Dmitri Smerdyakov. A villain who debuted way back in 1963, Smerdyakov has caused all kinds of chaos and confusion over the years due to his main ability being that he is a true master of disguise, using this cunning skill to take on the persona of a plethora of varying characters. What villainous name does this bad guy commonly go by, though?
Who Was The Second Vulture?
Many casual moviegoers are now becoming familiar with longtime Spider-Man rogue, The Vulture. In Spider-Man: Homecoming, Michael Keaton plays a chilling, sinister take on this airborne aggressor, with the former Batman actor playing the Adrian Toomes version of Vulture. In the comic book realm, though, the Vulture moniker was also taken on by a former prison pal of Toomes'. What was the name of this convicted criminal who would go on to become the second person to be known as The Vulture?
Who Nearly Married Aunt May?
Marisa Tomei might be playing a smoking hot version of Aunt May in the big screen Marvel Cinematic Universe these days, but the majority of us will have been brought up with an Aunt May who was a much older character in the vein of a caring, kind old grandmother. While she's had her fair share of ups and downs throughout the years in the comic book world, she also came extremely close to marrying one of Spidey's rogues. The Wall-crawler would ultimately disrupt the ceremony, but which villain was set to marry May Parker?
Who Was Behind The Shooting Of Aunt May?
Poor, poor May Parker. While Peter's Aunt May has been involved in many a near-miss as Spider-Man has battled various supervillains over the decades, the stakes were well and truly raised in 2007's 'Back in Black' arc. In the aftermath of Civil War, and with it now public knowledge that Peter Parker was indeed Spider-Man, many of the Wall-crawler's longtime foes made the most of this new information. A no-name assassin was hired to shoot Mary Jane, but his bullet actually hit May, plunging her into a coma. When the smoke cleared, which bigtime villain had hired this sharpshooter?
How Is Kraven Related To Chameleon?
Sergei Kravinoff is a rare beast in the world of Spider-Man's villains, for he's one of the few to genuinely topple the Wall-crawler and prove himself superior to Spidey. In the famed Kraven's Last Hunt arc, Kravinoff would take out ol' Web-head and take on the Spider-Man moniker as his own before committing suicide in the knowledge he'd proven himself to the world. As well as this claim to fame, Kraven is also related to fellow criminal The Chameleon. But exactly what relation is Kravinoff to the Master of Disguise?
Did Norman Osborn Have Twins With Gwen?
In the pantheon of Spider-Man villains, Norman Osborn is right at the top of the tree. As the nefarious Green Goblin, Osborn has caused all kinds of chaos and carnage for our Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Man. Most notably, it was Norman who was responsible for the death of Peter Parker's first love, Gwen Stacy. In a case of true or false, though, was the relationship between Gwen and Norman more than we first thought, and did the pair actually have twins together?
Who Was Spider-Man's First Supervillain?
As a character, Spider-Man debuted back in 1962's Amazing Fantasy #15. That issue would see him battle generic bad guys, but he'd soon have his own series, the aptly titled Amazing Spider-Man. And where any good hero is concerned, there's always a villain lurking just around the corner. That was indeed the case with Spidey, and he'd find himself battling his first supervillain in Amazing Spider-Man #1. Just which villain was it, though, that the Wall-crawler did battle with in that first issue?
Who Created The Spider-Man Clones
The 1970s saw the first incarnation of the famed Clone Saga, and it left many comic book fans scratching their heads at what they'd just read. Whilst the finger of blame was pointed at the powers that be at Marvel Comics, story-wise the clone issue was all the creation of one particular villain. This mastermind was the one who started the whole cloning progress and created a second Spider-Man who would take on the name of Ben Reilly, but just which villain was it behind this plan?
Who Didn't Found The Sinister Six?
What do you get when you put a whole load of super villains together? A whole lot of trouble, that's what. And that's what Spider-Man found himself going up against when a bunch of his most notable and infamous rogues got together to form The Sinister Six. It was Doctor Octopus who had the idea to set up the original Sinister Six back in 1963, and he would use his charms to convince five other villains to join his team. Which of these WASN'T a founding member of the team along with Doc Ock, though?
Which Other Villainous Moniker Did Mac Gargan Take On?
Recently, the character of Mac Gargan finally made his cinematic debut in a supporting role in Spider-Man: Homecoming. To longtime Spidey fans, Gargan is better known as one of Spider-Man's most infamous rogues, The Scorpion, and it could well be that we see Gargan take on this persona in a future movie. But whilst Gargan is most notably known as Scorpion to many fans, he actually started taking on the moniker of another well-known Spider-Man rogue in 2005. Just which already-established villainous mantle was it that Gargan would take on in '05, though?
Who Killed Jean DeWolff?
The character of Jean DeWolff was first introduced in 1976, and the NYPD Captain was someone who was soon positioned as to Spider-Man what Jim Gordon was to Batman. DeWolff was initially a confidant of ol' Web-head's and the pair would eventually become good friends. So, when Jean was murdered in 1990's 'The Death of Jean DeWolff' story, that was a huge deal for readers and for Peter Parker himself. Which villain was it, though, that killed Jean DeWolff in that tale?
Who Offered Peter A Deal To Save Aunt May?
Continuing on with the shooting of Aunt May, so badly hurt was she that it really did look like this was it for May Parker. After a blood transfusion donated by Peter didn't work, May was in a coma and seemingly well on her way to taking her last breath. Only then, a mystical presence appeared and offered Peter a deal: May's health would restored for the small price of Peter and Mary Jane's marriage being erased from history. But which eerie figure was it who offered Peter this deal?
Who Nearly Killed Spider-Man During Civil War?
Mark Miller and Steve McNiven's 2006 Civil War arc was a huge gamechanger in the Marvel comic book world. With heroes being pitted against other heroes due to the notion of the Superhero Registration Act, battle lines were drawn and carnage ensued. And at the centre of the story was, of course, Spider-Man. After the death of Goliath saw Spidey quit Stark's group, the Wall-crawler would be cornered by two villains during a sewer-set fight that would leave Parker close to death. The Jester was one of these villains, but who was the other?
Who Played The Lizard In The Amazing Spider-Man?
The Lizard is a slightly more complicated villain than the majority of Spider-Man's rogues gallery, for he is essentially a Jekyll and Hyde figure; at one minute the rational, genius Dr. Curt Connors, then the next minute a crazed, aggressive, blood-thirsty beast. Add in Connors' role as a mentor figure of sorts for Peter Parker over the years, and you have a multi-layered villain who stands out from the crowd. Despite appearing in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy, it wouldn't be until Marc Webb's The Amazing Spider-Man when we'd see Connors become The Lizard, but which actor was it who played him in that film?
Who Is Carnage's Offspring?
Symbiotes! Symbiotes everywhere! To many, Venom is the most (in)famous symbiote in the Marvel comic book world, although Carnage is also a huge favourite of many as well. For those unaware, Carnage was actually spawned from Venom - thus making Carnage the offspring of Venom. Not to be outdone, Carnage would actually spawn an offspring of his own further down the line, with this 'newborn' initially bonding with Pat Mulligan in the same way Venom bonded with Eddie Brock and Carnage bonded with Cletus Kasady. What name was given to the symbiote that bonded with Mulligan, though?
Who Was The Superior Spider-Man?
For years it was Amazing, then he was Spectacular, and then came the 'Superior' Spider-Man. In a shocking twist, Peter Parker was essentially replaced as Spider-Man at the end of 2012. What actually happened was a longtime foe of Spidey's was on their deathbed. In one final act of deviance, this villain would use a battle with ol' Web-head to switch his conscience with Parker. So, the mind of Peter ended up in this dying body, whilst said villain had their conscious placed in Spidey, becoming the Superior Spider-Man. Who was the villain in question, though?
Who Was Bruce Campbell Lined Up To Play?
In Sam Raimi's Tobey Maguire-starring Spider-Man trilogy, one of the recurring elements is Evil Dead star Bruce Campbell. Appearing in all three movies, Campbell made a habit of playing a character who would somehow manage to butt heads with Maguire's Peter Parker. From leaked storyboards for the cancelled Spider-Man 4, Campbell was to be revealed as actually being a longstanding Spider-Man villain. Amping up the difficulty here a little, which rogue was it that Campbell would be revealed to have been all along if Spider-Man 4 happened?
Who Was The Villainous Spider-Man Clone?
The second 'Clone Saga' dominated the Spider-Man comics for a spell in the '90s, and it's certainly carved out a legacy all of its own - with some loving the arc, while others absolutely detested it. Ben Reilly was famously a Peter Parker clone who used his abilities for good as the Scarlet Spider, but Ben wasn't the only clone. In fact, the first Parker clone created by Miles Warren (aka the Jackal) would be discarded due to a degenerative issue, and he'd initially go on to become a villain. What name did this clone go by, though?
Who Faked The Reemergence Of Peter Parker's Parents?
One of the longstanding staples of comic book lore is that Peter Parker was raised by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben. The reason for this is that Peter's parents died in a plane crash when he was just a young boy. Fast-forward a few years, and Richard and Mary Parker would seemingly return from the grave - revealing that they had been held captive by Russian agents. Ultimately, the twist was that these parents were robots created by a Spidey villain, but which rogue pulled this heinous trick?
Which Other Villain Was Involved In Kraven's Last Hunt
The 'Kraven's Last Hunt' story isn't just revered as one of the all-time great Spider-Man tales, many see this as one of the hands-down best stories in comic books, period. In said arc, after supposedly 'killing' Spidey, Kraven took on the Spider-Man mantle as his own and hunted down another villain - a confused villain who Kraven would later encourage the resurrected Wall-crawler to give a beating to. Which rogue was it, though, who was used in a supporting role in this iconic story?
Who Was Spider-Man Fighting When Captain Stacy Died?
One of the biggest moments in Peter Parker's life was having Gwen Stacy lying dead in his arms following a battle between Spidey and the Green Goblin. A little less known to casual fans is the death of Gwen's pops, Captain Stacy. That particular demise came after the Captain pushed a small boy out of the way of falling debris caused by a battle between Spider-Man and a certain supervillain. Who was it that the Wall-crawler was fighting on the night Captain Stacy died?
Who Has Never Been The Hobgoblin?
While the Green Goblin gets a whole lot of recognition from comic book fans as a truly big-time villain, more often than not the poor Hobgoblin is left lurking in the shadows as a B or C-list player. Created as an alternative to the Green Goblin, Hobgoblin often looks and acts like a total badass as he causes destruction in New York City and beyond. Much like many villainous monikers, though, several people have become the Hobgoblin, but which of these names HASN'T?
Who Was The Third Green Goblin?
The Green Goblin is one of Spider-Man's most well-known villains, and some would very well argue that this nefarious sort is actually Spidey's outright greatest opponent. Of course, Norman Osborn is famously the person who's the most synonymous with the Green Goblin moniker, and Norman's son Harry has also been known to take on the mantle for himself at points, too. Following in the footsteps of Norman and Harry, who was the third person to be known as the villainous Green Goblin?
Who Tried To Feed On Spider-Man?
In the early 2000s, the Spider-Man books took a slightly bizarre twist and introduced the concept of the Spider Totem. In the briefest description, we found out that Peter's powers are somehow connected to a totemistic force, with the spider that originally bit him having purposely done so in order to give him his abilities. A new character called Ezekiel (pictured) warned Spidey of a hunter who was going to try and feed on him. That all-powerful hunter would indeed turn up and try to feast on Spider-Man, but what was his name?