Spider-Man is Marvel’s flagship character. I can go on and on about how he rose to popularity, but one of the things Spider-Man has going for him is his stable of enemies. Starring in several comic book titles a month since 1963, Spider-Man has had to fight gangsters, super villains, monsters, spider-slaying robots, and everything in between. Being a recurring Spider-Man enemy basically qualifies you for being an A-List villain. Some of Spider-Man’s worst enemies, like the Green Goblin, Dr. Octopus, and Venom, are the best known villains in all of comics.
Given the fact that Spider-Man has starred in about ten different cartoons series (and two animated movies), he has fought so, so many super villains. The villains introduced in the Lee/Ditko run, which remain some of the most recognizable, were all adapted as early as the 1960’s cartoon. Popular villains who were introduced later, like Hobgoblin or Venom, eventually found their way into cartoons, and so have many lesser known villains. Spider-Man has gone up against unpopular throwback villains like the Enforcers and the Spot, recent creations like Regent and Screwball, villains created specifically for the show like Shikata, legacy villains like the second Vulture and Sandman’s daughter, Counter Earth bestial versions of his classic villains, and even other heroes’ villains like Dr. Doom, Juggernaut, Dormammu, and Loki.
It seems like so many villains have been covered that classic villains need to be recontextualized to fit each show’s sensibilities. So is there room for villains who have never appeared before? If they have been passed over for different villains, does that mean they are even worth adapting? I’d say as long as we’re getting new Spider-Man cartoons, there’s plenty of room for villains who haven’t appeared before. Notably, these four.
1. Doppelganger. In Infinity War #1, by Jim Starlin, Ron Lim, and Al Milgrom, The Magus created evil versions of Marvel’s heroes. Most of these villains were never seen outside of this arc, but Spider-Man’s Doppelganger was revived and made further appearances.
Spiders are commonly thought of as one of the scarier animals on the planet, and while Spider-Man is often described as “friendly”, Doppelganger is horrifying. He has six arms, what looks like a mask is actually a face with sharp teeth, and his webbing is razor-like. He had a prominent role in the “Maximum Carnage” story arc, but when the Ultimate Spider-Man cartoon borrowed characters from that story for their Symbiote Saga, they left Doppelganger out. With the Doppelganger’s iconic horror design, it would be great to see Spider-Man fighting for his life against a savage, mindless version of himself.
2. Morlun. Created by J. Michael Straczynski and John Romita Jr, Morlun was part of the new direction Straczynski took the Spider-Books in during the early 2000’s. Spider-Man was always thought of as a hero created by science, but the concept of the “spider totem” gave him a more mystical background. And with that mystical origin came a mystical villain in the psychic vampire, Morlun.
Morlun (and spider totems in general) was received with mixed reception, but the weird thing is, other elements from his story have made their way into major adaptations. Ezekiel (the mystical ally of Spider-Man in Stracynski’s original arc) was inexplicably the villain in Madame Web, and the Spider-Verse became a central element to the animated Spider-Man movies and a long arc in Ultimate Spider-Man touched upon alternate reality versions of Spider-Man. And yet, Morlun has only appeared in a couple video games. It’s time to give the character his due.
3. Venom (the Mac Gargan version). Mac Gargan was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko to be the natural predator to Spider-Man, the villainous Scorpion. Spider-Man beat Scorpion so many times that his threat (and popularity in general) waned. Spider-Man gained a new predator when Eddie Brock bonded with his symbiote and became Venom. Eddie became more of an anti-hero, but the Venom symbiote bonded with other hosts. It joined with Mac Gargan and became the Spider-Man counterpart in the Dark Avengers.
Scorpion has appeared in nearly every Spider-Man cartoon, but he never appeared as Venom. Frustratingly, Ultimate Spider-Man skipped Mac Gargan entirely and went straight into making Flash Thompson Venom, and he was a good guy. Carnage is probably the most evil symbiote, but cartoons have to downplay just how bloody and violent he is. The Mac Gargan Venom would strike the perfect balance between evil and murderous. He could lose to Spider-Man as the Scorpion and then become an even bigger threat as Venom. Plus, Venom with a scorpion tail just looks cool.
4. The White Rabbit. Created by J.M. DeMatteis, Kerry Gammill, and Mike Esposito, White Rabbit is a whimsical animal-themed villain who took her gimmick from Alice in Wonderland. She is sort of like Spider-Man’s version of Batman’s Mad Hatter.
Spider-Man has so few female villains that I struggle to think who his most prominent one is. Black Cat, if you count her. Maybe the Carolyn Trainer version of Dr. Octopus? I think White Rabbit appearing in some cartoons could shoot her to the top of that list. Her absence has certainly been felt. She’s been around since the 80’s, but Marvel’s Spider-Man animated newer characters like Hippo and Panda-mania. It’s long past chance for White Rabbit to make an impression on a cartoon audience.
Honorable Mention – All the Goblins. The Green Goblin is, arguably, Spider-Man’s archenemy. However, Norman Osborn spent over 20 years of Spider-Man’s history dead and out of the books. Lots of goblin characters came in to fill his place. Even after Norman returned, the Goblin legacy only grew.
Norman Osborn has been animated a ton, and Harry Osborn has been both the Green Goblin and the Hobgoblin, but that’s just scratching the surface. A true Hobgoblin arc with the likes of Ned Leeds and Roderick Kingsley would top the use of Hobgoblin in Spider-Man The Animated Series. Demogoblin, a demonic goblin who rides around on a flaming glider, would look awesome animated. There have been grey goblins, gold goblins, and symbiote goblins. We deserve to see at least a few more in future cartoons.
The Spider-Man franchise is in a unique position among Marvel characters. There are live action Spider-Man movies, live action Spider-Man movies with spin-off characters, animated TV shows, and animated movies. There is clearly plenty of Spider-Man to go around. While it’s fun to see him fight classic villains and prove why some of them have been a thorn in his side since the 1960’s, each new Spider-Man cartoon should try to adapt villains no other cartoon has touched.
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