Scorpion, yea that was a bad judgement call sure, Sider Slayers, boarder line. But after seeing how both of those worked out for the bad doing it a 3rd time with the Fly, that is criminal.
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Scorpion, yea that was a bad judgement call sure, Sider Slayers, boarder line. But after seeing how both of those worked out for the bad doing it a 3rd time with the Fly, that is criminal.
1. [B]Calypso[/B]
2. [B]Stunner[/B]
3. [B]Lady Octopus[/B]
4. [B]White Rabbit[/B]
5. [B]Scream[/B]
6. [B]Beetle[/B]
7. [B]Femme Fatales[/B]
8. [B]Scorpia[/B]
9. [B]Commanda[/B]
10. [B]Joystick[/B]
[QUOTE=babyblob;5770181]Scorpion, yea that was a bad judgement call sure, Sider Slayers, boarder line. But after seeing how both of those worked out for the bad doing it a 3rd time with the Fly, that is criminal.[/QUOTE]
To be honest, he barely did anything when it came to the Fly, Stillwell was already working on the suit and Deacon was lucky enought to overheard the plan, the whole thing backfired before he could even pay it. Not condoning his actions, but there really wasn't much there to blame him. Considering that he never did it again after that, he probably took the lesson to heart.
[QUOTE=Nyssane;5770202]1. [B]Calypso[/B]
2. [B]Stunner[/B]
3. [B]Lady Octopus[/B]
4. [B]White Rabbit[/B]
5. [B]Scream[/B]
6. [B]Beetle[/B]
7. [B]Femme Fatales[/B]
8. [B]Scorpia[/B]
9. [B]Commanda[/B]
10. [B]Joystick[/B][/QUOTE]
It’s a shame Spidey doesn’t have more prominent female villains. I think the most prominent here is Calypso and she’s still C-list.
One of the coolest things about Spider-Man comics is that the normal characters play such elevated roles. The soap opera is the biggest source of villainy, and Peter Parker is public enemy number 1 for Spider-Man. Practically all of his supporting cast have eventually fought him, shunned him, caused him grief, given him emotional issues, and just gotten in Spider-Man's way. It equals the Batman supporting cast, and is interesting for much different reasons. Batman's supporting cast tends to actually, you know, be supportive! So I could just list Spider-Man and his major supporting cast members - Peter, May, Gwen, MJ, Harry, JJJ, etc. All villains!
But I know that's not what you meant, so:
1. Ock - got a thing for scientist villains and he is the OG
2. Osborn, Norman - although I am sick of him and think he should be dead as Gwen
3. Kraven - just a really nice guy who wants to hunt stuff in peace
4. Sandman - the first time they fought, defeated by a vacuum cleaner. This merits him a spot on my list.
5. Vulture - I will always love the old versus young vibe he brings
6. Black Cat - knockoff of Catwoman, maybe, but I would argue that she was completely original. This character's heydey was like none other.
7. Electro - He's just a big jerk with crappy powers, but I can't quit him
8. Carrion - this is my nod to Bill Mantlo.
9. Morbius - I just feel that horror is a natural place to go with Spider-Man.
10. Shocker - Another big jerk, ala Electro, so my kryptonite.
Many, many other Spider-Man villains are great in so many ways. But I had to choose.
My faves:
1.) [B]Hobgoblin[/B] (Kingsley): Hobgoblin's costume design tweaks everything about the Green Goblin look. I also like how Kingsley was smart enough to retire on a beach for a time rather than continue a pointless vendetta with Spider-man and how now he is currently marketing supervilllain costumes and gimmicks to wannabee super criminals rather than get his own hands dirty.
2.) [B]Mr. Fear[/B] (Alan Fagan): My favorite C-list supervilllain! The baddie of the first ever issue of "Web of Spider-man" I bought at the newstand. Mr. Fear (whatever the version) doesn't show up nearly enough in the comics imo, but at least it makes tracking down his few sporadic appearances easy on the wallet.
3.) [B]Norman Osborn[/B] I honestly kind of dig Norman Osborn as his evil businessman persona [B]more[/B] than as a Goblin. Even though mad, he still always seems to be several steps ahead of the other players. I really enjoyed when he was in charge of the [I]Thunderbolts[/I].
4.) [B]Mysterio[/B] (Quentin Beck/ Daniel Berkhart) Ol' fishbowl head. He always makes for a fun story with his mastery of illusions and mind games. I thought Berkhart as his vengeful protégé was also very fitting, just like a cheesy movie sequel!
5.) [B]Carnage[/B] (Cletus Kassady) Possibly Spidey's most murderous foe, extremely violent and powerful with no moral conscious to hold him back!
6.) [B]Venom[/B] (Eddie Brock) Eddie would rank higher here if he hadn't gone anti-hero. I also [B]really[/B] dislike all the [I]Knull, God of symbiotes[/I] stuff.
7.) [B]Mad Jack[/B] (Maguire Beck) I thought the shared identity with Daniel Berkhart's Mysterio made for a clever mystery in the post-clone saga period of Spider-man comics. A shame she never returned, as Spidey can always use more female adversaries.
8.) [B]Beetle[/B] (Janice Lincoln) Spencer's Janice was great. I hope we will see more of her in both her supervilllain identity and as a criminal defense attorney actively working to keep criminals out of jail! She's like a [I]reverse Daredevil[/I]!
9.) [B]Doc Ock[/B] (Otto Octavius) Ock would have probably made the top 5 if it wasn't for Slott's favoritism turning him into an annoying [I]creator's pet. :mad:[/I]Still, a great classic Ditko villain design and I enjoy reading his older (pre-Slott) adventures.
10.) [B]White Rabbit[/B] (Dr. Lorina Dodson) one of Spidey's earlier female opponents, of which he is severely lacking. I like "Alice and Wonderland" themed villains and I LOVE "bunny girls" :o so Lorina's inclusion here is a no-brainer. White Rabbit is just a fun character with so much story potential that hasn't even been touched upon in the books.
[QUOTE=Revolutionary_Jack;5770082]Between those three, what major damage did they do individually or collectively to Spider-Man? I mean Scorpion was a terrible person posing as a detective to start with, and the transformation allowed him to be more of a jerk than before. But even then he never did any major damage to Spider-Man.
[/QUOTE]
As a Scorpion fan I have to dispell this rumor. We know almost nothing about Mac Gargan before his transformation. The Serum that gave him his Superstrenght also made into a pyschopath and is Garry Conways is anything to go by(although I have always preferred the Scorpion when Stan Lee wrote him) insane as well
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[QUOTE=Nyssane;5770202]1. [B]Calypso[/B]
2. [B]Stunner[/B]
3. [B]Lady Octopus[/B]
4. [B]White Rabbit[/B]
5. [B]Scream[/B]
6. [B]Beetle[/B]
7. [B]Femme Fatales[/B]
8. [B]Scorpia[/B]
9. [B]Commanda[/B]
10. [B]Joystick[/B][/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=HypnoHustler;5770233]It’s a shame Spidey doesn’t have more prominent female villains. I think the most prominent here is Calypso and she’s still C-list.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, it is. That said, I'd love to see Joystick make a comeback as an even more amoral Black Cat equivalent to Ben Reilly's Spider-Man in the current Spider-Man Beyond storyline. Hell, throw in Lily Hollister as Queen Cat trying to be a hero and pair her with Ben's Spidey as an ally and/or antagonist. (No romance, though, since Ben is very happily reunited with Janine.)
[QUOTE=Revolutionary_Jack;5770117]Well it makes for a far simpler and far less complicated, and in my view, far less interesting story if you see the story that way. Jameson is one of the most original and unique supporting characters in fiction and you do him disservice if you look at him that way. Why not simply accept the unique niche he occupies and the greater moral lesson he exists to impart to readers. Seeing Jameson as a villain isn't anywhere close to the complicated emotional connection audiences have had with Jameson since the start.
If you want a deeper exploration of what I mean, then I wrote a long post putting my thoughts here. If you have the time, check it out:
[url]https://elvingsmusings.wordpress.com/2021/08/21/genesis-of-j-jonah-jameson-spider-mans-guilty-conscience/[/url][/QUOTE
The biggest problem with JJJ is his motivation to hate Spider-Man: Pure jealousy. I do not care for characters like him or Nora who use their position in the media to manipulate opinions of others, when their house is not exactly squeaky clean, I will say this he is a great character because there is a lot of grey area to him ( his defense of Joe Robertson for example) and in most cases those kind of multi dimensional characters work best ( unlike that Katie Couric wannabe Nora who offers nothing positive. Which is why I would love to see Felicia ( or) better yet MJ give a beat down to ( she might even cry if her hair is pulled out or her face gets a little dirty)).
[QUOTE=Revolutionary_Jack;5770150]Jameson is an iconic and beloved character and it is in fact highly controversial to call him a villain, and especially to put him #1, and then assert he ruined Spider-Man's life more than anyone. I would say such a claim is immensely hyperbolic to start with, a total exaggeration if we are being real, and an outright misrepresentation of the obvious intent with his function as character.
When you make a controversial decision, it's going to provoke a response and that can't be dismissed under the rhetoric of "because people see him different than you do". This isn't Controversial Spider-Man Opinions where such weird and wild takes are more than welcome.
At least that's the way I feel about it.[/QUOTE]
You missed the word "almost." He did more damage than almost anyone else.
The burglar killed Uncle Ben.
Norman Osborn killed Gwen Stacy and poisoned Harry Osborn's mind.
J. Jonah Jameson sponsored the creations of the Scorpion, the Spider Slayers and others. He also aided other Spider-Man villains on multiple occasions. Most importantly, he's pretty much responsible for Spider-Man's lowly reputation among superheroes, sometimes violating journalistic norms (to the say the least) in the process. He has also done significant psychological damage to Spider-Man, at one point convincing him to quit. As NC_Yankee notes, his motives were also impure.
I'll note this is a favorite villains list, which does allow for stranger responses than a more conventional ten greatest villains list.
[QUOTE=HypnoHustler;5770233]It’s a shame Spidey doesn’t have more prominent female villains. I think the most prominent here is Calypso and she’s still C-list.[/QUOTE]
She's also dead, for over 20 years lol.
I'd say White Rabbit is more prominent just because she still shows up once in a while, even if she didn't fuck Spidey over as badly as Calypso did in like, the two times Calypso showed up lol.
[QUOTE=Vegeta;5770261]2.) [B]Mr. Fear[/B] (Alan Fagan): My favorite C-list supervilllain! The baddie of the first ever issue of "Web of Spider-man" I bought at the newstand. Mr. Fear (whatever the version) doesn't show up nearly enough in the comics imo, but at least it makes tracking down his few sporadic appearances easy on the wallet.[/quote]
I think he had the fear gas before Batman's Scarecrow too.
1. Doc Ock
2. Green Goblin
3. Venom
4. Lizard
5. Carnage
6. Jackal
7. Kingpin
8. Scorpion
9. Mysterio
10. Tombstone
[QUOTE=Lukmendes;5771357]She's also dead, for over 20 years lol.
I'd say White Rabbit is more prominent just because she still shows up once in a while, even if she didn't fuck Spidey over as badly as Calypso did in like, the two times Calypso showed up lol.
[B]I think he had the fear gas before Batman's Scarecrow too.[/B][/QUOTE]
You are correct. Scarecrow first used his fear gas in Batman 189 in 1967. 2 years after Mr Fear used his in Daredevil 6 in 1965.
1. Doctor Octopus - Spidey's most versatile enemy, having undergone countless revisions, retcons and dramatic character shifts. He's one of the few Spider-man enemies that has (almost) consistently remained a serious threat and his occasional pangs of heroism/selflessness (way before SSM) have always given him a slight extra layer over most foes. I also enjoy Doctor Lady Ock, glad she's back.
2. Green Goblin (Norman/Harry) - More through legacy than as a current character, but I'd be lying if a Goblin appearance doesn't make me a little more excited for a book.
Norman unmasked Spider-man, had a unique dynamic of an ever-present threat (through amnesia!) and ultimately killed Gwen then himself in two of the greatest and most important Spider-man comics ever. PPSM #75 is great and still feels like a big deal, but I don't think Norman has done much of note since being resurrected.
While Harry's original turn felt very rushed, JMD picked up that ball and his whole run with Harry's Goblin was a tragic masterclass on presenting a complex, tortured friend turned enemy. ONe of the only things I liked about BND was the concept of Harry coming back "healed" (amnesia again?) as Peter's friend. The execution sucked, but it was nice having him back. c'est la vie et la mort (et la vie et la mort).
3. Hobgoblin (Kingsley) - Roger Stern's run with Kinsgley are among my favourite Spider-man comics and he absolutely nailed the return/fix with Hobgoblin Lives. I really enjoyed Slott's reinvention and the Axis miniseries was delightfully silly fun.
Also, guilty secret here, when I started reading Spidey the first back issues I sought out were Macendale's Hobby. Yes, I know now that he sucked but I was a teenager and I thought he was the coolest. I still have a massive soft spot for McFarlane's 'Masques' two parter.
4. Venom - David Michelinie's Venom is one of the most entertaining characters ever to grace a Spider-man comic. I still love the early appearances (and revisiting the ridiculous ways they'd be defeated) and enjoy Venom to this day. Despite the absolute mess made of the character in the '00s (and let's face it, the '90s miniseries where pretty bad), the fact that Venom is still so popular today is a testament to Michelinie & McFarlane's creation. I can't wait to see Venom - Let There Be Carnage this weekend!
5. Mysterio - I love a villain that's all illusion, false narratives and everything that comes with it. Stuff like the Mysterio Manifesto is a great example of this, where you have no idea what's going on from moment to moment and it all boils down to overly contrived nonsense. Even in the latest super-epic, the Kindred saga, Mysterio was instrumental in bringing everything together as a retconning deus ex machina. He's a walking retcon machine! But more seriously, I always loved the design and larger-than-life attitude.
6. Kingpin - I absolutely love the character as much for his time in Daredevil as Spider-man. Kingpin rises above the average gangster/mob boss in that he rarely loses. He has setbacks, but he's the guy Spider-man has a real problem pinning down for his crimes and even when he does it's only a matter of time before Fisk is released/exonerated/pardoned.
7. Jackal - Yeah. I love clones. I love the Jackal and all the nonsense he brings. I love the various characters (because let's face it, he's basically a different character every time he appears) with Joker/Furry-Jackal in the '90s being the most fun and original Miles/Jackal having depth and a decent arc by the end. He was really fun in Spider-Island and I enjoyed Ben as the new Jackal in Clone Conspiracy. He created Ben and Kaine and the Spider-verse is definitely better off for them. Also Spidercide.
8. Chameleon - So much potential, so often wasted. When the Chameleon is used well I am a big fan. From his first appearance (remember when he just built a device to 'speak' directly to Spidey's spider-sense?) he was a decent threat, again with the "what is real" element, until he brought in Kraven. His part in the Peter's parents debacle. Paul Jenkins and Sean Phillips' arc in Webspinners. His excellent His part in M.O.D.O.K.'s Eleven. I even enjoyed the Chameleon Conspiracy as crazy fun.
9. Vulture - Vulture's schtick is that he's old, mean and inevitably flies high then drops Spider-man (who always saves himself). I like it, there's something very relatable in that inescapable pattern. Though Marvel have tried to replace him with a younger, hipper model several times, the old geezer just keeps coming back. Love that hustle.
10. Carnage - I didn't want to put Carnage this high on the list. As a character I find him a bit one-note and the novelty wears off pretty quickly. However, when looking through Spidey's villains it was hard to deny that there are a lot of great Carnage comics, and as a foil to Peter's pure goodness and Venom's violent excesses he works exceptionally well. Zeb Wells' Carnage miniseries are a highlight. Did I mention I can't wait to see Venom - Let There Be Carnage this weekend?
Honorable mentions:
Electro - I do love Electro but he suffers from having few stories with any real depth (though he has two absolute belters!) as well as being one of those characters that is kind of reinvented every time he appears. He also is a bit of a loser despite being one of Spidey's most powerful enemies.
Shocker - Shocker! SHOCKER!!! I'LL CHASE YOU TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH!!!
Everybody's favourite early stage videogame boss, Shocker has a sweet suit and cool power set. When he is used well I think he has the capacity to be a top-tier Spider-man enemy (such as his first appearance, just prior to the Byrne 'reboot' and in BND). However, he can also be great filling the 'everyman' role as in Deadly Foes. He was the absolute best in Superior Foes.
Beetle - I really love both (major) versions. Abner was a lot of fun (LOVE that original suit) and a decent threat.
Janice Lincoln is killing it as the "new" Beetle and I love her various dynamics (Tombstone's daughter, super-villain lawyer, dating Randy Robertson, pulling together an all-women super-villain team). She needs her own miniseries or to lead a Sinister Syndicate series NOW.
[QUOTE=Lukmendes;5771357]She's also dead, for over 20 years lol.
I'd say White Rabbit is more prominent just because she still shows up once in a while, even if she didn't fuck Spidey over as badly as Calypso did in like, the two times Calypso showed up lol.
[/QUOTE]
Surprised the poster didn’t include Shriek. She’s probably the most prominent female villain (which definitely isn’t saying much as she’s B-list at best). Or the Spider-Queen who gave him that organic webbing in that dumb story. Menace is another one…
But no real female heavy-hitters.