Tag Archives: Spider-Man

Spider-Man: The Top 10 Villains

March 20, 2016 The Overseer Leave a comment

Everyone wants a piece of Spider-Man. He’s a skinny little fellow with a big mouth and an absurd ability to make foes four times his size look like bumbling fools. He’s basically every high school nerd’s dream come true, on paper. That may in fact be a huge part of the appeal of the Spider. Everyone who’s ever been picked on by a much bigger, aggressive jock bully, has had a desire to mop the floor with that bully. Spider-Man makes that happen, just about every time he’s forced to tangle with a bad guy, and he’s done so to men as mean as the following…

10 Kraven the Hunter

As far back as I can remember, Kraven never had a very valid reason to beef with Puny Peter Parker. As I recall, the encounters of this nature generally stem from Kraven’s desire to overcome his most formidable prey. In other words, it’s just a form of competition for the infamous big game hunter. But as history has shown us, the Spider tends to out-duel the hulking and crafty Kraven.

9 Lizard

Doctor Conners was once a decent guy. Then he had a big brain fart in his laboratory and injected himself with that bad-news-all-over-it lizard serum. The result? A massive, agile lizard capable of basically controlling all different sorts of reptiles and bashing skulls with that tremendous tail of his. Naturally, the Lizard stands out a bit, and that means many a collision with Spider-Man is guaranteed business.

8 Electro

Electro is just a disgruntled dude, and who can blame the guy? He was just a hard-working guy who happened to have a terrible injury on the job. This, naturally made Maxwell Dillon eager to throw a few lightning bolts and let off some steam (Bennett… sorry, it was too easy), and well… Spider-Man can’t let that insanity happen in such a booming metropolis. Hence the many battles these two have had. Electro has some very dangerous abilities, but he comes up just a bit short in the brains department, which has enabled the Spider to get the upper hand time and again.

7 Vulture

Adrian Toomes has always been one of Spider-Man’s most compelling and interesting villains. The man has true brainpower on his side, being am inventor with ingenuity in his blood he’s always seemed to have the potential to defeat Spider-Man. All that said, while Vulture may have the creativity to come up big in a showdown with the wall-crawler, he lacks the heart and seems to fold when things don’t go his way. Never a good thing when you’re fighting a youngster with a heart as big as Texas.

5 Carnage

Cletus Kasady ran into a symbiote that changed existence as he knew it. It also connected him to Venom forever. But Carnage didn’t exactly live in Venom’s shadow. No. This nasty wreaks his own havoc where he can when he can. While Carnage may be considered the “spawn of Venom,” he can actually do a few things that Venom can’t, like form his black and bloody gooeyness into sharp or serrated blades. We’re talking about a whole new challenge for Parker. But, as is the case with Venom, Kasady doesn’t always know when to quit while ahead. Spidey’s just too smart for this kind of villain.

4 Sandman

Flint Marko rocks. Not because he’s a great guy or anything, but because he was shapeshifting and manipulating the elements in unique ways longer than just about every nemesis on this list. The first time we see that sand mold itself into a giant hand, and the Sandman bellows “Okay Spider-Man! Now it’s just you ‘n me! Once I finish you off, nobody’ll be able to stop me,” we know that this is a foe who can create very interesting problems for the Web Head. I’m still aching to see an outstanding filmmaker bring the Sandman to the big screen in a way that does him true justice (sorry, Raimi, there was quite a bit left to be desired by Spider-Man 3).

3 Venom

Venom was the first major villain born into the Marvel universe during my time. I missed the introduction of other greats included in this lineup, but I was here and collecting in 1988, when this uber intimidating alien symbiote with the power to completely brainwash its host while bulking up to epic proportions was introduced by David Michelinie and Todd McFarlane. Although we didn’t see much of the true Venom in The Amazing Spider-Man #299, he does have one of the most memorable cameos in history. It’s hard to shake that image of Venom in the shadows, his grin stretching to grotesque dimensions as he welcomes Mary Jane home, “Hi, Honey…” That sums up the creepiness and control of Venom, perfectly.

2 Doc Ock

Another one of Spider-Man’s oldest rivals, Doctor Otto Octavius scared the urine out of me as a child. I can’t recall which issue of Amazing Spider-Man I was reading, but I remember I hadn’t been reading long when my parents picked up a random issue. That issue featured Ock and boy did that haunt my dreams for a while. The thing is, Dock Ock is still frightening. He’s edgier in his more recent appearances and Alfred Molina did the character beautiful justice in Sam Raimi’s second franchise film. This is a multi-layered character that has been as savage as imaginable and as sympathetic as a child who’s lost his way home. Amazing villain, and no doubt one of the finest antagonists ever created in the comic world.

1 Green Goblin

If Spider-Man has a legitimate arch nemesis, it’s Green Goblin. This guy framed Parker for murder. This guy tortured Spidey in a bid to turn him to the dark side. He worked up an elaborate clone saga. This guy just about completely ruined Parker’s life when he played a very direct role in the death of one of Peter Parker’s first true loves, Gwen Stacy. Parker has taken a lot of “Ls” at the hands of the Green Goblin, and if anyone had the resolve and grit to kill the iconic character, it would no doubt be the green one. Where the future will take us – with any rendition of Green Goblin – remains to be seen, but you’ve got to expect the Green Goblin to cause more turmoil down the line, one way or another.

Cartoons

Throwback Superhero Cartoon of the Day: Spider-man Season 2 Episode 1 (1967)!

March 6, 2016 The Overseer Leave a comment

A week from Hell shut me down for a few days, which means you’ve been missing your daily old school cartoon. Worry not – we’ve got you covered on this rainy Saturday. Below is a look at the first episode of the 1967 superhero cartoon, Spiderman, season two.

It’s a keeper!

Top 10 Lists

Deadpool and The 10 Greatest Comic Book Movies in History

February 22, 2016 The Overseer 2 Comments

Seeing as Deadpool is still a pretty new release, I don’t want to hit you with too many spoilers. But I will tell you that Ryan Reynolds was most certainly born to play the role of Wade Wilson AKA merc extraordinaire, Deadpool. This isn’t just action packed, it pulls no punches in regards to intensity, hurling about obscenities and engaging in intense violence like it’s all good for our health. And Deadpool, let me tell you, is one funny dude. You think his punchlines work wonders on page? Wait until you hear them on screen, delivered with spunk and edge.

Yes, Deadpool is an excellent comic book adaptation. And, after another watch or two, the movie just might crawl its way into my top 10. Right now the decision to include it feels a little premature. Deadpool hasn’t yet passed the longevity test, though I see no reason why it won’t live on in my memory and earn a place in my collection.

It’s an awesome flick. But these are 10 more awesome flicks, each more than worthy of elite branding.

10 Hellboy: Easily one of the most underrated comic book adaptations in existence, Guillermo del Toro did Mike Mignola’s brilliant creation justice like no other could have. This one is loaded with action, jaw dropping visuals and wicked creature designs, but at the end of the day it’s Hellboy’s (Ron Perlman) charisma that carries the flick. Insanely good comic adaptation.

09 Batman: Michael Keaton always felt like the greatest Batman, until Christian Bale came along and stole the franchise show. But that can’t erase Keaton’s success, and it doesn’t change the fact that Tim Burton’s gloomy take on the discreet crusader of Gotham City was excellent. It was the first time that Batman took to the screen as a genuinely dark character, and it isn’t going to forgotten anytime soon.

08 Superman IV: The first Superman film to feature Christopher Reeves in the titular role was great. It was memorable to say the least, and the second movie rocked thanks to General Zod’s presence. But Part IV was the one that truly pulled the hearts out of the chests of fans. It featured Superman in his first lengthy one-on-one superhuman showdown. Nuclear Man rocked, Lex Luthor was fantastic (thanks to Gene Hackman), and Superman duked it out like never before. A great film, despite the flaws.

07 30 Days of Night: I told you Hellboy was underrated? This is the one comic book adaptation that trumps it in the neglect department. I think a bit part of that comes in the fact that a surpring amount of fans don’t realize the story is based on a comic book. No matter, really, as 30 Days of Night was a special film that represented comic books and the horror genre in dazzling fashion. It’s creative, it’s intense and it’s aesthetically genius! And come on, holy hell at those disturbingly graphic decapitations!!

06 Guardians of the Galaxy: As a child, Guardians of the Galaxy wasn’t a book I read. It wasn’t a book my friends read. To be honest, I don’t even recall seeing the book on any shelf. In short, I didn’t know these characters existed. But, in one swift motion James Gunn changed the game and made character like Peter Quill, Gamora, Drax, Groot and Rocket loveable and memorable. The comedy is thick, the action is insane and the movie looks absolutely stellar.

05 300: Another picture that many fail to realize was a comic long before it was a film, Zack Snyder’s visual telling of Frank Miller’s sprawling war epic, 300 turned everyone’s head. Never has CGI looked so remarkable and clean. The image is absurdly convincing, the war is an awe inspiring spectacle, there’re cool monsters and the heroic Spartans elicit true excitement. Gerard Butler was born to play the role of Leonidas and that serves as a major piece of the puzzle that ultimately pushes this one into the realm of mastery.

04 X-Men 2: Still, in my humble opinion, X2 is the finest X-Men film to see release. The truth is, every film in the franchise, sans the third, is a top notch effort But X2 gave us exactly the kind of X-Men movie we needed. The Wolverine vs. Lady Deathstrike war is one of the greatest moments of combat in the entire series of films, which alone ensures this one ranks high. Especially high – as a diehard fan – on this particular list.

03 Spider-Man 2: Some will tell you that Sam Raimi is finest during his moments entangled in Ash Williams’ world. It’s hard to argue against that, but if you’re going to select one pic to rival his Evil Dead/Army of Darkness work, it’s Spider-man 2. While the Green Goblin was an awesome, awesome villain (and still one of my favorite Spidey villains), Doc Ock made for a much more enthralling villain on screen. Of all three of Raimi’s films, the second is most certainly the finest, bringing the action level to its edgiest degree, and keeping the romance just far enough in the background as to not swallow the story, Spider-man was one of the first truly excellent comic book movies.

02 The Avengers: The Avengers was bound to be a slick picture. In fact, it almost had to be. There was no possible way that Marvel or Paramount would risk this one being anything other than a grand slam. Bringing together Captain America, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, Black Widow and Hawkeye was just a stunning feat that may never be surpassed in any cinematic stance. We get a conflict worth thinking about and some of the most epic action to ever grace the screen, comic flick or otherwise. I don’t want to gush too much, and Avengers gives us a dozen or so reasons to do just that, but this one definitely earns the nukber two position.

01 Batman Begin/The Dark Knight/The Dark Knight Rises: Some will see this as cheating and some will side with me. See, not only did I have trouble ranking each film in the Dark Knight trilogy related to other films, I had trouble rating the franchise itself. Batman Begins gave us a Batman we’d never seen. Dark Knight gave us the strongest performance in the history of the Batman/Gotham universe (God rest Heath Ledger’s soul) and The Dark Knight Rises saw the on screen birth of the first baddie to genuinely destroy the Batman, Bane. All three are ridiculously well-crafted and mesmerizing movies and they all stand among the greatest films ever made. Therefore, they all get the number one slot!