Spider-Man

Marvel character highlight #26: Taskmaster

Posted on October 24, 2020March 20, 2021 by Administrator

Name: Tony Masters

Alias: Taskmaster, Barney Toastmaster, Captain America, Chief Warrant Officer T. McWilliams/Ground Crew Chief McWilliams, Tasky

Affiliation: Power Elite, Ravencroft Institute, Black Ant, Hydra, Hydra’s Avengers, Hydra High Sect, S.H.I.E.L.D. Secret Avengers, A.I.M., The Org, The Cabal, Initiative, Shadow Initiative, Committee, U.L.T.I.M.A.T.U.M., Cyber Ninjas, Lords of the Living Lightning, Sons of the Serpent, Black Choppers, Trenchcoat Mafia, Militiamen, The Inquisition, Agency X, Frightful Four, Thunderbolts

Special abilities: Photographic memory and, after taking an experimental version of the Super-Soldier Serum, the ability to memorize the motor skills and abilities of others. This ability comes at the cost of his own memory.

Background: Tony Masters was born in the Bronx and realized at an early age that he could perform feats he’d seen on TV just by watching someone perform them. When he matured, he joined S.H.I.E.L.D. as an agent. During a mission, he injected himself with the Nazi experimental version of the Super-Soldier Serum (much like the one that changed Steve Rogers) and gained enhanced abilities gained through his photographic memory and reflexes. This came at the cost of his memories as he overwrote his true memories with those of the person he observed. His wife, Mercedes Merced, then crafted the Taskmaster persona to help him. Through his ill-gotten gains as Taskmaster, he became a trainer of villains, or anyone who would pay. He has trained several super villains, been part of the Secret Empire and Hydra and re-learned his true past, only to lose it again after being forced to learn a new set of moves.

Relationships: Mercedes Merced (wife)

First Versus appearance: Marvel vs. Capcom 3

Appearances in other media:

Television: Ultimate Spider-Man, Avengers Assemble (animated)

Film: Avengers Confidential: Black Widow & Punisher, Iron Man (animated), Captain America: Heroes United, Black Widow (upcoming live-action)

Video games: Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Marvel Heroes, Avengers Initiative, Marvel: Avengers Alliance, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes, Marvel: Avengers Alliance Tactics, Captain America: The Winter Soldier – The Official Game, Marvel Avengers Academy, LEGO Marvel’s Avengers, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Avengers (2020), Marvel: Future Fight

Property Review: Avengers Endgame

Posted on July 4, 2020June 16, 2020 by Administrator

Assembled greatness completed

Avengers: Endgame
Marvel Studios, 2019

“We’re in the endgame now.” Dr. Strange was and always has been prescient about the situation at hand. Whether it’s his own battles with the likes of Dormammu or Shuma Gorath or facing off against Thanos, the Sorcerer Supreme of Earth is always planning and stark about the reality of whatever happens to be going on. In this instance, in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, Strange was the most grounded and gave the most sobering assessment of all: The Avengers were going to lose before they won.

Based on Strange’s assessment in Infinity War, you’d think Endgame would be some bleak tale of revenge and that’s it. Technically, Endgame does begin as that, but it morphs into something more. It’s a tale of loss, hard choices, joy and survival. And, yes, revenge. It’s a do-over on some levels also. See, here, the Avengers who survived “the snappening” in Infinity War have to go on. They’re living day to day without their comrades, friends, loved ones and mentors/mentees. Life is bleak, with monuments to those lost when Thanos took out half of the universe’s population with a flick of his wrist and a twitch in his gauntlet. Time has, at once, stood still and moved on for those still around. They’re finding ways to cope and that’s the meat of the first third. It’s a brilliantly deconstructed look at the world in which the Avengers did not win. The visceral raw emotion of Avengers coping, and the world at large is beautiful and simultaneously heartbreaking. Of all the Avengers, Thor and Hawkeye are depicted as having the most pain with Black Widow a close second. It’s the train wreck that you can’t look away from and feel in your soul.

From that wreck, however, in the second act rises the phoenix of the Avengers and their allies. The most genius among them — Scott Lang, Hulk and Tony Stark — figure out a way to effect time travel. They engineer a way to travel to different points on their established timeline to retrieve the Infinity stones and bring everyone back. This makes for great comedy and revisits of some of the cinematic universe’s most memorable moments. Pop culture bits (such as America’s Ass for Captain America/America’s sweetheart Chris Evans and “Hail Hydra,” also for Cap) even make their way in, lightening the mood a bit. But alas, as you make one stride forward, there will always be another that takes you back. Hard choices must be made in order to see some gain, or so Marvel would have you believe. So, yes, you’re going to say goodbye to some fan favorites and yes, this is signifying that their time with the franchise is coming to an end. However, it’s handled well, and it invokes emotion so much so that young children will cry at the thought of losing their favorite superhero.

And, for a minute, let the editor just step back and reminisce about the experience of seeing the current crop of Avengers gathered together for likely the last time. When there was a pivotal death, at the most pivotal moment — yes, THAT death — there was not a dry eye in the house. A young child, no older than 6 probably, cried her eyes out. Adults around us, including the editor, sniffled and cried as though we had lost a beloved family member. THAT is how you do a proper sendoff to a beloved character and that is how you wrap up a story, one of redemption and selflessness for the character and the actor in real life.

Every beat hit and every note cleanly marked is the hallmark of these Avengers movies and Endgame was no exception. Threads from the early days were neatly wrapped and character investment paid off for nearly everyone. It was enough that when the lights came back up, the movie received a standing ovation and nearly everyone waited for a mid-credits scene that would never come. THAT is how you wrap 11 years and 22 movies into a neat package and remind everyone that you’re the master of the genre. That is how you thank your fans for taking the time to care and get to know your ensemble cast through individual movies and properties.

That’s Marvel, baby.

Like the comics?: 6
Casting: 10
Writing: 10

Overall score: 26 out of 30 or 8.6

HOW WE GRADE
We score the properties in three categories: Casting (or voice acting in cases of animated), plot and similarities to its source material. Each category receives points out of the maximum of 10 per category and 30 overall. The percentage is the final score.

Top 5 on The Strip: Animated superhero cartoons

Posted on February 18, 2017 by Administrator

1. Batman: The Animated Series

The standard bearer for modern superhero cartoons, Batman: The Animated Series was gritty, dark and fresh off the success of Batman Returns. It’s well-drawn with a neat art deco style and the voice acting set the standard for future series. If you weren’t watching this every day after school, you missed out. Immediately go back and watch this from beginning to end.

2. Teen Titans

Teen Titans took a different tack when talking about Robin’s squad of heroes. It’s a great look at the younger superheroes of the DC universe in a group that still stands today. Featuring Robin, Starfire, Raven, Cyborg and Beast Boy, the show focuses on the group being young superheroes while also being teenagers with typical teenager problems. The voice work is fantastic and the animation is top-notch as well.

3. TMNT (1987 series)

We’re well-known TMNT fans here at GI and that love stems from the old black-and-white comics as well as the original animated series. That series, with its ’80s attitude and charm, managed to get us into the Turtles to start and paved the way for the juggernaut that was and still is the Turtles franchise. Outstanding voicework — featuring the likes of Jim Cummings and the late James Avery — make it one of the best ’80s animated series and a good introduction to the TMNT universe at large.

4. X-Men: The Animated Series

Aside from the classic theme, X-Men: The Animated Series featured a stellar voice cast and stories that mostly stayed faithful to the comics. At the time of its 1992 inception, this was unheard of in comic properties translated to TV. X-Men established several characters as favorites: Storm, Wolverine, Professor X, Jean Grey, Cable, Bishop, Gambit and Jubilee. It was so great that incarnations of the characters featured in the show have been used in multiple video game properties since.

5. Spider-Man (Fox)

Another great Fox animated series, Spider-Man was a fantastic showcase of the web-crawler’s style and storylines. It featured quite a few of Peter Parker’s rogues gallery and touched on a lot of his story arcs with accuracy and maturity not usually seen in comic book shows. As with X-Men: The Animated Series, Spider-Man had great voice acting that carried over into video games produced thereafter, such as the Marvel Versus series.

Marvel character highlight #21: Venom

Posted on July 19, 2015March 20, 2021 by Administrator

Name: Edward Charles Allan Brock

Aliases: Toxin, Venom, Lethal Protector, 998th, Anti-Venom, White Venom

Affiliation: Agent Venom, Savage Six, Sinister Six, The Revengers, former partner of Vengeance, Spider-Man, Scarlet Spider, F.E.A.S.T.

Special abilities: Because of the bonding of an alien symbiote (that once partnered with Spider-Man/Peter Parker), as Toxin, Brock has the same basic abilities as Spider-Man. He can stick to walls, can change his identity and has unlimited webbing, environmental camouflaging, quick-healing abilities and superhuman tracking strength in which he can track anyone — not just other symbiotes — as long as he has something to begin from. As Venom, he has the same abilities such as superhuman strength, durability, stamina, speed, agility, reflexes, genetic memory, offspring detection, spider sense, webbing generation and immunity to Spider-Man’s spider sense.

Background: Eddie Brock grew up in an unloving home with his father, who blamed him for the death of Eddie’s mother during childbirth. Brock began to exhibit signs of his future sociopathic life during this time, making up stories to gain attention and move ahead in life. Brock began working at the Daily Globe newspaper as a reporter and got married to Ann Weying. During his career in journalism, Brock excelled but was eventually fired after he was made into a joke by unmasking the wrong man as the villain known as Sin Eater. Brock summarily lost his job and his wife divorced him. As he was humiliated by Spider-Man, Brock saw the superhero as the source of his problems in life and developed an intense hatred for Spider-Man.

As he was contemplating suicide in a cathedral one day, Spider-Man was battling his recently acquired alien symbiote. In an effort to defeat the alien life form, Spider-Man used sonic waves from the church’s bells to sever the bond between himself and the suit. As the suit separated, it was drawn to the nearest life force, which was Brock. Brock had become a vessel of pure hate and enmity toward Spider-Man, and the alien was drawn to and fueled by this hatred. Brock had also recently learned that he had adrenal cancer, which caused his emotions to destabilize.

With the bonding of Brock and the symbiote complete (Brock completely bonded mentally and physically with the symbiote; Spider-Man did not), he learned Spider-Man’s secret identity and went on to wage all-out war against Parker and his loved ones. Despite his penchant for seeking the destruction of Spider-Man, there have been periods of truce and calm between the natural foes. Others have taken up the mantel of Venom as well, and Brock has since changed his name to Anti-Venom and most recently Toxin.

Relationships: Ann Weying (She-Venom), ex-wife; Jenna Cole (friend); Peter Parker (Spider-Man), alien symbiote father spawn; Cletus Kasady (Carnage), alien symbiote father spawn; Beck Underwood (ex-girlfriend)

First Versus game appearance: Marvel vs. Capcom

Appearances in other media: Spider-Man (animated series), Spider-Man Unlimited (animated series), Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. (animated series), Ultimate Spider-Man (animated series), Spider-Man 3 (film), The Amazing Spider-Man vs. The Kingpin (video game), Maximum Carnage (video game), Venom/Spider-Man: Separation Anxiety (video game), Spider-Man (1995 and 2000, video game), Ultimate Spider-Man (video game), Marvel vs. Capcom (video game), Marvel vs. Capcom 2 (video game), Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects (video game), Spider-Man 3 (video game), Spider-Man: Friend or Foe (video game), Spider-Man: Web of Shadows (video game), Marvel: Ultimate Alliance (video game), Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 (video game), Marvel Super Hero Squad Online (video game), Marvel Avengers: Battle for Earth (video game), Marvel Heroes (video game), Lego Marvel Super Heroes (video game), The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (video game), Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes (video game)

Top 5 on The Strip: Comic book roles with multiple actors

Posted on January 26, 2015 by Administrator

1. Batman
The Dark Knight has long been a friend of the big and small screen. Five actors have stepped into the dual role of Bruce Wayne and Batman: Adam West in the 1966 television show, Michael Keaton in 1989’s Batman and 1992’s Batman Returns, Val Kilmer in 1995’s Batman Forever, George Clooney in 1997’s Batman and Robin, and Christian Bale in the Dark Knight trilogy of films from 2005 to 2012.

2. Superman
At least six men have played the iconic superhero in television and film roles. Starting with George Reeves in 1951, the role was then taken the big screen by Christopher Reeve in four films from 1978 to 1987, then television by Dean Cain in 1993 and Tom Wellington in 2001, and back to film by Brandon Routh in 2006 and Henry Cavill in 2013.

3. Spider-Man
There have only been two actors to suit up as the friendly neighborhood wall-crawler: Tobey Macguire for three outings in 2002, 2004 and 2007; and Andrew Garfield in two films in 2012 and 2014.

4. The Joker
Batman’s arch nemesis has only appeared three times but each time has been memorable, film or television. Caesar Romero originated the role of the maniacal clown prince of crime with the television version of Batman also starring Adam West. Jack Nicholson took over the role opposite Michael Keaton in 1989’s Batman, Mark Hamill has voiced the Joker for Batman: The Animated Series and Heath Ledger posthumously won an Oscar for his portrayal in The Dark Knight.

5. The Hulk
Four actors have portrayed the unstable Dr. Bruce Banner and his counterpart, the Incredible Hulk. Bodybuilder Lou Ferrigno played the Hulk while Bill Bixby played the good doctor in the live action television version first. Hulk moved to the silver screen and was first portrayed by Eric Bana, then Ed Norton and finally, Mark Ruffalo.

Property review: Spider-Man 3

Posted on January 5, 2014January 3, 2014 by Administrator

Spider-Man 3

Columbia Pictures, 2007

Webcrawler stumbles a third time

Let’s get something straight from the beginning: Tobey Maguire, in no way, failed the Spider-Man franchise. There’s plenty of blame to go around outside of the cast of the once-juggernaut film property featuring everyone’s friendly neighborhood wall-crawler, but none of it needs to ensnare Maguire in its web. No, the blame game needs to be played like a who’s who gathering of spin the terrible film bottle with Sam Raimi and whoever was his casting director.

Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 had quite a bit going for each film, especially the first film. But by the time the third film rolls around, there isn’t much here to be seen that hasn’t been done before. That is the unfortunate nature of a trilogy.

There’s Peter Parker, Maguire’s lovable underdog that has as much rooting power and likability to carry a film from start to finish. Then there’s Mary Jane Watson, the heroine. While Kirsten Dunst does an admirable job of being the redheaded damsel in distress that is early Watson, she was kind of playing it by the numbers by the time the final piece of the puzzle was in place. For some reason, Bryce Dallas Howard is thrown in as longtime Spider-Man girlfriend Gwen Stacy. Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace and James Franco round out the villainy, which is a rather numerous rogue gallery.

The fact that we’ve just typed three names in one sentence to describe the lineup of villains is a major problem and, quite frankly, the worst issue with the film. The story is fine and we like the origin story told here for Venom. The problem is there isn’t enough time to showcase Venom’s story properly. The reason? Too many villains. We’ve said it time and again: Too many foes for the protagonist can and will ruin a film. Spider-Man 3 is easily the worst offender of this practice.

The film feels overly long and bloated to start with, but when Sandman turns into New Goblin who turns into Venom, it’s just too much to deal with. The pacing suffers immediately after New Goblin makes his first appearance, and once Eddie Brock takes on the symbiote/“black suit,” the film swiftly devolves into unmitigated chaos.

Another problem was the terrible effect of dragging in villains for the sake of having a villain. Venom immediately suffers the brunt of the pain here and it’s appalling what’s done to the character. First of all, in the comics, a pumpkin bomb from the New Goblin does not kill Venom; cancer eventually does the job. Second of all, if you’re going to bother doing Venom at all, do him justice and get it right. Venom is arguably Spider-Man’s most lethal and engaging foe, a lot like the Joker is to Batman or Lex Luthor is to Superman. Venom deserved his own film, and pairing him up to fight the wall-crawler is an immediate injustice to the character’s history. Venom doesn’t need anyone else to carry his movie if done right. Finally, Venom looked terrible. The character CGI was awful and looked cheap. If this is the reason why it took so long to get Venom in a film against Spidey, they could have kept him and saved him for the eventual reboot we all knew was coming.

And that reboot? It was apparent with the rote aura surrounding the film long before its release. What is especially angering is the dumbed-down approach to the film itself. In the months leading up to the film, the mainstream appeal to the basic filmgoer was pandering at best, highly insulting at worst. Seriously? The advertising and trailer appeal of a “black suit” that makes Peter Parker flip out was terrible. Trust us when we say the average movie viewer had no idea what the alien symbiote was about let alone cared. So when the comic knowledgeable saw that, it caused a chuckle for what it was worth. Spider-Man had become a “movie event of the year” type of thing, and indeed, his cash sense was probably tingling. Too bad he had to sacrifice quality to do it.

Terrible pacing, too many villains, a tired subplot and an overall lackadaisical feel? Thanks but no thanks. The spider had done all that a spider can and it was well past time for him to move on.

Like the comics?: 7

Casting: 7

Plot: 5

Overall score: 19 out of 30 or 6

How we grade

We score the properties in three categories: Casting (or voice acting in the case of animated), plot and similarities to its source material. Each category receives points out of maximum of 10 per category, and 30 overall. The percentage is the final score.

Strip Talk #16: Too many villains plague some comic films

Posted on October 5, 2013October 2, 2013 by Administrator

Nearly every year that I’ve been alive and conscious enough to know what’s going on in the world, there’s been a comic book movie released. And I take great pride in having seen the majority of the offerings out there. Sure, there’s some modern stuff that I haven’t watched, but that’s mostly because I’m on a journalist’s salary and one can’t just blow into a movie theater on that kind of cash. Made of money, I ain’t. But when I do manage to watch a comic book-based property, I look for a few things. The first and foremost is the ratio of villains to heroes. Some of my least favorite films have fallen prey to the darker and over-numerical side of things.

The first film that I can recall where I fell in love with the concept of hero/villain balance is Batman Returns. I was a lad, no more than 11, dying to go with the grown folks (read: an older cousin and my older brother) to see the sequel to Batman’s big screen outing. I was a child in love with Michael Keaton, and I was especially excited because 1. Tim Burton was at the helm of everything; and 2. I was allowed to stay out extra late with older folks related to me who understood my love of movies.

Mr. Burton, whose style I still love to this day, didn’t disappoint in the aesthetics department. But where I found fault a little later after some discussion with my fellow movie-goers and genius parent was the fact that Batman played second fiddle to just about everyone and everything. Make no mistake, I loved the Penguin and Catwoman. Michelle Pfeiffer was and still is iconic in the role of one Ms. Selina Kyle. But, seriously? Did we really need that many villains? And let me point something out here: Keaton is badass and will always be Batman for me. But the man was severely shortchanged in his screen time as the Bat. Despite the immersion in the world of Gotham, I felt the pangs of longing for every moment that Batman wasn’t on screen yet dealt with three villains. Burton could have killed off Christopher Walken’s Max Schreck and we would have all been OK.

Let’s skip a few years and come upon my time as an adult moviegoer. My dollars are more precious — now on that aforementioned journalist’s salary — and my time a little more wisely spent paying attention to story and plot connectivity to the comic book the movie’s going to be based on. Spider-Man had become a major player in the comic movie world, and Tobey MacGuire’s adorable take on the friendly neighborhood wallcrawler was particularly decent at drawing in the must-see crowd. But you see, even the most adorable Peter Parker couldn’t save the particularly mundane and not-quite-up-to-par third outing for Spider-Man. Why? Because he had too many foes just waiting to make that spider sense tingle. Spider-Man 3 suffered from the same problem that Batman Returns encountered: too many villains. There was absolutely no need to have Harry Osbourne (Hobgoblin), Sandman AND Venom. And to make matters far worse than Batman Returns, Venom was poorly done. That was a blow to my heart as a Venom fan. His origin is handled correctly, but his overall look is terrible. Also, as a matter of record, Venom deserves his own movie as a major Spider-Man foe. It was obvious that Venom’s resolution was crammed in at the last moment, and the film suffered mightily for it.

I’m a purist at heart, so when I sit through your overlong film and I walk away thinking there wasn’t enough of the hero, there’s a problem. Two villains are enough for the protagonist — and the viewing audience — to handle. Movie directors should take a cue from doctors on too many villains syndrome: Physicians heal thy self.

Lyndsey Hicks is editor-in-chief of Gaming Insurrection. She can be reached by email at editor@gaminginsurrection.com

Podcast: Download (161.3MB)

Top 5 on the Strip: Spider-Man’s weirdest foes

Posted on January 5, 2013January 2, 2013 by Administrator

J. Jonah Jameson

What’s the deal with some dude putting your paycheck in your hands and then constantly snatching it away because he wants to fire you on a whim? We couldn’t work for J.J. Simply put, there’d be a labor dispute, and he’d be sued a million times over. All because he was having a bad day.

Mysterio

Spider-Man’s foes, though grounded in reality most of the time, sometimes give us the distinct impression that there’s problems afoot in the world that we don’t know about and don’t want to know about. Case in point: Mysterio’s head is screwed up, figuratively and literally. All we know is that in one version, he’s a special effects master and in another, he’s an android, sent by the special effects master, from a different dimension. Right.

Venom

Eddie Brock’s version has made our Top 5 list before and for pretty much the same reason: He’s weird and awesome. Anytime you go around screaming “We want to eat your brains,” you make a list of weird. And also, referring to yourself in the plural third-person point of view because your body has bonded with an alien symbiote automatically means you qualify for the crazy.

Doctor Octopus

The guy has four tentacles welded to his back that he can telepathically control to kill. That’s all that needs to be said about him.

Green Goblin

Dear Norman Osborn, We at GI would like to thank you for being sufficiently crazy and paranoid because you mixed chemicals that gave you a green hue and sent you on a killing spree. We do appreciate the myriad crazy attempts you and your (equally crazed) offspring have made over the years to kill Peter Parker. But, please, do us a favor and lose the tights the next time you’re resurrected. Sincerely, Gaming Insurrection folk

Marvel character highlight #12: Spider-Man

Posted on January 5, 2013January 2, 2013 by Administrator

Name: Peter Parker

Affiliation: The Avengers, Future Foundation, Heroes For Hire, New Avengers, Secret Avengers, Superhuman Task Force (pro-registration superheroes), Outlaws, New Fantastic Four, Secret Defenders, mentor to Misfits, Frightful Four, Eddie Brock (Venom), Ben Reilly (Scarlet Spider), Horizon Labs, Daily Bugle, Daily Globe, Front Line, Tricorp Research

Special abilities: A radioactive spider bite gave Parker the abilities of a common house spider. With the arachnid abilities, Parker has superhuman strength and agility as well as secondary abilities that most common spiders have. These include:

1. Wall-crawling

2. Mark of Kaine: He can burn or tear distinctive scars in the faces of others.

3. Superhuman strength: Spider-Man can press lift approximately 10 tons. He can leap several stories in a single bound and must control his punches because a normal thrown punch could possibly kill a human.

4. Superhuman speed

5. Superhuman stamina. He can also hold his breath much longer.

6. Superhuman durability: He is more resistant to some types of injury and can heal faster than normal humans.

7. Superhuman agility, equilibrium and reflexes: He has perfect balance and his reflexes are about 40 times greater than those of a normal human.

8. Foreign chemical resistance:He has a higher tolerance for drugs and diseases than normal humans, and he can recover from the effects of larger doses rapidly.

9. Spider-Sense: Spider-Man possesses an extrasensory “danger” or “spider” sense,” which warns him of potential immediate danger, and links with his superhuman kinesthetics, enabling him to evade most injuries.

10. Radio frequency detection: The spider-sense also enables him to track certain radio frequencies.

Background: Peter Parker was an average student in Forest Hills, N.Y., an orphan living with his Aunt May and Uncle Ben Parker. Peter showed an early aptitude for science but was bullied throughout his school years. During a high school science trip to a laboratory, Peter was bitten by a radioactive spider, which transmitted its mutated venom to Peter through the bite. Peter then began developing spider-like traits and super powers. Parker, as Spider-Man, has battled numerous foes within the Marvel universe throughout his crime fighting career and nearly as many as his civilian alter ego. More recently, Peter has given up existence of his secret identity and life as he knew it through a deal with demon lord Mephisto to protect his family and spare his loved ones from further pain.

Relationships: Richard Parker (father, deceased); Mary Parker (mother, deceased); Benjamin Parker (uncle, deceased); May Parker (aunt); Will Fitzpatrick (grandfather, presumably deceased); Jay Jameson (step-uncle); John Jonah Jameson (step-cousin); Ben Reilly (clone, deceased); Kaine (clone); Spidercide (clone, allegedly deceased); Guardian (clone, deceased); Mary Jane Watson-Parker (ex-wife, ex-fiancée); May Parker (daughter, allegedly deceased); Philip Watson (former father-in-law); Madeline Watson (former mother-in-law); Gayle Watson-Byrnes (former sister-in-law); Venom Symbiote (former symbiote)

First Versus game appearance: Marvel Super Heroes, 1995

Appearances in other media: Spider-Man (2002 film), Spider-Man 2 (2004 film), Spider-Man 3 (2007 film), The Amazing Spider-Man (2012 film), Spider-Man (1967), The Amazing Spider-Man (1977), Spider-Man (1981), Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends (1981), Spider-Man (1994 animated series), Spider-Man Unlimited (1999), Spider-Man: The New Animated Series (2003), The Spectacular Spider-Man (2008), Ultimate Spider-Man (2012), Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark (2010 Broadway musical), Spider-Man: From Beyond The Grave (1972 radio show), Spider-Man (1982 video game), Questprobe: Spider-Man (1984), The Amazing Spider-Man (1990 video game), The Amazing Spider-Man vs. The Kingpin (1990 video game), Spider-Man: The Video Game (1991), The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (1992 video game), Spider-Man: Return of the Sinister Six (1992), Spider-Man/X-Men in Arcade’s Revenge (1992 video game), The Amazing Spider-Man 3: Invasion of the Spider-Slayers (1993 video game), The Amazing Spider-Man: Lethal Foes (1994 video game), Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage (1994 video game), Venom/Spider-Man: Separation Anxiety (1995 video game), Spider-Man Animated Series (1995 video game), Spider-Man: Web of Fire (1996 video game), Marvel Super Heroes (1995), Spider-Man: The Sinister Six (1996 video game), Marvel vs. Street Fighter (1997), Marvel vs. Capcom (1998), Marvel vs. Capcom 2 (2000), Spider-Man 2: The Sinister Six (2001 video game), Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro (2001 video game), Spider-Man (2002 video game), Spider-Man 2 (2004 video game), Marvel Ultimate Alliance (2006), Spider-Man: Battle for New York (2006 video game), Spider-Man 3 (2007 video game), Spider-Man: Friend or Foe (2007 video game), Spider-Man: Web of Shadows (2008 video game), Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (2009), Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (2010),Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (2011), Spider-Man (2000 video game), Ultimate Spider-Man (2005 video game), Marvel Super Hero Squad (2009) , Marvel Super Hero Squad: The Infinity Gauntlet (2010), Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions (2010 video game) and Marvel Super Hero Squad Online (2011), Spider-Man: Edge of Time (2011 video game), The Amazing Spider-Man (2012 video game)