Spider-Man has one of the best, most extensive rogues galleries in comic book history. But along with the greats, came some of the worst. People mock characters like The Grizzley and The Enforcers, but believe me when I tell you there are far worse abominations within the Spidey universe.
For Every Vulture, Doc Ock, Sandman, and Lizard we have a Living Brain, Rocket Racer, and Big Wheel.
The Wall first appeared in issue 8 of Spidey Super Stories, a run of Spider-Man comic books put out by The Electric Company.The Wall was/is a young man by the name of Joshua Waldemeyer, a former student and part-time brick/cement mason who became a living wall after a tragic construction accident.That’s right! You read that correctly. While happily working at his part-time job laying bricks and pouring cement, Joshua was caught in a sudden explosion. The blast sent one of the walls Joshua had been working on tumbling down on top of him! However, instead of crushing the poor boy to death, this accident bound him with the bricks, turning him into a living wall.
Honestly guys, yes Spidey does indeed have some fantastic foes but he also has some stinkers!Turning things around: There are no bad ideas, just bad writing…
Speedball – aka Penance
Robert “Robbie” Baldwin is a superhero originally known as Speedball, (later renamed Penance). As Speedball, Robbie has the ability to create a kinetic force field of unknown energy, manifested as iridescent bubbles, around himself. These bubbles absorb all kinetic energy directed against him and reflect it with even greater force against whatever object with which he is in contact.(If he struck a wall, he would travel at a greater velocity in the opposite direction.)After the events of Stamford, Baldwin believed his powers to be gone. However, they were not. Instead, they would only ever manifest when he experiences extreme stimulation, such as intense pain. While his powers are still kinetically based, they no longer appear to manifest as a “bubble field”; rather, his powers seem far more explosive in nature.In order to stimulate his powers, his Penance suit constantly rakes his flesh. By wearing the suit he has developed a natural tolerance to pain. His suit consists of 612 spikes facing inward, each to represent a person who lost their life in Stamford. 60 of the spikes are longer than the rest, one for each of the children accidentally killed.
The Gibbon
Martin Blank is a man who was seemingly born a mutant with an ape-like build and agility. Gibbon later joins a circus where he does well as an acrobat. Martin Blank begins his career as a friend of Spider-Man while wearing a gibbon suit. He even wants to be his partner, but Spider-Man laughs at him.It is then that Spider-Man’s enemy, Kraven the Hunter, approaches The Gibbon and convinces him to join him in his quest against Spider-Man.Kraven trained The Gibbon and provided him with a herb broth that enhanced his powers, giving him the appearance that his costume mimicked. This broth also gave Martin an animal rage! Kraven then proceeded to hypnotize the creature in order to make him subservient to his bidding. Fortunately, The Gibbon was able to break free from this control and help aid Spider-Man in stopping Kraven.Years later, the Gibbon was one of the many animal-themed criminals captured by Taskmaster and Black Ant for Kraven the Hunter’s Great Hunt in Central Park. Hordes of “Hunterbots” were set loose to hunt down the event’s unwilling participants. Spider-Man found Gibbon early in the event and tried to convince him to stay by his side. However, when the Vulture approached him, Martin (The Gibbon) accepted to go with him, hoping he would then cross paths with either Princess Python or Grizzly, both of whom were also trapped in the Great Hunt.However, the Vulture quickly injured Gibbon and left him behind in order to shake off a group of Hunterbots that were chasing them both. Martin attempted to hide but was repeatedly hurt by more and more Hunterbots. Eventually, a pair of hunters stumbled upon The Gibbon and shot him to put him out of his misery. Spider-Man found Gibbon dying and cradled him. While he couldn’t find the strength to say his final words, Martin found comfort in the silence of the moment, since it meant nobody was laughing at him.
Mindworm, aka William Turner.
