Saturday Showcase: Kraven the Hunter

Kraven the Hunter

    Kraven the Hunter has been my favorite Spider-Man villain from the very beginning.  In fact, it was a Marvel Tales issue with Kraven and the Vulture attacking Spider-Man that got me interested in Spider-Man comics, well the Punisher had something to do with that as well.  Anyway, Kraven was always my go to villain.  If an issue had Kraven in it, I was buying it.

Marvel Tales #189 (Story taken from Amazing Spider-Man #49)

    Kraven was created in 1964 by Stan Lee and the late, great Steve Dikto.  His first appearance was in the Amazing Spider-Man #15 back in August of '64.  So you could say that in August, Kraven will be 54  years old.  Wow, just think of all that history!  

    Kraven's birth name is Sergei Nikolaevich Kravinoff.  He is a member of the Sinister Six, Kravinoff Family, the Army of Evil,  as well as a Black Ops team that worked with Nick Fury in the '50's.  He has fought Avengers, fellow villains, Daredevil, Kazar, besides his nemesis Spider-Man.  Spider-Man is his main target, because Kraven loves the Hunt so why not try to kill a Spider-Man?  

the Hunter becomes the Hunted

    Kraven's obsession with Spidey led to a moment in history that many will never forget.  Why you ask?  Kraven committed suicide we he failed to capture the spider that haunted his dreams.  Of course, this is the world of comics and he would later be brought back to life to fight another day.  After his resurrection, he was brought to the Savage Land.  There he had some classic battles with Kazar.  Kraven went on to fight the Scarlet Spider and Venom thinking they were Spider-Man.  Even after death he was on a quest to kill a spider.

Kraven attacks Venom while at the Savage Land

    I know Kraven is a well known character and may not need me to do a Spotlight Post on him, but he is one of my faves and has not made it to film yet.  Sure he is a popular character in games and cartoons as well as toys, but he has not been on the big screen yet.  Since he has fought Avengers, Daredevil, and Spider-Man, there is no excuse for him not to be in the movies. 

Kraven as seen in the Marvel Universe cartoons on Disney XD.

    That's my 2 cents on the issue.  If you would like to know more about Kraven, feel free to comment on this post and I will see what I can do.  

Until next time, get your READ on!

Kraven's First Appearance:

the Amazing Spider-Man #15

MARVEL

August 1964