Spencer Smythe
Encyclopedia
Spencer Smythe is a fictional character
, a comic book
villain
in the Marvel Comics
universe
. He first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man
#25 (June 1965). He is the father of Alistair Smythe
.
to fund his projects, having become convinced by Jameson's editorials that Spider-Man
was a menace. After watching a demonstration showing that Smythe's robot could sense and track spiders, Jameson hired Smythe to capture Spider-Man. Jameson himself controlled the robot, meaning that Spider-Man found himself chased by a machine with Jameson's face. However, Spider-Man escaped by leaving his Spider-Man suit wrapped in the robot's tentacles.
Smythe, annoyed at the inability of his robot to capture Spider-Man, began to obsess about the Web-Crawler, turning to crime to finance his research and constantly improving his robots, which he dubbed Spider-Slayer
s. However, no matter how deadly or powerful he made them they were always defeated by Spider-Man utilizing a key flaw in their designs; the second one, for example, was capable of tracking a unique energy signature generated by spiders, but was defeated when Spider-Man lured it back to Smythe's laboratory, causing it to overload from the multitude of spiders Smythe kept there for his research.
Eventually, Smythe's criminal career came to an end when the radioactive materials used in the manufacture of the robots poisoned him, dooming him to a slow and agonizing death. Blaming Jameson and Spider-Man equally for his impending demise, Smythe handcuffed the two of them together with a bomb scheduled to detonate in 24 hours, determined to make the two of them suffer the agony of inescapable death that he saw them as having condemned him to. Unfortunately for Smythe, his disease was too advanced for him to survive the 24 hours himself, and he expired convinced that he had killed off the two men responsible. Peter Parker, however, had a pretty good grasp of what made mechanical devices tick, and was able to abort the bomb by freezing its controls mere moments before it would have detonated.
Character (arts)
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
, a comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
villain
Villain
A villain is an "evil" character in a story, whether a historical narrative or, especially, a work of fiction. The villain usually is the antagonist, the character who tends to have a negative effect on other characters...
in the Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
. He first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man
The Amazing Spider-Man
The Amazing Spider-Man is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics, featuring the adventures of the fictional superhero Spider-Man. Being the mainstream continuity of the franchise, it began publication in 1963 as a monthly periodical and was published continuously until it was...
#25 (June 1965). He is the father of Alistair Smythe
Alistair Smythe
Alistair Smythe is a comic book supervillain, owned by Marvel Comics and existing in that company's Marvel Universe. He was one of the main foes of Spider-Man...
.
Fictional character biography
Professor Spencer Smythe was a robotic and arachnid expert who asked J. Jonah JamesonJ. Jonah Jameson
John Jonah Jameson Junior is a supporting character of Spider-Man in the .Jameson is usually the publisher or editor-in-chief of the Daily Bugle, a fictional New York newspaper and now serves as the mayor of New York City...
to fund his projects, having become convinced by Jameson's editorials that Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
was a menace. After watching a demonstration showing that Smythe's robot could sense and track spiders, Jameson hired Smythe to capture Spider-Man. Jameson himself controlled the robot, meaning that Spider-Man found himself chased by a machine with Jameson's face. However, Spider-Man escaped by leaving his Spider-Man suit wrapped in the robot's tentacles.
Smythe, annoyed at the inability of his robot to capture Spider-Man, began to obsess about the Web-Crawler, turning to crime to finance his research and constantly improving his robots, which he dubbed Spider-Slayer
Spider-Slayer
The Spider-Slayers are a series of fictional robots in the Marvel Comics universe that were specifically designed to hunt down, capture, and/or kill Spider-Man.-Fictional character biography:...
s. However, no matter how deadly or powerful he made them they were always defeated by Spider-Man utilizing a key flaw in their designs; the second one, for example, was capable of tracking a unique energy signature generated by spiders, but was defeated when Spider-Man lured it back to Smythe's laboratory, causing it to overload from the multitude of spiders Smythe kept there for his research.
Eventually, Smythe's criminal career came to an end when the radioactive materials used in the manufacture of the robots poisoned him, dooming him to a slow and agonizing death. Blaming Jameson and Spider-Man equally for his impending demise, Smythe handcuffed the two of them together with a bomb scheduled to detonate in 24 hours, determined to make the two of them suffer the agony of inescapable death that he saw them as having condemned him to. Unfortunately for Smythe, his disease was too advanced for him to survive the 24 hours himself, and he expired convinced that he had killed off the two men responsible. Peter Parker, however, had a pretty good grasp of what made mechanical devices tick, and was able to abort the bomb by freezing its controls mere moments before it would have detonated.
Television
- In the 1967 Spider-ManSpider-Man (1967 TV series)Spider-Man is an animated television series that ran from September 9, 1967 to June 14, 1970. It was jointly produced in Canada and the United States and was the first animated adaptation of the Spider-Man comic book series, created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko...
animated series, Henry Smythe from the cartoon is based on Spencer Smythe. Just like Spencer in the comics he creates the Spider-SlayerSpider-SlayerThe Spider-Slayers are a series of fictional robots in the Marvel Comics universe that were specifically designed to hunt down, capture, and/or kill Spider-Man.-Fictional character biography:...
s.
- Spencer Smythe appeared in Spider-Man: The Animated SeriesSpider-Man (1994 TV series)Spider-Man, also known as Spider-Man: The Animated Series, is an American animated series starring the Marvel Comics superhero, Spider-Man. The show ran on Fox Kids from November 19, 1994, to January 31, 1998. The producer/story editor was John Semper, Jr. and production company was Marvel Films...
voiced by the late Edward MulhareEdward MulhareEdward Mulhare was a popular television actor whose career spanned four decades.Born at 22 Quaker Road, Cork City, County Cork, Ireland, and educated by the Irish Christian Brothers, Mulhare intended to study medicine, but was sidetracked by a growing interest in acting...
. In the series, he is hired by Norman OsbornGreen GoblinThe Green Goblin is a fictional character, a supervillain who appears in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, and first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #14 ....
to create the original Spider-Slayer, called the Black Widow, in an effort to capture Spider-Man. As part of the bargain, Osborn would build a hoverchair for his paralyzed son, Alistair. At OsCorp, the robot captures the wrong person, and Spider-Man attempts a rescue which leads to a massive fire in the plant. When Osborn refuses to build the promised hoverchair for Alistair, Spencer chooses to stay behind and finish Spider-Man off while Osborn gets Alistair to safety. After the Black Widow is destroyed by Spider-Man, OsCorp explodes and Spencer is believed dead. Later, it is revealed that Spencer had survived, having been found by the KingpinKingpin (comics)The Kingpin is a fictional character, a supervillain in the . Kingpin is one of the most feared and powerful crime lords in the Marvel Universe. The character is a major adversary of Daredevil, the Punisher, and Spider-Man...
. Smythe was put in cryogenic suspension in order to maintain the loyalty of Alistair. Eventually however, Alistair outlives his usefulness and is changed into a biomechanical Spider Slayer by his replacement, Dr. Herbert Landon. Smythe eventually discovers that his father is alive with Spider-Man's help and escapes with his cryonically preservedCryonicsCryonics is the low-temperature preservation of humans and animals who can no longer be sustained by contemporary medicine, with the hope that healing and resuscitation may be possible in the future. Cryopreservation of people or large animals is not reversible with current technology...
body. Afterwards he continues working for various individuals, most predominantly the Kingpin's rival Silvermane, in order to revive his father. Spencer would remain in stasis at the conclusion of the series, due to Mulhare's death.
Video games
- Spencer Smythe is featured in the PlayStation 2PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
and PSPPlayStation PortableThe is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
version of Spider-Man: Web of ShadowsSpider-Man: Web of ShadowsSpider-Man: Web of Shadows is a video game title encompassing three versions: a full-3D action game for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Wii, and Xbox 360; a 2.5D sidescrolling beat em up action game for the PlayStation Portable and PlayStation 2 , and a 2.5D side-scrolling brawler/platformer for...
. Like Nick Fury and Kingpin, he also calls up Spider-Man at specific points of the game. He is shown in alliance with A.I.M.Advanced Idea MechanicsA.I.M. is a fictional terrorist organization in the . The organization first appeared in Strange Tales #146 and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.-Publication history:...
whom he hires to capture J. Jonah Jameson in his plot to clone him and gain control of the publishing business and discredit J. Jonah Jameson and Spider-Man. Spencer Smythe had JackalJackal (Marvel Comics)The Jackal is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appears in The Amazing Spider-Man #129 , and was created by writer Gerry Conway and artist Ross Andru. In The Amazing Spider-Man #148 The Jackal is a fictional character that appears in...
as his double agent on board the S.H.I.E.L.D.S.H.I.E.L.D.S.H.I.E.L.D. is a fictional espionage and a secret military law-enforcement agency in the Marvel Comics Universe. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in Strange Tales #135 , it often deals with superhuman threats....
Helicarrier to obtain Spider-Man's symbiotic suit. Spencer Smythe later sends Jackal to steal the Sonic Emitter from the top of Fisk Tower and unleashes a mind-controlled Black CatBlack Cat (comics)The Black Cat is a fictional character, a superheroine in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Marv Wolfman and artist Keith Pollard, she first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #194 ....
on Spider-Man.
External links
- http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix4/smythespencer.htm