Kraven the Hunter

Kraven the Hunter
Kraven the Hunter, as depicted by John Romita, Sr.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	The Amazing Spider-Man #15 (Aug. 1964)
Created by	Stan Lee (Writer) Steve Ditko (Artist)
In-story information
Alter ego	Sergei Nikolaevich Kravinoff
Team affiliations	Sinister Six Kravinoff Family "Avengers" (1959)
Notable aliases	Spider-Man
Abilities	Olympic-level athlete Gifted tactician, hunter and hand-to-hand combatant Superhuman strength, speed, agility, stamina, durability, senses and reflexes Longevity

Kraven the Hunter (Sergei Kravinoff) is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is one of Spider-Man's frequent enemies. He is the half-brother of Dmitri Smerdyakov, better known as the Chameleon. In 2009, Kraven was ranked as IGN's 53rd Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.^[1]

Publication history

The character first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #15 (August 1964), and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko.^[2] Though he would occasionally appear in other characters' titles, he was most frequently used as a Spider-Man foe. He is killed off in the acclaimed 1987 storyline by J. M. DeMatteis, Mike Zeck, and Bob McLeod, "Kraven's Last Hunt". Although generally considered to be the definitive Kraven the Hunter story, the story originally had a completely different character in Kraven's role. Writer DeMatteis recounted:

As I was getting ready to work on the story, I was sitting in my office and looking through a Marvel Universe Handbook and came across the entry for Kraven the Hunter. To this day, I don’t know if this was something that was established in continuity, or if whoever was writing the Handbook entry made it up, but they mentioned that Kraven was Russian. For me, a total Dostoyevsky fanatic, the idea that Kraven was Russian and had the same tortured, Russian soul that the great Dostoyevsky characters had, unlocked this door in my head and suddenly I had a new understanding of this character. I thought about Kraven and the forces that had driven him to be who and what he was. This was a character I had never had any interest in whatsoever. I always thought he was one of the stupidest Spider-Man villains ever, but suddenly I had this whole new take on the character.^[3]

Despite Kraven the Hunter being one of Spider-Man's most long-standing archenemies, DeMatteis claims that none of Marvel's editorial staff objected to the proposal to have him killed in the story.^[3] Kraven later returns as a ghost in the graphic novel Amazing Spider-Man: Soul of the Hunter, also by DeMatteis, Zeck, and McLeod. DeMatteis also wrote "Kraven's First Hunt" for The Sensational Spider-Man Annual '96, a retelling of The Amazing Spider-Man #15 which incorporated several DeMatteis retcons, such as that Kraven was abusive towards the Chameleon.

Fictional character biography

Kraven's real name is Sergei Kravinoff. He is a Russian immigrant, the son of an aristocrat who fled to the United States with his family in 1917 after the Russian nobility was decimated by the February Revolution and subsequent collapse of the reign of Tsar Nicholas II.

Kraven is a maniacal big game hunter who seeks to defeat Spider-Man to prove that he is the greatest hunter in the world. Unlike other hunters, he typically disdains the use of guns or bow and arrows, preferring to take down large dangerous animals with his bare hands. He also lives by a code of honor of sorts, choosing to hunt his game fairly. He consumes a mystical serum to give himself enhanced strength and dramatically slow the aging process. Kraven was trained as a hunter largely by a mysterious man named Gregor, a mercenary who battled Ka-Zar. Kraven was at one point lover of the voodoo priestess Calypso.^[4]

He is contacted by his half-brother, the Chameleon, to defeat Spider-Man. He leads Spider-Man to Central Park with the help of Chameleon, who disguises himself as Kraven to use himself as a decoy while the real Kraven ambushes the hero. However, despite Kraven having weakened Spider-Man with a poisonous dart, Spider-Man prevails in the end. Spider-Man proves a frustrating quarry because Kraven continually underestimates the superhero's resourcefulness.^[5]

Kraven becomes a founding member of the Sinister Six when he accepts Doctor Octopus' offer to form a team to fight Spider-Man where they capture Aunt May and Betty Brant. He attacks Spider-Man in Central Park with three tigers. Spider-Man easily fights off the attackers and secures the next clue to where Aunt May and Betty Brant are being held. After Aunt May and Betty Brant are rescued, Kraven the Hunter and the rest of the Sinister Six are arrested by the police.^[6]

Determined to end his life as he becomes older, frustrated with his failing health and continuing failure to defeat Spider-Man, Kraven sets out a final hunt for Spider-Man. After capturing Spider-Man, he shoots him with a coma-inducing drug and buries him alive on his estate.^[7] To complete his victory, he attempts to become Spider-Man's clear superior by impersonating him in a brutal vigilante campaign and capturing Vermin, the one foe Spider-Man had never been able to defeat on his own (Their last battle requiring Captain America's assistance).^[8]

After Spider-Man emerges from his grave two weeks later, Kraven explains his actions to him and sets Vermin free, reaffirming to Kraven that his foe is an honorable man. Spider-Man goes after Vermin to prevent his killing again, giving Kraven the opportunity to leave a final confession of his crimes against Spider-Man and then commit suicide.^[9] Because of his suicide, his soul is unable to find rest until Spider-Man confronts his risen corpse on Kraven's behalf.^[10]

Kraven is resurrected from the dead by Sasha Kravinoff and the Kraven family with a ritual using the blood of Spider-Man.^[11] He is shown to now be explosively psychopathic and cold towards his family, beating his son and daughter and expressing little attention towards his wife. After being stabbed by his daughter Ana, Sergei recovers stating that Sasha restored him with corrupted blood which he calls "unlife". They pull off the mask of the corpse of Spider-Man hung in their mantel and discover that Kaine is in Spider-Man's costume.^[12] Spider-Man, in his black suit, confronts Kraven and the rest of the Kravinoff Family. Spider-Man is tempted to kill Kraven, but he refuses to do so when he is reminded by Julia Carpenter (who has inherited the powers of Madame Web after her death) that committing murder in not in his moral code.

Following their defeat by Spider-Man, Kraven and his family escape to the Savage Land. While there, Kraven brutally kills Sasha (who complained that Kraven would have to hunt them to prove their place in the Kravinoff family) and euthanizes Vladimir. Alyosha flees in disgust afterwards. Kraven and Ana discuss rebuilding the Kravinoff family, which leads to Ana running off to hunt Alyosha to prove herself worthy to Kraven and rebuild the Kravinoff family.^[13]

It was later revealed that back in the 1950s, Kraven the Hunter was a member of Nick Fury's Avengers alongside Dominic Fortune I, Dum Dum Dugan, Namora, Silver Sable, Sabretooth, and Ulysses Bloodstone, tracking a stolen version of the Super-Soldier Serum combined with the Infinity Formula that had been stolen by a group of Nazis attempting to create their own Captain America.^[14]

While he is in the Savage Land, Venom lands in the area on an unrelated mission from the federal government. Mistaking him to be Spider-Man, Kraven attacks him and gains the upper hand before Venom escapes.^[15]

When their identities became fractured after a temporary separation, the Hulk discovers that Bruce Banner had hired Kraven to find the lost city of Sasquatches. Although Hulk was uninterested with helping the Sasquatches deal with Kraven, he changes his mind and beats up Kraven the Hunter.^[16]

Kaine in the alias of Scarlet Spider later encountered Kraven the Hunter who was dressed as Scarlet Spider in order to torment him.^[17] With the help of Ana, Kraven kidnapped Kaine's friends in order to motivate the Scarlet Spider to fight him. In the end, Kaine delivered Kraven a fatal blow in the chest, which paralyzed his heart. But using the same attack, Kaine brought him back to life supposedly still breaking the curse. Following the fight, both Kravens disappeared.^[18]

Kraven, still claiming to be cursed, next battles Squirrel Girl at Empire State University, having earned her ire by lashing out at the local squirrels, including Tippy-Toe. Kraven departs when Squirrel Girl informs him of the existence of sea monsters like Giganto and challenges him to hunt them, instead of limiting himself to going after the same prey he did prior to his resurrection.^[19]

During the Avengers: Standoff! storyline, Kraven the Hunter was an inmate of Pleasant Hill, a gated community established by S.H.I.E.L.D. who used Kobik's abilities to turn Kraven the Hunter into a zookeeper. He rallied some of his fellow inmates to help him find Kobik and bring her to Baron Helmut Zemo.^[20]

Kraven's legacy

Kraven has also had two sons take up his role:

• Vladimir Kravinoff took up the name "Grim Hunter" and decided to hunt down Spider-Man and several of his foes. During the fight with Spider-Man, he is murdered by an insane clone of Spider-Man named Kaine. Sasha Kravinoff later sacrifices Mattie Franklin as part of a ritual that revives Vladimir in a humanoid lion form during the Grim Hunt storyline. Sasha later stated to Kraven that Vladimir's appearance was the result of a test revival ritual to see if she can bring him back to life. Vladimir was euthanized by Kraven (which he does due to "respect for the dead") in the Savage Land at the conclusion of The Grim Hunt arc.
• Some time after the death of Vladimir, his half brother and mutant, Alyosha Kravinoff, becomes the second Kraven. Ana Kravinoff later killed him to prove herself to her father after Kraven euthanized Vladimir.
• There was a third son named Nedrocci "Ned" Tannengarden who tries to kill Alyosha, but he was murdered by the Chameleon (who during that time believed himself to be the original Kraven the Hunter).^[21]
• Also, Kraven once raised an alien creature called Gog who he found in a spaceship that had crashed in the Savage Land.
• Kraven's wife Sasha Kravinoff and his daughter Ana, were part of a Gauntlet on Spider-Man's life causing chaos and weakening the web crusader prior to the events that lead to resurrecting Kraven from the grave.

Xraven

It was revealed during 2009's X-Men/Spider-Man crossover that years earlier, Kraven made a deal with Mister Sinister. He and the Blob tracked down the X-Men, and they fought the united forces of Spider-Man and the original X-Men. Kraven fled after a short battle, but not before wounding each member of the X-Men. Kraven returned to Sinister, with genetic samples from Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Iceman, Angel, and Beast. Furthermore, Sinister requested a sample of his DNA.^[22]

Years later, after the death of Kraven, an ex-Morlock who had kept his powers post M-Day named Joe Buggs was murdered by a mysterious mutant hunter. His friend Ed (who had lost his powers) went to the X-Men for help. He claimed that the man who killed Buggs was Kraven the Hunter. Although they were skeptical about Kraven's apparent resurrection, the X-Men called on the help of Spider-Man, who had battled Kraven many times over the years. After discussing the battle that they had with Kraven years ago, and the fact that he had given samples of the X-Men's DNA to Sinister for cloning, the lights went out on the wing where they were located. The hunter attacked, and quickly dispatched Colossus but was held at bay by Spider-Man's webbing. He broke free, claiming his name is Xraven.

The X-Men quickly realize that Xraven has all of the powers of the original X-Men, and he was able to defeat Cyclops and Shadowcat, holding her hostage, giving the ultimatum that he would kill her if they did not surrender. Spider-Man insulted Xraven, claiming that Kraven would never threaten a helpless girl. Xraven was momentarily fazed by his comment, but attacked again, claiming that he is the "favored one". Cyclops realizes Xraven's weakness and tells him that Mister Sinister sees him as nothing but a pawn. He tells Xraven to read his mind, in order for him to see the kind of a man Sinister really is. After Xraven sees Cyclops' memories, he flees but the X-Men become aware of the fact that he was able to get DNA samples from Shadowcat, Colossus, Nightcrawler, and Wolverine.

Returning to Mister Sinister with the samples, Mister Sinister tells him that he planned to clone a new generation of mutants, and that he would unite all mutantkind. After seeing what Sinister's real intentions were in Cyclops' memories, Xraven destroys the samples, claiming that Mister Sinister would breed slaves as opposed to warriors, and Xraven attacks him. Although it is clear that Mister Sinister survived his confrontation with Xraven, it is currently unknown whether Xraven survived.^[23]

The Xraven clone possesses the combined powers of the original X-Men, as well as Kraven the Hunter's fighting techniques, strength, and agility. His telepathic powers are able to block Spider-Man's spider sense, as well as Wolverine's heightened senses. His increased stamina makes it possible for him to be teleported by Nightcrawler repeatedly without suffering from fatigue. He has pale, white-grey skin, red eyes and no hair. Xraven also had a black diamond-shaped mark on his forehead, similar to the one on Mister Sinister.

Powers and abilities

By regularly ingesting the potion made from the various unnamed jungle herbs, Kraven grants himself a number of abilities including sufficient superhuman strength, speed, stamina, agility, and reflexes to make him a physical threat to Spider-Man, though these powers are not as developed as those possessed by Spider-Man. Kraven's body is also more durable and more resistant to certain forms of injury than the body of a normal human. He can withstand great impact forces, such as falling from several stories or being repeatedly struck by a superhumanly strong opponent, that would severely injure or kill a normal human, with little to no injury to himself. The effects of the potion have dramatically altered Kraven's aging process to the point that he has aged little, if at all, over several decades. Despite being over 70 years of age, he has the physical appearance of a 30-year-old man.

The potion enhances Kraven's sight, hearing, and smell to superhuman levels, adding to his already impressive tracking skills. He can see farther, and with much greater clarity, than a normal human. His hearing is similarly enhanced, enabling him to detect sounds which an ordinary human cannot, or sounds that a normal human could detect, but at much greater distances. Kraven can use his sense of smell to track a target by scent, much as some animals do, even if the scent has been somewhat eroded by natural factors.

Even without his superhuman powers, Kraven is an Olympic-level athlete, and a gifted tactician, hunter and hand-to-hand combatant. He also has great knowledge of pressure points, both in the anatomy of humans and in many animals. He can strike at these nerve clusters with pinpoint accuracy, allowing him to incapacitate more-powerful opponents or animals. He is familiar with many exotic poisons and tranquilizers, which he often uses during his hunts.

Due to a flaw in the ceremony that resurrected him, Kraven was given "the unlife... the eternal curse", as he discovered when his daughter stabbed him through the heart. According to Kraven, he can now only die by Spider-Man's hand. However, this curse was apparently broken when Kaine temporarily killed Kraven by stopping his heart and then restarting it with the same move.

Other versions

Marvel 1602

The dimension's Kraven, known as Karnov is a member of the Sinister Sextet, the dimension's Sinister Six. The Web Warriors (Alternate versions of Spider-Man) visited the 1602 Universe to deal with the Sinister Sextet and apprehended the villains.

Marvel Noir

In Spider-Man Noir, Kraven is depicted as a former animal trainer in a circus that was taken by Norman Osborn, a mob boss known as "The Goblin", as one of his hitmen and collectors. He was killed when a mass of man-eating spiders covered his body and started eating him. His final act was to kill Osborn when his mangled spider-ridden corpse lands on him thus spreading the mini man-eaters.^[24]

Marvel Zombies

Kraven is seen on Marvel Zombies: Evil Evolution attacking the Marvel Apes along with other zombies, often hungry for human (or in this case, ape) flesh. He also makes a brief cameo appearance on Marvel Zombies: Dead Days when the zombie Sinister Six attack Wolverine and Magneto. It is later revealed that he was actually infected by the Earth-Z zombie Sentry, thereby spreading the infection all over the dimension.

Marvel Zombies Return

In the first issue, he is seen with his Sinister Six teammates terrorizing Empire State University after the Kingpin hires them to distract a heist. When a zombified Spider-Man next comes to the dimension, he was zombified by the Zombie Spider-Man after he violently rips out his throat, as Spider-Man's efforts to resist his hunger were overwhelmed by the unique scent of Kraven's various jungle potions. As he next devours Peter's friends alongside the undead Sinister Six, the very-angry Zombie Spider Man next kills him for that overwhelming thing they started to do.

Old Man Logan

In the pages of Old Man Logan, Kraven the Hunter was among the villains that took part in the elimination of the superheroes. During the fight in Manhattan, Kraven the Hunter emerged from the alley after Punisher killed Electro. He snuck up on Punisher and stabbed him in the chest where he managed to avenge Electro.^[25]

Spider-Gwen

In the Spider-Gwen universe, Kraven the Hunter is a known hunter. In order to catch Spider-Woman, police captain Frank Castle hired him.^[26]

Ultimate Marvel

In the Ultimate Marvel series, Sergei Kravinoff is an Australian and the host of his own TV reality show. In the TV show, he hunts down dangerous animals and intends to hunt and kill Spider-Man on live television in order to boost his ratings (after his first fight with Doctor Octopus attacking Justin Hammer's NY facility). He is arrested after being knocked out with a single punch by the superhero (who was trying to help two people out of an overturned car)^[27] and his show is canceled.^[28]

In the Ultimate Six story arc, Kraven genetically tampers with his DNA, allowing him to become a gruesome werewolf-like monster with large hands and feet, claw-like fingers, enlarged red veins, darker skin, fang-like teeth and berserk-like feral behavior. Kraven is taken in S.H.I.E.L.D. confinement after being taken down by the Ultimates for tampering with his DNA. Kraven eventually escapes with other Spider-Man villains. They capture Spider-Man, tie him up, unmask him, humiliate him, and blackmail him into joining them. Kraven helps with the attack on the White House through he is electrocuted by a lightning bolt from Thor when he tries to attack Peter.^[29]

He is last seen in another S.H.I.E.L.D. containment facility surrounded by soldiers, while claiming that he was under mind control.

Alongside the rest of the Ultimate Six, Kraven (who is back to his human state) plays a role in "The Death of Spider-Man" storyline. Norman Osborn breaks him and the rest out of the Triskelion and after their escape, Osborn informs them that God wishes for them to kill Peter Parker.^[30] Elijah Stern gives Kraven a set of blasters and knives.^[31] When Electro is shot by Aunt May, an electric surge knocks out Kraven, Sandman, and Vulture.^[32]

What The--?!

In What The--?! #3 Kraven appears as a raven called Raven the Hunter.^[33]

2004-05 Marvel Age Spider-Man

In this rendition, Kraven is a hunter from a TV show and claims he will kill Spider-Man when paid by the Chameleon. He defeated Spider-Man once and injured his arm, but Spider-Man barely escapes. When he and the Chameleon fight Spider-Man, he defeats both of them and calls the police.

Earth-001

On Earth-001 during the Spider-Verse storyline, Kravinoff (a man that resembles Kraven the Hunter) is a member of the Hounds who are servants of Verna of the Inheritors. He accompanies Verna and the other Hounds when they head to Earth-1610 to hunt Miles Morales.^[34] He is killed by the Superior Spider-Man, and his allies Spider-Punk and Assassin Spider-Man.^[35]

Earth-803

On Earth-803 set as well during the Spider-Verse storyline, he appears as member of the "Six Men of Sinestry" battling Lady Spider.

Earth-312500

In this alternate reality, Spider-Man kills Kraven and is a fugitive of the law. ^[36]

In other media

Television

• Kraven the Hunter appears in the Iron Man portion of The Marvel Super Heroes entitled "Cliffs of Doom" voiced by Chris Wiggins. He and Chameleon collaborate to steal Tony Stark's magneton laser.
• Kraven the Hunter appears in the 1981 TV Spider-Man episode "The Hunter and the Hunted," voiced by Jack DeLeon. J. Jonah Jameson hires him to capture Zabu so that he can be the mascot of the Daily Bugle. He uses his special formula, tranquilizer gas, and an electric cage to trap Zabu. When Ka-Zar makes it to Manhattan, Kraven calls up Jameson to lure Kraven to his hideout in a plot to hunt Ka-Zar for publicity. Kraven manages to trap Mortimer (Jameson's nephew) and gets Ka-Zar tangled up in his vines. Spider-Man arrives and fights with Kraven's pet snake while Kraven cuts off Jameson and Mortimer's escape. Upon evading Kraven's other traps, Spider-Man manages to destroy the controls enabling Ka-Zar and Zabu to subdue Kraven and trick him into one of his cages. With Kraven handed over to the authorities, Ka-Zar and Zabu returned to the Savage Land.
• Kraven the Hunter appears in the Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends episode "The Crime Of All Centuries", voiced by Robert Ridgely. He manages to bring the dinosaurs he caught from the Savage Land to Manhattan to prove the existence of the Savage Land. Kraven later captures Firestar so that he can use her powers to power up a machine that will hatch his dinosaur army.

• Kraven the Hunter appears in the 1994 Spider-Man animated series, voiced by Gregg Berger. When big-game hunter Sergei Kravinoff is attacked and nearly killed by hyenas while saving Dr. Mariah Crawford from them, he is saved by the administration of a miracle drug by Dr. Crawford which, in addition to curing his wounds, grants him heightened senses and physical abilities. Unfortunately, the serum also causes him to become increasingly bestial to the point that he eventually begins 'hunting like a jungle animal' and calling himself 'Kraven the Hunter'. By the end of the episode "Kraven the Hunter", Kravinoff is cured of his insanity. During the second season, Kraven makes a cameo appearance in the episode "Morbius" when he is informed of the mutative disease that is afflicting Spider Man. He returns in the episode "Duel of the Hunters" during which he is called in to hunt Spider Man who has, by this point, mutated into the monstrous Man-Spider. His hunt is initially interrupted by the Punisher intending to kill Spider-Man, but the two eventually work together to track down Spider-Man and restore him to his human form with Dr. Crawford's help. In the fourth season episode "The Return of Kraven", Kraven returns to New York and takes the same serum that caused his initial transformation in an effort to track down a mysterious creature that has been attacking people in Central Park. He encounters Spider-Man several times before being subdued. Kraven then explains that when Dr. Crawford contracted an African plague, he makes the decision to save her life by giving her a dose of the same miracle-drug that had caused his transformation. It worked to cure her, but later caused her to turn into the feline-like monster he currently hunts. By combining their efforts, Spider-Man and Kraven manage to restore Dr. Crawford's sanity, though she retains the mutated body and enhanced abilities gained from the serum. Kraven and Crawford depart together to an unknown location.
• In the Spider-Man Unlimited episode "Enter the Hunter!", the Hunter (voiced by Paul Dobson) is the Counter-Earth version of Kraven the Hunter. He is one of a few humans that the High Evolutionary allows to live in the upper parts of the city. He works as a mercenary for both the rebels and the High Evolutionary and is hired by the latter to hunt and kill, and/or capture Spider-Man. Upon breaking into his lair, Spider-Man discovered that the Hunter was using a toxic formula that when mixed with certain animal pheromones gives traits of that animal to the drinker, but also poisons bone marrow, screws up the liver, and cuts your lifespan in half to which the Hunter stated it's a necessary sacrifice for the power it brings. Spider-Man defeats him by trouncing him and turning his security system against him stating that he now knows the Hunter's secret and if he comes after the Rebels or him again, he will use this knowledge to beat him into the ground.
• Kraven the Hunter appears in the two-part Spider-Man: The New Animated Series episode "Mind Games", voiced by Michael Dorn. The version killed the Gaines wife and husband by poisoning them with a serum but the couple spawned two fraternal children (Roxanne Gaines and Roland Gaines) who got hypnotizing powers from the serum's effects. The Gaines Twins could not use their powers on Kraven as his senses were too keen for their abilities. In the first part, the Twins hypnotized Spider-Man into thinking Kraven killed Mary Jane Watson and the Twins used this moment to have Spider-Man kill Kraven. In the second part, Spider-Man and Kraven fight inside a warehouse in which Spider-Man almost kills Kraven by hanging him. Luckily, Spider-Man snaps out of the hypnosis and spares Kraven's life in time learning Kraven did not kill Mary Jane. Kraven was handed over to Officer Barr and sent back to jail.
• Sergei Kravinoff appears in the The Spectacular Spider-Man, voiced by Eric Visbit.^[37] Garbed in a lion-themed vest similar to his comic book counterpart, he is the most skilled hunter in the known world, relying only on his natural skills and using his bare hands to subdue his prey. In the episode "Destructive Testing", Kravinoff arrived in New York with Calypso and his pet lion (that was trained to track anything) and had confronted Spider-Man where, to his credit, he provides a reasonable challenge but is still subdued before too long. However, following his first defeat at the hands of Spider-Man, he becomes convinced that the only reason he lost was due to Spider-Man's genetically altered physiology. As such, Kravinoff enlists Professor Miles Warren's aid in securing powers of his own. Using a serum concocted from Warren's own research (and based on Curt Connors's Lizard formula), Kravinoff is then mutated into a humanoid black-maned lion-like creature with elements of leopard and cheetah DNA (similar to his Ultimate Marvel version). After the mutation, he then changes his name to 'Kraven the Hunter' and goes after Spider-Man. With his new form, he easily outruns and overpowers Spider-Man several times throughout their fight (actually forcing Spider-Man to use up all his web fluid against him) and only being narrowly subdued after being tied up with most of Spider-Man's webs. After his second defeat, Kraven is rescued by Calypso on behalf of the Master Planner who asks him if he would like to hunt in a pack. This does occur in the episode "Reinforcement" when he is sent to spring Doctor Octopus and Electro from Ravencroft. He only got away with Electro as Doctor Octopus did not want to leave. Thus, Master Planner managed to form the second version of the Sinister Six with him, Mysterio, Vulture, Electro, Sandman, and Rhino. After Vulture, Electro, Sandman and Rhino were defeated, he and Mysterio attacked Spider-Man where their fight led to a mall. He was knocked out by an exploding Mysterio robot. Though Mysterio was arrested, Kraven alongside the other four villains were extracted at the last minute by Master Planner. In the episode "Gangland", Doctor Octopus tries to call Kraven for backup, but Doctor Octopus's phone becomes jammed by the Green Goblin.
• Kraven the Hunter appears in the Ultimate Spider-Man animated series, voiced by Diedrich Bader.^[38] Introduced in the second season, this version uses high-tech versions of traditional hunting weapons (such as an energy-bladed spear and a wrist-worn force shield) unlike other versions. He aspires to be the greatest hunter in the world where he has been collecting various magical animal-related artefacts from all over the world. He fought the first White Tiger (Hector Ayala) to claim the White Tiger amulet and gain its power for himself. Although he kills Hector, the amulet is passed on to the second White Tiger (Ava Ayala). Years later in his self-titled episode "Kraven the Hunter", Kraven arrives in New York to hunt White Tiger where he uses a mystical drum to drive White Tiger berserk. At Central Park, Kraven uses high-tech hunting weapons and traps to try to kill White Tiger and Spider-Man. Spider-Man works to keep White Tiger alive, using his webbing to set off Kraven's sound grenade to get away. White Tiger is then attacked by Kraven at the zoo and manages to swipe the White Tiger Amulet and dons it in order to continue attacking Spider-Man and White Tiger as all the animals in the zoo go berserk. Kraven chases Spider-Man and White Tiger out of the zoo & up into some trees. The power of the White Tiger Amulet proves too much for Kraven as it turns him into a humanoid white tiger with the ability to control the zoo's white tigers. After a tactic that enables White Tiger to reclaim the amulet, Kraven is regressed back to normal. Spider-Man then webs Kraven as he convinces White Tiger not to avenge her father. White Tiger decides not to take Kraven's life as Kraven breaks free. White Tiger and Spider-Man double-team Kraven and knock him out as White Tiger calls up S.H.I.E.L.D. to pick up Kraven. In the episode "The Sinister Six", Kraven is recruited into the super-villain team alongside Doctor Octopus, Beetle, Rhino, Electro and a mind-controlled Lizard. When Spider-Man's team fights the Sinister Six, Kraven fight White Tiger but is defeated by Nova, After Spider-Man's team defeated the Sinister Six at the Statue of Liberty, most Sinister Six members are imprisoned in the ne S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier while Lizard had evaded capture. In the episode "Return of the Sinister Six", Doctor Octopus and Lizard spring the imprisoned Sinister Six members from Ryker's Island and equip them with high-tech armor made from stolen OsCorp technology. Kraven is given a lion-themed armor with razor-sharp mechanical claws. Kraven fights Spider-Man and then White Tiger once again. He also assists in the group's gang assault on Iron Patriot. Eventually, Spider-Man was able to defeat Kraven along with the other Sinister Six members. In the episode "The Savage Spider-Man", Kraven teams up with Taskmaster in a plan to lure Ka-Zar to New York by kidnapping Zabu so that Taskmaster can recruit Ka-Zar to his side. During Taskmaster and Kraven's fight with Spider-Man, Ka-Zar and Wolverine, Kraven uses a dart with a special poison in it on Spider-Man which transforms him into the Man-Spider. Upon being pursued to Manhattan by Spider-Man, Wolverine and Ka-Zar, Kraven seeks to perform a ritual to become immortal by sacrificing Zabu at sunset (with the ritual occurring once every thousand years) while Taskmaster plans to get Ka-Zar on his side. With help from Wolverine who deals with Taskmaster, Spider-Man and Ka-Zar defeat Kraven who tries to knock Zabu off the bridge only for Spider-Man and Ka-Zar to catch Zabu before he can fall into the river. Kraven is later arrested by S.H.I.E.L.D. In "Contest of Champions" Pt. 1, Grandmaster pairs up Kraven the Hunter with Molten Man and Wendigo King in the game of "Last Man Standing" against Collector's team of Spider-Man, Iron Man, and Hulk during. Kraven the Hunter coordinated Molten Man and Wendigo in the battle while using some of his traps. When chased by Hulk, Kraven used a special pollen that knocked out Hulk removing him from the game. After Spider-Man did tricks that removed Wendigo King and Molten Man from the game, Spider-Man engaged Kraven the Hunter and eventually defeating him allowing Collector to score the first victory against the Grandmaster. In the episode "HYDRA Attacks" Pt. 2, Doctor Octopus frees Kraven the Hunter, Batroc the Leaper, and Boomerang from the brig of the S.H.I.E.L.D. Tricarrier-turned-HYDRA Island where he holds a contest where whoever can successfully capture Spider-Man will join his latest incarnation of the Sinister Six. Kraven the Hunter follows Spider-Man and Scarlet Spider into the sewers where they managed to bring some pipes down onto him. Later on, Kraven the Hunter confronts Spider-Man on HYDRA Island in an attempt to defeat him only to be knocked out of HYDRA Island by Scarlet Spider. In the episode "Double Agent Venom," Kraven the Hunter sports new HYDRA armor as he hunts Spider-Man and Scarlet Spider. After abducting Scarlet Spider, Kraven the Hunter takes Scarlet Spider into space where Spider-Man discovers that they are heading to the returned HYDRA Island. After Spider-Man and Scarlet Spider free Flash Thompson following his separation from the Venom symbiote, Doctor Octopus throws Kraven the Hunter into the Venom symbiote which gives him the appearance of a humanoid lion. Flash was able to get the Venom symbiote off Kraven the Hunter and help defeat him. In the episode "The New Sinister 6" Pt. 2, Kraven the Hunter appears as a member of Doctor Octopus' Sinister Six when they attack the Triskelion. During the battle, Kraven the Hunter uses a device that causes Cloak to lose control of his teleportation.

Film

• Marc Webb confirmed that Kraven the Hunter's spear appears in the end credits for The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Webb also confirmed that Kraven would have appeared as a member in The Sinister Six film and in The Amazing Spider-Man 3.^[39][40]

Video games

• In the 2000 video game Spider-Man, there is a secret lair in training mode that contains animal furs, weapons, and crates which say "Property of Sergei Kravinoff".
• Kraven the Hunter is a boss character in Spider-Man 2: The Sinister Six.
• Kraven the Hunter appears as a boss in the Xbox version of Spider-Man: The Movie, voiced by Peter Lurie. Under Norman Osborn's orders, he poisons Spider-Man with a toxic gas and puts him in a maze forcing Spider-Man to avoid various traps (and Kraven's attempts to shoot him) as he is weakened by the poison. After the maze level, Spider-Man fights Kraven for the cure. Despite Kraven's use of a strength-enhancing potion that makes him pretty much invulnerable to physical attack, Spider-Man wins putting Kraven in jail for his crimes. He also appeared in the Game Boy Advance version of the game as a mercenary working for Osborn. He first fights Spider-Man in a ship's hold and is relatively easy to beat. He appears again later in a funhouse at Coney Island where he demonstrates all his abilities and is even harder to defeat than he was before. He refers to Spider-Man as "Man-Spider" until his second defeat when he finally says the name right and informs Spider-Man that Green Goblin knows where Mary Jane Watson lives. Kraven the Hunter decides to wait for the police out of respect for Spider-Man.
• In Ultimate Spider-Man, there are billboards advertising Kraven the Hunter's TV series all around New York City.
• Kraven appears as a boss in Spider-Man 3, voiced by Neil Kaplan. In this version, he wears a ponytail and is partnered with Calypso (only present in the game's PS3 and Xbox 360 versions). They were hunting the Lizard (along with a group of henchmen who have booby-trapped the sewers) when Black-Suit Spider-Man appears and fought Kraven. In his battle with Spider-Man, he uses potions that give him the abilities of a bear, a crow, and a black panther as well as the ability to turn invisible near the end of the fight. Kraven and Calypso eventually got away while Spider-Man fought Mega-Lizard.
• Kraven the Hunter appears in the PlayStation 2 and PSP versions of Spider-Man: Web of Shadows, voiced by Dwight Schultz. Spider-Man encounters him in the sewers hunting Rhino after some run-ins with Kraven's traps. Spider-Man eventually finds Kraven the Hunter and defeats him.
• Kraven the Hunter appears in Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions, voiced by Jim Cummings.^[41] In the first Amazing segment, Kraven has kidnapped Spider-Man and brought him to a temple in the jungle to hunt him on his own terms with his students. Spider-Man promptly escaped, but Kraven has a piece of the Tablet of Order and Chaos which has given him enhanced speed to the point where most of Spider-Man's attacks are easily dodged. Spider-Man must get it and in a twist to the usual Kraven/Spider formula, Spider-Man hunts the Kraven through Kraven's jungles. Spider-Man defeats Kraven at the top of the temple and claims the piece of the Tablet of Order and Chaos. During the credits, Kraven is shown chasing a rabbit like a cat probably due to head injury (his head is bandaged up). In the game's Nintendo DS version, the Noir version of Calypso planned to use the Tablet of Order and Chaos fragment to raise an army of zombies and resurrect the Noir version of Kraven indicating that this version of Kraven is dead.
• Whilst he does not appear in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, one of Mike Haggar's new costumes is based on Kraven the Hunter's look.^[42]
• Kraven the Hunter appears as a playable character in Lego Marvel Super Heroes, voiced by J.B. Blanc.^[43]
• Kraven the Hunter appears in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, voiced by Steven Blum. He appears as a mentor to Spider-Man, training him to become the ultimate hunter, having come to New York to hunt the cross-species released in the previous game. He has the stuffed trophies of the cross-species Scorpion, Iguana, and Nattie in his loft as a combined result of acting in self-defense and saving the victims of the cross-species. Although he offers Spider-Man useful advice in tracking criminals, when he is willing to let Cletus Kasady kill a man as he and Spider-Man watch, Spider-Man realizes that Kraven favours a ruthlessness that he cannot condone. He later learns that Kraven is actually in the employ of Wilson Fisk as a "security consultant," the two men manipulating Spider-Man to help eliminate Fisk's rivals so that he can set himself up as New York's major crime figure. Spider-Man defeats Kraven the Hunter in Central Park and leaves him webbed up to a tree.
• Kraven the Hunter appears in Marvel Heroes.

Newspaper

• Kraven the Hunter is featured in a story line in the newspaper edition of The Amazing Spider-Man starting with the October 8, 2012 strip. The byline credits Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Alex Saviuk. In this story, Kraven has been paroled from prison for helping medical science by locating a rare plant. He is appearing at the Jungle World Casino in a large animal show.^[44]

Theater

• Kraven the Hunter appears in the Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark musical as a member of the Sinister Six and is played by Christopher Tierney. In this version, Kraven starts out as a scientist, who is experimented on by the Green Goblin and then manipulated into joining the Sinister Six.^[45]

Models

• Kraven the Hunter is the opponent defeated by Spider-Man in the 1966 Aurora plastic model kit.^[46]

See also

• "The Gauntlet and Grim Hunt"

References

External links

• Kraven the Hunter at Marvel.com
• Ultimate Kraven the Hunter at Marvel.com
• Ultimate Spiderman Kraven the hunter