WARNING: The following contains spoilers for The Amazing Spider-Man #56 by Nick Spencer, Mark Bagley, Andrew Hennessy, John Dell, Rachelle Rosenberg, Edgar Delgado & VC's Joe Caramagna, on sale now.
The beloved Spider-Man: The Animated Series of the '90s boasted many of the web-slinger's greatest villains. At the same time, a few overlooked enemies were featured on the show.
One of these underrated villains recently proved that he's still a serious threat in the comics.
In The Amazing Spider-Man #56, by Nick Spencer and Mark Bagley, Norman Osborn and the Kingpin finally find a way to capture Kindred. The key to this villain's capture is the longtime Spidey foe, the Spot. Indeed, the Kingpin manages to amplify and extract the Spot's power source, the Darkforce Dimension, thinking of a way to incarcerate people with this energy.
Wilson Fisk gets this idea from "Secret Empire," when Hydra trapped Manhattan under a dome using the Darkforce Dimension. While Osborn battles Kindred, he gives Fisk the signal to create a field of pure Darkforce energy. Fisk's men amplify and extract the Spot's power source, forming a cage of energy around Kindred.
The capture of Kindred makes good use of the Spot's power, proving how underrated the villain truly is. The Spot was introduced in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #98, by Al Milgrom and Herb Trimpe. Originally a scientist named Jonathan Ohnn, the Spot worked for the Kingpin. Ohnn was searching for a way to mimic the powers of the young hero known as Cloak.
The scientist was able to create a giant black portal, which he entered. Ohnn found himself inside of another dimension, surrounded by an infinite number of portals. When he returned to his original dimension, Ohnn found himself covered with black portals, calling himself the Spot.
Of course, as soon as Spider-Man heard this name, he collapsed with laughter. The Spot was not to be underestimated, however, defeating the web-head in their first encounter. From then on, the Spot has been a recurring foe in Spider-Man's rogues' gallery. Still, the Spot has never been taken very seriously, often reduced to a minor villain.
Yet the Spot was crucial to many episodes of Spider-Man: The Animated Series. While the Spot himself only appeared in one episode, it was Ohnn's Time-Dilation Accelerator which played a major and recurring role in the show. The Time-Dilation Accelerator was originally used by Carnage and Baron Mordo to summon Dormammu from another dimension. The portal was closed, however, taking Venom and Carnage through it.
Both the Hobgoblin and the Green Goblin used the Time-Dilation accelerator as well. Specifically, the Green Goblin used the Time-Dilation Accelerator to send Mary Jane into another dimension, before he was taken through a portal as well. In the series finale, an alternate-universe Peter Parker, who became Spider-Carnage, also made use of the Time-Dilation Accelerator. Spider-Carnage wanted to send a bomb through one of the Time-Dilation Accelerator's portals to destroy the multiverse.
Overall, the Spot's capture of Kindred illustrates how vastly powerful he really is. Kindred has tormented Spider-Man and his allies for months, with the heroes showing little chance of defeating him. Spider-Man couldn't beat Kindred with words or fists, while his friends were possessed and then captured along with Peter.
The Spot defeated Kindred definitively, capturing him within the Darkforce Dimension. Although the Kingpin was the one to harness this power, it was still the Spot who made Kindred's capture possible. Perhaps if Ohnn were more creative with his powers, he would realize his vast potential.
Although he's never been taken very seriously, the Spot managed to defeat one of Spider-Man's most dangerous foes.
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