Hey, boys and girls, I’m back again with another first look at Marvel Team-Up! It’s a little-known fact that R&D’s Patrick Sullivan is a huge fan of the Sinister Syndicate. The man is obsessed. Here’s an excerpt from a completely fabricated conversation:
Patrick: “Yip, I want the Syndicate to rock the metagame like no team has rocked the metagame before. Unreal domination.”
Andrew: “That’s cool.”
P: “I want to print a 6 ATK / 6 DEF 1-drop Vulture that can’t be stunned ever, has an alternate recruit that requires your opponent to pitch a card, and has press. Oh, and he also burns your opponent for 10 when he comes into play.”
A: “You’re fired.”
Even though the 6 ATK / 6 DEF 1-drop Vulture was eventually scrapped, Patrick’s crazy ideas set the bar for the reinvention of the Sinister Syndicate.
It All Started With “Six”
The Sinister Syndicate consists of such villainous luminaries as Beetle, Boomerang, Rhino, Hydro-Man, and Speed Demon, and made its first appearance as a team in the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man #280. These guys were brought together by the Beetle with the belief that there would be strength in numbers when confronted with threats of arrest or super hero beatings. While this is the name R&D used to represent the Spider-Man villain team in Vs. System, it isn’t quite where the use of the word “Sinister” in Spider-Man villain teams originated. Before the Syndicate, there was the Sinister Six.
The Sinister Six made its very first appearance in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1. Dr. Octopus, being the criminally insane genius that he is, had the brilliant idea to bring together Spider-Man’s greatest foes in order to crush the insipid wall-crawler for good. To this end, he was joined by Electro, Mysterio, Sandman, Vulture, and Kraven the Hunter. Thus was born the first of many Spidey villain team-ups. Everything seemed to be going great for these guys. They got along okay, they shared stories of glory and defeat—and then Spider-Man bashed their heads in. As you can well imagine, it all fell apart after that. It took the Six over twenty years to reunite.
When they eventually did (Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1 #334-339), they added a new member. Since Kraven had committed suicide years earlier (Kraven’s Last Hunt TPB), they asked the Hobgoblin to jump into the fray. Once again, they battled Spider-Man to the death, this time with plans to become kings of the world. In the process of taking over the world, Doc Ock betrayed his comrades (betrayal would be a recurring theme for these guys), which lead directly to their defeat.
The “original” team reunited again (Spider-Man Vol. 1 #18-23) for a final time, swapping out Sandman (who was betrayed by Doc Ock . . . again!) for the gigantic alien from Dimension X, Gog. The Six used pilfered Hydra technology to raid neighboring dimensions in order to increase their base of power exponentially. Seeing that he was finally out of his league, Spidey called in the reserves. The Six were finally defeated when Spider-Man joined forces with the Fantastic Four, Hulk, Ghost Rider, Nova, Solo, and the spurned Sandman.
In the years since, the Six have appeared in various forms. The Sinister Seven was formed to take on the evil Spider-Clone, Kaine, when he went on a rampage trying to kill all of Spider-Man’s rogues. A Sandman-led Six added Venom to its roster with devastating results: he very nearly killed them all (more betrayals!). The most notable configuration in recent years was the team led by Green Goblin, Norman Osborn known as the Sinister Twelve. This team featured every available Spidey villain in a plot to demoralize and weaken Spider-Man to a point where the Goblin could finally take his ultimate revenge. But being the resilient and charming son of a gun that he is, Spider-Man triumphed with the combined help of the Fantastic Four and the Avengers.
Sinister Six, Seven, or Twelve—as long as there’s a “Sinister” in the title, you know it’s bad times for Spider-Man. And since the set is called Marvel Team-Up, we made sure to keep our options open.
What’s Old is New Again
Arkham Inmates. Revenge Squad. Sinister Syndicate. These teams make up the rogues’ galleries for the three biggest characters in comics: Batman, Superman, and Spider-Man. And yet, these teams have never made a significant splash at the tournament level. They are also some of the last villain teams from the first year of Vs. System that have yet to be re-featured. The Arkham Inmates and the Revenge Squad return with World’s Finest later this year, so they can wait for a TBS/Hyra article. This is totally fine with me because Spider-Man has always had the coolest rogues’ gallery in comics. It’s not even close, really.
The first time we saw the Syndicate, all the major players made the cut: Green Goblin, Hobgoblin, Sandman, Electro, Vulture, Dr. Octopus, and Venom, along with a sprinkling of the more obscure baddies such as Hydro-Man, Speed Demon, Shriek, Jackal, and Man-Wolf. So, where can we go from there? Let’s see. If you take a closer look at the original roster, how many of these guys could also be Crime Lords?
· Silvermane
· Tombstone
· Kingpin
· Hobgoblin
· Hammerhead
· The Rose
A couple of these characters already made the Crime Lords leap in the Marvel Knights expansion. Could we see some dual-affiliated love for the Crime Lords in Marvel Team-Up? I predict something like three to ten making the cut. If the number ends up being low, you can just blame Yip. He is the enemy of dual affiliation. Something about balancing low drops and encouraging team-ups. Bah!
Right here is where I would post up a list of all the guys and gals who have ever battled Spider-Man or his buddies. And I would do that if I hadn’t given away so much last time. You guys are so greedy.
Now might be a good time to bring up a point that you may find interesting. I think I might already have mentioned this in a previous article, but when it comes to character selection, Andrew and I don’t like to repeat ourselves or throw out gratuitous versions of previously established characters. For example, the only repeat character in the initial file was Venom. We were all set to unleash a horde of new characters and effects, and then Humpherys said something confusing like, “Dude, where’s my Electro?” In the end, we did alter the file enough to quiet the naysayers, but not before we put up with the following:
“You guys are dumb. Where’s Rhino and Doc Ock and Sandman?” – Patrick Sullivan ◊ Mental Meltdown
“This is the worst list I have ever seen.” – Mike Hummel ◊ Losing Control
“We’re doing it anyway.” – Andrew Yip ◊ Power Hungry
The New Recruits
As I mentioned earlier, the majority of the baddies on the new Syndicate have never before appeared on a Vs. card. I could go on for a couple of pages trying to justify my choices, but I think that would prove an impossible task without actually spoiling the roster. Instead, I have been authorized to provide you with a quick breakdown of some of the characters who may or may not be appearing in Marvel Team-Up, and to let their undeniable coolness speak for them.
Answer: The Answer is the kind of guy who has the right “answer” for every conceivable situation. This guy usually works alone, but he has been known to sell his services to the highest bidder.
Black Tarantula: The Argentinean crime lord (hint hint) Carlos LaMuerto is a super-powered terrorist. Once upon a time, he tried to take over New York’s underworld when the Kingpin had been dethroned. He was foiled by Spider-Man, and they have been sworn enemies ever since. He recently appeared in the pages of Daredevil, where he had changed his look somewhat.
Calypso: Everyone’s favorite voodoo priestess. Back in the day, she used to hang out with baddies like the Lizard and Kraven the Hunter. Did we bust out the magic powder to bring her back from the edge of obscurity? You’ll have to wait and see.
Cardiac: Cardiac first appeared in Vs. as a Spider-Friend, which always irked me. Cardiac is as much a Spider-Friend as Venom. I don’t think it would be too much of a stretch to say that this guy could be switching sides in Marvel Team-Up.
Carnage: Infected by the spawn of Venom, Cletus Kasady became Carnage. More powerful and deadlier than his “father,” Carnage became a big problem for Spider-Man. During “Maximum Carnage,” Carnage allied himself with Shriek and the Spider-Man Doppelganger to form a pseudo–family unit. Carnage was apparently killed by the Sentry during the recent “Breakout” from the Raft. Before his death, Carnage spawned a son named Toxin whom he immediately tried to murder. That’s what we call “Joker-level” insanity.
Electro: Recently, Electro was instrumental in the breakout from the Raft in the New Avengers #1. He was hired by Brainchild to ensure the escape of Sauron. Electro went on the run but was quickly snatched up by the Avengers and re-incarcerated.
Mad Jack: He originally went by the name Jack O’Lantern and was played by two people: Maguire Beck and Daniel Berkhart. Maguire Beck assumed the mantle after the death of his brother, Mysterio (Quentin Beck). Employed by Norman Osborn, Beck acted as Osborn’s errand boy, battling Spider-Man and Prodigy.
Molten Man: Liz Osborn’s stepbrother, Mark Raxton, was a lab assistant to Spencer Smythe. When he was accidentally covered with an experimental chemical, he became the Molten Man. Raxton has clashed with Spider-Man over the years, but he has also proven to be a valuable ally.
Swarm: Fritz Von Meyer is a former Nazi scientist who got a little too friendly with some killer bees he was studying. The bees completely devoured his body, but he was able to transfer his consciousness into the swarm. He later tried unsuccessfully to take over the world.
Trapster: Peter Petruski, armed with a paste gun and some attitude, embarked on a life of crime. He joined the Frightful Four for a time before eventually going solo again. His criminal career is almost entirely without note, save for the fact that he got beat up by Spider-Man. A lot.
Venom: To most people, “Venom” means Eddie Brock. That isn’t necessarily the case anymore. Mac Gargan acquired the alien symbiote from Brock when Brock discovered that he was dying of cancer. It could be said that Gargan is the more powerful Venom because he retains all the super strength and endurance he gained as the Scorpion.
Zzzax: Did he ever fight Spider-Man? Possibly. Wouldn’t it be cool just to make him anyway? Absolutely.
They Didn’t Do Much Before
Let’s just get this out of the way: Marvel Team-Up has no new mechanics. There are no new complicated keywords to learn. You spoke and R&D listened. You said that Vs. was getting too complicated and its complexity was scaring away new players, so we adjusted our worldview. Marvel Team-Up will see the return of simple design and the exploration of old mechanics that were never fully developed. With this back-to-basics approach and the re-introduction of the most popular characters in comics (in Marvel Team-Up and World’s Finest), there will never be a better time to play Vs. than right now! So if you’ve been waiting for an excuse to jump back in, here’s your chance.
But where does this leave the Syndicate? What new theme do they get? Well, since they never had a theme to begin with, I guess you could say they finally get their first! And that theme is ####### endurance & KO’ing ######### for massive ##########. At first glance, it looks like ########## redux. Or is it just ########## done right? I can’t really say, but when I asked Sullivan about it, he said, “Once they figure out the optimal build . . . blow out, every time.”
I can’t wait to swarm the field with Sinister Syndicate weenies! How about you?
Did I Say He Wasn’t in the Set?
Last time, I signed off with some teaser art. I guess it would be cruel not to repeat myself.
“Legacy of Evil”
Actually, disregard this entire article as a steaming pile of lies.
Additional Reading:
- Marvel Knights Spider-Man Vol. 1: Down Among the Dead Men TPB
- Marvel Knights Spider-Man Vol. 2: Venomous TPB
- Marvel Knights Spider-Man Vol. 3: The Last Stand TPB
- Peter Parker: Spider-Man One Small Break TPB
- Spider-Man: Maximum Carnage TPB
- Spider-Man: Revenge of the Sinister Six TPB
- Spider-Man: Son of the Goblin TPB
- Spider-Man: The Other TPB
