Every superhero has an origin story, and most of them follow the same beats. Some heroes are born with their powers, some only have them under certain circumstances, and others pick them up from a traumatic experience. Sony is giving minor Spider-Man villain Kraven the Hunter a more superhero-appropriate backstory, complete with new powers and a strange new origin story.
Spider-Man has one of the great rogues galleries in comic book history. Almost all of his villains are people who were permanently altered by science,just like Peter Parker. It seems like any scorned criminal or dangerous maniac can pick an animal and create a miraculous invention to mimic its power. Scorpion, Vulture, Rhino, Chameleon, and more use skill and science to become what they are. Kraven is an outlier, but elements of his character have changed.
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What are Kraven the Hunter’s Powers?
Sergei Kravinoff has afairly standard set of superpowers. He’s strong, fast, durable, keen, and almost ageless. He can lift over two tons at his peak. He can run up to 60 miles per hour. He can jump more than 20 feet with no run-up. Kraven is a physical specimen. He’s survived several injuries that would kill any other man. He can see, hear, and smell much better than the average person. Kraven ages slowly, maintaining the appearance of a 30-year-old as he enters his 70s. These powers allow Kraven to survive a fight with Spider-Man, but his skills and equipment grant him a chance to win.
Kraven is not atrained martial artist. Instead, he has created several unusual hand-to-hand combat techniques based on the movements of jungle predators. Kraven understands pressure points with such accuracy that he can frequently incapacitate physically superior opponents. When Kraven chooses a weapon, he prefers to avoid guns and bows. He favors knives, blow darts, axes, spears, and nets. He has several traps, including gas bombs, electrical manacles, and drugs. Kraven’s equipment varies wildly to fit the prey he hunts. He’s inventive enough to work around most superheroes. He’s also a skilled animal tamer who can frequently use friendly predators as a weapon.
How Did Kraven Get His Powers in the Comics?
Kraven learned to huntwhile living in Africa. He was born to a wealthy family in Russia. His family fled to the United States after a peasant revolution. His abusive father drank himself to death, leading his fragile mother to an insane asylum. Orphaned, young Sergei traveled the world by stowing away on ships and trains. He lived in every major European city by the time he was 20. While on safari, he built a new life in the African Veldt. He lived in the area for over a decade, honing his skills as a hunter. Kraven traveled to the Belgian Congo, where he met a witch doctor. Kraven discovered the mysterious potions were composed of various unnamed mutagenic herbs. Sergei and his half-brother regularly consumed the rare herbs, granting them superhuman longevity. The exact source of the potion varies. Earlier comics gave credit toKraven’s love interest Calypso, a voodoo priestess who was said to create Kraven’s potion using magic. Either way, Kraven gained his power through imbibing the chemicals.
How Will Kraven Get His Powers in the Film?
The first trailerforKraven the Hunterdoesn’t definitively state how Kraven will get his powers, but some editing choices suggest a bizarre new direction for the character. This Kraven sees his mom sent to the asylum long before his dad’s death. Sergei and his half-brother Dmitri are raised by their abusive father, Nikolai. The film seems to focus heavily on their relationship with their dad. Sergei travels to Africa with Nikolai and Dmitri, where he is shamed for refusing to shoot a lion. The lion attacks Sergei, leaving him with several open wounds. A drop of lion blood is depicted falling into one of his bleeding injuries. Sergei seems to vault awake, his eyes change color, and the next scene in the trailer features him as an adult. This suggests that the film’s Kraven became superhuman through a big cat blood infusion. This Kraven has all the traditional powers, but he also seems to be able to see through the eyes of predators. He even summons a wolf to his aid.Sony’s Kraven is bringinga bizarre new source and much stranger powers.
Kraven’s new lion blood explanationmirrors Peter Parker’s radioactive spider bite. The full film may add details to this element of the story, but this may be a way to move away from depictions of African “witch doctors.” It may even be a bit of deception. Streamlining Kraven’s story might not be the most compelling option, but some big changes had to be made to make Sergei an action hero. Whether it’s a witch doctor’s potion or a drop of lion’s blood, Kraven the Hunter has the potential to be a fascinating addition to the superhero movie craze.
