Welcome back, Spidey fans! It’s so good to see you again! It would appear that 2026 is the year of the obscure Spider-Man villains, if you go by Hasbro’s Marvel Legends toy line. So far, we have received both the Hypno-Hustler and Cardiac, two villains that I personally never thought would see the light of day in plastic figure form. We also have the villainous Grizzly on the way, another Spider-Man villain I wouldn’t have thought would get a release. A few years ago, we received the Human Fly, who, at that time, I considered to probably be as obscure a villain we’d ever receive in the Marvel Legends line. However, I feel that Hypno-Hustler alone is a sign that no one is off the table! With that line of thought in mind, I thought it would be a perfect time to look at ten obscure Spider-Man villains still in need of a Marvel Legends figure. In no particular order, let’s begin with…
Stegron
Who doesn’t love dinosaurs? First appearing in “Marvel Team-Up” #19, Stegron the Dinosaur Man has been a returning pain in Spider-Man’s posterior ever since. With an orange, vibrant, detailed design, Stegron would make for an excellent, super-articulated figure. While Stegron did get a figure in an obscure toyline made by ToyBiz entitled “Marvel Super Villains: The Vault” alongside Ultron and Typhoid Mary. However, in the 28 years since that toyline came out, there have been many advances in action figure engineering, and it would be great to see Stregron updated with more articulation and in the six inch scale. And with several Lizard figures available, it’d be great to stage a three-way fight between the reptilian adversaries, with Spider-Man caught in the middle, just as it’s happened in the comics. Stegron would make for an excellent Build-a-Figure, or deluxe figure release.
Mindworm
With Hypno-Hustler officially a figure now (and my need to make a custom of him gone), I would say that Mindworm is probably the most obscure Spider-Man villain that I’d like to get a figure of now. First appearing in “The Amazing Spider-Man” #138, William Turner would really stand out on a shelf amongst his villainous peers, and, along with the Grizzly, would nicely represent the Conway/Andru run. And if you’re a Spider-Girl/Mayday Parker fan, he could easily double as a villain for her, as well!
Swarm
He may not have begun life as a Spider-Man villain in “The Champions” Volume 1, #14, but subsequent appearances in “Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man” #s 36-37 and “Sensational Spider-Man” #s 9-10, as well as an animated appearance in “Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends” fully cemented Swarm as a Spider-Man villain. A Nazi composed of bees (yes, that’s exactly what he is), Swarm had an action figure made by ToyBiz in an old 90’s Spider-Man toyline, but, much like Stegron, he needs an update. Fortunately, Hasbro could reuse most of the “Spider-Man: No Way Home” Sandman mold with a new head, hands, hood, cape and glove overlays. Simply cast the body in translucent yellow and give it a brown overspray of paint, just like the previous figure received, and he would look absolutely incredible!
Gibbon
You can’t have the Grizzly without his old pal, the Gibbon! First appearing in “The Amazing Spider-Man” # 110, Martin Blank could likely reuse some Beast parts. Given his agile nature, you could really get the Gibbon into some wild poses on the shelf if he was given the super-articulated treatment. Put him together with the aforementioned Grizzly, and that’s a shaggy duo that’d really stand out in your display!
Walrus
We already have the White Rabbit and fabulous Frog-Man (you can buy two of his figure so one can double as his father, the once villainous Leap-Frog) in Marvel Legends form; all we’re really missing now is the pea-brained Walrus! If you haven’t read “The Spectacular Spider-Man” # 185, which detailed Walrus teaming up with White Rabbit to battle Spider-Man and Frog-Man, as well as Leap-Frog, do yourself a favor and dig through your back-issue bins for this gem of an issue; it’s truly one of the most hilarious Spider-Man issues you’ll ever read, due in no small part to the Walrus! Sure, the blubbery bad guy first appeared in “The Defenders” #131, but he’ll always be a Spider-Man villain for me thanks to his appearance in “The Spectacular Spider-Man”. Were this guy to get a Marvel Legends figure, he’d be a day one pre-order!
Spot
Spot, despite getting an episode dedicated to himself in the 90’s Spider-Man cartoon, has only ever received one figure of his classic look, which was a 10” action figure from ToyBiz. That figure was nothing more than a cheap repaint of a Spider-Man figure; he even had a thwipping hand! I should add that Spot did receive two figures based on his “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” appearance, but, given how different he looks from his comic book counterpart, both in terms of body shape and even the design of his spots, I’m not going to count those. While a comic-based Spot would, in theory, be an easy repaint for Hasbro, which would able to reuse parts they’ve already made, therein lies the problem: Spot would require a lot of paint! I should know; I just finished a custom Spot figure last month, which was one of the most tedious paint jobs I’ve ever had to do for a custom figure. And, since each hit of paint drives up production costs, to say nothing of any accessories Spot should require to properly display his powers, we may be waiting for Spot a while longer. That said, if Hasbro can one day produce a proper Spot figure, complete with some cool power effect pieces, I’ll happily pick him up, despite having my custom. For all of you back-issue bin hunters, Spot/Jonathon Ohn first appeared in “Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man” #98.
Looter
Looter is one of the last few Steve Ditko villains still in need of a Marvel Legends figure. I’d love to get this guy, complete with his wacky balloon and meteor, in figure form, for the very first time. I’d say go with his classic purple and white design, complete with an unmasked head for his later Mike Wieringo appearances. His first appearance was in “The Amazing Spider-Man” Vol. 1, #36.
Spider-Slayer MK II
This is a figure I’ve wanted for a very long time! Needing the BAF or deluxe figure treatment, it would be a must to give him options to display both J. Jonah Jameson and Spencer Smythe on the head’s view screen. Spider-Slayers haven’t been well-represented in the Marvel Legends line, aside from an Alistair Smythe figure based on his 90’s appearance. If I could only pick one design to get a figure, this would be the one!
Carrion
While the other villains from the “Maximum Carnage” storyline have all received figures (all of which vary in quality; Doppelganger, I’m looking at you), Carrion is the only villain waiting for his day in plastic glory! In fact, I’d be tempted to buy a few Carrion figures, since there’s been more than one Carrion over the years. The original Carrion first appeared in “Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man” #25, while Malcom McBride, the Carrion from “Maximum Carnage”, first appeared in issue # 149 of the same book (though “Peter Parker” was dropped from the title by that time). Of course, if you have the Marvel Legends Jackal figure, you could team him up with Carrion, as well.
Spidercide
We have Ben Reilly as the Scarlet Spider, and Kaine in his classic 90’s look, which means Spidercide is the last major Peter Parker clone that we need! While he first appeared as Spidercide in “New Warriors” #61, he had previously appeared as a Peter Parker clone earlier in the 90’s “Clone Saga”. ToyBiz previously made a cheap repaint of the guy in a rare boxset, but I think it’s time Hasbro gave us a much better update with more dedicated sculpting than his 90’s figure.
Honorable mention: The Kangaroo(s)
The Kangaroo, well, both of them, were thisssssss close to making the list! Getting the second Kangaroo, along with Grizzly, Spot, and Gibbon, would help us complete the Legion of Losers! And getting the original Kangaroo would net us another Spider-Man villain from Spidey’s first 100 issues, which is probably why I have a soft spot for the guy in the first place. The original Kangaroo first appeared in “The Amazing Spider-Man” #81, while his successor later first appeared in “The Spectacular Spider-Man” #242.
And with that, we’re at the end of this month’s Spider-Tracer article, but before I go, I have to ask, did your favorite obscure Spider-Man villain make the list? Either way, let me know who, and please, feel free to include your own wishlist down in the comments section below!
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