How Spider-Man Villain The Rhino Became A World-Ending Threat

While some may think that Marvel Comics villain Rhino is just a big lumbering rogue among the ranks of Spider-Man’s foes, Aleksei Sytsevich has sadly evolved beyond being a simple criminal seeking a big payday. Recently in the Marvel Universe, Rhino suffered one of the greatest losses imaginable, prompting him to seek goals beyond money. Now, he just wants to watch the world burn, actively taking steps to ensure its destruction.

In the Spider-Man event “The Gauntlet” from writer Mark Waid (with art by a range of artists, including Max Fiumara for the Rhino), Peter Parker went up against just that: a gauntlet of his rogues in succession. However, the last person he expected to face was the Rhino, as Sytsevich had abandoned his life of crime in favor of marriage to the love of his life, Oksana. Sadly, a new Rhino emerged with a supposedly superior hide and armor, demanding to face the original in combat to solidify his reputation. While Sytsevich agreed to meet him in combat, it was only to buy time for he and his wife to escape, with Spider-Man agreeing to hold the new villain off. However, Spider-Man’s efforts were not enough, and the new Rhino caught up with them, killing Oksana in the process. The loss of his wife naturally sent Aleksei off the deep end, motivating him to don his rhino hide once more, facing his wife’s killer in combat and triumphing despite his opponent’s superior technology. Unfortunately, Aleksei Sytsevich died the same night as his wife, and only the Rhino remained, brutally killing his adversary before Spider-Man could stop him.

Now, Rhino cares little for this world or any amount of money, hating Spider-Man for his failure. This couldn’t be more evident than when he later joins the latest iteration of the Sinister Six, led by Doctor Octopus in Dan Slott’s “Ends of The Earth” storyline. In this story, Octavius is dying and wants to leave the most sinister legacy possible. Using technologies stolen by members of the Six, Octavius creates devices in Earth’s atmosphere that rapidly speed up the Greenhouse Effect on the planet, bringing the demise of Earth by global warming that much closer, and threatening to set the entire planet on fire. However, he publicly reveals to the world that he has the technology to save the planet as well, providing the Six’s demands are met. While the other members are eagerly awaiting their billion-dollar paychecks, Rhino is promised something else entirely: the world’s destruction.

Rhino reveals that he’s always known Ock’s true intent to decimate the planet no matter what, leaving only a small percentage alive to forever remember his horrors. Rhino can’t bear to live on the planet without his love, so he actively aids in ushering in the world’s end, even going so far as to hold Silver Sable underwater until the both of them seemingly drown to punish Spider-Man. This new nihilistic perspective makes Rhino so much more of a threat that he ever was before. This is not the Rhino that was featured in the humorous tale “Flowers for Rhino”, where he underwent brain surgery to make him the smartest man in the Marvel Universe, mirroring the classic film Flowers for Algernon, only to ultimately request the doctors make him a little dumber than he was before. In one terrible night, Rhino became one of Spider-Man‘s most deadly and dangerous foes – someone strong enough to push over buildings who no longer cares if he’s caught under the rubble.

About The Author

Kevin Erdmann
(2511 Articles Published)

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Kevin Erdmann is one of Screen Rant’s staff writers. With a major in Cinema Studies and a minor in Comics and Cartoon Studies from the UofO, Kevin is pretty sure he’s writing for the right site. While Kevin is a huge Marvel fan, he also loves Batman because he’s Batman and is a firm believer that Han shot first. Disney also shares a big part of his fan patronage. Kevin lives in Oregon with his wonderful wife and sinister cat who is no doubt currently plotting his demise.

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