Sinister Six

Publication history

The Sinister Six first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1 (January 1964).

Original Sinister Six

After suffering three defeats in a row from Spider-Man, Doctor Octopus is separated from his tentacle pack. After his tentacle pack breaks free and helps Doctor Octopus get out of prison, he contacts every known supervillain that had crossed paths with Spider-Man. Only Vulture, Electro, Kraven the Hunter, the original Mysterio, and Sandman respond. As none of the members are willing to relinquish the honor of killing Spider-Man themselves, they decide to challenge Spider-Man individually with the order in which they face him determined by random drawing. The Sinister Six kidnap Daily Bugle secretary Betty Brant and Aunt May, holding them hostage in order to force Spider-Man to confront them. Spider-Man defeats the Sinister Six one-by-one, mocking their decision to battle him individually instead of as a team.

Return of the Sinister Six

In The Amazing Spider-Man #334-339, Doctor Octopus recruits Electro, Mysterio, Sandman, and Vulture, along with the demonic Hobgoblin (since Kraven the Hunter had died) as part of his plan to take over the world. However, this was a trick, part of a larger plan by which Octavius alone would be the master of the world. The Sandman, who at this point in his career had reformed and was blackmailed into joining, aids Spider-Man in defeating the Sinister Six, and ultimately stopping Octavius' plans to conquer the world.

Revenge of the Sinister Six

In Spider-Man #18-23, Electro, Mysterio, Vulture, and Hobgoblin reunite in a bid to take revenge on Doctor Octopus. To trick Sandman into joining them, they hit his foster family with a bomb, leading him to believe Doctor Octopus attacked them as punishment for betraying him. Sandman contacts Spider-Man and asks him to shadow the group as insurance against him being double-crossed. Doctor Octopus easily defeats the other members of the six with his newly reacquired adamantium arms, then zaps Sandman with a weapon that transforms his body into glass and beats Spider-Man nearly to death. When police surround the building, the other members of the Sinister Six agree to serve Doctor Octopus in exchange for his helping them escape. The assembled Sinister Six go off on a rampage, stealing advanced weapons and technology from several sources, including an alien dimension and a facility specializing in cybernetics. To again complete their quorum of six, they recruit Gog. Eventually, Spider-Man and several other heroes (including the Fantastic Four, Nova, the Hulk, and Solo) confront the villains as they are seizing a HYDRA base to gain access to deadly, world-devastating weapons. Most of the members are again incarcerated.

Sinister Seven

A variation known as the Sinister Seven is formed by Hobgoblin to fight Kaine. Hobgoblin's Sinister Seven consists of Beetle, Electro, Mysterio, Scorpia, Shocker, and Vulture. They finally find Kaine and a battle erupts. Spider-Man saves Kaine from being executed; the two then work together and defeat the Sinister Seven.

Sandman's Sinister Six

Eventually Sandman and a second Mysterio (the original had committed suicide following his fight with Daredevil) form a new version of the Sinister Six, with Venom temporarily replacing Doc Ock with the other members consisting of Electro, a second Kraven the Hunter, and Vulture. Sandman uses the Sinister Six in order to get revenge on Doctor Octopus for turning him into glass. The Sinister Six are defeated again, and Venom subsequently attacks the various members of the Sinister Six. He nearly kills Sandman and badly injures Electro and Kraven the Hunter before he and his symbiote are briefly separated from each other.

Sinister Twelve

In Marvel Knights Spider-Man, Norman Osborn is unmasked to the public as the Green Goblin and imprisoned. Osborn contacts a group of supervillains who also bear grudges against Spider-Man, all of whom had been financed by Osborn's fortunes for years. Eager to retaliate, the villains agree to band together, and the Sinister Twelve is formed.

Mac Gargan is the de facto leader of the Twelve while Osborn is in prison, and he kidnaps Peter Parker's Aunt May and threatens to kill her if Spider-Man does not help Osborn escape from jail. Spider-Man, with help from the Black Cat, breaks Osborn out only to be confronted by the Vulture, Sandman, Electro, Chameleon, Lizard, Hydro-Man, Shocker, Hammerhead, Boomerang, and Tombstone. Osborn, now in the guise of the Goblin, introduces them as the Sinister Twelve.

Spider-Man and the Black Cat are rescued by Captain America, Iron Man, Daredevil, Yellowjacket and the Fantastic Four. A furious Goblin rockets away and kidnaps Mary Jane Watson and Spider-Man pursues him. Spider-Man and the Goblin clash upon a bridge (not the one where Gwen Stacy was killed). Finally Osborn gives a vital clue as to Aunt May's whereabouts, before being knocked into the river below. In the aftermath, Aunt May is found and saved. The rest of the Sinister Twelve are subdued by the heroes and arrested.

Civil War's Sinister Six

A new version of the Sinister Six apparently bands together during the Civil War storyline. The line-up consists of Doctor Octopus, Grim Reaper, Lizard, Shocker, Trapster, and Vulture. They are stopped by Captain America and his Secret Avengers off-panel and discovered bound and subdued by S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Big Time" Sinister Six

Following the events of the "Origin of the Species" storyline which involves Doctor Octopus assembling Spider-Man's enemies into targeting Harry Osborn's baby (who Doctor Octopus thought had some of Norman Osborn's DNA), only Chameleon, Electro, Mysterio, Rhino, and Sandman remain with Doctor Octopus to reform the Sinister Six when the baby does not inherit Norman Osborn's DNA. Their first plot involves sending Micro-Octobots to blow up an Air Force base. This is prevented by Spider-Man, the Avengers, and the Fantastic Four.

Spider-Man and the Future Foundation stumble on a plot on a Caribbean Island by the Sinister Six which involves the use of a zombie pirate crew. During the fight with the Sinister Six, Spider-Man realizes that the Doctor Octopus, Electro, Rhino, and Sandman that they are fighting are robots while Mysterio and Chameleon are the only ones present. Meanwhile, Doctor Octopus infiltrates the Baxter Building to look for specific technology plans.

While the adult Avengers are dealing with the eruption of Mount Etna, Tigra and the Avengers Academy students learn that Electro has broken into a French lab. Once on the scene, the students discover the Electro is accompanied by the rest of the Sinister Six. The Sinister Six overpower the students and Doctor Octopus steals a device containing self-sustaining power. Doctor Octopus and the Sinister Six later fight Intelligencia where Chameleon had infiltrated the group disguised as Klaw. After the Intelligencia members are defeated, the Sinister Six steal their Zero Cannon (a weapon which changes Earth's gravity field to send specific objects to space). Doctor Octopus later appears in a robot suit which would help to keep him alive.

Doctor Octopus and Mysterio coordinate the Octobots that have infiltrated the Apogee 1 Space Station and taken over some of the crew members. When Mysterio notices that some of the Octobots were disabled, Doctor Octopus orders the Octobots to finish their mission and then destroy the space station. When Spider-Man arrives on the Apogee 1 Space Station, Doctor Octopus pushes a button that starts to move the Apogee 1 Space Station close to Earth. After Apogee 1 Space Station is destroyed and the crew is evacuated by Spider-Man, the Human Torch and John Jameson, Doctor Octopus tells the rest of his Sinister Six that his master plan is about to begin.

Ends of the Earth

In the "Ends of the Earth" storyline, all of Dr. Octopus' preparations come to fruition in a plan to conquer the world. Doc activates a giant antenna array called the Octahedral which, in turn activates Earth-orbiting satellites he calls the Octavian Lens. The Lens works to speed up the Greenhouse Effect, which in turn heats up the Earth. Upon hacking into televisions around the world, Doc describes what his satellites are doing, and shuts them down. He says he can save the world "at a price". At Palazzo Senatorio, an international gathering of world leaders and the planet's greatest minds meet to discuss Doc's supposed offer to save the world. The Avengers crash the assembly and Spider-Man captures Chameleon, who is at the meeting disguised as, of all people... Al Gore. Spider-Man lets Chameleon go, but he secretly places a Spider-Tracer on him, which allows Spidey and the Avengers to follow Chameleon to the Mediterranean Coast where the rest of the Sinister Six is waiting. The Six subdue the Avengers, leaving only Spider-Man standing. Spidey is taken down when trying to gain control of Doctor Octopus' tentacles with his helmet.

The Sinister Six then leave the area, and Doctor Octopus issues his demands: Control of two hundred missile facilities (for use in his plan), as well as two billion dollars each, for the members of the Sinister Six. In response, Spider-Man contacts Horizon Labs for help. Doctor Octopus sends Sandman to guard one of the missile facilities in the Sahara Desert. After Spider-Man, Black Widow, and Silver Sable enter the facility and defeat Sandman, Doctor Octopus contacts the U.N. once again and orders them to kill Spider-Man in retaliation. In a subsequent missile facility raid, Spider-Man and his allies manage to defeat the Rhino, but they are unable to capture him because they are attacked by S.H.I.E.L.D (under orders from the U.N., via Doc Ock's demands). Forced to flee, Spidey and his allies then attempt to rally support from Earth's other heroes after the Titanium Man alerts them to the fact that Octavius has been recruiting other villains. Tracking down a final facility, Spider-Man learns that Octavius has already launched all of his satellites. However, this is revealed to be a deception created by Mysterio and the Chameleon. Spider-Man defeats the Chameleon when he attempts to attack them in a "Doc-Ock" suit of armor. Spidey and his allies then convince Mysterio to help them track down Octavius' base. While they find the base, they also find themselves pitted against the 'new' Sinister Six—in the form of the mind-controlled Avengers.

Despite Octavius's confidence, the heroes prevail against their mind-controlled teammates; Black Widow and Hawkeye are knocked out by Iron Man while he is still under Octavius's control. Spider-Man's new training, combined with Captain America subconsciously holding back allows Spider-Man and Sable to defeat Spider-Woman and Cap respectively. Finally, Mysterio uses an EMP generator to negate the Octo-bots controlling Thor, Iron Man and the Red Hulk. Now "Octo-bot" free, these remaining three Avengers set out to take out Octavius' missiles, while Spider-Man and Silver Sable confront Octavius in his base. The two are first met by the Rhino, who decides to drown himself and take Sable with him in an attempt to psychologically beat Spider-Man into submission, but Spidey musters his strength and manages to destroy Octavius's arms and equipment, and ultimately hauls his foe away to a doctor.

Marvel NOW!'s Sinister Six

As part of the Marvel NOW! event, the Superior Spider-Man (Otto Octavius' mind in Peter Parker's body) encounters a new Sinister Six consisting of Boomerang, Overdrive, Shocker, Speed Demon, Living Brain, and the female Beetle that previously fought Captain America and Black Widow. The group of villains attacks Horizon Labs, but Superior Spider-Man defeats them, using a power dampening field to disable their equipment. He is preparing to kill Boomerang when the still living consciousness of Peter Parker stops him. Otto gives the villains to the NYPD and EMTs upon their arrival.

This version of the Sinister Six (minus Living Brain) appears in its own series Superior Foes of Spider-Man. The Sinister Six later assaulted Owl's base. Overdrive and Speed Demon were captured by Owl and interrogated. Beetle tried to blackmail the Owl into releasing them while covertly dialing for back-up. Unimpressed, the Owl got ready to execute her when reinforcements arrived in the form of Tombstone (who was revealed to be Beetle's father). At one point to steal valuables from Chameleon including a portrait of Doctor Doom, the Sinister Six allies with Owl where they expand the group into a "Sinister Sixteen." Besides Boomerang, Beetle, Overdrive, Owl, and Speed Demon, the group consists of Armadillo, Bi-Beast, Clown, Cyclone, Human Fly, Kangaroo, Man Mountain Marko, Mirage, Scorcher, Shriek, Spot, and Squid The team eventually broke up after Boomerang had thoroughly screwed everyone over, including himself.

Superior Six

Following the deletion of Peter Parker's memories and acquiring The Raft as his new base which he renamed Spider-Island II, the Superior Spider-Man begins to collect former Sinister Six members and store them in his underwater lab with the implied intention to create a team as the Superior Spider-Man. First, he acquired the sand grain that contained Sandman's consciousness. When Electro returned to Earth after being hurled into space by Thor, the Superior Spider-Man enlisted Thor to help defeat Electro. The Superior Spider-Man then confiscated Chameleon from S.H.I.E.L.D. custody. The Superior Spider-Man came across Mysterion (a villain that is dressed like Mysterio) robbing the bank. Upon defeating Mysterion, the Superior Spider-Man discovered that the villain he thought was Mysterio was not Quentin Beck but an unnamed man who bought the Mysterio gear from the Hobgoblin. Finally, the Superior Spider-Man went up against Vulture who seeks to get even with the Superior Spider-Man for beating him up twice. The Superior Spider-Man managed to defeat Vulture.

The Superior Spider-Man debuts with mind-controlled members as the supposedly reformed "Superior Six" at the time when Lightmaster invades Alchemax to obtain an invention that would work in sync with his own light powers. The Superior Six ended up fighting the Wrecking Crew (who were hired by Lightmaster to assist him). Due to the second Sun Girl's widespread attack, the Superior Spider-Man lost control of the Superior Six and they attacked him. The Superior Spider-Man and Sun Girl had to defeat them.

Sinister Sixty-Six

Mojo and Chameleon abduct Spider-Man and his X-Men students and force them to star in a show which pits them against the Sinister Sixty-Six. The group, which is not seen in its entirety, consists of holographic stand-ins of various enemies of Spider-Man like Beetle, Carnage, Demogoblin, Doctor Octopus, Electro, Gibbon, Green Goblin, Grizzly, Hammerhead, Hobgoblin, Jackal, Jack O'Lantern, Kingpin, Kraven the Hunter, Lizard, Morbius, the Living Vampire, Mysterio, Puma, Rhino, Ringer, Sandman, Scorpion, Shocker, Tombstone, Venom, Vermin, and Vulture.

Swarm's Sinister Six

Spider-Man and the students of the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning encounter the eighth incarnation of the Sinister Six led by Swarm and consisting of the third 8-Ball, Delilah, Killer Shrike, the third Melter, and Squid. After Hellion defeated Swarm, the other members of the Sinister Six surrendered.

Age of Apocalypse

In the "Age of Apocalypse" 10th anniversary limited series, Mister Sinister assembles his own group dubbed the Sinister Six. However, this group is unrelated to the more established lineup of criminals. It includes Cloak and Dagger, Sonique, Soaron, Blob, and Phoenix.

Avataars: Covenant of the Shield

On the planet Earth created by the Shaper of Worlds, the Sinister Six are known as the Six Most Sinister, a group of criminals operating a tollbooth in the Webwood who are led by the Goblin King. When the Champions of the Realm attempt to pass through the Webwoods, they are attacked by the Six Most Sinister, who they easily deal with and leave defeated as they move on. The group included Kraven the Hunter, Electro, Mysterio, Sandman, Lizard and Doctor Octopus.

Marvel Zombies

A zombified version of the Sinister Six appears in Marvel Zombies: Dead Days. They are seen attacking innocent civilians upon the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier, but are repelled by Wolverine and Magneto. These infected members each include Doctor Octopus, Green Goblin, Vulture, Sandman, Electro, and Mysterio.

Marvel Zombies Return

In the Marvel Zombies series, the Sinister Six appear in an alternative universe that Zombie Spider-Man enters, working for the Kingpin and consisting of Doctor Octopus, Sandman, Vulture, Mysterio, Electro, and Kraven the Hunter. They are quickly and violently ripped apart, bitten, and zombified (except Sandman who hopefully flees by turning into sand and disguising himself as the dirt Zombie Spider-Man stood on), and end up eating Spider-Man's friends, which causes them to be killed in retaliation. The only uninfected person who could help the zombie Spider-Man avenge Aunt May and Mary Jane, is Sandman. Upon him leaving and dead, Zombie Spider-Man thanked Sandman, to which Sandman replies "Good riddance, ya disgusting freak". Later, Sandman was congratulated by Uatu the Watcher for the wipeout help.

Secret Wars (2015)

Two versions of the Sinister Six appears in the Secret Wars storyline where they each reside in their part of Battleworld:

Spider-Man: Reign

An older version of the Sinister Six, dubbed the "Sinner Six" appeared in Spider-Man: Reign. This version of the team (composed of Scorpion, Electro, Mysterio, Kraven the Hunter, Sandman, and Hydro-Man) are forced into the employ of New York's fascist mayor Mayor Waters via microchips placed inside them that would detonate if they attempted to leave the city. If they succeeded in killing Spider-Man, they would be given their freedom.

Scorpion was tossed out a window and presumably killed by Spider-Man. Electro and Hydro-Man were killed when Spider-Man caused the two to fall onto each other. Spider-Man defeated both Kraven and Mysterio and left them webbed up.

After his long-lost daughter was killed by the Reign (policemen under Waters' control), Sandman confronts Waters who gives him the detonator. As Spider-Man is battling a series of Venom symbiotes, Sandman gives him the detonator before allowing himself to be devoured by the symbiotes. Spider-Man presses the detonator, causing the rest of the Six to presumably explode.

Spider-Verse

During the Spider-Verse storyline, a version of the Sinister Six called the Six Men of Sinestry reside on Earth-803 where it is set in Industrial Age New York in 1895. The team is led by the Green Goblin and composed of Doctor Octopus, Electro, Kraven the Hunter, Mysterio, and Vulture. Their objective was to steal the mayor's plan. They battled Lady Spider and was forced to retreat after they were overwhelmed yet they were able to accomplish their task. The Six Men of Sinestry appeared once more attacking Lady Spider and Spider-Man 2099 when they were fixing up Leopardon, but ends up beaten by the two Spiders. Spider-Man 2099 would later exclaim that there technology was first class despite the era's limitations.

Ultimate Marvel

The Sinister Six's Ultimate Marvel version was an Ultimate Six consisting of Sandman, Doctor Octopus, Kraven the Hunter, Electro and the Green Goblin. the group went up against Nick Fury and the Ultimates after the villains escaped a S.H.I.E.L.D. prison they were held in after each had been defeated by Spider-Man and arrested by S.H.I.E.L.D. for illegally altering their own genetic codes. Spider-Man temporarily became the sixth member as he believed that Aunt May had been kidnapped. When Spider-Man is informed that his aunt was safe in S.H.I.E.L.D custody, Spider-Man turned on the Ultimate Six and helped the Ultimates defeat the Ultimate Six.

In Ultimate X-Men Annual #1, the X-Men fought simulations of the five in the Danger Room.

The Ultimate Six return in the "The Death of Spider-Man" storyline. It is revealed that Norman Osborn did not die as originally thought but had survived. The Goblin transforms and escapes at the first chance, breaking out fellow prisoners Doctor Octopus, Sandman, Electro and Kraven the Hunter with Vulture as a new addition to the team. The Six steal a helicopter which Electro pilots and escape before taking refuge in someone's apartment. It is their luck that they have escaped at the same time the Ultimates fight the New Avengers as there will be no one to stop them from attacking Spider-Man. Unfortunately, Doctor Octopus does not want to kill Spider-Man stating that he and Osborn were responsible for Spider-Man's creation. Osborn retaliates by turning into the Goblin and killing Doctor Octopus. The remaining five villains make their way to Elijah Stern's lair where Vulture's suit is upgraded and Kraven gets a set of blasters and knives. The five go to Peter Parker's house in Queens and confront Johnny Storm and Bobby Drake. Johnny defeats Osborn with a powerful blast but is quickly defeated by Sandman while Bobby is defeated by Electro. Peter arrives on the scene and dispatches Vulture and quickly defeats the other three with ease. Sandman gets back up and assists Vulture into knocking down Peter. Electro regains consciousness and is prepared to deal the final blow. Aunt May suddenly arrives on the scene, shooting Electro multiple times. This causes Electro to unleash a huge amount of electricity which renders Kraven, Sandman and Vulture unconscious. As May and Peter embrace, the Goblin gets back on his feet and prepares to attack. After a brutal battle through Queens, Peter finally kills the Goblin with a flaming van but is caught in its explosion. Culminated with a bullet wound earlier, Peter dies in his aunt's arms as Osborn seemingly dies with a smile in victory.

Sinister Six

In the Spider-Man 25th Anniversary Special, Peter Parker aka Spider-Man faces the Sinister Six. The group consists of Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, Sandman, Electro, Vulture, and Mysterio.

Spider-Man Magazine

In the Spider-Man Adventures magazine, a version of the Sinister Six appears, formed by Doctor Doom. It consisted of Doctor Octopus, Vulture, Electro, Rhino, Sandman, and Venom (Eddie Brock). They appear in a multi-part storyline with Spider-Man fighting each member in a different time period. In the final part, the Sinister Six and Doctor Doom fight Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four. All are defeated, though Vulture went into the Baxter Building and tried to steal some gold statues only to be pummeled by the heroes.

Marvel 1602 Spider-Verse

The Sinister Sextet of Earth-311 is formed by the universe's version of Carnage with Electro, Hobgoblin, Karnov (Earth-411's version of Kraven the Hunter), Magus (Earth-311's version of Mysterio), and Serpent (who is similar to Lizard) as its members. The dimension hopping Web-Warriors who aides dimensions who lost its Spider-Man defeated Sinister Sextet and as they round up their captives they notice that Electro escaped, unbeknown to the group, followed them to the Great Web.

2099 Sinister Six

An unidentified reality's version of 2099 was created after Miguel time-travelled into the past. There, he encountered its version of the Sinister Six including Venom (Kron Stone), the Goblin, Doctor Octopus 2099, the 2099 Vulture, Electro (an android that gained sentience in a lightning strike) and Sandwoman (whose sand causes nightmares). The Sinister Six capture Miguel when he is returned to his time, but he manages to escape with the aid of his brother Gabriel who generates an illusion of a demon to distract them. After the Sinister Six caught the Goblin who secretly was helping Gabriel, Miguel saves Goblin (Father Jennifer) and escapes back into present time. As the portal opened, Doctor Octopus 2099 kills Goblin and escapes. Now that the Sinister Six is no more, Venture enters and joins the team where he plans to recruit them to Fist.

Television

Film

In December 2013, Sony announced two spin-offs of The Amazing Spider-Man franchise: The Sinister Six and Venom, with Drew Goddard attached to write and direct The Sinister Six. The film was said to be a redemption story for the characters, and would probably not feature Spider-Man. As the Sinister Six's original goal, however, was to kill him, there would seem to be a chance that he would appear. The film was originally scheduled for release on November 11, 2016. However, after the announcement in February 2015 of a new Spider-Man franchise with Marvel Studios, the spin-offs were postponed, and eventually cancelled.

Video games

Theater

Novels