Scorpion
- Debut: The Amazing Spider-Man #19 (December 1964)
- Created By: Stan Lee & Steve Ditko
Some see Scorpion as a joke, but he is actually one of the Spider-Man villains where Peter cannot assume his powers will help him. Rather, he has to use intellect. He actually debuted under his actual name, Mac Gargan, before debuting as Scorpion. Initially, Gargan is hired by Daily Bugle Editor-in-Chief, J. Jonah Jameson as a private investigator. He wants to know how Peter Parker is able to get pictures of Spider-Man so easily. Jameson hates Spider-Man at this point and decides to make Mac into a deadly enemy for the webhead. He feels this can be done by using a procedure that has barely been tested but shows promising possibilities.
The procedure goes terribly wrong and leaves Gargan with a now unremovable scorpion-themed armor. On top of this, he develops predatory instincts similar to that of a real scorpion. Due to the mutation, he turns to a life of crime. That also included trying to get revenge on both Spider-Man and Jameson, whom he blames equally for what happened to him. The armor gives him super strength, speed, stamina, agility, durability, and reflexes. The tail is cybernetic and capable of shooting various projectiles. Oh yeah, and the precognitive scorpion-sense operates a lot like the “Spidey Sense,” making a battle with him incredibly tough for Spider-Man.