Sinister Syndicate
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| Sinister Syndicate | |
 The Sinister Syndicate. Art by Ron Frenz. |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | The Amazing Spider-Man #280 (Sep 1986) |
| Created by | Tom DeFalco Ron Frenz |
| In story information | |
| Base(s) | New York |
| Member(s) | The Beetle Boomerang Hydro-Man Rhino Speed Demon Jack O'Lantern Blacklash Constrictor Scorpia Leila Davis |
The Sinister Syndicate is a group of supervillains in the Marvel Comics universe, who serve as a collection of lesser-known Spider-Man's villains. The original incarnation of the Sinister Syndicate was organized by The Beetle and appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #280 (Sep 1986) and were the focus of the 1991 "Deadly Foes of Spider-Man" mini-series.
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[edit] History
[edit] Origins
Patterned after the conglomeration of Spider-Man's deadliest foes who call themselves the Sinister Six, the Sinister Syndicate originally was formed by the super-villain Abe Jenkins, aka "The Beetle". The original roster of the group consisted of Beetle, Hydro-Man, Rhino, Boomerang, and Speed Demon, who collectively gathered together under the Beetle's leadership. Unlike the Sinister Six, which was formed mainly to destroy Spider-Man, the Syndicate was formed to act as a mercenary group that worked for the highest bidder.
Group's first appearance was in Amazing Spider-Man #280, where the group successfully prevented Spider-Man and Silver Sable from capturing famed assassin Jason Macendale, then known as Jack O'Lantern.
[edit] Deadly Foes of Spider-Man
The group, now featuring Shocker and getaway van driver/girlfriend of Boomerang Leia Davis, were the focus of the mini-series "Deadly Foes of Spider-Man". The mini-series focused upon the group's break-up as the Beetle's jealousy towards Boomerang and his attempts to usurp control over the group, caused him to betray Boomerang by allowing for him to be caught during a robbery the group committed and him convincing Boomerang to use Beetle's lawyer, not knowing that Beetle had instructed his lawyer to throw the trial to ensure Boomerang's conviction.
As Beetle forges an alliance with the Kingpin, Speed Demon begins a relationship with Leia Davis while Rhino locates a scientist who can remove his rhino-themed body-armor, which had been permanently bonded to his body at the time. The scientist however, owes the Kingpin a large sum of money in unpaid gambling debts, resulting in Beetle being ordered to kill the scientists. As Shocker helps Boomerang escape jail, Leia betrays Speed Demon and reveals her true purpose for dating Boomerang and involving herself with the Syndicate: Leia was the widow of the super-villain Anthony Davis, aka "The Ringer". The Ringer had been kidnapped years earlier by Beetle, who then strapped what was ultimately revealed to be a fake bomb to his chest, forcing him to fight Spider-Man while Beetle watched via a camera hidden inside "the bomb" in order for him to observe Spider-Man in action. When Spider-Man defeated the Ringer and Beetle's scheme exposed, her husband was humiliated and branded a loser by his fellow villains, culminating in his being killed by the Scourge. Leia sought to destroy Beetle in order to avenge her husband.
In the end, a massive showdown ensued between the members with Leia escaping with Boomerang and Rhino while Beetle and his loyalist members (Speed Demon and Hydro-Man) going to jail.
[edit] Thunderbolts
Beetle would go on to join the Thunderbolts, assuming the alias Mach-1. However his act of murder from "Deadly Foes of Spider-Man" would cripple the group's attempts to go legit once Beetle and his new teammates broke free from Baron Zemo's control. Beetle would be forced to surrender himself to authorities and plead guilty to murder. Meanwhile Leia Davis would resurface as the new "Beetle", piloting a massive mecha-suit that Justin Hammer had built for Jenkins to pilot when he ultimately escaped prison. However, the suit would be Leia's doom, as the villain Gravitron crushed the suit with his gravity powers, killing Leia dead as a result.
When the series was revived in late 2004, Speed Demon ended up joining the Thunderbolts team. However, to his horror, he had discovered that his Sinister Syndicate friend Abe had truly gone legit and as such, came into constant conflict with Abe due to Speed Demon's utter lack of morals and willingness to attempt to sell-out his new teammates to the various evil forces that the group fought.
[edit] The return of the Sinister Syndicate?
Recently, in Avengers: The Initiative half of the Syndicate (Hydro-Man, Shocker, and Boomerang) reunited to fight Spider-Man. However, he defeated them and they were later apprehended by the Initiative.
[edit] Sinister Syndicate Membership
- The Beetle (Leader)
- Boomerang
- Hydro-Man
- Rhino
- Speed Demon
- Leila Davis (Driver)
- Blacklash
- Constrictor
- Hydro-Man
- Rhino
- Speed Demon
- Scorpia
- Shocker
[edit] Other uses
The Sinister Syndicate is also the name of a group of Spider-Man's villains in The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man. This ride is located in Islands of Adventure, in Orlando, Florida. In the ride, the evil group steals the Statue of Liberty with an anti-gravity gun, and Spider-Man must stop them. The Syndicate is made up of Doctor Octopus, Scream, Electro, Hydro-Man, and the Hobgoblin.
Sinister Syndicate is also the generic name of affiliation in the Marvel VS System card game for Spider-Man's various villains, as well as many of Spider-Man's major foes in the Marvel Heroclix game.
