Doppelganger (Marvel)
The Doppelganger is a comic supervillain who features in Marvel Comics.
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Biography
The Spider-Doppelganger was a creature that had been created by the Magus during the Infinity War. (Infinity War v1 #1) He was one of a number of such doppelgangers created when the Magus visited the Dimension of Manifestations. Whilst there, he commanded Anthromorpho to create Manifestation-Bodies for him where he had the body-maker create dark counterparts of the heroes of Earth creating an army to serve him. (Quasar v1 #38) One of their number was based on Spider-Man who was sent to ambush the hero in his home city and following a brief fight the doppelganger as defeated. (Infinity War v1 #1) The Spider Doppelganger was later abandoned when the Magus’ doppelganger army collapsed. Unlike most of the other constructs, the creature survived and remained at large. Without its master’s control, the Doppelganger roamed aimlessly, drawn to conflict and violence wherever it appeared. Its brutish strength and monstrous appearance made it a natural ally for darker forces that sought chaos and destruction. (Infinity War v1 #2) Stalking his quarry, the Doppelganger finally decided to launch a surprise attack on the hero. At first, Spider-Man was unsure on what the Spider-Doppelganger was and hurled the creature over the side of a building to buy himself time to figure out what was going on. Landing on its back, the Doppelganger got back up, shoved cars out of its way with ease, then crawled up the wall of the building towards its prey. As Spider-Man realized he would eventually have to fight the Doppelganger and decided to take the fight away from Hobgoblin and Demogoblin, who were fighting each nearby, the Doppelganger caught back up to the hero. Spider-Man escaped the Doppelganger, however, by aiding Hobgoblin in escaping Demogoblin then hitching a ride on the Hobgoblin's glider via web line. Doppelganger quickly caught back up and severed Spider-Man's web line with its own razor-sharp webbing that also grazed the Hobgoblin's arm. Spider-Man and the Hobgoblin then reluctantly teamed up against the Doppelganger and Demogoblin, with Spider-Man battling the Doppelganger hand-to-hand. Knocking the Doppelganger out, Spider-Man turned to see how the Hobgoblin was doing, only to find the Hobgoblin pointing a gun. The Hobgoblin then fired, hitting the revived Doppelganger, whom Spider-Man was unaware was lunging at him. The gunfire knocked Doppelganger completely backward into the air and falling onto some spikes seemingly killing him. Afterwards, the creature was recruited by the Demogoblin to help in his quest to kill Jason Macendale. The Hobgoblin was involved in a fight against Spider-Man when both Demogoblin and Doppelganger attacked their respective counterparts. At first, the Spider-Doppelganger nearly overwhelmed Spider-Man until Macendale shot the creature after he managed to fight off the Demogoblin. Seemingly dead, the Doppelganger was recovered by the Demogoblin who believed the mindless beast would be an invaluable ally in his campaign against evil. (Spider-Man v1 #24)
Later on, Demogoblin placed the lifeless Doppelganger in the walk-in freezer of the closed Alberto's upscale restaurant for cold storage. As the Doppelganger's frozen form lay in the freezer, Demogoblin wondered aloud why the Doppelganger did not disappear like the other duplicate heroes had done so. Figuring fate had deposited the Doppelganger into his lap, Demogoblin mused on how best to make use of the Doppelganger before flying off to search the area where Doppelganger first appeared, hoping to find clues on how to resurrect the impaled creature. (Marvel Comics Presents v1 #112) The Doppelganger eventually encountered Demogoblin, who took interest in the creature’s savagery. The demonic goblin manipulated the Doppelganger into serving him, using its mindless aggression as a weapon against his enemies. Under Demogoblin’s influence, the Doppelganger became a recurring menace, striking at Spider-Man and others with the same brutal instinct it had displayed since its creation. (Web of Spider-Man v1 #86) During Carnage’s violent rampage through New York, the Doppelganger was recruited into his murderous band of allies. The beast fought alongside Carnage, Shriek, Demogoblin, and Carrion, forming part of their so-called 'family' of killers. Shriek took a particular liking to the Doppelganger, treating the monster as her “child” and nurturing it with twisted affection. The creature returned this attention with loyalty, following Shriek’s commands with an almost filial devotion while continuing its savage assaults on innocents. (Spider-Man Unlimited v1 #1) The Doppelganger remained at Shriek’s side during the height of Carnage’s chaos, joining the slaughter with a mixture of blind rage and eerie obedience. The creature’s sheer physical strength made it one of the deadliest members of Carnage’s forces, capable of tearing through even superhuman opponents with its claws and fangs. Its warped parody of Spider-Man’s powers ensured that it was more than a mere brute, combining ferocity with agility in combat. (Amazing Spider-Man v1 #379)
At some point, Doppelganger and Shriek came to join Kasady when he headed the Cult of Carnage who worshipped the dark god Knull. They then worked to enact his scheme in finding the former Symbiote hosts in order to harvest the genetic codices within them which would allow them to free the King in Black from his prison. (Web of Venom: Cult of Carnage v1 #1)
Following Carnage's defeat, the Doppelganger was captured by the authorities and imprisoned in the rebuilt Ravencroft. (Ruins of Ravencroft: Dracula v1 #1) A group of vampires later took over the prison where they freed the prisoners where among the escapees included Doppelganger. (Ravencroft v1 #4) The creature was then captured by the Alchemax corporation who looked to study him but he managed to escape but was confronted by the new host of the Scream Symbiote with this being Andi Benton. Scream came to overpower Doppelganger and capture him but then her mind was assaulted by Carnage who had taken over part of the Symbiote hive mind. (Extreme Carnage: Scream v1 #1)
Overview
Personality and attributes
In appearance, the Doppelganger resembled a dark twisted version of Spider-Man where its mask was actually its face and had a fierce mouth with sharp teeth. Its more notable feature was the fact that it had six arms that had sharp claws on them. His body was twisted and exaggerated, with six arms, elongated claws, and a grotesque, fanged mouth that stretched across his distorted face. His skin was covered in a warped version of Spider-Man’s red-and-blue costume, stretched tightly over his hulking frame. His large, multiple white eyes glowed eerily, lacking pupils or any human warmth, and his movements conveyed a feral animalistic menace rather than the agility of a man. He stood taller and broader than Spider-Man, with a more monstrous build. (Infinity War v1 #1)
The Spider Doppelganger was a savage, bestial entity devoid of higher reasoning. He displayed no capacity for speech, relying instead on snarls, growls, and shrieks to communicate. His demeanor was violent and predatory, attacking with unrelenting ferocity and showing no hesitation or fear. Though he lacked intellect, he demonstrated an animal’s instinct for survival and combat, pursuing prey with single-minded determination. His behavior suggested no sense of morality, individuality, or empathy, functioning as a relentless engine of destruction. (Infinity War v1 #1)
Though a copy of Spider-Man, the Doppelganger never spoke or communicated beyond feral grunts. (Spider-Man v1 #24)
Powers and abilities
The Spider Doppelganger was a monstrous construct modeled after Spider-Man. Its physiology gave it immense strength, far greater than the human maximum. Its muscular frame was dense and durable, enabling it to withstand tremendous physical punishment without slowing its assault. The six arms sprouting from its torso ended in razor-sharp claws, which it used as weapons with brutal efficiency. Its monstrous fanged mouth was capable of biting with lethal force, adding to its bestial arsenal. (Infinity War v1 #1) Even to the likes of Spider-Man, the Doppelganger was noted for being strong. (Spider-Man v1 #24)
The Doppelganger possessed great speed and agility, allowing it to scale walls and move with a predatory grace. Its ability to cling to surfaces mimicked Spider-Man’s, but it was driven by instinct rather than skill. The creature’s reflexes and balance were heightened, letting it strike unpredictably and recover quickly from attacks. Despite its size and bulk, it retained an unnerving speed in close combat. (Infinity War v1 #1)
The creature could also generate organic webbing, though in a cruder form than Spider-Man’s artificial web-shooters. These webs were ejected directly from its body and used both offensively and defensively, ensnaring foes or aiding in its movement across the city. Unlike Spider-Man, it used its webbing instinctively rather than strategically, further emphasizing its feral nature. (Infinity War v1 #1) Inorganic spinnerets were located in the upper forearms with silk glands capable of being stimulated to produce webbing. The inorganic webbing possessed a sharpness measured at 0.03 microns capable of exceeding certain armor tolerance. (Carnage v1 #1)
Notes
- Doppelganger was created by Jim Starlin, Ron Lim and Al Milgrom where he made his first appearance in The Infinity War v1 #1 (July, 1992).
Alternate Versions
In other media
Television
- In Spider-Man: The Animated Series, the Doppelganger made a camee appearance in the setting of the animated television series in the episode "The Wedding". This was a hallucinatory version of the character who had two arms instead of six arms.
Films
- In Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, the Doppelganger made a non-speaking cameo appearance in the setting of the animated film. He was shown as being a member of Miguel O'Hara's Spider-Society.
Video games
- In Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage, Doppelganger appeared as an antagonist in the setting of the arcade video game.
- In Spider-Man Unlimited, Doppelganger appeared as a playable character in the setting of the mobile video game.
- In Marvel: Mystic Mayhem, Doppelganger appeared as a recruitable playable character in the setting of the mobile video game. The Doppelganger was described as a non-friendly clone of Spider-Man who came to find itself at the Ravencroft Institute to be studied under Norman Osborn. It was mentioned to had been following Symbiotes, a demonic Hobgoblin and the Mutant Shriek around the city before getting caught.
Appearances
- Infinity War v1: (1992)
- Quasar v1:
- Spider-Man v1:
- Carnage v1:
- Carnage U.S.A. v1:
- Spider-Verse v1:
- Web of Venom Cult of Carnage v1: (2019)
- Ruins of Ravencroft: Dracula v1:
- Ravencroft v1:
- Extreme Carnage: Scream v1: (2021)
External Links
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