Tarantula (Marvel)

Tarantula is the name used by several characters in the Marvel Universe.

Tarantula (Antonio Miguel Rodriguez)

Main Article: Antonio Miguel Rodriguez

Anton Miguel Rodriquez was a male human who came to be a revolutionary in the South American country of Delvadia fighting to overthrow the fascist government. He and his fellow freedom fighters employed such tactics as bombings, kidnapping politicians for ransom, and assassinations. Rodriquez was expelled from his group after he murdered a security guard in cold blood during a bank robbery. The Delvadian government took notice of Rodriquez and gave him a new mission and role as the Tarantula, a government backed costumed agent, in effect a fascistic Captain America. He was used against his former allies in assignments he especially enjoyed. Rodriquez's violent streak eventually got the better of him when he killed a guard who wouldn't allow him to beat a captured revolutionary. Disavowed by the government, Tarantula fled South America and began living in New York illegally. He soon began to integrate himself into the city's criminal underworld. For his first big score, Tarantula, along with his two henchmen Hidalgo and Juan, hijacked a Hudson River dayliner in order to rob the passengers and hold them for ransom. Spider-Man, with help from the Punisher, managed to foil the Tarantula's plan and capture him. (Amazing Spider-Man v1 #135)

Tarantula (Luis Alvarez)

Main Article: Luis Alvarez

Luis Alvarez was a male human who lived in the South American country of Delvadia. Several months after the death of the original Tarantula, Captain Luis Alvarez was employed by the same repressive dictatorship of Delvadia, a South American country, to replace him as the country's counterpart to the United States' costumed champion, Captain America. Alvarez was injected with drugs that gave him enhanced fighting abilities and strength. (Web of Spider-Man v1 #36)

Tarantula (Unknown)

Main Article: Unknown

Tarantula (Maria Vasquez)

Main Article: Maria Vasquez

Tarantula (Jacinda Rodriguez)

Main Article: Jacinda Rodriguez

Jacinda Rodriguez

Tarantula and Marie Batroc were hired by Higashi of the East Wind to kill Agent X, Outlaw and Taskmaster. She and Batroc's daughter waited on a rooftop while the three targets fought dozens of other mercenaries below. When Taskmaster made his way to the roof, the two attacked him, he avoided and they fell off the roof. Stating that he hated ethnic stereotypes, he shot them both multiple times. (Agent X v1 #6)

Tarantula (Kaine)

Main Article: Kaine

Notes

• The concept of Tarantula was created by Gerry Conway and Ross Andru where it made its first appearance in Amazing Spider-Man v1 #134 (July, 1974).
• In Back Issue! v1 #44 (2010), writer Gerry Conway recounted the characters creation:

"During the political upheavals in South America during the 1970s, there was a real sense that we, the United States, were somewhat culpable, both for supporting the repressive regimes that were in power, and in the case of Chile, actually assisting in the overthrow of the democratically elected government. So, in that environment, a character like the Tarantula was inherently political. But the real reason I wanted to write that particular story was something said by my good friend Don Glut, who was also writing for Marvel at the time. Don once asked, "Why aren't there international heroes from smaller countries, a third-world, or old-world Captain America, like say, Captain Serbo-Croatia?" We laughed, but I really liked that notion: Just because the United States came up with their guy, why stop there? Why stop with the larger countries, the superpowers?"

Alternate Versions

• In Ultimate Spider-Man v1 #100 (2006), an alternate version of the Tarantula appeared in the Ultimate Marvel reality designated as Earth-1610 in the Multiverse.

Appearances

• Amazing Spider-Man v1: (1974)

External Links

• Marvel Database Entry
• Wikipedia Entry

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