Spider-Man Symbolism: What 10 Famous Villains Really Mean

9. Spider-Slayers - The Idea Of Spider-Man As A Menace

The Spider-Slayers are robots that were were designed specifically to hunt down, capture and combat Spider-Man. The first (and classic) versions of these robots were originally designed and built by Dr. Spencer Smythe, who had been commissioned by and supplied with the money to make them by J. Jonah Jameson (who actually piloted them for the pleasure of personally hunting the superhero he hated for capture). It's a well-known fact that Jameson hates Spider-Man and tries to portray him as a menace in the press, but these robots represent that in a physical form that helps to get the view of Spider-Man across. The idea of superheroes as potential threats is a widespread one in comics and these robots certainly emphasise that in the case of Spider-Man.