Spider-Man Encyclopedia
- Spider-Man Villains
- Rhino
The Rhino was reated
by writer Stan Lee and artist John Romita, Sr., he first appeared in
The Amazing Spider-Man #41 (October 1966). Rhino has often crossed
paths with the Hulk quite a few
times. The Rhino was initially Aleksei
Sytsevich, a poor immigrant from Russia who was desperate to pay for
the rest of his family to come to America. With little education and
no real skills, the only paying jobs he could get were using his
impressive strength and musculature as an enforcer for various
criminal organizations. One day he was contacted by some Eastern
Bloc agents, who offered him a vast sum of money for participating
in an incredible experiment. Sytsevich agreed, and was subjected to
intensive chemical and radioactive treatment, which bonded a
super-strong polymer to his skin and greatly augmented his strength
and speed. He was given the code name "Rhino," and was sent to work
as a super-assassin.
Rhino's first job was to capture Colonel John
Jameson for his military secrets. Spider-Man defeated the Rhino,
leading to the super villain's arrest. The Rhino hates
Spider-Man but is usually more concerned with getting paid than
gaining revenge.
The Rhino has often went up against The
Incredible Hulk. He is significantly outmatched by the Hulk in terms
of brute force, but the level of superhuman strength he does have,
coupled with his invulnerability, has always made him a good
adversary.
Recently, as portrayed in the story Flowers
for Rhino, he decided to seek help to improve his mind the same
way his body had been improved: through science. He sought out a
scientist who had an experimental treatment to increase his
intelligence. To his surprise the treatment actually worked and he
was able to defeat Spider-Man, who had always outsmarted him in the
past. |

Amazing Spider-Man #41

Amazing Spider-Man #43 |
Next, he took over the majority of the criminal operations in the city
and started a law suit against Spider-Man that prevented the hero coming
within 500 yards of him. However, his intelligence continued to increase
exponentially and, with no intellectual competition, he began to find
life boring; he even rewrote "Hamlet" because he found the writing style
sloppy, and in his depression pointed out to Spider-Man that he was able
to deduce Spider-Man was Peter Parker through a simple equation that
could give him the identities of any costumed hero. When he began to
approach omniscience he worried that such high intelligence would drive
him insane so, although he briefly contemplated suicide, he elected to
have the process reversed, actually making himself "a little MORE stupid
than he used to be... Just to be on the safe side.
As of now he has been attacked by the Punisher and was left in less than
good condition. He, later, showed up for the wake of the dead super
villain Stilt-Man, tussling with Armadillo, causing a brawl to break out
that was stopped by Spider-Man. The wake was later bombed by the
Punisher, the only two apparent survivors were the Prowler and the Puma.
Rhino has apparently survived the explosion, though, as he's seen
humiliating Deadpool by shrinking him via Pym Particles, gluing his head
to a keychain (the same thig Deadpool had done to him during a previous
encounter), then made him ride a urinal cake. The Rhino was satisfied by
what he had done and the two parted ways... only to have Deadpool turn
around and defeat the villain while still small.
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Ultimate Rhino
Ultimate Rhino, also called Metal Rhino, has increased power from
the suit that the old Rhino stole from the U.S. Military. Using the
suit’s incredible strength, the Rhino robbed a Manhattan bank,
charging the vault head-first and destroying it. He then rampaged
through a busy street to make his escape, destroying anything in
his path, including police cars, with ease. While Spider-Man raced
to the scene, Iron Man arrived, stopped the Rhino’s assault and
captured him.
|
Sometime later, the Rhino rampaged through the Brooklyn Naval Yard,
battling the police and Spider-Man, who seemed to be more of an
annoyance than a threat, constantly evading the Rhino’s clumsy blows.
After knocking Spider-Man clear into an office building, the Rhino was
confronted by the U.S. army, who were hoping to retrieve his
experimental armor. Spider-Man used the distraction to sneak up on the
Rhino and rip his armor open, sabotaging its internal circuitry and
knocking him out.
The Rhino was taken into military custody.

The Rhino appears several times on
Spider-Man: The Animated Series, where he is voiced by Don Stark. He
is an enforcer for the Kingpin, and a member of the Sinister Six. His
origin is not detailed in the series and he first appears in "The Alien
Costume" in Season One.
Appearances
The Alien Costume: Part One and Part Three
The Insidious Six
Battle of the Insidious Six
Six Forgotten Warriors
Unclaimed Legacy
Secrets of the Six
The Six Fight Again
The Price of Heroism
Rhino appears as a boss in the video game
, where he is a member of Doctor Doom's
Masters of Evil.
Rhino Wallpapers
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