Kraven's Last Hunt

The hunter who killed the hero to prove he was greater, only to be defeated by his own pride.

"Kraven's Last Hunt" is a comic book storyline by J. M. DeMatteis and Mike Zeck published in 1987, featuring the final battle between Marvel Comics characters Kraven the Hunter and Spider-Man. Considered one of the greatest Spider-Man stories, the story was originally published in Web of Spider-Man #31–32, The Amazing Spider-Man #293–294, and Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #131–132. No title for the overall storyline appears in the original comics, which simply refer to it as "a 6-part saga" on their covers. The initial editions of the trade paperback were titled "Fearful Symmetry: Kraven's Last Hunt", always with the "Kraven's Last Hunt" part in a much larger font, and later editions dropped the "Fearful Symmetry" part entirely.

Quick Facts

Publisher

Marvel Comics

Titles

Web of Spider-Man #31–32
The Amazing Spider-Man #293–294
Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #131–132

Writers

J. M. DeMatteis

Letterers

Rick Parker

Lore & Background

The story was developed from a rejected Batman/Joker pitch by DeMatteis, later reworked for Marvel with Spider-Man and a new villain. After a chance look at Kraven's entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, DeMatteis substituted Kraven for the new villain. Marvel's plans to marry Spider-Man and Mary Jane Watson prompted DeMatteis to make their marriage the emotional focus. Mike Zeck drew all six covers before any interior art; the iconic "Resurrection" cover for Web of Spider-Man #32 was completed first. The plot had been completely written by the time Zeck started work. In 1994, DC published DeMatteis' Batman/Joker version as "Going Sane" in Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #65-68.

Reader's Guide

The plot follows Kraven's decision to hunt Spider-Man to death after feeling he has finally bested him in combat. After capturing and humiliating Peter, Kraven buries himself alive, intending to rise again once he believes he is truly dead to prove his superiority over life itself. The creative team includes writer J.M. The story is told in between quotations from William Blake's poem "The Tyger", with the word "Tyger" replaced by "Spyder". A sequel, Amazing Spider-Man: Soul of the Hunter, was published in August 1992 as a response to misinterpretations of Kraven's suicide. Kraven's First Hunt and Grim Hunt are related stories involving Kraven's family. An alternate version appears in Spider-Man: Life Story, where Kraven hunts Spider-Man in the 1980s during the Cold War after being diagnosed with cancer.

Did You Know?

The story was originally a Batman/Joker pitch by DeMatteis that was rejected by DC because it was similar to Batman: The Killing Joke.
The story was originally intended to run entirely in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man, but editor Jim Salicrup decided to publish it as a crossover through all three Spider-Man titles.