Over the years since his debut, the Rhino has engaged in some of Spider-Man‘s most epic battles. This was especially true in their first few encounters, where it took Spider-Man’s absolute best to stop the rampaging Perissodactyla. However, despite his usual penchant for crushing and destroying everything in his path, the Rhino was arguably an accidental supervillain. He often seemed less committed to the evil of his actions than to the idea that they were necessary, believing he had no other way to fulfill a perceived obligation. In other words, while the Rhino is indeed a criminal, many elements of his story prove that he is misunderstood by both Spider-Man and the fandom at large.
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Created by Stan Lee and John Romita Sr., the Rhino, also known as Aleksei Sytsevich, was an interesting addition to Spider-Man’s rogues’ gallery. Unlike many of Spider-Man’s other foes, the Rhino’s character was depicted as being a simple yet powerful thug. In a world of deeply complicated and complex villains, what you saw in the Rhino was what you got. He didn’t have visions of domination like the Kingpin, a vendetta against others like Kraven the Hunter, nor was he criminally insane like the Green Goblin. Instead, like most common criminals, he took “jobs” for financial gain. However, in a world where everyone seems to have a hidden motive, the Rhino stands out for his focus on payola – the pure payout. Combined with his primary power to plow over and through anything in his path, makes him seems like a one-dimensional brute that creators in a story more for the flashy fight visuals rather than meaningful story development. But the reality is that the Rhino is so much more than an unstoppable force chasing cash and jewelry.
Will the Real Rhino Please Stand Up
Perhaps the greatest misunderstanding about the Rhino lies in the very reason Aleksei Sytsevich became the character in the first place. Unlike many of Spider-Man’s foes, his original motivation was never to embrace a life of crime. Instead, it came from a far more personal and even wholesome place — the desire to provide for his family. As a young immigrant from Russia with no special abilities but determined to bring the rest of his family over, Aleksei took the only work available to him: serving as “muscle” for the local gangs who controlled his neighborhood. He disliked the life, but it nonetheless gave him a way to inch closer to his goal.
So it was no surprise that he leapt at the chance to earn more money than he had ever imagined when a shadowy offer came from an unnamed European government. They promised him a role as a special agent if he agreed to undergo an experimental procedure that would enhance his body. Believing the enhancements would be temporary, Aleksei consented and was outfitted with a nearly indestructible outer skin along with dramatic boosts to his strength, speed, and power.
Unfortunately, the experimenters lied to him. While Aleksei did gain the promised power-ups, the suit was permanently bonded to his body. Once he donned the iconic Rhino armor, it became impossible to remove. He literally became a Rhino-man. For the government behind the project, this was ideal — they now had a permanent super-powered agent to serve their interests. But for Aleksei, it meant being trapped in a profession he had never truly wanted, condemned to wear the skin for life unless it could somehow be removed without killing him.
The Rise of Master Rhino
So, the Rhino’s criminality comes with an asterisk—namely, his desire to be freed from the very power that enables his crimes. His story is tragic, made even more so by the fact that he has repeatedly tried to escape his criminal life, cure himself, and live normally, yet he always ends up back where he started.
Perhaps the most striking example of this struggle appears in the Flowers for Rhino arc in Spider-Man’s Tangled Web #5–6, written by Peter Milligan and illustrated by Duncan Fegredo. There, we see just how miserable Rhino’s existence truly is: he does the dirty work for clients who treat him like trash and laugh at him behind his back. Though it’s not the life he dreamed of as a younger man, there is now little left to redeem it. His bitterness drives him to hate himself as much as he hates the clients who exploit and mock him—and the superheroes who continually defeat him. As he reflects, “It’s a pity those scientists who gave me my super-tough skin didn’t do something to toughen up my heart.”
A twist of fate presents him with a new opportunity. He volunteers for an experiment designed to enhance his intelligence, and it’s a resounding success. This newfound intellect, combined with his immense strength and impenetrable skin, quickly establishes him as a dominant force in the city. He easily defeats his long-time nemesis, Spider-Man, and even uncovers his true identity as Peter Parker. It’s the best life the Rhino ever hoped he’d have as a man stuck in an indestructible suit. As the saying goes, when you’re given super-intelligence and indestructible skin, you become a super crime boss.
The Unbearable Loneliness of Being the Rhino
The problem, however, was that the experiment made him so intelligent he lost all interest in others, in making money, and in running a criminal organization; to the Rhino, they all became painfully boring and simple. He had fewer connections with people than his previous iteration as Rhino did — meaning he was just as miserable, but now without any of life’s baser joys, like the thrill of running through walls. Ultimately, he devises a procedure to reverse his intelligence and return to his former self. And so ended the Rhino’s time on the mountain-top.
While the Rhino is a criminal, he isn’t your typical supervillain. He’s more akin to an ordinary offender — someone who stumbled into a life of crime not out of malice, but because it was the most viable way for him, given his skill set, to make ends meet. Like the archetype of the recidivist, he’s made genuine attempts to follow the law. Yet time and again, those efforts are thwarted by a system that never truly gives him a chance to succeed.
As a result, he’s repeatedly pushed back into doing what he knows best. Rhino is less a villain by choice and more a man condemned by circumstance — a nuance that’s often misunderstood. He doesn’t revel in his criminal acts; rather, he commits them because the alternatives are nonexistent or unattainable. His life in crime belies a deep yet simple desire to lead a normal life among those he loves and who love him in return.
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Image courtesy of Prokino Filmverleih
