A classic Spider-Man villain botched by Spider-Man: Far From Home looks like he’ll be getting a much-needed second look in Spider-Noir. And though very little is known about its plans, it’s already apparent that Molten Man will be done justice, at least more so than what the Marvel Cinematic Universe offered him.
The underlying concept behind Spider-Noir allows Sony and Prime Video’s new live-action Spider-Man series to reinterpret a long list of classic Spider-Man characters. Because it exists in a film noir-inspired alternate universe, the show seemingly has a great deal of freedom in terms of what it can do with both major and minor players in Spider-Man’s world.
Based on the marketing for the series, Spider-Noir plans to deliver its own takes on several key characters, including Robbie Robertson, Black Cat, Sandman, and Molten Man. Although this is a reality far removed from the traditional Marvel Universe, Spider-Noir is already in a good position to deliver a more accurate Molten Man than what was seen in Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Spider-Noir Appears To Be Introducing A Much More Accurate Version Of Molten Man
Before they turned out to be illusions conjured by Mysterio in Far From Home, Spider-Man and company encountered four elemental monsters, with each meant to represent a member of his rogues’ gallery: Sandman, Molten Man, Hydro-Man, and Cyclone.
It featured some physical features reminiscent of the character, but as a giant monster – not to mention one that wasn’t even real – he hardly felt like a true incarnation of Molten Man. After all, the comic book version of Molten Man is a human being with a complete personality, not a mindless force of destruction.
Included in the Spider-Noir trailer is a man whose body is on fire, thus indicating he’ll be the show’s very own take on Molten Man. Since it looks like he’ll operate as a full-fledged character in the story, Spider-Noir has an opportunity to properly introduce Mark Raxton as a street level villain, explain how he got his powers, and see him develop a personal conflict with Cage’s Spider-Man.
What Molten Man’s Role In Spider-Noir Could Be
The brother of Spider-Man’s first love-interest, Liz Allan, Mark Raxton was caught in a laboratory accident that granted his fiery new abilities and metallic skin. As Molten Man, Mark became a supervillain, often coming to blows with Spider-Man.
But much like other characters whose powers were born from tragic circumstances, such as Sandman and Lizard, Molten Man walked a fine line between good and evil, thanks in large part to his relationship with Liz Allan. Molten Man occasionally demonstrated redemptive qualities.
Given the nature of its story and the creative freedom afforded by its alternate universe setting, it’s likely that Spider-Noir will take some liberties with his origin story in order to keep it in line with its dark tone, but the basic premise of the Mark Raxton character could certainly work for the Spider-Noir series, possibly as a super-powered criminal connected to one of Ben Reilly’s cases.
