Sergei Kravinoff was born in
Stalingrad, Russia. As Kraven, he was a maniacal big game
hunter who sought to defeat Spider-Man to prove that he was the greatest hunter in the world. Unlike other hunters, he typically disdained the use of
guns or
bow and arrows preferring to take down large dangerous animals with his bare hands even though he often made elaborate preparations to weaken a quarry before hand. He also used a mystical serum to give him similar strength to Spider-Man, but even without the serum he was a threat to the wall-crawler. Spider-Man proved a frustrating quarry because Kraven continually underestimated the superhero's resourcefulness.
In the acclaimed story by
J.M. DeMatteis and
Mike Zeck, "
Kraven's Last Hunt," his aggravation with his inability to run the
superhero down further destroyed his sanity. With that, he hatched a scheme that actually defeated Spider-Man, and seemingly and uncharacteristically shot him dead. Considering his enemy effectively dead, Kraven buried him. After this, Kraven donned a copy of Spider-Man's costume and sought to prove that he was superior at his enemy's activities. This culminated with his successful singlehanded capture of a minor supervillain,
Vermin, whom Spider-Man needed the help of
Captain America to defeat. After that triumph, Spider-Man revived from the tranquilizer dart he was actually shot with and dug his way out of the grave. Kraven greeted him and explained that he had made his point about defeating his enemy. Then he released Vermin and told Spider-Man to pursue him. At this point, having no further purpose, Kraven committed
suicide while Spider-Man captured the villain on his own.
Kraven's allegiances and relatives in life were, for the most part, revealed only after his death. The
Chameleon was the person who initially gave Kraven the idea of hunting Spider-Man in
Amazing Spider-Man #15. After Kraven died, the Chameleon was revealed to be Dmitri Smerdyakov, Kraven's half-brother, personal servant, and the victim of Kraven's abuse, and yet, according to Smerdyakov, the two were best friends nonetheless. Kraven's lover, the
voodoo priestess
Calypso, manipulated the
Lizard against the wall-crawler in the first issues of
Todd McFarlane's best-selling
Spider-Man series. It was later revealed in a story arc concerning
Ka-Zar that Kraven was trained as a hunter largely by a mysterious man named
Gregor, a mercenary who battled the
Lord of the Jungle.
[edit] Sons
Kraven has since had two sons take up his role. There was a third son as well, Ned Tannengarden, who tried to kill Alyosha, but was murdered by the Chameleon (who believed himself to be the original Kraven at that point).
[edit] Vladimir Kravinoff
Vladimir Kravinoff,
mutant, took up the name "The Grim Hunter" and decided to hunt down Spider-Man and several of his foes. He only had one battle with Spider-Man, and his methods were nearly the same as his father's. He was briefly involved with the
Hobgoblin, even giving that incarnation (Jason Macendale) his father's super strength formula. When he got out of jail, he decided to track Spider-Man down again, only to fight the
Scarlet Spider instead.
Kaine, a clone of Spider-Man arrived, and after a confrontation, Vladimir was killed by the insane duplicate.
[edit] Alyosha Kravinoff
Main article: Alyosha Kravinoff
Some time after the death of Vladimir, his half brother, Alyosha Kravinoff (or "Al Kraven"), became the newest Kraven. During his tenure as the Hunter, he was manipulated by
Calypso and killed her before joining
The Sandman's reformed
Sinister Six. After the team dissolved following the Sandman's betrayal of
Venom, the symbiote began hunting down his former team mates, wounding both Sandman and
Electro. He was surprised that Kraven was able to hold out the longest against him, but ultimately defeated and almost disemboweled the hunter, who was saved by Spider-Man at the cost of Venom's escape. Shortly after, he retired from the supervillain scene, and decided to become a
Hollywood star and semi-superhero. Alyosha is a
mutant and retained his superhuman powers after the
M-Day. He was prominently featured in the
Beyond! miniseries.
There is reason to believe that this character is named for one of Fyodor Dostoevsky's
The Brothers Karamazov: Kraven's ally the Chameleon was born Dmitri Smerdyakov. Dmitri and Smerdyakov are two of the Karamazov brothers, and it is unlikely that the occurrence of all three names in the mythos surrounding Kraven is simply coincidental.
[edit] Powers and abilities
By ingesting mystical potions, Kraven and his heirs are able to gain superhuman strength and speed approaching, but not equaling that of Spider-Man. These same potions also slow the aging process, for example, at the time of the original Kraven's death he was over 70 years old and he appeared to be in the prime of his life (though age was beginning to affect him).
Agility, reflexes, stamina, and endurance are also enhanced. Kraven and his heirs more or less constantly ingest these potions and herbs, so they normally have these abilities, but without the effects of these potions they still possess physical strength and agility of the level of an Olympic athlete.
Aside from the augmentation of the mystical herbs, the original Kraven was a brilliant tactician and gifted hunter and tracker. He was a master of many forms of armed and unarmed combat. He was very familiar with medicine and with exotic poisons and tranquilizers. His sons also possess(ed) knowledge in these areas.
[edit] Grim Hunter (Vlad Kravinoff)
Grim Hunter also carried an electrified glove in combat. Vlad was said to be a mutant. Though what his mutation was has not been clearly explained, it was implied that he was born with an augmented physique and did not need the Kraven formula to achieve it. As it appears the character has resurfaced alive he would also have some type of regenerative healing factor. He had naturally enhanced senses, presumably due to his mutation.
[edit] Al Kraven (Alyosha Kravinoff)
Kraven II has the same abilities and skills of his father, with the addition of an ability to control animals which has never been fully explained (possibly a mutation). He has a greater education than his father or brother, and is relatively sane compared to the rest of his family, though still prone to personality lapses where he may turn from a cool and calm gentleman to a raging animal in seconds. He has also revealed to Spider-Man during in a conversation in a bar that his mother was a mutant like him.
. 
t: For some of the Unknowledged fans.
He's never one to lie about a comic. But I trust you guys more than him on this subject matter.
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