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The short answer
Raptor is a botched duplicate of Ben Reilly, eaten away by a degeneration that drives him to murder: he holds Peter Parker responsible for his suffering. Rarely named among the great villains, his case lays bare the ethical drift of cloning. We look back at his story below.
When people bring up Spider-Man's Clone Saga storyline, the first names that spring to mind are Ben Reilly, Kaine, or Spidercide. Yet a far more obscure, far more tragic and much less publicised character deserves your full attention: Raptor. Also known by his civilian identity, Damian Tryp Jr., this fallen clone of Ben Reilly embodies one of the darkest and most unsettling developments of this tangled saga.
First appearing in the mini-series Spider-Man: The Gauntlet, Raptor is not just one more evil clone. He embodies the doubt, the rage and the mental degeneration that can arise from the reckless duplication of a human being. Unlike Kaine, eaten away by cellular degeneration, or Ben, torn between identity and duty, Raptor is an unstable clone whose hatred will literally consume him.
His obsession: Peter Parker, whom he believes responsible for his pain, his failure and the loss of his own identity. That tragic misunderstanding pushes him to acts of extreme violence... and turns him into one of the most unpredictable killers in the Spider-Verse.
But who is he really? And why does he remain one of the least known villains to this day, when his story raises such deep questions about human nature, cloning and justice?
Let's dive into the origins of a forgotten clone turned killer, and find out why the Clone Saga still divides Spider-Man fans today.
You can explore every story arc other than the Clone Saga on our dedicated page!
Raptor's path – between hatred, confusion and a manhunt
Raptor, real name Jimmy Natale (not to be confused with Damian Tryp Jr., a separate character sometimes mixed up with him depending on the arc), is one of the many faces of botched cloning around Spider-Man. Here are the key moments of his tortured path:
- A genetic error: An unstable clone of Ben Reilly, Jimmy Natale takes the full force of a rapid cellular degeneration that eats away at his body and his mind. He quickly loses any sense of an identity of his own.
- A sickly obsession: Convinced that Peter Parker is responsible for his pain (mistaking him for Ben Reilly), he sets off on a vengeful hunt. This confusion between the clones and Peter sits at the very heart of his psychosis.
- The fall: His mental instability drives him to commit several violent murders, convinced he is in the right. He sees himself not as a villain, but as a victim demanding justice.
- Facing Spider-Man: During their clash, Peter Parker discovers the twisted face and the despair of a being created to fail. The fight is as much moral as it is physical, laying bare the horror of cloning without ethics.
- A brutal end: Raptor is eventually stopped, but his fate is left open to interpretation. His pain, though, echoes as a tragic reminder of every cloning experiment in the Marvel universe.
This character is a twisted version of what Ben Reilly could have become had he sunk into madness. In that sense, he is a warped mirror of Peter Parker: the same DNA, but a broken destiny.
To discover other troubled figures of the Spider-Verse, explore our Spider-Man figures collection, where allies and the darkest enemies alike come to life as collector models.
A little-known character, yet a symbol of the clone tragedy
Raptor never had the visibility of a Venom, a Norman Osborn or even a Kaine. And yet his existence adds another layer to the eternal question of identity in Spider-Man stories. Jimmy Natale, in his search for meaning, embodies a recurring drama in the web-slinger's world: that of lost clones, created without purpose, manipulated or simply left behind.
His total rejection of his own humanity, his physical mutation and his illogical hatred of Peter Parker make him a tragic creature. He is not simply one more villain to take down: he is a painful scientific mistake, a reminder of every horror that experiments run without conscience can produce.
What makes Raptor even more interesting is the absence of a real, classic villain role. He is not trying to rule the world or destroy New York. He acts purely out of suffering and confusion. In that, he joins the line of characters like the Lizard or Morbius, who stand for a curse far more than for a choice of evil.
Despite his limited appearances, Raptor remains an enigma, a warning in the Marvel universe about the dangers of cloning and the loss of identity. He is the silent shadow of Ben Reilly, a version the latter could have become had he given in to the pain instead of fighting it.
For anyone who enjoys exploring the dark, psychological corners of the Spider-Man universe, this little-known antagonist is a fascinating way in. And if you want to take that immersion further, our Spider-Man slippers or web-slinger masks are waiting to round off your fan experience, comfortably and in style.
A forgotten fate… but not without impact
Jimmy Natale, alias Raptor, will probably never sit among Spider-Man's iconic enemies. And yet he embodies a whole side of the web-slinger's world: scientific errors, broken identities and tormented souls. His existence, as brief as it was intense, is a reminder of just how deeply the theme of cloning has cut into Peter Parker's mythology.
Want to know more about the clones, their tragedies and their crossed fates? Dive into our article on Ben Reilly, or explore the mystical, moving story of 'The Other', when Peter Parker comes face to face with his own mortality.
In the Spider-Man universe, even forgotten characters like Raptor have something to say. You just have to listen to the echoes of the past…
If you enjoyed this article, you can also have a look at our full page on all of Spider-Man's enemies or at our complete guide to all Spidey merchandise
