“You don’t want any part of this,” Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) says as he materializes in a column of green smoke, issuing an admonition to the enormous water elemental flooding the city in the new Spider-Man: Far From Home trailer (or maybe it’s a snipe at Spider-Man, whose alter-ego Peter Parker just got hosed onto his ass by said elemental); amid twenty-story-high waves and bridges and buildings and people being swooped up and submerged in the creature’s deluge, Mysterio is calm. Cool. Confident. Heroic, even?
He lifts his hands, fires off a barrage of green lasers from his gauntlets and then soars into battle, fending off enormous water-tentacles with green energy shields to rival Dr. Strange’s. Wait, why is Mysterio saving the day? Isn’t he supposed to be the bad guy? Is this some sort of trick? An illusion?
Now we’re talking. Because if you’ve been wondering what the theatrical, fishbowl-headed character from the Spider-Man: Far From Home trailer’s capable of, illusions are his specialty. But what other tricks does Mysterio have up his runic sleeve? The following are a breakdown of the special effects wizard/stunt man turned Spider-Man arch nemesis’ mind-blowing abilities from the comic books.
Illusions
As mentioned above, Mysterio is a master of illusions. Here he tricks Spider-Man into thinking he’s killed an innocent bystander fleeing for his life:
The stone golem looks similar to the vast elemental creatures Spider-Man and friends confront in the trailer. Could they all be part of some giant Mysterio ruse?
Mysterio’s also able to make duplicates of himself:
Simulate earthquakes:
Bamboozle Spider-Man into a stupor by making him think he’s seeing villains that aren’t there (in one of their earliest encounters):
Trick Spider-Man into thinking he was heading towards the Avengers Mansion:
Impersonates Spider-Man’s cousin just to get a cheap shot in:
And even faked the death of Aunt May:
If Mysterio decides to pull this stunt in the movie, seeing Marisa Tomei in a coffin is going to hit us (and most definitely Peter) right in the feels.
Equipment
Another key takeaway from the Far From Home trailer is Mysterio’s use of equipment and gadgetry; does salvaged Chitauri tech facilitate Quentin Beck’s (Mysterio’s real name) abilities a la The Vulture in Homecoming? Or do the crux of his powers stem from his proficiency with special effects? Or both?
In the comics, Mysterio has stymied Spider-Man time and again with clever use of technology, such as magnetic shoes and gas to dissolve Spider-Man’s webbing:
Gas which disables Spider-Sense:
Gas which has been proven strong enough to knock out She-Hulk:
He also uses a tranquilizer gun “with enough depressant to kill a herd of elephants.”
Mind Control/Hypnosis
Mysterio’s machinations over the mind aren’t limited to just illusions; he’s also able to control minds via hypnosis:
Forces numerous heroes to fight each other:
Trick Spider-Man into thinking he’s drowning in an unfilled swimming pool:
Other Feats:
Teleports/vanishes in his debut issue (The Amazing Spider-Man #13, June 1964):
Lightning illusion and corrosive acid in his gauntlets:
Fire projection (again, this could prove similar to the fire elemental seen in the Far From Home trailer:
Escapes from prison, seemingly sans suit:
Fakes his own death:
Will Mysterio prove a formidable foe for Spider-Man in Far From Home? Did we leave out any impressive Mysterio feats? Sound off in the comments.
Special thanks to u/shadowsphere for the images and Mysterio Respect Thread.
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