AMERICAN NINJAS
Membership: None identified
Purpose: Foot soldiers
Aliases: None
Affiliations: None; formerly Raven (Emeline Foster, Kurt Godwin, others including a big robot)
Enemies: Mr. Flint, Rocky Flint, Kurt Godwin, Red Hulk (Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross), Spider-Girl (Anya Corazón), Spider-Man (Peter Parker)
Base of Operations: Raven outposts across New York City
First Appearance: Spider-Girl II#7 (July, 2011)
History:
(Spider-Girl II#8) - The American Ninjas were all volunteers.
(Spider-Girl II#7 (fb) - BTS) - They went through years of training, received genetic modifications, a variety of mental implants and drugs (according to #8) that granted them enhanced strength, endurance, speed and more. The process also shortened their life spans incredibly and they got their vocal cords cut because otherwise all they would do is scream. In addition they received brainwashing...
(Spider-Girl II#8 (fb) - BTS) - ...by a machine that sent out a neural inhibitor feed that kept them in line, hid memories of what Raven had done to them and gave them the orders they followed without question.
(Spider-Girl II#7) - At Raven Lab 722 in New York Spider-Man and Spider-Girl fought several of Raven's American Ninjas. Armed with swords, machine guns, handguns, tonfas and spears the American Ninjas did all in their power to take down the two heroes. One of them tackled Spider-Girl through a window and Spider-Man had to save her. They returned to knock out the remaining American Ninjas and Spider-Girl nearly joked one of them to death because she was still upset about her father's death and didn't understand why the American Ninjas allowed their creators to shorten their life span and basically cause their early death. Spider-Man calmed her down before she went too far.
Spider-Man and Spider-Girl had another run-in with American Ninjas and a powerful red robot at another Raven outpost. They defeated the American Ninjas and Spider-Girl rewired the robot's programming and uploaded a game into his operating system that made the pigs from the game its target and not them.
(Spider-Girl II#8) - Emeline Foster was accompanied by two American Ninjas when she presented Spider-Girl with her new costume after Raven had kidnapped Spider-Girl's roommate and her roommate's father. She tried to blackmail Spider-Girl into joining them and gave her one minute to make a decision. Spider-Girl, who had just regained spider-powers (this was during the Spider-Island storyline) easily beat up the American Ninjas, webbed up Foster and forced her to tell where her roommate was kept.
Spider-Girl went to the main Raven base (R1) to save her roommate and her roommate's father with her returned powers. She contacted Spider-Man to tell him where she was before entering the base and fighting her way through American Ninjas and other Raven operatives, including Kurt Godwin, who had posed as her neighbor to gather information on her. During the fight she discovered information that could shut down half of the U.S. Military and called the Red Hulk to inform him where she was because he had been after Raven for killing a friend of his. Godwin's attempt to escape was foiled by Spider-Girl when she tossed part of the machine at an American Ninja before causing a blackout. Godwin ordered the American Ninjas to use night vision before Spider-Girl picked them off one by one. The American Ninjas fired into the dark, but were still picked off one by one. Spider-Girl wasn't afraid to face Godwin, who accidentally shot and damaged the machine that kept the American Ninjas docile. The American Ninjas finally remembered what Raven had done to them and turned on Godwin, who apologized for killing Spider-Girl's father. Even after learning that he was responsible for her father's death, Spider-Girl saved Godwin from the American Ninjas. Aided by Red Hulk and Spider-Man all American Ninjas and the rest of Raven were defeated and Spider-Girl's roommate Rocky Flint and her father were saved.
Comments: Created by Paul Tobin, Clayton Henry & Sergio Cariello.
Profile by Markus Raymond.
CLARIFICATIONS:
American Ninjas have no known connections to:
images:
Spider-Girl II#8, p2, pan1 (main)
Spider-Girl II#7, p2, pan2 (fighting Spider-Man)
Spider-Girl II#7, p2, pan3 (fighting Spider-Girl)
Spider-Girl II#8, p15, pan4 (multiple American Ninjas turning on Godwin)
Appearances:
Spider-Girl II#7 (July, 2011) - Paul Tobin (writer), Clayton Henry & Sergio Cariello (artists), Tom Brennan (editor)
Spider-Girl II#8 (September, 2011) - Paul Tobin (writer), Clayton Henry & Sergio Cariello (artists), Tom Brennan (editor)
First Posted: 11/07/2025
Last updated: 11/07/2025
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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