| “ | All these souls, lost and alone, I can save them! I can cure them! There's no need to stop me, Peter Parker! | „ |
| ~ The Lizard |
History
Cross-Species Genetics Research
One of Oscorp's leading scientific minds, Dr. Curtis Connors worked with Richard Parker to engineer a revolutionary regeneration serum to help re-grow limbs and human tissue from cross-species genetics. Richard would mysteriously perish, taking with him much of his scientific genius Connors was left unable to finish his work, effectively dooming his chances of regrowing his missing right arm.
Over a decade later, Connors is still working on the project at Oscorp, which has apparently been brought back due to the corporation's founder, Norman Osborn, being terminally ill. He also wrote a book about the possible medical breakthroughs from cross-species genetics. Under time constraints, Connors is unable to complete the project until Richard's son Peter comes into his life. Feeling guilty about cutting his close friend's son out of his life, Connors allows him to work on the project with him at Oscorp Peter also supplies a missing algorithm from his father's notes, leading to the successful development of a serum based on lizard DNA.
Becoming the Lizard
Dr. Ratha, Connors' superior at Oscorp, decides to fast-track human testing. Connors pleads with him to wait until they know the full side affects, but Ratha threatens to fire him and reminds him that Richard Parker took the same stand over ten years before. Ratha decides to test the serum at the city's largest veterans' hospital. In the hopes of preventing this, Connors tries the serum on himself, turning him into the monstrous Lizard. As Curtis notices his body mutating into a reptilian form, he orders a taxi driver to drive to the Veterans hospital in hopes of stopping Dr. Ratha from injecting the serum into the patients, where they will turn into Lizards too.
Suffering from mental problems as a result of his transformation, the Lizard attempts to kill Dr. Ratha on the bridge, but is stopped by Spider-Man. After he escapes, Connors creates a makeshift lab in a sewer, in which he begins increasing the dosage of the reptilian formula. After an injection, he senses a danger. Now fully mutated, the Lizard confronts Spider-Man again, who had tracked him down into the sewer. He severely wounds the hero, but Spider-Man escapes before the finishing blow can be delivered. However, he discovers a camera marked "Property of Peter Parker", and deduces that Peter and Spider-Man are one and the same, leading to him crushing the camera.
As the dosage is increased, so does the Lizard persona. After only two injections, the Lizard has already seemingly taken a mind of its own, and begins speaking to Connors mentally. The Lizard convinces Connors to inject himself again, under the promise that he will "save" the city. Once Connors transforms, he seemingly loses control of himself, and The Lizard fully takes over.
Rampage Across New York
The Lizard attacks Midtown High, looking for Peter, as he doesn't want anyone to stop what he has planned. He nearly kills Peter by causing a chemical reaction, creating a small explosive, but Peter emerges in his Spider-Man suit. During the fight, Peter tries to reason with him, but to no avail as the Lizard continues to attack him. After a lengthy battle, the police arrive, and The Lizard retreats. The Lizard then sets to work on unleashing the serum on New York City's populace via a device capable of infecting entire cities by unleashing a chemical "cloud" into the sky. On his way to OsCorp, he is attacked by a SWAT team, which he defeats easily and mutates into similar lizard-like creatures. He also transforms bystanders into lizards. Once inside OsCorp, he finds Gwen Stacy, who attempts to hide the device from him. He easily recovers the device and plants it on OsCorp tower.
As the timer counts down, Spider-Man arrives and attacks the Lizard, but is easily restrained, and Lizard destroys his web-shooters. Captain George Stacy arrives as well, and keeps the Lizard at bay by shooting him multiple times with a shotgun. Stacy gives Peter an antidote, which he replaces the reptilian formula in the device with. The Lizard murders Captain Stacy, and attempts to stop Peter. When the timer ends, a cure is released into the city, rather than the formula, curing the Lizard and all others he infected. Now reverted back into Dr. Connors, he saves Peter from falling off the OsCorp tower. In the aftermath of the crisis, Connors is incarcerated as a terrorist and is taken into a mental institution.
In the mental facility, he is visited by a shadowy figure, who demands to know if Connors told Richard's son the full story about his father. Connors says no and demands to leave Peter alone, though the man vanishes in the shadows.
Trial
On January 6, 2014, the trial of Connors came to an end. He was charged with 20 counts and found guilty of them all, including the murder of George Stacy. The former Lizard was represented by attorney Anne Weying. The defense used in the trial was that Connors experimented on himself to prevent Oscorp from experimenting on innocent people. The doctor was sent to the Rikers prison instead of Ravencroft, which was a controversial move. This information was provided in an article from The Daily Bugle on the same day.
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