Who Spiders the Spider-Men?
***Warning: This Article may contain spoilers for Spider-Man: Brand New Day***
I am of the age where my first introduction to the amazing and spectacular Spider-Man comes in the form of the short lived Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends (1981 -1983).
The series featured Firestar and Iceman as co-stars, and boasted many cameo appearances by other well known characters from the pages of Marvel Comics.
It also featured one heck of an ear worm as the instrumental theme song, which still runs through my head from time to time, some forty years later.
While nowhere near as popular or enduring as DC’s Super Friends, which was produced in one form or another from 1973, all the way into the early 80’s, Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends gave us a glimpse of the wider Marvel Universe in a way that wasn’t attempted by its predecessor, the Spider-Man cartoon which ran from 1967 – 1970 (speaking of ear worm theme songs!)
Whatever decade you might’ve had your first encounter with Spidey, whether it be through comic books and cartoons, to live action TV shows and films, there’s no denying that the character has always been one of the most relatable and beloved super heroes ever created (Stan Lee/Steve Ditko), across all age groups and around the world.
Props to McFarlane, Larsen, and Bagley for really pushing things into the 21st century with their phenomenal runs on the title.
The popularity of the character remains evident in the fact that despite having just opened a few days ago, the latest film entitled Spider-Man: Brand New Day has made nearly a billion dollars in a single weekend, is the largest opening of the year so far, and 2nd biggest box office opening of all time (right behind Avengers: EndGame).
The webslinger has always been a big draw in theaters, but the latest release is basically just printing money at this point.
The film once again stars Tom Holland in the titular role, a new Spider-Man they almost flawlessly introduced in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War.
Along with regulars Zendaya, and Jacob Batalon, we also have a lot of screen time with Jon Bernthal’s Punisher, Mark Ruffalo as Hulk/Banner, Florence Pugh as the new Black Widow, and Sadie Sink’s introduction as... Jean Grey.
Yes, the first major mutant character in the MCU has been introduced as none other than Jean Grey, who spends the first half of the movie as a rather unlikable villain, tormenting our heroes.
It’s an odd decision to bring Jean Grey into the mix here, and some of the elements of all the actors and characters seem a bit forced, but overall it balances out with a crafty plot and emotional impact.
Even if the emotional impact sometimes feels like baggage, and certain threads unnecessary or overly played.
It’s not a perfect Spider-Man film. I still prefer Spider-Man 2 from 2004, Spider-Man: No Way Home from 2021, and Spider-Man: Homecoming from 2017 in my top 3. However, when looking at 9 different Spider-Man movies at this point, 4th place isn’t bad.
Very honorable mentions to the animated films Into The Spider-Verse & Across The Spider-Verse. I STILL need to watch Spider-Noir on Amazon Prime!
And while certain themes from the previous film are wrapped up here, it still doesn’t undo what I consider to be major plot holes left behind from No Way Home, as well as the entire MCU at this point.
When half of the output has been mediocre over the past seven years, with so many missed opportunities and disappointing entries going nowhere, it’s a challenge to get too excited or enthusiastic about any comic book film or TV series coming out these days.
It’s hard to see how they are going to adequately “reboot” the MCU timeline with Avengers: Doomsday later this year, or Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled for December 17th, 2027.
Yet, I am still curious to find out how they manage to resolve it.
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Mad Mike Mandrake runs the Horror to Culture website, is the host of the Insane Signals podcast and video variety show, and Editorial Director at House of Scream online magazine.
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