The Spectacular Spider-Man

There have been many adaptations  of everyone’s favorite web-head, when I was a kid it was the 1967 Spider-Man series that had a couple season produced by Ralph Bakshi, and it still has one of the best theme songs that asked, “Can he swing from a thread?  Take a look overhead.”  Then the 70s gave us a live action series starring Nicholas Hammond but sadly the effects of the time and the  fairly low budget pretty much made this an impossible venture. After that several more animated attempts, some better than others.  Then enter Greg Weisman and Victor Cook who together developed I believe to be the most faithful adaptation to date.

Now I’m not saying this show was slavishly accurate to how the stories were depicted in the comics but these two managed to capture the pure joy of Spider-Man.  Sure Peter Parker (Josh Keaton) has his teen-age angst filled moments but when he puts on that costume to swing through the canyons of New York he explodes with the fun and excitement that one would hope to have if they were given the proportionate powers of a spider.

One can’t expect any producer to stick to the canon of a comic book character that has run several decades, in various titles, with countless changes to characters and origins.  So in 2008 The Spectacular Spider-Man aired with a slew of recognizable characters but with some nice tweeks to their origin to make them fit into this animated world.  Gwen Stacey (Lacey Chabert) is one of Pete’s best friends but who would really like to be more than that, Harry Osborn (James Arnold Taylor) is Peter’s other close friend and in a nod to the comics has a drug problem, but this time out it’s an Oscorp performance enhancing drug that turns him into the Green Goblin.

 Of course Venom, a fan favorite, has to make an appearance but now he’s not a disgraced journalist that wishes Peter harm, now Eddie Brock (Ben Diskin) is an almost older brother figure to Peter but who feels betrayed when Peter’s Spider-Man action cause problems for the people around him. 

Two other key villains in the series is of course Norman Osborn (Alan Rachins) who is secretly supplying the criminal underworld with Oscorp tech to create super villains such as the Sandman and Rhino.  The other major player is known as “The Big Man” who uses these created super villains to keep Spider-Man busy and away from his criminal enterprises.  The reveal as to whom “The Big Man” is for me the only disappointing element in the entire run of the series, and I’m betting it is a rights issue.  For any fan of the comic knows that a large shadowy figure that runs a criminal empire while keeping an honest business façade is Wilson Fisk aka The Kingpin, as Fox owns the rights to Daredevil and through him Kingpin, I’m guessing that’s why he doesn’t appear in this Sony series.  Who did they chose to replace him? *No Spoilers here go and watch it yourself* let’s just say he would really have a hard time pulling of the nice philanthropist act.

That this show got cancelled after just two seasons is a crime and that The Avengers: Earth Mightiest Heroes, my other favorite super-hero cartoon also got cancelled after two seasons I’m crying, “Conspiracy!”

So for those who loved it and for those that missed it during its original run, the complete series is now available on Blu-ray, and it simply looks gorgeous.

"Face it Tiger, you hit the jackpot."