Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man season one review

    I am going to die a Spider-Man fan. I wasn't quite born one but when I was an adolescent, I saved every Spider-Man comic I bought, polybagged them, and then put a bit of tape on the back before placing them on the walls of my room. I wish I had pictures from that time. I also had Spider-Man sheets, underoos, and a tremendous love of Peter Parker and his wife Mary Jane. They were married when I became a fan and the only thing to put me off for a decade of his adventures was the insane idea someone would want to break them up. I may like Felicia Hardy slightly more than Mary Jane but that doesn't make me any less likely to watch a cartoon for adolescents when I'm 45.

    My first impressions were cautiously optimistic. They took Peter Parker back to high school, which is a shame because I'm really sick of them doing that. I know they're trying to appeal to a younger audience but "my" Spider-Man was the animated one where he was in college. I was kind of hoping they would do what they did with the X-men and continue the classic cartoon. Still, I loved The Spectacular Spider-Man and was willing to give it a shot.

    As indicated by the mention of Runaways' Nico Minoru, this is not your typical classic Spider-Man cast with several unexpected characters, starting with her as Peter's best friend. There's no Flash Thompson, Liz Allen, Betty Brant, or Ned Leeds (MCU). Instead, there's Lonnie Lincoln (the future Tombstone), Pearl Pangan (very reminiscent of Liz from Homecoming), and a very uniquely designed Harry Osborn. I'm interested in seeing how this dynamic shakes out. Nico acts very much like MJ from the Holland movies and wouldn't be surprised if Peter is missing out on his best friend liking him "that" way. I also really enjoyed the use of Harry even if I wasn't 100% sold on his design. This version of very much the kind of "rich idiot" that he was never depicted as being in previous shows.

    The show is very reminiscent of the Holland movie versions with Midtown High being a school for geniuses, the Avengers already being a thing, and Aunt May being a younger Italian woman versus a dotting grandmother type. Except the show immediately subverts a lot of this by demolishing Midtown high and then putting him in a "normal" high school, making Norman Osborn his mentor instead of Tony Stark (Oscorp not existing in the MCU), and keeping him out of Avengers business. We also get some other unusual twists like Uncle Ben being dead before Peter is bitten by his spider, Doctor Strange battling a Venom-like symbiote, and lots of unexpected characters like Finesse as well as Amadeus Cho.

    Some fans may dislike the changes made to the canon. Norman and Harry are now African American, Doctor Connors is now a black woman, and Lonnie Lincoln hasn't yet developed his powers (or suffers albinism). A few things that are canonical may also bother others like the fact that Nico is bisexual (though confirmed only in a couple of quickly missed lines). That doesn't bother me even if I'm currently shipping the hell out of Nico and Pete. Nothing starts in the first season but hope springs eternal.

    The series follows roughly three major plotlines with Peter gradually learning that Norman Osborn isn’t a great role model (no kidding), Lonnie Lincoln being led down the wrong path by his desire to do something meaningful (and finding camaraderie with a street gang), and Doctor Otto Octavius filling the Tinkerer’s role in the comics of providing all the equipment for supervillains that Spider-Man must now learn to punch. Which is a substitute for the Vulture substituting for the Tinkerer in the MCU. The Scorpion plays a big role in the comics with Camilla Black (AKA the other Scorpion) serving as his chief henchwoman despite being a hero in the comics.

    The theme of the series seems to be the issue of who Spider-Man is. Is he the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man of the title who keeps to the ground of New York and fights local bad guys or is he the big epic guy from the movies who joins the Avengers with a billionaire patron? It's annoying because the movies make it clear the former is what Peter is meant to be but the show acts like this is in question. Also, it seems to imply that Peter can't do both, which I feel is silly since he's saved the world multiple times on his own.

    Still, I really like how fresh this feels compared to so many other Spider-Man adaptations. I may not like him returning to high school but everything else is great. The Scorpion has never been more terrifying. I also am a huge Tombstone fan and hope this improves the villain's profile (though he's not quite a villain yet). So, I'm definitely recommending it.

    Overall, the art style is unique and immediately attention-getting. It seems designed to be evocative of the Steve Dikto art style and panels in a comic even as it is clearly CGI. The color usage is also designed to feel like newsprint with Nico Minoru, for example, having very deep blues in her hair. It takes some getting used to but I was okay with it after just a few minutes. We have a homemade Spider-suit for Peter in the first couple of episodes, then a Future Foundation inspired look, and the classic costume showing up in the end.

8/10