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I must admit that I am still a kid at heart but I honestly believe that any adult would enjoy joy the Spectacular Spider-Man as much as any child. I do not mind viewing this program with my son because it is fun for all ages. I am a huge Spidey fan since I can remember and I will continue to be one for many years to come. You will not be disappointed and I cannot wait for season two!!!
Rating:  -
It's kind of hard to believe, but Spider-Man has been around for nearly fifty years. The character has been the subject of feature films, television, and several animated series. This new take on the webslinger, features Spidey as a relative newcomer to the superhero scene, as a sixteen year old Peter Parker is living in Forrest Hills with his Aunt May.
The Spectacular Spider-Man is very modern, but reflects aspects from the character's early comic genesis, and has a more traditional flavor than Sam Raimi's films, or 2003's Spider-Man the New Animated Series. Little touches like the Spidey signal, the split Parker/Spidey view, and the overshadowing web background across the sky, pay homage to traditions from the comics. Peter pursuing Betty Brant, and Mary Jane Watson the neighbor with `personality', are also true to the comics, but Gwen Stacy and Harry Osborn are introduced early in the chronology, making them contemporaries with Flash Thompson and Liz Allan. Incorporated into the stories are the Parker's financial woes, Aunt May's health, and Peter's troubles with girls and his peer group. Peter's personality seems to be in line with the comics. Because he is not accepted, and is the subject of ridicule from the in-crowd, like a dog that is kicked, Peter often reacts out of hurt or anger. He is not a shy, uncoordinated, wimp.
The stories often feature the introduction of various classic villains, in their initial encounter with Spider-Man. Here the episodes parts ways with the traditional Marvel Universe, as the cartoon incorporates arcs involving conspiracies, that result in the creation of The Sandman, The Rhino, and even Dr. Octopus. The Enforcers, are the main muscle for the mysterious Big Man, a criminal mastermind, who also has an association with Tombstone, and Norman Osborn. Osborn is very with many schemes, and also makes an appearance as the Green Goblin. The Shocker is an impressive and skillful fighter, but Electro is given a major makeover, that is a disaster. Doc Ock's somewhat passive personality, and poorly animated appearance, is another disappointment. Peter Parker's involvement with Curt Connors, makes an appearance by The Lizard is almost obligatory.
Spider-Man quickly progresses from a wisecracking teenager, to an awesome fighting machine. In `Group Therapy' he takes on a deadly version of The Sinister Six (Doc Ock, Sandman, Shocker, Rhino, Vulture, and Electro) and emerges victorious, after displaying mind-bending fighting skills. Most of these villains are from the same era, the first sixty or so issues of The Amazing Spider-Man, published in the mid 1960's. But in a bold step, the series jumps ahead almost twenty years, to also include the alien symbiote, Eddie Brock, and Venom. This appearance so early in Peter Parker's life, crosses eras and requires some major massaging to bring Brock into an unfamiliar timeline, to introduce Venom. It is a very unconventional, and perhaps controversial. The emotional intensity increases, surreal elements are introduced, and some furious fighting takes place, leading to an exciting and dramatic conclusion, to what is a sensational first season.
The producers' lofty goal, is for The Spectacular Spider-Man to become a classic representation of the character. Time will tell regarding that matter, but the series does show promise, and deserves credit for attempting to incorporate many elements from the original Marvel Universe. The animation is high quality, hand drawn by artists in Korea. It features cool settings, and does a very good job of capturing movements, particularly in some impressive fight scenes. With stylized characters with anatomically exaggerated looks, soft facial features, and some with voices that sound childlike, the cartoon is aimed at a younger crowd.
The amount of violence is very high. Harry Osborn's foray into substance abuse is somewhat premature, and is an element that is not suitable for young kids. Overall, the writing is quite good, focusing on incorporating mostly traditional elements and characters. Peter is finding his way in the romance department, and does not have a have a steady girlfriend, but most of the other significant relationships, like Peter and Flash, Norman and Harry Osborn, Peter and JJ, and Peter and Aunt May, seem to be on the right track. Not everything the writers come up with works well, in battle, Spidey has always been something of a trash talker, but it is way overdone here.
In Nature vs. Nurture, the spirit of Uncle Ben appears, and amazingly Peter is able to discern the precise nature of the alien symbiote. Peter often demonstrates incredible intelligence and wit, far beyond his sixteen years, but this is a bit much. Brock's backstory of how his parents and Peter's parents both perished in the same accident, tarnishes the memory of Peter's parents, Richard and Mary Parker. In The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #5, Peter learns that parents died in Algeria in 1949, suspected of being traitors to America, and Spider-Man investigates, battles Red Skull, and vindicates them. With World War II over sixty years in the past, it's understandable, that the original story would not work, but was it necessary to use Peter's parents as so much plot fodder?
The two DVD set contains thirteen episodes, and two short bonus featurettes. Although aimed at a younger demographic, this animated feature is definitely recommended to Spidey fans of all ages.
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Great DVD! Full first season on two disks. Fun for kids with plenty of witty adult humor. Fun for the whole family.
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This show is just the greatest! Better than the previous animated shows and the film series; in fact this series makes those previous incarnations seem lame and dull in comparrison!!! I can't wait for the second season to come out, and I'm even more excited about season three!!!
The first season features Peter Parker beginning his junior year at Midtown Manhattan Magnet High School, having only acquired his powers and alias as Spider-Man in recent months. While harassed at school, primarily by Flash Thompson, he is close friends with classmates Gwen Stacy and Harry Osborn. In order to help support his Aunt May after the death of his Uncle Ben, Peter is able to get freelance work at the Daily Bugle, run by J. Jonah Jameson, by obtaining pictures of his alter-ego in action. He and Gwen are also given junior lab assistant positions under Dr. Curt Connors at Empire State University, where they join their friend and mentor Eddie Brock.
As Spider-Man uses his powers to fight against petty crime, he gains the attention of the Big Man, who orchestrates crime in New York City. With the help of Norman Osborn and Dr. Otto Octavius, the Big Man oversees development of a project to create "supervillians" designed to distract Spider-Man from other crimes and stop damaging his profits. However, these motives become greatly challenged as the mysterious Green Goblin enters the picture.
Throughout the first season, other opponents are introduced, including Vulture, Hammerhead, the Enforcers, Electro, Lizard, Sandman, Rhino, Tombstone, Doctor Octopus, Black Cat and Chameleon. Quentin Beck and Phineas Mason appear as Chameleon's associates. Spider-Man's symbiote black suit also makes an appearance, eventually leading to Eddie Brock's transformation into Venom.
CHARACTERS
Peter Parker/Spider-Man- Voiced By Josh Keaton: Bitten by a genetically altered spider while visiting Dr. Curt Connors' lab at Empire State University, Peter Parker donned a spider themed costume to fight crime after allowing a burglar to escape, who later killed his Uncle Ben.
Gwen Stacey- Voiced By Lacey Chabert: Gwendolyn Stacy is one of Peter Parker's best friends and an intellectual equal, not to mention harboring a crush on him. Her appearance and personality here is very different than past incarnations and appears to be partially influenced by Debra Whitman's character. She is the daughter of Police Captain George Stacy and also gained an internship with Dr. Connors at Empire State.
Harry Osborne/Green Goblin- Voiced By James Arnold Taylor: Harry is Peter's other best friend and son of ruthless industrialist Norman Osborn. He constantly lives in his father's shadow and considers Peter a good friend despite being much richer than him. Harry drops Peter as a friend after failing to tutor him twice, leading to his failure on the calculus test. However, when Norman gives Harry a lecture on self-responsibility, Harry reconsiders his decision.
L. Thompson Lincoln/Tombstone/Big Man- Voiced By Keith David (in episode 1) & Kevin Michael Richardson (in all the other episodes): As one of the main villains of the series, L. Thompson Lincoln is believed by Spider-Man to be the true identity of the "Big Man," though he says he's gone by many names, his favorite being Tombstone. Tombstone is one of the few villains to best Spider-Man in a fight.
Hammerhead- Voiced By John DiMaggio: Hammerhead was originally Tombstone's second in command, and organized much of the mysterious Big Man's criminal empire, providing its face (and more frequently, muscle) in its various dealings. It was through Hammerhead that the Big Man made a deal with Norman Osborn to continue making supervillains so Spider-Man would be too distracted to stop the Big Man's operations.
Adrian Toomes/Vulture- Voiced By Robert Englund: Adrian Toomes is an elderly scientist tricked by Norman Osborn to reveal his plans for flying technology, not knowing that Osborn was planning on stealing his invention and blaming his friend Octavius until he learns the truth. After Osborn showed no remorse for his actions, Toomes donned his own flying suit and dubbed himself Vulture (based on an insult Norman had given him earlier in the day) in order to force Norman to apologize until Spider-Man stopped him.
Max Dillon/Electro- Voiced By Crispin Freeman: Maxwell Dillon was a young 20 year old electrician and a friend of Dr. Curt Connors until he suffered a terrible accident which transformed him into the supervillain Electro. Accidentally dropping his power drill on a faulty wire - sending an electrical shock through his body - he was thrown back against a tank of electric eels Dr. Connors was experimenting with. His body began to generate more electricity to the point that a protective suit was made to protect everyone around him.
Dr. Curt Connors/Lizard- Voiced By Dee Bradley Baker: Dr. Curt Connors is a respected scientist, interested in genetics. He runs a biology lab at Empire State University with his wife Martha. Although his primary interest was in lizard DNA, he also experimented on spiders, splicing together the best traits from multiple species into 'super-spiders'. It was due to his research, and in his very laboratory, that Peter Parker was bitten and transformed into Spider-Man. He employees Eddie Brock as a lab assistant and Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy as interns until Peter was fired due to 'trust issues' with his wife. Having lost his right arm in the first Gulf War, Connors had been secretly experimenting with Lizard DNA to regrow his arm. When one vial was hit by Electro's lightning bolt, it charged the DNA and slowly turned Connors into the Lizard after injecting himself with it. He eventually was cured by Spider-Man but it left him depressed about his irresponsibility from his research.
Flint Marko/Sandman- Voiced By John DiMaggio: Flint Marko is introduced as a petty crook, seen working alongside Alex O'Hirn under the Big Man. He had been captured by Spider-Man twice before the start of the series, and several times afterwards as well, usually with relative ease. Unlike his partner O'Hirn, Marko's motivation remained solely to seek out money despite Spider-Man's constant foilings, referring to his eventual goal as getting his "big score." Marko continued to work for Big Man as a hired hand until being selected as the first of many guinea pig-supervillains created under the deal between Big Man and Norman Osborn. He originally was to be bonded with a silicon armor, but instead he bonded with the sand particles on the floor, turning his body into a shapeshifting weapon. Now calling himself the Sandman, he creates chaos where ever he goes, robbing banks and ATMs and even an armored car. After attempting a few robberies, he faces Spider-Man in a construction site and, ultimately, Marko was defeated as Spider-Man used a tank of wet, quick-drying cement to encase him, stopping him in his tracks as a statue.
Alex O'Hirn/Rhino- Voiced By Clancy Brown: At first Alexander "Alex" O'Hirn is just a petty crook, seen working with Flint Marko under orders of the Big Man. He is captured by Spider-Man with ease times and time again, which increases his annoyance and hatred of Spider-Man. Unlike his partner, money is a secondary interest to him, his primary one being revenge. He later becomes one of OsCorp's guinea pig-supervillains and is bonded with a thick titanium resin armor, transforming him into a giant being who bears strong characteristics to a Rhinoceros, calling himself the Rhino. After a fierce battle, Spider-Man defeated Rhino by overheating him using the sewer's steam pipes, since the impenetrable armor makes it difficult for O'Hirn to sweat properly. Thereafter, the web-slinger asks him who the Big Man really is and learns from a mildly delusional Rhino that he is actually none other but the respected businessman L. Thompson Lincoln.
Montana/Shocker- Voiced By Jeff Bennett: Montana is the field leader of the Enforcers and is a trained mercenary. He then underwent a transformation into the villain Shocker under Hammerhead's orders. As the Shocker, he was able to defeat Spider-Man with relative ease. After realizing he didn't kill Spider-Man he fought him again at a condemned theater. Spider-Man was able to defeat him by literally bringing the house down on top of him. He was shown webbed up with his costume on the ground as the police arrived.
Dr. Otto Octavius/Doctor Octopus- Voiced By Peter MacNicol: Dr. Octavius is a research scientist working under Norman Osborn at OsCorp. He is very timid and willing to apologize for every little thing, a direct contrast to his boss, Norman. He is one of OsCorp's most intelligent scientists and the creator of a four armed harness that makes him able to do dangerous experiments, playing a part in the creation of Sandman and Rhino. Eventually, as the result of a devastating accident (orchestrated by the Green Goblin), his arms became permanently fused to his back and he was driven out of his mind, becoming the vengeful Dr. Octopus. He attacked his former employer, and then Spider-Man, blaming him for the accident which created him (believing Spider-Man to be acting out of his own desire to have revenge for Octavious' creation of the supervillains who attacked him). Spider-Man eventually defeated the menacing doctor at a Coney Island carnival.
Dmitri Smerdyakov/Chameleon- Voiced By Steve Blum: The Chameleon is an international spy-for-hire, master of disguise and a former FSB agent, the Chameleon and his partners Quentin Beck and Phineas Mason were hired by a mysterious 'General' to steal the alien symbiote from Dr. Connors' lab. After failing that mission, Chameleon began to frame Spider-Man for crimes until the combined forces of Spider-Man and Black Cat defeated them. Beck and Mason were arrested, but Chameleon disguised himself as the policeman Stan Carter and escaped.
Eddie Brock/Venom- Voiced By Benjamin Diskin: Edward Charles Brock Jr. has had a life-long connection to Peter Parker, with both of their parents having died together in a plane crash. But while Peter had May and Ben Parker to act as his legal guardians, Eddie did not have anyone to take him in. Because of this he has always carried an envious subconscious hatred towards Peter for being able to live an easier life. However, he has repressed this attitude over the years by acting as a friend and mentor to Peter, often calling him "Bro". When the series begins, Eddie is a freshman at Empire State University, working as a lab assistant under Dr. Curt Connors. There he is joined by Peter and Gwen Stacy, who earn similar positions through their high school science class. As the series progresses, Eddie develops animosity towards Peter due to a series of misunderstandings, often involving photographs Peter had taken while secretly disguised as Spider-Man. This ultimately damages their friendship. After Venom attempts to stalk and threaten him out of irrational vengeance, Spider-Man tricks the symbiote into leaving Eddie by pretending he wanted to rejoin with it. After successfully deflecting the Symbiote's attempt to regain control, Spider-Man captures it and dumps it in wet cement at a local construction site.
Felicia Hardy/Black Cat- Tricia Helfer: Briefly appears in the episode "The Uncertainty Principle", and full debut in the episode "Persona", the Black Cat is depicted as a simply being a thief, and her real identity has yet to seen. She possess a wit like Spider-Man does, and has even implied to have a romantic interest for him, having flirted with him every time they met.
EPISODE GUIDE
Episode One- Survival of the Fittest: Summer is over for Peter Parker and school's ready to start -- both literally (it's his junior year of high school), and in the real world of crime-fighting -- as Spider-Man faces his first real challenge (The Enforcers) and his first real super-villain (Vulture).
Episode Two- Interactions: Peter Parker attempts to tutor the popular Liz Allan while Spider-Man tries to stop Electro, who will stop at nothing to find a cure for the accident that made him who he is.
Episode Three- Natural Selection: Peter Parker and Spider-Man both must learn to own their choices when decisions made by Dr. Curt Connors transform Pete's mentor into The Lizard.
Episode Four- Market Forces: While Peter takes on the responsibility of helping Aunt May pay the bills, Montana (one of the Big Man's Enforcers) becomes the stunning Shocker to fulfill his responsibility: eliminating Spider-Man.
Episode Five- Competition: As Peter Parker and Harry Osborn try out for the football team, Spider-Man must face convict Flint Marko, newly transformed into the Sandman in order to destroy Spider-Man.
Episode Six- The Invisible Hand: Peter Parker struggles to get a date for the Fall Formal, and to figure out a way to pay for it. Meanwhile, the unstoppable Rhino - the latest of the Big Man's creations - has sworn vengeance on Spider-Man. Spidey takes the battle directly to the source of his troubles, the previously invisible hand, who has been secretly conducting his villain-of-the-week attacks. But the Big Man offers a surprising solution to Spidey's problems, a tempting offer he doesn't think our hero can afford to refuse. Will Spidey do the right thing?
Episode Seven- Catalysts: On the night of the Midtown High Fall Formal, Peter's date, Mary Jane Watson, threatens to invert Midtown's social structure. Elsewhere, the mysterious, murderous Green Goblin tries to force L. Thompson Lincoln (a.k.a. Tombstone) to step down as NYC's Big Man of crime. Will Spider-Man be able to take this new threat seriously enough - or will he be so cocky that he loses his big head?!
Episode Eight- Reaction: Peter Parker and Spider-Man learn that actions have consequences when nebbishy Dr. Otto Octavius becomes the megalomaniacal Doctor Octopus. The cause: Green Goblin; the effect: Mayhem!
Episode Nine- The Uncertainty Principle: While Colonel John Jameson struggles to land his damaged space shuttle, Spider-Man struggles to defeat the Green Goblin, who also threatens Hammerhead and Tombstone. But Peter Parker's biggest challenge will be facing the truth when he finally learns the Goblin's "true" identity, all on Halloween!
Episode Ten- Persona: Spider-Man gains a black costume, courtesy of the alien life form, during an encounter with the Black Cat. Meanwhile, a master of disguise, the Chameleon, starts framing Spidey for various robberies, using inventions and effects provided by Quentin Beck and Phineas Mason. Spider-Man is left with no option but to team up with Black Cat to stop his new enemy's crime spree.
Episode Eleven- Group Therapy: With Electro's help, Doctor Octopus breaks himself, Vulture, Sandman, Rhino and Shocker out of Ryker's Island prison to quench their mutual thirst for revenge. Even with his new black alien suit, Spider-Man finds his old enemies, now called the Sinister Six, are more than he can handle.
Episode Twelve- Intervention: With Aunt May in hospital and his friendship with Eddie Brock ruined, Peter finally gains enough self-awareness to realize the alien symbiote is starting to affect his personality. The struggle between Peter and the symbiote evolves into a war within Spidey's own mind, where Pete is aided by a familiar face.
Episode Thirteen- Nature vs. Nurture: Peter is in a celebratory mood as Aunt May is released from hospital, but Eddie Brock (transformed into the vicious Venom by the alien symbiote) has no intention of letting them have a happy reunion. Can Spider-Man defeat his new arch-nemesis?
My advice, buy this set. It's a great series filled with great storylines, characters, and solid action! It's worth $20, and let me tell ya, when Season Two comes out, I'll be getting it. So what are you waiting for? Buy now and enjoy this awesome series!
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This show really captures the essence of Spider-Man. The "remix" I'm refering to is they've taken characters from different eras and continuities of Spidey history and brought them into the classic Mid-Town High setting.
After only a one-off appearance in the 90's series, Gwen Stacy finally gets a full role here.
While things have been updated there are many major nods to Spidey's early days that will please long time fans. I liked it so much I actually bought the the Volume 5" disk just so I wouldn't have to wait for the second season release to see more episodes. The only thing keeping me from giving 5 stars is I'm not a personal fan the art style they chose. But that's a minor gripe.
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