Spider-Man: The Animated Series: After Watching

Well, here we are. I can now say that I've watched the entirety of one of the most popular Spider-Man cartoons, and honestly, the general opinion on the show is pretty accurate - there are definitely some bad episodes and ideas here, and more than a few that I'm indifferent to, but of the series I've seen so far (for this blog), I'd easily say that this is the most consistently enjoyable. Part of that is no doubt thanks to the show doing a fairly faithful and consistent job of adapting the comics, but even when it tries its own thing it's often fairly successful - I'll happily call this show's take on Hydro-Man the best out of any continuities, including the comics.

It's not like it's just limited to Spider-Man, either - I was surprised by how much both of the 1980s series ended up using the Marvel Universe cast, but they often felt like they'd been arbitrarily thrown into the episodes they were in (looking at you, Medusa) for the sake of it. Here, whenever we've got a guest star - Daredevil, Captain America, Doctor Strange, and more beyond just them - they're inserted into the episode naturally and they're written in a way that's true to their characters. If this was your first exposure to the Marvel Universe, then I can't say it's a bad one to start with.

I was also quite pleased by the way the show handled continuity, compared to the ambitious but ultimately disappointing attempt of the 1981 series, and the pretty stock-standard take of the other series (ie. assume there's no continuity unless it's being brought up within the episode itself). Unfortunately the writers bit off a bit more than they could chew with the season-long arcs - Neogenic Nightmare was stretched out a bit too long, and Sins of the Father and Partners both tried for thematic arcs which didn't really land - but smaller bits of continuity, like the rise and fall of Alistair Smythe, or Peter's relationship with Mary Jane, really worked well and felt like they paid off if you stuck with them.

So, where were the parts that the show failed, then? I was expecting the somewhat more toyetic nature of it to be something of a failure, but honestly, half the time you don't notice how it's affected the show - if I didn't know that Hobgoblin was added in before the Green Goblin to sell toys, I'd have just assumed that the writers were subverting expectations. When the show fails, it's more by its own faults, such as the above-mentioned season-long arcs, or a bizarre writing choice like making Electro the Red Skull's son.

Some final notes and fun headcanons that I'd like to share:

• We never see Shocker with his mask off, and we also never see him in the same place as Ned Leeds. As far as I'm concerned, it's conclusive evidence that they're one and the same.
• In the one episode when an article is shown to be written by Ned Needs, Robbie is the one who supposedly wrote the article, and is being threatened by Tombstone for it. I figure Ned Needs is his alias for when he wants to write an article but keep his name out of the paper for whatever reason, and it was inspired by the Daily Bugle's top reporter.
• Robbie's also mentioned to have, like, four or five wildly different jobs in his past. He also has contacts in Russia, so I'm assuming that he's secretly been a Russian spy all this time. Those past jobs were either lies he's telling now to explain the skills he got as a spy, or they were cover jobs he had to work to get closer to his targets.
• In spite of Spider-Man promising to do so, he never ended up chasing Shocker to the ends of the earth. 

Anyway, those are some of my overall thoughts on Spider-Man: The Animated Series. I'm going to finish off my thoughts on this series with a list of the top ten and the worst ten episodes, so that you, the intelligent reader, know what to look forwards to and what to avoid if you decide to check out this series.

Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Sixty-Five: Farewell Spider-Man

 Farewell Spider-Man

First Aired: January 31st, 1998

Synopsis: Spider-Carnage starts activating the device that will blow up every reality but the Beyonder sends the powerless Spider-Man to stop him, using sonic grenades to delay him. Beyonder teleports Man-Spider away from Scarlet Spider and Spider-Man, but it's taxed his powers and the rest is up to the heroes. Spider-Man and Scarlet Spider save the powerless Spider-Man from Kingpin and Spider-Carnage, and the latter activates his bomb. The heroes are able to disable it but Spider-Carnage uses the transporter to jump to another dimension. Madam Web teleports the heroes away and reveals that Spider-Carnage is going to try blowing up the multiverse in another dimension, and only has the power to send one Spider-Man there; ours. In the new dimension Spider-Man finds that people love him and his alter ego, who is engaged to Gwen Stacy and has a public identity. Nobody is aware of the threat of Spider-Carnage, and Spider-Man's supporting cast are insistent that he come to a charity event his company is throwing. Wilson Fisk, who is his lawyer in this universe, takes Peter away, but it's revealed to be a trap and Fisk is working with Spider-Carnage.

Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Sixty-Four: I Really, Really Hate Clones

 I Really, Really Hate Clones

First Aired: January 31st, 1998

Synopsis: Spider-Man is transported to a Manhattan that's heavily destroyed, and the Beyonder tells him that he's responsible for it. Before he can explain what he means Hobgoblin and Green Goblin fly past and head to the Daily Bugle, where they attack J. Jonah Jameson, as they need him to unlock the security for the microwave satellite on the roof. Spider-Man fights them and they're confused, as he's the one that told them to do this. They end up blowing up the Daily Bugle, and Spider-Man loses them as he escapes the explosion. He manages to save J. Jonah Jameson but the goblins get away with the satellite regardless. Spider-Man's attacked by a Spider-Carnage hybrid and is about to be killed when he's teleported to the Beyonder. The Beyonder reveals that the longer he's in this dimension the weaker he gets, and shows Spider-Man the allies that have been brought here - a powerless Spider-Man, a Spider-Man with Doctor Octopus' tentacles, the Scarlet Spider, a Spider-Man in armour, and a six-armed Spider-Man. Scarlet Spider reveals that they're all in his reality, and that he's supposedly a clone of Spider-Man, except that a test by Professor Connors revealed that he's the original. The supposedly-original Spider-Man snapped at that news, and bonded with Carnage when he came through a portal thanks to Kingpin's research into other dimensions.

Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Sixty-Three: Secret Wars, Chapter 3: Doom

 Doom

First Aired: November 21st, 1997

Synopsis: Spider-Man and the Lizard rendezvous with the Fantastic Four, who they find injured from a fight with Doctor Doom's robots, and missing the Thing, who was captured by Doom. In Doom's land of New Latveria, he menacingly asks the Thing why they've been brought to Battleworld and by whom. The Fantastic Four go to save the Thing in spite of Spider-Man's insistence that they wait for reinforcements, and upon arriving at New Latveria, discover that they are let in without issue and that within it's a paradise for the native aliens of the planet. At Doctor Doom's castle, a human Ben Grimm greets them and explains that he was transformed back by Doom. Doom himself arrives and explains that he's not a tyrant - he's ruling over the aliens because if he doesn't, another villain will capture them and rule over them. He also reveals that he's fixed up his face so that it's no longer scarred. Reed is doubtful of all of this and attacks Doom, leading to all of the heroes being captured. The Thing tries to convince Doom to let them be free, and Doom points out that the Thing won't even tell him how they got here. The Thing agrees to tell him if the heroes are free, and explains about the Beyonder.

Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Sixty-Two: Secret Wars, Chapter 2: The Gauntlet of the Red Skull

 The Gauntlet of the Red Skull

First Aired: November 14th, 1997

Synopsis: On Earth, Morbius and Blade hunt Blade's mother alongside Black Cat, who unexpectedly disintegrates and appears on Battleworld, thanks to a machine operated by Iron Man and the Lizrd. She's confused until Spider-Man reveals that he asked them to do so. The remaining alien natives of the planet are planning an attack on the Red Skull's base and are eager to do so; although Spider-Man wants them to wait until his team are more prepared, he ends up agreeing to attack when they do. Black Cat is annoyed at Spider-Man for summoning her without her permission, and Spider-Man says that he did so because they work well together, to which Black Cat rebuts that he basically wanted her there to make him feel good. The heroes - minus Storm, who is with the alien rebels, and the Fantastic Four, who are attacking Doctor Doom's base - head off to meet up with the rebels, but a sandstorm causes their transport to break down, forcing them to walk. In the Red Skull's base, Smythe reveals a giant robot to Red Skull, and Red Skull in turn reveals that Doctor Octopus is working with them now after Doctor Doom annexed his kingdom. Smythe notes that both villains are planning on stabbing the other in the back.

Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Sixty-One: Secret Wars, Chapter 1: Arrival

 Arrival

First Aired: November 7th, 1997

Synopsis: Spider-Man floats through a vortex of floating colours before arriving on a planet, where a pair of eyes floating in the sky express disappointment in him. Madam Web convinces the eyes to give Spider-Man a shot, and the eyes turn into a being calling himself the Beyonder. The Beyonder wants to learn about good and evil, and as an experiment, transports Doctor Octopus, Doctor Doom, Alistair Smythe, the Lizard, and Red Skull to a peaceful planet that has no concept of evil, and then accelerates time by a year, by which point the world has been ravaged. Spider-Man gets transported to the planet and is told to stop the villains, but gets his choice of heroes to assist him. Spider-Man gets the Fantastic Four, Iron Man, Captain America, and Storm transported to the planet. While he's trying to allay their suspicions, the Lizard bursts out of a room he was being held in and attacks Spider-Man, but is defeated by the heroes.

Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Sixty: The Return of Hydro-Man, Part 2

 The Return of Hydro-Man, Part 2

First Aired: October 31st, 1997

Synopsis: In the aftermath of the fight with Hydro-Man, Black Cat briefly flirts with Spider-Man but says that she's returning to Europe to be with Morbius. Mary Jane is jealous of this, and goes to the police with Peter to report that she's been found. Afterwards the two of them go to Doctor Connors, who speculates that the nightmare she had last episode is repressed memories of where she was when she was missing. She recounts the nightmare and the sensations she experienced in it. At a laboratory elsewhere, Hydro-Man notes that he's having difficulty reconstituting himself to a scientist there, and snaps when he's reminded of Mary Jane. He eavesdrops on Aunt May and finds out where Peter and Mary Jane will be that day, which is the Brooklyn Bridge. He attacks them and Mary Jane disappears into the river with him. 

Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Fifty-Nine: The Return of Hydro-Man, Part 1

 The Return of Hydro-Man, Part 1

First Aired: October 24th, 1997

Synopsis: Mary Jane has a nightmare when Peter is driving the two of them to Niagra Falls for their delayed honeymoon. They get on their boat but are attacked by Hydro-Man out of nowhere, who captures Mary Jane and says he'll be taking her back to New York. Peter returns there himself but after hours of looking for her as Spider-Man is unsuccessful and reports what happened to Detective Terri Lee. He's feeling useless but gets an unexpected visit from Felicia Hardy, who gives him a pep talk and inspires him to keep looking. Unbeknownst to Peter, she too is going to look for Mary Jane as the Black Cat. As Spider-Man, Peter retrieves Mary Jane's jacket that she was wearing when Hydro-Man captured her from the police, and analyses it. From some of the residue on it from Hydro-Man, Peter works out that Mary Jane's being kept on an oil rig.

Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Fifty-Eight: Six Forgotten Warriors, Chapter Five: The Price of Heroism

 The Price of Heroism

First Aired: October 17th, 1997

Synopsis: Spider-Man and Silver Sable are captured by a trap of the Red Skull's as they pursue him. The Red Skull reveals that the robots in the base aren't the doomsday device; they were there to safeguard a device which powers up his son, the real doomsday weapon. His son gains electricity powers and is dubbed Electro by the Red Skull. Electro takes out the Insidious Six and the Six American Warriors, but his powers start to tax him so he flees with the Red Skull and Chameleon. While Insidious Six get away, the Six American Warriors tell Silver Sable that they don't need her, and start planning how to turn the situation away. At the Red Skull's secret base Electro is annoyed at Red Skull since his life was at risk when he got his powers, so he leaves. Drunk on power, he shuts down electricity in New York and broadcasts himself across the planet, demanding that he be made ruler of the world. The Six American Warriors and Spider-Man show up and try fighting him, but are defeated again. Electro returns to where he got his powers and powers up the robots, then heads to the UN with them to continue his demands.