Anthony Bergamini
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man follows the adventures of a fledgling Spider-Man/Peter Parker, as he navigates his early days as the wall crawling menace. Sort of a reimagining of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), the show depicts events similar to that of the films, albeit in an alternate universe where the limitations of the in-universe canon are not present. Additionally, the show places Peter in a somewhat established universe, with the first two episodes indicating the existence of known heroes such as Doctor Strange and Captain America.
Getting some of the politics out of the way… unfortunately, shortly before this show premiered, an interview with the voice actor for Peter Parker, Hudson Thames, showcased some of the politics of the actor, where he said that he hoped the show wouldn’t be “annoying and woke,” but ended up thinking the show was “awesome” after reading the script. This, combined with an already addled fanbase who were upset that the promise of an MCU origin story for Spider-Man was converted into an alternate universe tale, created a lot of negative discourse prior to the show even premiering. But, ultimately, the opinions of one actor and negative fan opinions built up to a two-episode premiere that is… actually fantastic!
The first episode of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, aptly titled “Amazing Fantasy” (a comic book reference, for the uninitiated reader who is reading a review on a comic book website) kicks things off with a bang. In a short, roughly thirty-minute timeframe, the show sets up everything you would need to know about this world: 1. The setting and life of Peter Parker and how that compares to his MCU counterpart, 2. The kinds of heroes and villains that exist in this world, 3. The friends and classmates of Peter who make up the majority of his supporting cast, 4. How Peter manages (or fails to manage) his double life as a student and a hero, and 5. The inciting incident that will set Peter on whatever season-long journey this show has planned.
No Spider-Man show would be complete without having a Peter Parker who is somewhat relatable, but also represents the long history of the character down to his core. While the show has not yet gotten into his backstory or reason for taking up the Spider-Man persona, the characterization is immediately identifiable as the character everyone knows. This comes down to his comedic timing and attitude, with his dorky, insecure attitude at school contrasting with his cocky, boisterous attitude as Spider-Man. This is really a Peter Parker that embodies what the character feels like within the comics. Additionally, the show gets to explore a lot of the interpersonal drama, such as him attempting to get a girl or maintain his classwork, while also struggling to maintain his superhero life. This is a core part of the character that has historically been the biggest battle that Peter will never win within the comic books; however, the films have only been able to really include that within the two-hour narrative of their runtime, with sequels jumping through years of the stories that this show has a chance to explore. Other classic Spider-Man TV shows like the iconic 90s cartoon chose to focus a lot more on the Spider-Man side of things, with Peter’s problems being present but never really the major focal point. In this vein, the show feels like the interpretation of a teenage Peter Parker that captures the essence of both the comic books and the MCU wonderfully.
When it comes to the world around this interpretation of Spider-Man, the show does a lot right away to indicate what is similar and what is different from the MCU. Most notably are the characters, with Norman Osborne taking Tony’s place in the scene from Captain America: Civil War, Nico Minoru taking the place of Ned Leeds as Peter’s best friend, and various other swaps. One of the most surprising aspects here was how the show handles Peter’s “bully.” Traditionally, Peter is bullied in high school by Flash Thompson, a star football player who eventually went on to become Agent Venom within the comic books. In the MCU, Flash is dramatically reimagined to be one of Peter’s peers who acts somewhat as his bully, but more in a “I’m better than you” sense rather than the bully who beats someone up for lunch money. In Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, Peter reveals that he has a huge crush on a Pearl Pangan, a student a bit older than Peter who used to babysit him. This reveal is followed by the classic trope where Peter finds out that she is actually dating none other than the star quarterback. The show expertly sets this up in a tropey way, edging closer and closer to the guy giving Peter a hard time and becoming that Flash Thompson bully. But suddenly, the show takes a different approach. It is revealed that this character is actually Lonnie Lincoln, a character who is actually the villainous Tombstone in the comic books. Lonnie comes across as a genuinely nice guy, who befriends Peter by showing his own aptitude for science and inviting Peter to his football games and parties. This is juxtaposed by an amazing sequence where the show depicts Lonnie going home from school, revealing that despite his knowledge and success in school, he is still treated with bigotry from people around him because he is black, and that his family lives in a crime ridden part of New York. This paints the character in a whole new light, showcasing how people’s perceptions of him are purely based on his looks, while the audience knows how truly smart and great he is. This is the kind of storytelling that Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man does, flipping the assumed narrative to create a compelling story for a character that otherwise would have been stereotypically depicted. This also is probably the most woke a Spider-Man TV/Film property has been in years, despite Hudson Thames bizarre comments in that Collider interview.
The other unique aspect of this show comes from its animation and cinematography. Clearly, the showrunners want Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man to look and feel like a comic book. While that as a concept is nice, it has not historically been done to great success. The Ang Lee Hulk film famously did this same thing, but it appeared very odd and out of place for the kind of story they are telling. Much like Hawkeye’s classic comic book costume, some things are just not going to look good on the big screen. But, with a show like this, the concept actually works fairly well. The use of “comic book” panels to showcase transitions in scenes to simultaneous actions makes the show feel dynamic. This works well with the show’s use of computer graphics which make it look like a mix of classic and newer cartoons. This is a mix of a few different aspects that makes the show feel visually interesting, but never distracts from the overall narrative or story at hand.
When it comes to any Spider-Man show, a lot of attention from fans is going to be drawn to the use of classic villains, as well as they way that Peter navigates the world as a hero. In some ways, this aspect of the show truly highlights the best it has to offer while also its deepest pitfalls. The action and depiction of Spider-Man’s abilities are very top notch. Yes, this is not a very polished hero, and the show does an excellent job showcasing how Peter has to act within his limitations to complete his heroic endeavors. This is also where the show excels at depicting a Spider-Man that is witty and funny as he saves people and fights villains. Overall, this is a very on brand and visually interesting art of the show. The conflict here comes from the MCUification of it all. One of the hardest parts about playing within the MCU sandbox is that it is not really a sandbox. There are set rules and parameters that limit what an intellectual property is allowed to do. When it was first revealed that Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man was not going to be in the MCU proper, fans were upset, but it also indicated that the show would be somewhat limitless in its potential. Despite this, the show still falls in that MCU direction, where it feels like it is only playing with a handful of the plethora of available options. In episode two, “The Parker Luck,” Spider-Man has to fight an arsonist, Butane, who technically is a character from the comics but is very obscure. This was definitely and odd pull that the show treats like a throwaway villain, despite the fact that Spider-Man has a couple notable fire villains, like Molten Man, that the show could have used. Yes, the show does feature other iconic Spider-Man villains in roles that are not yet their villainous counterparts, but at the same time it uses Butane and a throwaway Symbiote when other more notable characters could have been used. This could be a way that the show attempts to navigate through the Sony deal that has limited Spider-Man’s use in the past, but it comes across as a bit odd in a show that has so many other possibilities on the horizon.
While Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is only two episodes in, all signs point to the idea that Marvel has another hit on their hands. Fans have been itching for a new Spider-Man animated project after not receiving the last few ones very well, and with the success of Sony’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse franchise. This show does a great job of capturing the elements of the character that make him so universally loved, while also using the scope and ambiance of the MCU as a backdrop of sorts to make the show feel like something that pairs well with the universe, while not fully limiting it to the MCU constraints.
