Spider-Man 94: Season 1

 

This was my Spider-Man until I was about eleven years old. I've been mostly disappointed ever since. Don't get me wrong, the original run until the Death of Gwen Stacy is the comics story. Anything else after that... well I have a head canon for that. I'll talk about that in another post. Corporatism hollows something out real and wears its skin like a puppet. I'd argue that's happened to Spider-Man in general, although that's not the case with this season of Spider-Man 94.

No, it's not perfect. The Chameleon episode has some really silly logic drops, and it's obvious the show had serious budget issues with animation, reusing every single frame they possibly could, sometimes overly padding out those "Previously On" sections. And the first season drops Felicia Hardy entirely. Now, having gone into a bit of the second season, I can see that the writers were deliberately building towards season two, and did not seem to intend season one to stand on its own. That's definitely not perfect, but it is deliberate. Make of that what you will.

But what this season does it does well. Season one is an episodic weird sci-fi, rooted right in the cautionary 60's genre. Horrible accidents happen to ordinary folks and they lose their heads. Peter is the only one who has been able to withstand the physical change, all because his selfishness led to his Uncle Ben's death. All of the antagonists are treated with a degree of sympathy that I admire. Even when they are outright evil there's a humanity, an appeal for mercy, deep down in each of these characters. Folks keep talking about how modern shows have such complicated characters, but there's stuff going on in these eighteen minute episodes that's nothing short of miraculous. And that's not nostalgia talking; I wish I was this economical in my RPG sessions.

Season One feels like it's building a lot of ground in a hurry, not to mention getting the "big names" out of the way. There's a very "check off the names corporate needs us to check off" feel to this season, and even then, none of the takes were by the book. 

Doc Ock being Peter's mentor? Done here first.

The Lizard trying to end weakness? Done here first and arguably better.

Other takes on the characters who haven't been adapted to movies are just as good as those two, if not better than the source material. Hobgoblin is just a common mercenary who was given a bunch of toys. Kraven was driven mad by the serum he received aaà but returns to normal. Smythe becomes a regular supporting villain after losing his father in a tragic accident. Scorpion is just a pathetic bully made dangerous. I particularly like Scorpion, as his patheticness doesn't go away, just that you want to dodge while laughing at how much of a loser he is. And Eddy Brock, the most built up supervillain in the season, is nothing more than a spiteful yellow journalist. Rhino is a large enforcer. He's got a job to do and will make sure you don't stand in his way, because he's a professional.

See the pattern?

They're just regular folks, writ large. In some cases they're even more human than what Lee had originally envisioned.

So, ultimately? A good season. I really enjoyed it. It's not Shakespeare, but they're clearly having to check off some boxes so they can go and do the things they want to do later. It's a good introduction to the world that the show creators want to explore. I really like that world. I'm definitely gonna keep going!