Looks like we're getting yet another new Spider-man cartoon:

Didn't MTV try almost the same thing around Spidey 2, only to have it be not good at all?

Oh well, hopefully it will rock. Spidey could make a great show.

MTV's series was actually just after the first movie came out, more than a year before the second. And it didn't suck, but it wasn't really very good as it seemed evident that it was a cash-in that no one wanted to spend any more time or money on than absolutely necessary.

Greg Weismen was actually behind "Gargoyles" so if he's given enough control, this should be quite good.

I had high hopes for that MTV show and it sucked.
How many different Spiderman cartoons have they had on TV?

Amazing Friends, The very cool fox kids one around the time of the X-men cartoon, Unlimited when he goes to counter earth and has nanite costume, MTV, and now this.

According to Wikipedia there have been the following Spider-Man toons:

In order for it to be good I hope that it drops the Animie style that was the MTV version and that it includes the proper supporting cast of that era including Flash Thompson and Liz Allen.

In other words remain faithful to the source material!

The Amazing Friends one was okay back when I was 11-12. Tried to watch it last year on reruns and it made me cringe.

Never saw the others. I'll have to look for DVD's.

I liked the mid 90's version. The animation wasn't so hot, but i thought it was pretty good until Madame Spider showed up. Then it just got way to confusing with alternate dimensions and all that jazz.



My first thought was "No! A barefoot Green Goblin!", but Gargoyles was really good, so i'm hopeful.

Here's a great little interview at Comic Book Resources with showrunner/writer Greg Weisman: click here

And yeah, as far as Weisman's credits go, I always prefer to associate him with Gargoyles above and beyond any other animated or comic book work. It was his largest, most ambitious project to date and he had more creative freedom than he's had on any other project since. And man did it show in the quality. To be fair, I haven't seen The Batman (need to finish the Bruce Timm/Paul Dini DC Animated Universe shows before I get into the flimsy unconnected stuff like Teen Titans and The Batman) or W.I.T.C.H. or any of the other noted projects he worked on (Roughnecks: Starship Trooper Chronicles, a CG series largely regarded as better than the two films and something I've been meaning to buy or rent for a while).

Is Spider-Man Unlimited usually regarded by most fans as a proper continuation of the first `90s series? I know they changed the voice actor for Peter and headed into some arguably strange, un-Spidey-like territory with the storyline and setting, but does it more or less line up with the continuity of `90s Spider-Man ?

Sunset Twilight said:


The short-lived MTV series wasn't really anime in style at all. It was cel-shaded (computer-animated, but going for a more cartoony 2D look in 3D rather than going for Shrek-like polish), but I'd say the human character designs were fairly North American comic book-ish, if a little freakishly scrawny for most of the main cast.

I'm looking forward to checking this out, getting Weisman on board is a serious win. As much as I wish they'd just continue and build on some of the awesome set-up and already-set-in-motion character development they had in the `90s Animated Marvel Universe (did the oft-cheesy Fantastic Four, much as I sometimes loved it, and Iron Man count as part of the continuity of all that along with the two pillars of X-Men and Spider-Man ?), I understand that it's been too long since those finished/were cancelled (?) and business sense dictates that they need to reinvent and attract new folks to the audience. Although I bet reruns of the `90s shows would do that beautifully, and then they could have new episodes ready by the end of the original runs and it could just be like `90s Spider-Man and X-Men--especially X-Men--never really ended and okay I'll be giving up on this wishful thinking about now.

Only detail I don't like about the set-up is that they're focusing on teenage Peter in high school. Not real interested in that. Pretty much after Buffy and a few other school-ish shows I used to watch ended, I found myself not really able to get into that kind of material anymore. People rave about how great Veronica Mars is (or was, since they mostly praise its first season), but I gave it four episodes when it first started and I couldn't stand the setting. How many goddamn times do I have to watch Peter Parker grow up. I'd prefer to see a well-written (which this will undoubtably be with Weisman at the helm) Spider-Man series without any serious angst, though melodrama is pretty much a given and maybe even a necessity in the franchise.

I completely agree. But I guess they're trying to attract a younger audience that can relate, so thus, the high school setting and from the interview you linked:




We're going to get 4 years of it if the series lasts.

I grew up with the mid 90s Fox version. I actually liked the cool weird alternate universe plots only because any time they introduce parallel universes, I'm intrigued. Anyway, the cliffhanger ending for that annoyed me for a long time afterwards. The follow up series weren't the same, much like how the Batman series were meh after the early 90s one: Batman: TAS.

I loved Gargoyles even more so this all seems very intriguing. I don't think I've seen any of his other stuff, but Gargoyles was such a quality show.

As for the time line, let's hope it speeds up, but the audience thing is understandable I guess.

Ugh. The biggest annoyance of franchise reboots is the long stream of origin stories. Ah well.

Cool! I love Spider-Man! I actually liked the MTV version, too. I liked the animation style and the snarky, adult themed dialogue. I liked him being in college with MJ and Harry too. It just seemed cool to me. :shrug. A lot of the villains were disapointing though, like Lizard for instance, but other than that, I liked it. Does anyone know how the animation will look for this series? The high school setting sounds okay, I suppose, really similar to X-Men Evolution though.

Looks like they've changed the series name to the Spectacular Spider-man. There's a sneak peek here.

I'm not impressed.

I'll give it a try once it airs. What's the worst that cold happen? I don't watch it like I stopped watching the Batman?

What sucked about it:

The look of Spider-Man himself. The voice actor (an older actor trying to sound younger. Some talented voice actors can pull it off, this one can't. Though he's been at the voice-acting thing for a long time). He's grating. Why not hire a young teen to voice Peter, since he's going to be 14 in this series ? That "sound" for young male leads in cartoons is becoming kinda cliche. Y'know, that trying-to-sound-edgy-but-relatable, a little bit raspy voice that they give young male hotshot characters ?

What rocked about it:

Everything else. I'm fine with the look of everyone else (from the cops to JJJ) and the settings are beautiful. The cityscape at the end there ? Nice.

Probably give this one a pass and see what other folks are saying, then check it out on DVD if the word is mostly positive (that approach helped me avoid the new Fantastic Four animated).

Since Justice League, Teen Titans and Avatar: The Last Airbender I've come to expect amazing things from animation. This looks a step above 'The Batman', which I've never been able to get into, and about 50x better than the new Fantastic Four, but still woefully lacking.

I don't have any complaints about the Spiderman voice actor though.

Yea, I agree about wishing they had chosen someone younger, but hopefully he'll still be good. And he was in The Secret World of Alec Mack?! Awesome.

But it looks good. Here's hoping it'll meet expectations.

I hate anime as much the next guy, but the MTV version was computer animation.

Looks like we're finally getting the premiere this Saturday at 10. The first villain? Vulture. Ugh.

I have to say, I was impressed. I loved Harry Osborn and how utterly whipped he is by his father. He just looked so terrified of him and even Peter looked pretty scared. I am just dying to know how scary Norman can be. I loved Gwen Stacy, I thought she was adorable and so not Mary Jane cheeleader. Excellent voice acting, excellent script, good fight scenes. It didn't blow my mind like many cartoons coughAvatarcough but it gets a B+ in my book.

I can't wait to see Black Cat!

So far, I think the animation for the most part is better than the 90s version. Although, the super round eyes on some of the characters are creepy, and Parker's nose looks weird. The theme song sucks though. Overall, I liked the design of Vulture and Electro. I'm surprised they actually made Electro somewhat sympathetic. And did anyone else catch Doc Ock working for OsCorp?

Before I forget: somebody's gotta change the title, because it's The Spectacular Spider-Man, as sung in the credits. I hate opening songs on kiddie shows.

It's a mixed bag...most of the kids look to be too young, especially Peter and his inexplicable birthmark. Also thinking having Spider-Man's costume under Peter's clothes would be problematic, but hey...kid's show. Granted, this is a kid's show where damn near every bit of forty years of stories gets crunched down into a tight ball, including characters from Untold Tales Of Spider-Man (Sally) and Ultimate Spider-Man (Kong). Fun for the kids, continuity porn for the adults! But the fights were tight, the Enforcers made their animated debut, and we got Keith David doing voice work. I think this won't be a complete dud.

Ugh. I forgot about this. Anyone know when this episode will be re-broadcast?

I'm not entirely sure I can get past the very very weird design of Peter's nose.

Personally I'm not that fond of the character designs and decisions made for Peter and Gwen. Peter looks like an adolescent Ben Tennyson or a less emo John Connor, while Gwen Stacy looks like a geek instead of the classic hottie she was.

It's like they've switched both genders and powers: the girl is outwardly nerdier than the guy and powerless to boot. Why can't she be hotter & hipper than he is? It's a little confusing & off-putting for me.

I'm sort of a second-hand Spidey fan: while I haven't read the classic Spider-stories of yore, I’ve read enough articles and synopses to be able to know who people like Jean deWolfe are. It’s kind of weird seeing a series that mirrors the original books the way this does; it feels like I’m finally seeing the stories I’ve heard so much about…except I’m not. It’s a weird feeling. I’m also one of those who caught on to Spider-Man a good decade after it was canceled, and have been hoping for a series that can best it.

So far? Very nice beginning. It’s not perfect, but its just about. I can tell I’m going to enjoy the ride.

Pros:

• The voice-acting, if not quite pitch-perfect, is for the most part quite good.
• Ten minutes in, and we’ve already got a good amount of sub-plots simmering in the background. So far we have Norman and Harry Osborn, the men who will become Sandman, Dr. Octopus, the Lizard, and Venom, one crime syndicate and one group of mercenaries (what were they called again?), and two super-villains in the Vulture and Electro. Not bad for two episodes' work.
• While I’m not yet completely over my reservations regarding the art style, the show as a whole looks, well, spectacular.
• This incarnation of Eddie Brock is easily my favorite so far. He’s easily the most likeable guy in the series.
• The theme song is very, very good.

Cons:

• As someone who has grown to really like the incarnation of Liz Allen appearing in the Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane series, I found this version of her really, really jarring. While I don't like how she looks here, I could have lived with her...had she not been given the most annoying voice ever. Seriously.
• On that note, I'm really not loving Harry's voice either. I get that he's supposed to have a weak personality, but it's too much.
• While I like interconnectedness as much as anyone else, and think the creators are doing a bang-up job of it for the most part, I have to say that it feels a little bit too...neat. You can practically see the strings connecting characters and events, which slightly hampered my enjoyment of the episodes. Part of it, is of course, that we already more-or-less know how these characters will end up. Part of it is due to the fact that this Spider-verse so far feels very compact, making it feel staged--which it, of course, is--the trick lies is to make it feel like it isn’t. In any case, I hope events in future episodes manage to appear less contrived.
• Always with the cheerleaders. What, exactly, would Peter Parker find appealing in one? One of the few moments that rang false in the two episodes; while I understand that it served a purpose, I've always felt that Peter is the kind of guy who'd be above that sort of thing. Hell, given that even the so-called geeks seem to be full of the hotness, I don't see why he wouldn't ask one of them out.
• The whole NYU set-up involving Peter, Gwen, and Co., while a good way of putting all of one’s ducks in a row, seems a tad contrived, at least the way it’s being presented so far. Two high-school age interns and a personal assistant for what appears to be a one-man operation? A one-man operation in a University? Were it only a background detail, I wouldn’t have paid it any mind, but since it’s obviously important…

Random comments:

• It seems we’ll have to wait for a little while to see how the series stacks up to others, when it comes to stuff like violence or guns.
• Gwen, Gwen, Gwen, how you confuse me so. While I like her new look (glasses=sexy), I’m not quite so sure about her personality. As I understand it, her character in the original books was somewhat akin to what Eddie’s is in this series: someone who could be both the beauty and the geek, and who felt equally confident in both roles. It’s a character type we don’t see much of in American media, and one which I’d like to have seen here. However, what we seem to be getting is instead the typical geeky girl with an unrequited and secret crush on her best friend—not exactly the most original archetype. While this may yet prove a false first impression, I’m wary about where this will take us.
• On another note, let me say that I want this incarnation of Gwendolyn to remain firmly among the living throughout the duration of the series. The character has so been defined by her death that it’s become the single most notable thing about her, and the one thing that’s expected of her. I want this series to buck the trend and truly try to do something new with the character.

Question: Did the characters of Liz and Gwen and the villain Electro exist in any previous Spider-Man series? They all seem pretty new to me.

I remember Gwen and Electro being in the 90s series. If I recall, Gwen dated Morbius the Living Vampire.

samsnee, That wasn't Gwen in the 90's series. It was Felicia Hardy.

All the characters have appeared in the comics, but I don't think anyone has ever used Gwen on a show. In the comics Liz was one of Peter's first girlfriends, but I think they only went on a few dates before becoming friends.

Gwen on the other hand was the girl Peter would have married if she hadn't...died. I remember an interview of someone from the 90s series stating that they didn't haver her on the show for that very reason. I don't know how they're going to handle that here. But Greg Weisman is involved with this show, so I'm sure nothing bad is going to happen.

Nothing's happening to Gwen as long as the series is geared towards kids. Gwen's death is the end of Pete's childhood and innocence, period. Uncle Ben's death may haunt the guy but that was solely due to his inaction: it's not like he tried to save Ben and failed miserably. Gwen died because Peter was Spider-Man and because he was careless with trying to save her. They'll never show that here.

Liz' (step)brother later became the Molten Man; I don't know if they'll use that in this series, since Electro is already covering the "unfortunate victim of powers that make him unable to live among normal people" angle.

Electro in the comics, on the other hand, was a random power company employee (a lineman) who got zapped in a freak accident, and could control his powers just fine. He had no connection to Spidey until he tried to commit crimes in New York City.

Electro's second appearance was in Daredevil, where he was masterminding an auto theft ring.

The character Gwen Stacy was in the series finale of Spider Man: The Animated Series (the 90's, and totally awesome, series on Fox).

And even then, that was a Gwen from an alternate universe, where Spider-Man became a huge cheese and wound up with messed-up Spider-Armor. I do believe this show is the first time Gwen is a regular character...unless she popped up in the 1960s show. Oh, and nice move not bringing in Mary Jane Watson right away. I don't hate her, but the idea is so old-school.

ETA: Just remembered...was there a Gwen in Spider-Man Unlimited?

Gwen was in the third movie too, wasn't she? Although they totally screwed up the backstory and had her be the girl Mary-Jane was jealous of.

I watched it this and I liked it. The anime-style took some getting used to and I agree that the villains and setup are a bit to contrived/convenient.

Gwen's most notable story in the comics was her death (think MJ off the bridge in the first movie, except Spidey doesn't save her), so she's not really been used, apart from an appearance in the the alternate reality in the finale of the 90s animated series (married to the armoured Spider-Man).

A version of Electro appeared in that same series, in the "Six Forgotten Warriors" arc, except that he was the son of the Red Skull instead of Max Dillon (and way, way more powerful than Electro normally is); the Dillon version appeared in the MTV Spidey too.

I don't know that Liz has ever appeared before, but she's got a long history in the comics and was Spider-Man's first love interest (introduced unnamed in his first appearance, actually), part of the high school love triangle with him and Betty Brant (Gwen and MJ didn't show up until the college years); eventually she married Harry and had a son by him. This version of her more or less follows her early plot arc (Flash's girlfriend, sort of sympathetic to him after getting to know him), but she's been turned from white girl with blonde hair into a Latina.

As to the show overall, I thought it was very strong. I never really got into The Batman, so having a really good superhero show on TV again is great. Greg Weisman's Gargoyles was one of the seminal shows of my childhood.

There are some fairly dark stories hinted at here, at least in terms of characters; those two cops, Jean DeWolff and Stan Carter (the latter voiced by the same guy who did Matt Bluestone on Gargoyles), for example: they become involved and then he kills her and becomes the villain Sin-Eater in a classic 80s "The Death of Jean DeWolff" storyline.

I was actually quite impressed by this (although I've only seen one of the two episodes so far).

I LOVED the way the pre-super-crook villains were all laid out in this episode. All the chess pieces for a whole season on one board.

Gwen as Peter's high school nerd buddy confused me, but its clearly part of the whole melding of the classic Spider-Man comic and new elements from the Ultimate Spider-Man comic. Gwen in this has kind of taken the place of Mary Jane in the Ultimate book. May being a bit younger is also from Ultimate Spider-Man. But most of the villain origins seem closer to the classic. Eddie Brock's new position in things seems kind of out of left field, but I can live with it. And Curt Conners ultimately being tied to Spidey's origin? That's actually genius.

Also, whatever we think of Geek Gwen, CLEARLY Mary-Jane WILL appear at some point. She's not in the credits, but you don't make a point of having Anna Watson around as May's crony if MJ isn't going to eventually show up.

I'm not feeling this series so far, but i'm a fan of Spider-Man since my early days so I will stick with this all the way through. I'm guessing MJ will be introduced like she was in the comics with May and Anna Watson keep trying to introduce the kids but something always comes up in Peter's case until the one day he opens the door and we get the classic "face it tiger, you just hit the jackpot" line.

Good episode today, with one of the hard choices Peter Parker usually had to make back in his Lee/Ditko days. He has to run off, change as Spider-Man, put down the Lizard, gets the picture of himself to get some money...but now Gwen and Eddie hate him. It's such a nice ecapsulation of how sucky Peter's life can be...and we got the potion waiting for the inevitable episode where Peter takes it and grows four extra arms. That did happen in the Fox series, but I put in spoiler tags just to be safe.

Is it just me, or are Spider-Man cartoons easier to work with in one way, that the total face mask leads to the voice actor getting to say all sorts of quippy stuff?

It sure is easier for the animators to draw -- no expressions means that the more outrageous is no challenge.

OK, Old guy comic geek resurfacing here:

In the comics, Gwen Stacy was Peter's college girlfriend - -MJ was with Harry at the time. Her father was a NYPD police detective, who eventually came to realize Spidey was no menace at all. That was, until Norman Osborn (who learned Peter's identity as the Green Goblin) decided to take Gwen hostage. He threw her off a bridge, and the webslinger was too late to rescue her. He blamed himself, not for somehow botching it, but for letting her get too close to him -- he was ready to propose to her. Undrestandably, Detective Stacy was no longer interested in covering for Spidey after that.

Interesting relaunch of the franchise so far - I jsut have to wonder if they can keep it up - or what will happen to it when Kids' WB goes away?

I was impressed with this episode. It wasn't all just action after action, which was well done by the way, but the ongoing attention to Parker having to balance between two identities, and alienating his friends because of it, is a nice touch.

It's been a while since I read any Spider-Man comics (and that One More Day/Brand New Day shit's not gonna bring me back anytime soon), but didn't Captain Stacy get killed by Doctor Octopus while rescuing a child some time before Gwen died? I could've sworn she had a bit of hatred for Spider-Man for not saving him until around the time she died, not knowing that Peter was the man she hated and loved at the same time.

Plus, I've always thought his guilt over Gwen's death had more to do with Peter being too hasty with his webslinging and accidentally snapping her neck with an abrupt catch.

I do find it interesting that she's the potential love interest in this one rather than MJ. I find Mary Jane the better character (Dunst portrayal notwithstanding) but seeing the actual Gwen alive for once in my lifetime (rather than the clone from the Clone Saga or the four Gwen clones that Deadpool kept as maids/love slaves) is certainly interesting.

Here's the backstory on Captain Stacy from Wikipedia;



I for one am sick of MJ, and glad they're using Gwen. Although I could do without the glasses on her.

13 eps on Kids WB, the other 13 on another still undisclosed network.

Whoa -- major continuity foul-up on my part. Sorry about the confusion -- I could have sworn than Gwen died first.

MJ is going to be on the show too (voice by Vanessa Marshall), they're just waiting to introduce her; eventually we'll get a new rendition of the classic "Face it, tiger..." line.

Anybody hear the theme to Jaws? Oh, that's just the foreshadowing of Mary Jane. Ironic how two not-quite-good-looking dudes like Peter and Harry would shudder at the concept of "personality."

Looks like between Kingpin and Norman, we have an origin for the rest of the costume loonies we'll be seeing on this show. Good idea...I mean, with the ADD set watching, you can't have a few dozen random accidents like with Electro and Lizard. Montana in the Shocker get-up was a bit weird, wasn't it? And speaking of the C-list Spider-villain, click this. Not for the sexually squeamish, though.