Spectacular Spider-Man
Spider-Man: the animated series, this ain’t. First off, I have to say, when I saw the trailers via the Internet, I became curious. It reminded me of how Batman is represented nowadays with a more anime-influenced style. However, I bit the bait and really dug it. It takes Peter Parker back to his science origins and back in high school. The stories show something the movies barely touched on since they focused on comic book villians. The show actually had Spider-Man taking on petty thugs and bank robbers. I’ve always believed if nobody stops the small guys, that just gives them a chance to become bigger threats.
The voice acting is not that bad either. The dialouge makes me really appreciate it even more since it’s been a while since Spider-Man quips off like I’ve heard him do in any show. The animation is top-notch too, for what it is: a kid’s show. No, it’s not breaking boundaries like Batman: TAS, but it’s kid-friendly and the designs aren’t too gawdy. The characters are practically how we all remember them. Flash Thompson being the lead jock and Peter Parker’s arch-nemesis. Harry Osborn is Peter’s best friend, who wishes secretly he could be more like Peter so he could earn his father’s love. Gwen Stacy, this time, is Pete’s best galpal and not really a love interest…yet. Doc Connors is the Obi-Wan to Peter’s Luke. Though taking a page out of Ultimate Spider-Man Eddie Brock is not a rival photographer, but a friend. Too bad we all know how that story ends.I’m going to keep watching, it’s already got my attention. It took a while for “The Batman” to get my attention with it’s original, albeit obscure, character design and new voice acting (13 years of Conroy emblazed in my head isn’t going away soon). I recommend this to the most die-hard, canon-loving Spider-Man fans. Take a second to watch and you might be surprised.
