Again, I ask, who said anything about a dark Spider-Man? Have you people never seen an R-rated movie that isn't dark? I wanted it so that the writers are not put into a box like they are now, so that they have leeway to write a better story, with little studio restraint. This isn't coming from someone who doesn't like the movies, or want to see an R-rating for shock value. I honestly believe a better script can be written under a PG-13 rating, but not with the Mr. Softies at Marvel/Sony, who are beginning to see Spider-Man only as a vehicle to make lots of money, hence: A Spider-Man Musical On Broadway. I say this mostly for the villains' sake, because they are almost doomed even before they are written, under Avi Arad's policy that our villains are not really bad motif.