World "The Spectacular Spider-Man" Appreciation Thread (possible spoilers)

[Mistah K88]

I'm really curious to what they've had planned for Scorpion... I can see a J. Jonah Jameson arc in the show dealing with his involvement with Scorpion... in fact, due to them connecting things like Silvermane and Silver Sable by something as basic as the color based nicknames, I can see them connecting storylines like the Spider Slayers and the birth of the Scorpion due to their similar themes (Jonah financing something that turns on him) I can even see them cutting the fat and cutting Farley Stillwell out and splitting his role between Miles Warren (genetic altering since we've already seen him do it) and Spencer Smythe (creating the high tech Scorpion as a "human Spider Slayer").... To tell you the truth... if Marvel were to make a movie with the Scorpion, having Smythe and the Spider Slayers be involved would be a NATURAL villain team up... Then again, they would have to establish Jonah Jameson, his relationship with Spider-Man, and all of that groundwork to even get Jonah to the point of financing things that would eventually turn into criminal activity... It probably would have made more sense in the context of the Raimi movies...

Well..Samurai Jack came back after forever (with the people behind it still at the helm)... so maybe a man can dream...

Another thing I am interested in are the things that were cut for time. That situation is less of a "what if" regarding plans and more so regarding what did happen, but didn't make it as the change from the movie format to the episodic format early in the series run. For example, when the Sinister Six was defeated the first time around and arrested. Montana/Shocker was taken into a police vehicle with Ox and Fancy Dan as his arresting "officers". There ware also more scenes with Ned Lee and Betty Brant that were cut out for time that probably would have been very beneficial to both characters were the show to continue.

A question that I may ask when it comes to Sony and Marvel is does Sony have complete control over ANYTHING Spidey related now? Him being introduced in the MCU confuses me on these company politics... as I'm sure Disney still has complete control of animation.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

I'm really curious to what they've had planned for Scorpion... I can see a J. Jonah Jameson arc in the show dealing with his involvement with Scorpion... in fact, due to them connecting things like Silvermane and Silver Sable by something as basic as the color based nicknames, I can see them connecting storylines like the Spider Slayers and the birth of the Scorpion due to their similar themes (Jonah financing something that turns on him) I can even see them cutting the fat and cutting Farley Stillwell out and splitting his role between Miles Warren (genetic altering since we've already seen him do it) and Spencer Smythe (creating the high tech Scorpion as a "human Spider Slayer").... To tell you the truth... if Marvel were to make a movie with the Scorpion, having Smythe and the Spider Slayers be involved would be a NATURAL villain team up... Then again, they would have to establish Jonah Jameson, his relationship with Spider-Man, and all of that groundwork to even get Jonah to the point of financing things that would eventually turn into criminal activity... It probably would have made more sense in the context of the Raimi movies...

Well..Samurai Jack came back after forever (with the people behind it still at the helm)... so maybe a man can dream...

Another thing I am interested in are the things that were cut for time. That situation is less of a "what if" regarding plans and more so regarding what did happen, but didn't make it as the change from the movie format to the episodic format early in the series run. For example, when the Sinister Six was defeated the first time around and arrested. Montana/Shocker was taken into a police vehicle with Ox and Fancy Dan as his arresting "officers". There ware also more scenes with Ned Lee and Betty Brant that were cut out for time that probably would have been very beneficial to both characters were the show to continue.

A question that I may ask when it comes to Sony and Marvel is does Sony have complete control over ANYTHING Spidey related now? Him being introduced in the MCU confuses me on these company politics... as I'm sure Disney still has complete control of animation.

I'm not really sure what the case was/is for Samurai Jack in terms of how the series was able to come back after the hiatus and I'm still not really clear on Young Justice--I'm assuming that the rights to the show was never an issue.

The problem with TSSM coming back is how the show is currently in a rights limbo. Disney has the rights for Spider-Man animation but they don't have the rights for TSSM specifically. Those rights are still in the hands of Sony. They could potentially strike a deal much like the shared deal they have within the film division/universe however I doubt there's much or enough interest. And with Disney about to start another new animated Spider-Man series this year--it seems they'd rather push ahead with their own creations.

I'd love to see the show return and I'd even accept it in comic book form even though Weisman was shot down when he inquired but for the time being and the foreseeable future, no reason to hold my breath.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

Someone finally found her! (I'm late I know) so apparently she was Hammerhead's "Moll". Makes sense.

Whoa. That post is 14 months old.

Also to tell you the truth, I'm kind of glad that the show was restricted to only Spidey's corner of the Marvel Universe. With every superhero cartoon being some sort of team up nowadays, it's kind of refreshing...

I totally agree with this.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

Also to tell you the truth, I'm kind of glad that the show was restricted to only Spidey's corner of the Marvel Universe. With every superhero cartoon being some sort of team up nowadays, it's kind of refreshing...

I totally agree with this.

I am glad about this fact as well however I think it should be pointed out that Greg Weisman never really intended for the show to be so 'restricted.'

From listening to the podcast, Weisman made it clear that he wanted to use other characters from Marvel and put them in the show. Human Torch, Kingpin, X-Men, etc. were all characters that he mentioned. So while TSSM earns praise for being such a solo-restricted Spider-Man show, it wasn't originally planned that way. It's just that the relationship between Sony and Marvel back then, according to Greg, was much different. They weren't so nice to each other and it had a much more competitive atmosphere--the working relationship was more difficult.

Had things been different and Weisman got to do the things he wanted, I'd imagine TSSM wouldn't be getting credit for being such a solo thing.

That said, I've no doubt the quality of the show wouldn't have been any different. As I'm sure Weisman would've handled any other characters with the great care he so definitvely showed already. And without the 'gimmick-like' presentation we've seen in some shows that have many characters.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

I am glad about this fact as well however I think it should be pointed out that Greg Weisman never really intended for the show to be so 'restricted.'

From listening to the podcast, Weisman made it clear that he wanted to use other characters from Marvel and put them in the show. Human Torch, Kingpin, X-Men, etc. were all characters that he mentioned. So while TSSM earns praise for being such a solo-restricted Spider-Man show, it wasn't originally planned that way. It's just that the relationship between Sony and Marvel back then, according to Greg, was much different. They weren't so nice to each other and it had a much more competitive atmosphere--the working relationship was more difficult.

Had things been different and Weisman got to do the things he wanted, I'd imagine TSSM wouldn't be getting credit for being such a solo thing.

That said, I've no doubt the quality of the show wouldn't have been any different. As I'm sure Weisman would've handled any other characters with the great care he so definitvely showed already. And without the 'gimmick-like' presentation we've seen in some shows that have many characters.

A good thing to come out of that conflict.
Now I kinda wish they tried to hire him for the good Avengers show, which I also want to see more of.

 

[Sarcastic Fan]

I sit down with Greg Weisman to discuss the introduction of Kraven the Hunter, Calypso, working with toy companies, and more. We also open a show with a tribute to the late Miguel Ferrer, a talented actor and the voice of Silvio “Silvermane” Manfredi.

http://www.spidey-dude.com/?p=4910

 

[GamerSlyRatchet]

Since I started reading old Spider-Man comics again, I am now in the realm of the first gang war introduced by Gerry Conway, and a woman named Myrna was standing by the side of Hammerhead in his office in Amazing Spider-Man 114, orange hair, just like his chauffeur in this show.

How did this escape my notice as well? I even double-checked the issue to make sure and Myrna also has a mole on her left cheek that's also on the show. Quite an upgrade to go from a gun moll with a few lines to a badass chauffeur, though no lines.

I sit down with Greg Weisman to discuss the introduction of Kraven the Hunter, Calypso, working with toy companies, and more. We also open a show with a tribute to the late Miguel Ferrer, a talented actor and the voice of Silvio “Silvermane” Manfredi.

http://www.spidey-dude.com/?p=4910

Great stuff! Love the podcast.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

Yeah, leave it to Encyclopedia-Aziz to come up with that awesome find t:

 

[Mistah K88]

I just finished the podcast as usual great stuff.

With every named character being from a comic series. It'd be great to do a "who's who?" While it wouldn't be easy for some characters (main cast, characters who talked, etc) there are some characters that are a bit more obscure (like our aforementioned Myrna [anyone got a pic of her in comics by the way] ). Like we know that characters like Jason Ionello and Tiny McKeever exist in the show... and we've even seen them. I know I've seen principal Davis in comics before... and interestingly enough... he looks pretty much the same in comics as he does the cartoon... only Black... well at least as much as the different art styles would allow.

Principal Davis
First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man I#4 (September, 1963)

Looks like he's more or less the same role in comics as he is in the show... the principal of Peter's high school... not much else to say.

 

[Mistah K88]

Dilbert Trilby

First Appearance Spider-Man Unlimited #3 (November, 1993)

Intestingly in comics he was an obituary writer for the Bugle, in the show he's a news reporter.

 

[Mistah K88]

When it comes to some of the football players, they were also from comics

Hey Greg. I love the work you've done on The Spectacular Spider-Man, it's by far the best version of the character and his stories since Steve Ditko was handling him. A few questions:
1. You've mentioned before that you try your best to avoid creating original characters, so a lot of minor roles in the show are characters from the actual comic books. Are there any you can "reveal" that people haven't picked up on? I believe you've mentioned Tiny ( McKeever , from Untold Tales right?) and Vin Gonzales before, which episodes did they appear in? Furthmore, has Seymour O'Reilly ( http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/seymourspdm.htm ) appeared in the show?

SPIDEY SPOILERS!!!!!
1. Tiny, Seymour and Jason have all appeared. Tiny and Jason are on the football team, though Jason was injured mid-first season and Tiny's low grades temporarily knocked him off the team. Tiny dressed as a cheerleader on Halloween. Seymour announces the games. You might also recall his conversation with Mark Allan, when the latter returned to Midtown.
Vin and Alan have appeared many times too. They're the two uniformed cops who are NOT DeWolff and Carter.
You'll see more of all five characters if we get additional seasons.

Jason Ionello

First Appearance: Untold Tales of Spider-Man #1 (September, 1995)

So this guy was part of the in crowd with Flash, and was also Sally Avril's boyfriend in comics during the whole "Bluebird" fiasco. In this series he was a football player who was injured by Kenny Kong in season one, and he played Lysander in the M-cubed Midsumer Nights Dream.

http://www.spidermancrawlspace.com/2010/03/05/8222/

 

[Mistah K88]

"Tiny" McKeever

First Appearance: Untold Tales of Spider-Man #1 (September, 1995)

He was also part of the popular crowd with Flash as well in comics. Not much to say about him in the show other than he got benched for poor academic performance. http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Brian_McKeever_(Earth-616)

 

[PeterBenParker]

Just incredible. The love and respect Greg and co. had for the lore just shines.

 

[ItchyWebShooter]

Just incredible. The love and respect Greg and co. had for the lore just shines.

I always took such inspiration from their "never create a new character" rule. Even though that sometimes meant pasting totally unrelated attributes onto previously-bit characters from the comics, it also meant acknowledging the wealth of spider-history from the work of numerous artists and creators. That really resonated and (to me) exemplified their love for the character and his world.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

There's a reason TSSM often gets tagged with "best Spider-Man adaptation." The methods and diligent efforts that went into producing the show run so much deeper than what you see on the surface--the introspective look at the show in the podcast has been excellent. Imo, this show is lightning captured in a bottle and will take a long time to ever be out done.

 

[Mistah K88]

Stephanie Briggs
First appearance: Web of Scarlet Spider #2 (December, 1995)

http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Stephanie_Briggs_(Earth-616)

Ted Twaki

First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man Vol 2 #1(January, 1999)

http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix5/drtwaki.htm

 

[Mistah K88]

Trina

First Appearance: Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2008)

Someone is going to have to check my work here... this character is so obscure and pretty much is a passing glance really.

Mayor Waters

First Appearance: Spider-Man: Reign #1(February, 2007)

As we all know in Spectacular Spider-Man, they wanted to increase diversity in the Spider-Man universe... So they changed a lot of minor characters races. Here they didn't change the race of the character, but the gender. There wasn't too much info on this character, so...below is basically the info of the comic that (s)he came from.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spider-Man:_Reign

 

[Mistah K88]

I've actually heard a funny story about the Warren brothers, making me wonder if Stan Lee had a teacher by the name of Mr. Warren growing up. Being a background character at most during the Lee/Ditko era, the name "Mr. Warren" was used on two different characters who just happened to be teachers of Peter (one in High School and one in College), they were linked as brothers later, and were given first names much later as well.

Raymond/Aaron Warren

First AppearanceAmazing Fantasy #15 (August, 1962)

Mister Warren was one of Peter's High School teacher. Which...rings true in the show as well. In Spectacular, he is of Indian decent, Indo European to be exact, explaining his British accent.

http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix5/warrenraysm.htm

Miles Warren

First Apperanace:Amazing Spider-Man #31 (December, 1965)

We all know where he ended up in comics, he started out as one of Peter's college professors. As you can see from above, they went with his original design where he seems to look younger than his more iconic look (shaggy white hair). Like his brother in Spectacular, he is of Indian decent, only he is Indian American, thus lacking an accent. Interestingly enough, both in the show and the comics, he first started to show up during the beginning of "Master Planner" storyline.

http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Miles_Warren_(Earth-616)

 

[Mistah K88]

Dr. Bromwell

First Apperance: Amazing Spider-Man #9(February, 1964)

This guy always was pretty much the Parker family doctor. Which he is on the show as well. As you can see, he was originally white in comics. His design was a bit more original here, so not like Principal Davis where it was simply a new coat of paint.

http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Nicholas_Bromwell_(Earth-616)

Matthew Resnick

First Appearance: Spider-Man Unlimited Vol 1 1

So this guy was an officer who was murdered by Carnage...who made sure that his death was agonizing. In Spectacular, he was the warden for the Vault super prison.
http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Spider-Man_Unlimited_Vol_1_1

 

[PeterBenParker]

Thanks, Mistah K.

 

[ItchyWebShooter]

Dude. You just went ABOVE and BEYOND. Nice work!

 

[Mistah K88]

Blackie Gaxton

First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #11(April, 1964)

http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Blackie_Gaxton_(Earth-616)

Sha Shan Nguyen

First Apperance: Amazing Spider-Man #108(May, 1972)

Obviously she had to be changed for the show as the Vietnam War is LONG over. She met Flash when he was serving for the Vietnam War...wonder how that works with the sliding timeline... ANYWAY, in the show she is a sophomore to Peter's Junior at M-cubed. She is pretty smart, as she is in the advanced science class along with Peter and Gwen despite being a grade lower.

http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Sha_Shan_Nguyen_(Earth-616)



Vin Gonzales

First Appearance: Spider-Man: Free Comic Book Day (June 2007)

http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Vincent_Gonzales_(Earth-616)

Alan O'Neil

First Appearance: Spider-Man: Free Comic Book Day (June 2007)

http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Alan_O'Neil_(Earth-616)

When it comes to the two cops above, it is interesting as their stances on Spidey in comics parallel Stan Carter and Jean DeWolff in a way. Only Jean (who doesn't trust Spidey) will grow to trust him, and Stan (who likes Spidey) will become a criminal. Here it's the reverse in comics Vin doesn't care for Spidey and it seems he is corrupt in a way.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

How did this escape my notice as well? I even double-checked the issue to make sure and Myrna also has a mole on her left cheek that's also on the show. Quite an upgrade to go from a gun moll with a few lines to a badass chauffeur, though no lines.

Yep.

Yeah, leave it to Encyclopedia-Aziz to come up with that awesome find t:

Mistah K's work is putting me to shame.

 

[Mistah K88]

Thanks guys, although I will say Aziz, I think finding Myrna was more impressive. I've just been going by names. Myrna didn't have any lines or anything for me to identify her, and unlike Tiny or Jason, Greg has said nothing about her haha.

Joseph Wade

First Appearance: Amazing Scarlet Spider #1 (November 1995)

http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Joseph_Wade_(Earth-616)



So in comics, he was an FBI agent sent to investigate the Carolyn Trainer version of Doc Ock and was trapped in a virtual reality graft making a hard light holographic duplicate akin to "Stunner", making a "Scarlet Spider" version of himself. He was partners with Stephanie Briggs like he is on the show... and well he was originally white in comics as well.

 

[ItchyWebShooter]

Never realized that was Joe Wade. Dude, this is ridiculous! Amazing work. I'm loving this.