World Ultimate Spider-Man animated series discussion thread

Status
Not open for further replies.
Saw the second episode today. I love how silly this show is. Although if the show is going to be more serious later on, I wonder how that'll work?
 
I saw the first ep and I definitely want more. I love it so far, great animation, pl;us they really got Spidey's character down. And it's so dang funny, especially how he explains the spider-sense.
Plus that scene of Iron Man getting knocked around his garage brought a big happy fangirl smile to my face.
 
I think the problem is TSSM is still so fresh in so many people's minds, many of us are still upset it got cancelled, and thus we keep comparing USM to TSSM.

When watch USM I just keep in mind it's a completely different tone/style/feel from TSSM, it will obviously never be on par with TSSM, but that doesn't stop me from enjoying it, and I also keep in mind the things that were said in the sizzle reel that I also heavily agree with.

I understand the choices that were made when creating this show and why they were made thus me personally I'm not so judgmental with it.

One thing for sure is it's already better than the MTV show and the 60s, 70s and 80s shows
 
"ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN" debuted on April Fool's Day, and viewers were the fools. I often consider it a bad sign when people on the message boards ask if I have seen the latest episode not because they want my analysis, but they want to see how badly I rip into it. Now that the awful first impression is over with, can the show swing upward in it's third showing, "DOOMED"? Yes and no. Yes, I can easily say episode 3 is better than the pilot. However, that isn't a high compliment; shifting from horrendous to unevenly bland isn't exactly the stuff of champions. The same problems which plagued the first two episodes remain and are in fact there by design. Naturally, this was likely obvious from previews and interviews before and after the debut, but it isn't the same as actually experiencing it first hand.

I may as well get in the positive first; the addition of the additional teen heroes has made this not a more enjoyable show, but a less excruciating one than it was "GREAT POWER" when Spidey had to sell it alone. The version of Peter Parker/Spider-Man depicted in this show is probably one of the most annoying and insipid versions I have ever seen put to TV - he badly needs teammates to water him down or at least to keep him from having every line of dialogue. Iron Fist, Power Man and White Tiger are the least annoying out of the cast - and the Tiger's spot on irritation with Spider-Man often channels my feelings exactly. That isn't to say I find their depictions flawless; like the rest of the show, every character is played for a laugh more often than they should. The animation quality is pretty good for TV quality, the action isn't too bad, and like I said about the first two episodes, roughly 10% of the humor does hit the mark. The problem is the other 90%.

Peter Parker recaps the previous two episodes to us, and while I don't have a problem with narration, I DO have a problem with the main character talking into the camera like a substitute teacher who thinks I am too stupid to pay attention. Surely there are better ways to keep audiences up to speed in a serial show through more subtle means; I know because I have seen it done in such ways before. This episode focuses on Sam Washington, the new Nova - and showcases him to be as much of an annoying tool as Peter Parker is in this show. If EVERY focus episode merely ends up showcasing how annoying each character is, then I am dreading learning about the other three already. Seriously, I cringe about how this show will make Iron Fist or Luke Cage's origins into nothing more than the backdrops to cheap, tired, and desperate humor. At any rate, Peter gets bent out of shape when Sam starts hanging out with his pals MJ and Harry during lunch period; Peter feels it is safer to keep his web-slinger and civilian lives separate, but he also may be insecure and jealous. This feeling isn't a bad thing and could be interesting to play off - the problem is the episode never accomplishes that in a clear and well executed manner. The characters in this show are not characters; they are bare bones exaggerations that exist on a series bible which serve to provide designated dialogue, jokes, and fight sequences. At any rate, Agent Principal Coulson gives the bickering twosome detention, although it is merely cover for their SHIELD training so they won't be missed. Nova and Spider-Man take their one-upmanship to a training exercise and completely wreck it, earning Nick Fury's ire. Seeking to get back in his good graces and prove themselves, Nova decides to take out SHIELD's most wanted villain - Dr. Doom. Faster than you can say "auto-pilot", the kids fly into Latveria and proceed with a battle plan of "punch everything in sight until we win". I wish I could say this is the dumbest plan I have ever seen against Dr. Doom in comic book fiction, but I recall an issue of MIGHTY AVENGERS written by Brian M. Bendis - this series' writer and producer - in which he had his team of adult and experienced Avengers which included Iron Man, Wonder Man and Ms. Marvel attack Doom with exactly the same plan, AND IT TOTALLY WORKED. At any rate, the rest of the team stare in disbelief as Nova and Spidey seem to defeat Doom himself, until it's revealed that he's merely allowed his Doombot to be captured by SHIELD so they could attempt to blow up the helicarrier from within. Can the heroes manage to overcome their own errors and save the day? Sadly, yes.

Contrasting this show's version of Dr. Doom against the version that "AVENGERS: EARTH'S MIGHTIEST HEROES" debuted just last week in their season premiere is akin to contrasting a wet nap with fine silk. This show sparks the return of the over-the-top and cheese inducing Dr. Doom last seen on "FANTASTIC FOUR: WORLD'S GREATEST HEROES" where he makes the 1980's Skeletor look like a champion in subtle terror. Even his Doombots are obligated to make dumb jokes. Veteran voice actor Maurice LaMarche plays Doom here, and clearly has the order to go for over the top, because he does. Yet the same villain who is played for a laugh is expected to instill terror when we find out he is about to blow up the helicarrier. The same Nick Fury who is mocked endlessly is supposed to be taken seriously during the rare moments the show is trying to be dramatic. This sort of thing is hard to pull off, and this show doesn't at all. Going from the awe inspiring villain of "A:EMH" to a caped cheese-ball 20 years out of date only makes me further curse the day Jeph Loeb became TV czar at Marvel.

As always, there are no end of annoying moments. The show references "VERSUS" fighting games twice, because once would be too subtle. It believes a gag where Spider-Man imagines himself with a jet-pack is so funny it needs to be shown THREE TIMES. It isn't enough that Spider-Man has to make a predictable joke about how heavy his teammates are when he's carrying them on a web-line; they have to become deformed sumo wrestlers as if we're too ****ing stupid to catch the gist of that lame joke. At the end when the show makes a labored attempt to show that the heroes have learned something uniting to clean up their mess, Nova flies off to repeat the error and that merely made me hate him more. Spider-Man himself is an annoyingly slow learner; in the pilot his showboating and reckless endangerment of others got Harry zapped into the hospital - yet here he narrates as he deliberately turns his back on being responsible with Nova so he can one-up him. I'm with J.J. in this series; the wall-crawler is a menace and needs to be run out of town! Spider-Man lists off the super villains he has defeated in his year as a vigilante, and NOT A SINGLE ONE OF THEM is from his own rogues gallery. Look, "BATMAN: BRAVE AND THE BOLD" had Batman fight everyone and anyone, but even they had fun with Batman's own rogues gallery in background bits, such as obscure lamers like Zebra-Man. Couldn't this show have encouraged their audience to dig through Wikipedia wondering who, say, Grizzly or Gibbon or White Rabbit or Typeface or so on were? Oh, wait, I forget; this show doesn't expect it's audience to do anything besides play "ULTIMATE MARVEL VS. CAPCOM" and buy Marvel Merchandise until they OD from ADHD. So this is a Spider-Man show where Spidey has battled the Frightful Four, Batroc, Toad, and Whirlwind before Lizard or Doc Ock. Even "SPIDER-MAN AND HIS AMAZING FRIENDS" - which this show desperately wants to channel so much it could burst - featured villains from Spidey's rogues gallery more often than not. In 1981, the first three episodes of "SPIDER-MAN AND HIS AMAZING FRIENDS" on NBC featured, in this order, Green Goblin, Kraven the Hunter and Dr. Doom as villains. This show may as well be a Fantastic Four show at this rate. Is the Mole Man next? How about Karisma, John Bryne's cruelest mistake? She has evil make-up powers, imagine the lame brained jokes this show could have with that! At any rate, "SPIDER-MAN & HIS AMAZING FRIENDS" is an unfair comparison because while that show also played things for laughs, it also had a far more even tone and a better grasp of the source material, and THAT was a show that had an annoying dog as a mascot!

Highlights? Agent Coulson's attempts to balance the budget of Midtown High were actually pretty funny, helped by Clark Gregg's usual delivery as the character. Iron Fist and Power Man get in a few decent power moments. White Tiger's critical comments are often nuggets of truth in this web of insanity. Chi McBride's Nick Fury is alright enough, and I have to admit one bit where he goes "blippity blah blah" as per Peter's imagination got me to chuckle. Unfortunately, every time this episode would do something which I thought was amusing or acceptable and made me almost reconsider my harsh criticism of it, then it would do something annoying or jaw-droppingly stupid and live down to my expectations. "TEEN TITANS" didn't go as overboard with the comedy as often as this show is, and I didn't always care for the uneven tone of that show either. It isn't the focus on comedy that is the problem; it's the fact that it's "bad comedy" as Galvatron would say, which is told in such a desperate and blatantly crude manner that it feels more sad than entertaining. I genuinely feel sorry for writers who feel there is no better way to get a laugh out of children, I really do. What, "SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN" was made specifically for 30 year olds on the Internet, that's why it aired on Saturday mornings on Kid's WB?

"DOOMED", if I am fair, is an improvement to a degree on the last episodes - much in the same way diminishing a forest fire to a house fire is an improvement on a disaster. The problem remains that this show tries to do too much and accomplishes little of it well. It wants to play 90% of every moment for a cheap laugh and then expects genuine audience reaction the 10% of the time they want a serious beat. The humor is desperately crude, the villains over the top, the characters are simplistic and the titular hero is one of the most annoying versions I have ever seen put to screen. Give me Emo Parker dancing on tables in "SPIDER-MAN 3" over this mess any day. The fact that it is on THIS show that Iron Fist and Luke Cage make their debuts as regular cast members on the small screen amounts to a bitter Faustian bargain to Heroes For Hire fans. This show represents a giant step backward in serial animated series storytelling and broadcasts a disregard for the average intelligence of its audience in almost every minute.

Bottom line? I made it through all twelve episodes of "SPIDER-MAN UNLIMITED" in 1999-2000, when I was 17-18 and had less to do on Saturday mornings. I am not sure how much longer I will endure this show just to get my Heroes For Hire fix. They are the highlights of the show; the problem is they're not enough to save it for me. Trying to guess how their focus episodes will butcher and satirize them does not feel my heart with desire. "ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN" does not feel like a show, it feels like the hybrid demon spawn creation of aging comic book and TV production personnel with products to sell and a low opinion of their consumer base. At least I have an alternative from Marvel Animation such as "AVENGERS: EARTH'S MIGHTIEST HEROES"...for another twelve episodes. Giving Loeb power over Marvel's TV arm is akin to making Captain Hook the head of a daycare center, and there'll be no fairy dust to save us. It had seemed after a long period of DC Animation cleaning Marvel's clock in terms of animated products, Marvel was on an upswing with "SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN" and "AVENGERS: EMH". This show merely slams the door shut on that progress and showcases that all the money in Disney's bank account can't buy it a clue.
 
I think the problem is TSSM is still so fresh in so many people's minds, many of us are still upset it got cancelled,
Me included
and thus we keep comparing USM to TSSM.
I don't share this thought

One thing for sure is it's already better than the MTV show and the 60s, 70s and 80s shows
The 80s solo cartoon has the best voice, story, and design fro Doctor Doom in animation to date, the funny thing is, it's based on Early newspaper strips by Lee & Romita. And to me, that one is still one of the better Spidey shows
 
to be fair doomed was better than the pilot so the show IS getting better. if they carry on with this trajectory (getting better with each episode) the show will be good by season 2.
 
Yeah I really thought it was better than the last two episodes. The next episode is with Venom, should be fun.
 
"ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN" debuted on April Fool's Day, and viewers were the fools. I often consider it a bad sign when people on the message boards ask if I have seen the latest episode not because they want my analysis, but they want to see how badly I rip into it. Now that the awful first impression is over with, can the show swing upward in it's third showing, "DOOMED"? Yes and no. Yes, I can easily say episode 3 is better than the pilot. However, that isn't a high compliment; shifting from horrendous to unevenly bland isn't exactly the stuff of champions. The same problems which plagued the first two episodes remain and are in fact there by design. Naturally, this was likely obvious from previews and interviews before and after the debut, but it isn't the same as actually experiencing it first hand.

I may as well get in the positive first; the addition of the additional teen heroes has made this not a more enjoyable show, but a less excruciating one than it was "GREAT POWER" when Spidey had to sell it alone. The version of Peter Parker/Spider-Man depicted in this show is probably one of the most annoying and insipid versions I have ever seen put to TV - he badly needs teammates to water him down or at least to keep him from having every line of dialogue. Iron Fist, Power Man and White Tiger are the least annoying out of the cast - and the Tiger's spot on irritation with Spider-Man often channels my feelings exactly. That isn't to say I find their depictions flawless; like the rest of the show, every character is played for a laugh more often than they should. The animation quality is pretty good for TV quality, the action isn't too bad, and like I said about the first two episodes, roughly 10% of the humor does hit the mark. The problem is the other 90%.

Peter Parker recaps the previous two episodes to us, and while I don't have a problem with narration, I DO have a problem with the main character talking into the camera like a substitute teacher who thinks I am too stupid to pay attention. Surely there are better ways to keep audiences up to speed in a serial show through more subtle means; I know because I have seen it done in such ways before. This episode focuses on Sam Washington, the new Nova - and showcases him to be as much of an annoying tool as Peter Parker is in this show. If EVERY focus episode merely ends up showcasing how annoying each character is, then I am dreading learning about the other three already. Seriously, I cringe about how this show will make Iron Fist or Luke Cage's origins into nothing more than the backdrops to cheap, tired, and desperate humor. At any rate, Peter gets bent out of shape when Sam starts hanging out with his pals MJ and Harry during lunch period; Peter feels it is safer to keep his web-slinger and civilian lives separate, but he also may be insecure and jealous. This feeling isn't a bad thing and could be interesting to play off - the problem is the episode never accomplishes that in a clear and well executed manner. The characters in this show are not characters; they are bare bones exaggerations that exist on a series bible which serve to provide designated dialogue, jokes, and fight sequences. At any rate, Agent Principal Coulson gives the bickering twosome detention, although it is merely cover for their SHIELD training so they won't be missed. Nova and Spider-Man take their one-upmanship to a training exercise and completely wreck it, earning Nick Fury's ire. Seeking to get back in his good graces and prove themselves, Nova decides to take out SHIELD's most wanted villain - Dr. Doom. Faster than you can say "auto-pilot", the kids fly into Latveria and proceed with a battle plan of "punch everything in sight until we win". I wish I could say this is the dumbest plan I have ever seen against Dr. Doom in comic book fiction, but I recall an issue of MIGHTY AVENGERS written by Brian M. Bendis - this series' writer and producer - in which he had his team of adult and experienced Avengers which included Iron Man, Wonder Man and Ms. Marvel attack Doom with exactly the same plan, AND IT TOTALLY WORKED. At any rate, the rest of the team stare in disbelief as Nova and Spidey seem to defeat Doom himself, until it's revealed that he's merely allowed his Doombot to be captured by SHIELD so they could attempt to blow up the helicarrier from within. Can the heroes manage to overcome their own errors and save the day? Sadly, yes.

Contrasting this show's version of Dr. Doom against the version that "AVENGERS: EARTH'S MIGHTIEST HEROES" debuted just last week in their season premiere is akin to contrasting a wet nap with fine silk. This show sparks the return of the over-the-top and cheese inducing Dr. Doom last seen on "FANTASTIC FOUR: WORLD'S GREATEST HEROES" where he makes the 1980's Skeletor look like a champion in subtle terror. Even his Doombots are obligated to make dumb jokes. Veteran voice actor Maurice LaMarche plays Doom here, and clearly has the order to go for over the top, because he does. Yet the same villain who is played for a laugh is expected to instill terror when we find out he is about to blow up the helicarrier. The same Nick Fury who is mocked endlessly is supposed to be taken seriously during the rare moments the show is trying to be dramatic. This sort of thing is hard to pull off, and this show doesn't at all. Going from the awe inspiring villain of "A:EMH" to a caped cheese-ball 20 years out of date only makes me further curse the day Jeph Loeb became TV czar at Marvel.

As always, there are no end of annoying moments. The show references "VERSUS" fighting games twice, because once would be too subtle. It believes a gag where Spider-Man imagines himself with a jet-pack is so funny it needs to be shown THREE TIMES. It isn't enough that Spider-Man has to make a predictable joke about how heavy his teammates are when he's carrying them on a web-line; they have to become deformed sumo wrestlers as if we're too ****ing stupid to catch the gist of that lame joke. At the end when the show makes a labored attempt to show that the heroes have learned something uniting to clean up their mess, Nova flies off to repeat the error and that merely made me hate him more. Spider-Man himself is an annoyingly slow learner; in the pilot his showboating and reckless endangerment of others got Harry zapped into the hospital - yet here he narrates as he deliberately turns his back on being responsible with Nova so he can one-up him. I'm with J.J. in this series; the wall-crawler is a menace and needs to be run out of town! Spider-Man lists off the super villains he has defeated in his year as a vigilante, and NOT A SINGLE ONE OF THEM is from his own rogues gallery. Look, "BATMAN: BRAVE AND THE BOLD" had Batman fight everyone and anyone, but even they had fun with Batman's own rogues gallery in background bits, such as obscure lamers like Zebra-Man. Couldn't this show have encouraged their audience to dig through Wikipedia wondering who, say, Grizzly or Gibbon or White Rabbit or Typeface or so on were? Oh, wait, I forget; this show doesn't expect it's audience to do anything besides play "ULTIMATE MARVEL VS. CAPCOM" and buy Marvel Merchandise until they OD from ADHD. So this is a Spider-Man show where Spidey has battled the Frightful Four, Batroc, Toad, and Whirlwind before Lizard or Doc Ock. Even "SPIDER-MAN AND HIS AMAZING FRIENDS" - which this show desperately wants to channel so much it could burst - featured villains from Spidey's rogues gallery more often than not. In 1981, the first three episodes of "SPIDER-MAN AND HIS AMAZING FRIENDS" on NBC featured, in this order, Green Goblin, Kraven the Hunter and Dr. Doom as villains. This show may as well be a Fantastic Four show at this rate. Is the Mole Man next? How about Karisma, John Bryne's cruelest mistake? She has evil make-up powers, imagine the lame brained jokes this show could have with that! At any rate, "SPIDER-MAN & HIS AMAZING FRIENDS" is an unfair comparison because while that show also played things for laughs, it also had a far more even tone and a better grasp of the source material, and THAT was a show that had an annoying dog as a mascot!

Highlights? Agent Coulson's attempts to balance the budget of Midtown High were actually pretty funny, helped by Clark Gregg's usual delivery as the character. Iron Fist and Power Man get in a few decent power moments. White Tiger's critical comments are often nuggets of truth in this web of insanity. Chi McBride's Nick Fury is alright enough, and I have to admit one bit where he goes "blippity blah blah" as per Peter's imagination got me to chuckle. Unfortunately, every time this episode would do something which I thought was amusing or acceptable and made me almost reconsider my harsh criticism of it, then it would do something annoying or jaw-droppingly stupid and live down to my expectations. "TEEN TITANS" didn't go as overboard with the comedy as often as this show is, and I didn't always care for the uneven tone of that show either. It isn't the focus on comedy that is the problem; it's the fact that it's "bad comedy" as Galvatron would say, which is told in such a desperate and blatantly crude manner that it feels more sad than entertaining. I genuinely feel sorry for writers who feel there is no better way to get a laugh out of children, I really do. What, "SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN" was made specifically for 30 year olds on the Internet, that's why it aired on Saturday mornings on Kid's WB?

"DOOMED", if I am fair, is an improvement to a degree on the last episodes - much in the same way diminishing a forest fire to a house fire is an improvement on a disaster. The problem remains that this show tries to do too much and accomplishes little of it well. It wants to play 90% of every moment for a cheap laugh and then expects genuine audience reaction the 10% of the time they want a serious beat. The humor is desperately crude, the villains over the top, the characters are simplistic and the titular hero is one of the most annoying versions I have ever seen put to screen. Give me Emo Parker dancing on tables in "SPIDER-MAN 3" over this mess any day. The fact that it is on THIS show that Iron Fist and Luke Cage make their debuts as regular cast members on the small screen amounts to a bitter Faustian bargain to Heroes For Hire fans. This show represents a giant step backward in serial animated series storytelling and broadcasts a disregard for the average intelligence of its audience in almost every minute.

Bottom line? I made it through all twelve episodes of "SPIDER-MAN UNLIMITED" in 1999-2000, when I was 17-18 and had less to do on Saturday mornings. I am not sure how much longer I will endure this show just to get my Heroes For Hire fix. They are the highlights of the show; the problem is they're not enough to save it for me. Trying to guess how their focus episodes will butcher and satirize them does not feel my heart with desire. "ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN" does not feel like a show, it feels like the hybrid demon spawn creation of aging comic book and TV production personnel with products to sell and a low opinion of their consumer base. At least I have an alternative from Marvel Animation such as "AVENGERS: EARTH'S MIGHTIEST HEROES"...for another twelve episodes. Giving Loeb power over Marvel's TV arm is akin to making Captain Hook the head of a daycare center, and there'll be no fairy dust to save us. It had seemed after a long period of DC Animation cleaning Marvel's clock in terms of animated products, Marvel was on an upswing with "SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN" and "AVENGERS: EMH". This show merely slams the door shut on that progress and showcases that all the money in Disney's bank account can't buy it a clue.


extremely well thought out and well put, Dread... thank you for a spot-on analysis and opinions that mirrors my own...
 
I saw the first ep and I definitely want more. I love it so far, great animation, pl;us they really got Spidey's character down. And it's so dang funny, especially how he explains the spider-sense.
Plus that scene of Iron Man getting knocked around his garage brought a big happy fangirl smile to my face.
I wonder if that was a movie reference?
 
Principal Coulson was hands-down the best part of this entire episode
 
A USM/NBA mashup commercial. Ok, I guess.

[YT]48c4vRipc7Q[/YT]
 
Watched the third episode today. Another funny episode. My favorite line was,"I hate you all."
 
One thing for sure is it's already better than the MTV show and the 60s, 70s and 80s shows

Ha, not even close, in my opinion. Having grown up in the 60's and 70's, I still love the crazy, corny and amazing 60's Spider-Man toon. Nothing like getting home from school, throwing the homework in the corner, and watching the 60's Spidey toon. I have yet to see a Spidey toon that comes close. Then again, the 60's Spidey/Peter voice actor is still the voice I hear in my head when I read Spidey comics, even till this day.
Too each their own.

Keep On Thwipin'!!!
Sam
 
It's definitely better than MTV spider-man at this point, I'll give it that.
 
Thought this episode was much better than the last two. Some jokes did make me chuckle, like Spider-Man on the jet pack, Spider-Man having dinner with Fury & Doom and Coulson; who is the highlight of the show for me.

The same problems are present -Too much is happening too fast. There's not enough time to digest everything on a visual level, which is a pity because the animation is great.

Not everything thing has to be a joke, but yet the writing keeps injecting joke upon joke. I don't know anything about Power-Man, Nova, Iron Fist or Tigress and this show has the perfect opportunity to introduce them, but it's failed to do so thus far. Who are these people and why should I care about them? Right now they are coming off as one dimensional and nothing more.
 
Thought this episode was much better than the last two. Some jokes did make me chuckle, like Spider-Man on the jet pack, Spider-Man having dinner with Fury & Doom
I liked those, and the spider jumping off of Spidey's chest
and Coulson; who is the highlight of the show for me.
I'm with you on that one
"Legally call it meatloaf" :hehe:
 
anybody else noticed some scenes actually come straight ouuta the USM comics?

205fls3.jpg


33ot8no.jpg
 
Apparently pretty colors and alot of noise is suppose to make up for a plot...
 
In translating the strength of Spider-Man to animation, this one seems to do a real fine job
Apparently pretty colors and alot of noise is suppose to make up for a plot...
For starters, welcome to the boards

I disagree about the plot, it's there, it's obvious, and they're doing a pretty nice job with it. 4th wall breaking and those jokes sadly don't help
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top
monitoring_string = "afb8e5d7348ab9e99f73cba908f10802"