The Amazing Spider-Man Which Incarnation of Spider-Man?

[Deaths Head II]

I think SSM paid great respect to the Lee/Ditko and Lee/Romita periods. I don't think it's that outrageous to have it so high on the poll.

 

[The Joker]

Speaking of Volumes.. It's a sad day for Spidey Fandom IMO when the crap that is SSM (Cartoon) is close (in the poll) to the greatness of Lee/Ditko's ASM. :

Crap? I thought you were a fan of the SSM cartoon, Slag?

 

[Rincewind]

Slag, why do you think that SSM is crap?

 

[TheSlag]

Crap? I thought you were a fan of the SSM cartoon, Slag?

Probably "crap" was too strong a word, even though I was trying to get across my displeasure that some perfer it over the Lee/Ditko era. But, the quiping, the non threatening villains, Tombstone being more athletic that Spidey, etc.... and the Always wrapping it up in ONE episode, is wearing thin on me.

I was kinda a fan of the first season. I thought the Lizard episode, and the Venom/Brock episode were done quite well, but the few I have seen of Season 2 have left me cold.

I think it is simply reminding me too much of the unfulfilled potential that was left on the table by Raimi's Spider-Man movies.

You know.. WAYYYY tooo much of a Kiddie Ride for my liking. :

 

[SpeterMan3]

Slag, have you seen Final Curtain? it's probably the best episode of the whole show (so far).

 

[TheSlag]

... That was one thing that made SM3 bad. Because they did it in the first two films, the same exact way it has been done in other franchises that some believe are better movies and decide to compare them to this franchise, is completely baseless.

I find it kind of funny that spider-neil was the one who brought up any comparison to Batman, and was doing so in an attempt to defend Sam's Spider-Man.

 

[TheSlag]

Slag, have you seen Final Curtain? it's probably the best episode of the whole show (so far).

I am guessing that this is in Season 2, so I would think not. I have only seen one or two of the Season 2 episodes, and unfortunately, they did not move me.

But, I will definitely try to check that one out, since you recommended it. Again, I spoke too harshly. SSM (Cartoon) is not that bad, but to compare it to the Lee/Ditko era as the results of the poll implies, is ludicrous to me.

 

[chaseter]

I find it kind of funny that spider-neil was the one who brought up any comparison to Batman, and was doing so in an attempt to defend Sam's Spider-Man.

And then someone comes in to tear down Spider-Man and was completely wrong with their examples is even funnier

 

[sauronthegreat]

I am guessing that this is in Season 2, so I would think not. I have only seen one or two of the Season 2 episodes, and unfortunately, they did not move me.

But, I will definitely try to check that one out, since you recommended it. Again, I spoke too harshly. SSM (Cartoon) is not that bad, but to compare it to the Lee/Ditko era as the results of the poll implies, is ludicrous to me.

I would also recommend for you to see "Sheer Strength" for a best Dock Ock interpretation to date, and "Gangland" for one of the best edited and animated epic battles in a superhero show combined with opera. Also the whole Venom arc in Season 2 was amazingly done, and brought Venom, with his knowledge of knowing who Spider-Man is to a new height, a thing that should have been more explored before.

 

[Rincewind]

Well, in response to Slag's dislike, I'd like to point out some of the good things that SSM managed to achieve, in hope that it will show why apparently a lot of guys around - me, included - think that it's a great incarnation and interpretation of Spidey's mythos.

- It borrows great elements from all things Spidey. From the Lee/Ditko and the Lee/Romita eras, through the Raimi movies, to the Ultimate comics, SSM takes great ideas, puts its own spin on them and manages to create an awesome amalgam of a comic canon-faithful yet original and exciting interpretation of the mythos.

- The way that the story flows together and how the events are bound to one another. You can watch separate episodes of SSM by themselves, but the real enjoyment comes when you see how everything folds out and how all is tied together in thin but crystal clear threads similair to a web. Example - in Season 2 Dr. Octopus, through the mystierous identity of the Master Planner, tries to connect his mind to every computer in the world in order to gain enormous worldwide power; Spider-Man foils that plan and you would think that there's that. But no - later-on we see that Ock has kept the connections he made as the Master Planner and now is the leader of the growing "community" of super-villains in New York (which can be traced back to Season 1 when he created the Sinister Six) and now as such leader, he becomes a vital part of the city's underworld map and later takes part in the Gang War that errupts between the powerful crimelords; but the Gang War was orchestrated by the Green Goblin and his plan to take over the crime scene of New York goes back to the early episodes of Season 1. And all of this is not a bunch of single episodes, it's a web of storyarcs that spans over two seasons and more than 20 episodes. And it was just one example, you can trace the whole story that way.

- The characters. From Peter, through Gwen Stacy, to Flash Thompson, SSM has a great cast of main and supporting characters. I can't think of a single one that I find to have a weak characterization, even if some of them are a bit changed compared to the comics.

- The villains. Everything about them. I think that most, if not all, of them are developed and used great. Their characterizations are strong and memorable, and apart from Kraven, their visualization is awesome. Not to mention that there were some kickass ideas, such as villains like Shocker, Rhino, Sandman and Molten Man to be purposefully created by the Big Bads of the show to distract Spider-Man from fighting ordinary crime. And to be honest, I found some of SSM villains (Rhino, Shocker, Silver Sable, to name a few) to be actually better than what I've seen from the comic book originals.

- The great animation. Yes, the style is simple and even kiddy, but you know what? That allows us to see smooth fights and cascades that are simply amazing for a cartoon show.

Now, do I think that SSM is absolutely and wholly perfect? No. It has aspects that I would have preffered to be different. It's still pretty much a kid's cartoony show and although for the most part I can ignore that, sometimes it really shows and I'm not fond of it. And, aparat of this, the show can be a little too fast paced for its own good and sometimes that leaves me with a bit unsatisfying and rushed resolutions of some storylines.
So, would I want a literal and direct translation of SSM on the big screen? Mostly no. But it would be nice to see the good sides of the show being used in some manner.

 

[sauronthegreat]

^

 

[Spider-Fan]

I feel I must point this out:

It's easier for a TV show to do that than it is for a film. TV shows mirror comic in format due to the episodic nature of the plotting comics and TV both have. Films can't be episodic like that. They have to encompass a story that gets resolved within about 2 hours. This is why when people ask why comic films can't do what Batman TAS or SSM have done over the years, that is why. It is 2 different mediums. Plus, SSM doesn't have to worry about trying to make the impossible possible within a budget like a film does.

 

[SpeterMan3]

Very true.

 

[TheSlag]

And then someone comes in to tear down Spider-Man and was completely wrong with their examples is even funnier

And AGAIN (I sense a trend with you Grasshopper), he may have been mistaken on specifics of how many times RD was in jeopardy (*thinks of the Suck it Hard.. Suck it Long.. Trebeck/Jeopardy routine.. *sorry.. non lucid moment there t..... BUT his point of sloppy writing/directing still stands.

And as Joker pointed out, RD with her profession, should (logically) be IN MORE "Jeporday" than MJ (*spit*GweMJ*spit).

His point is more than relevant.

 

[TheSlag]

I would also recommend for you to see "Sheer Strength" for a best Dock Ock interpretation to date, and "Gangland" for one of the best edited and animated epic battles in a superhero show combined with opera. Also the whole Venom arc in Season 2 was amazingly done, and brought Venom, with his knowledge of knowing who Spider-Man is to a new height, a thing that should have been more explored before.

OK. Thanks for the tips. I probably should give them more of a chance. Have any of them actually gone more than 1 episode? Like the Venom one in Season 1 I think covered two episodes.. didn't it?

Also, I have seen Gangland, with the Fat Lady singing. *groans*... I was NOT impressed to say the least.

But I will check out the others you recommended. Especially the Venom one.

 

[spider-neil]

Lee/ditko had months/years to flesh out the character of PP/SM, SSM has to achieve the same in weeks and does a brilliant job of doing so.
each to their own but I think SSM is utterly utterly brilliant and imho the second best superhero series (second only to JL/JLU)

 

[Ethermatic]

Personally, I think the next film incarnation should be a mixture of a lot of versions of Spider-Man. From the general stories and plot points of the older 616 Universe to some of the contemporary elements from the Ultimate Universe.

While some of the contemporary elements from The Spectacular Spider-Man would also be fine with me, I think it's their portrayal with Spider-Man, the quips and the attitude, that I'd like to see them use the most.

Honestly, I don't really have a favorite. I both like and dislike things from each version and it would be impossible for me to vote or choose just one.

 

[spider-neil]

SSM - the quips and background character developement
lee/ditko - the essence, look and feel
raimi - the action/fights (c'mon, they were BAD ASS)
USM - peter's dialogue (bendis pretty much nails that)
BB/TDK - nothing. I want to watch a spidey movie.

you manage all that in a 2 hour movie and you'll make a billion dollars EASILY

 

[DACMAN]

four times.

He saves her from a mugger (she tries to tazer him for his trouble)

He saves her from the scarecrow when she is drugged

He saves her when she gets pushed out a window

He 'attempts' to save her when she is strapped to a bomb

It depends on how you look at it. He saves her twice. He saves her from being drugged, and then when she gets pushed out the window. He didn't save her from the bomb, and he didn't really do anything with the mugger. And the fact she wasn't saved from the bomb is another big difference. It made it so it wasn't repetitious. It also stopped her from being saved a couple more times in 3, unlike MJ.

 

[spider-neil]

It depends on how you look at it. He saves her twice. He saves her from being drugged, and then when she gets pushed out the window. He didn't save her from the bomb, and he didn't really do anything with the mugger. And the fact she wasn't saved from the bomb is another big difference. It made it so it wasn't repetitious. It also stopped her from being saved a couple more times in 3, unlike MJ.

the fact batman failed to save her is neither her nor there his girlfriend was used a plot device to move him from 'a' to 'b'

of course batman saved his girlfriend from the mugger, what would have happened if batman wasn't there, do you think that lamearse tazer would have stopped that mugger?

the bottom line is RD has been used as a plot device in batman several times, if we can't argree on that there is no point continuing as you can't be objective.

 

[sauronthegreat]

Have any of them actually gone more than 1 episode? Like the Venom one in Season 1 I think covered two episodes.. didn't it?

Venom's arc in season 2 covers three episodes, in a way that are connected and not that easily function as single episodes. Each episode features a different villain, but in general the story of Venom is spanning in all three.

The Master Planner arc covers the first four episodes in Season 2 in a way.

Whenever you have time check out the whole season 2, it's better if you watch it from the beginning and not just single episodes.

 

[TheSlag]

Thanks for the info sauron.. I will check Season 2 out more.

 

[Chris Wallace]

You know what they say about opinions & a certain part of the anatomy; everybody's got one.

 

[DACMAN]

I think SSM paid great respect to the Lee/Ditko and Lee/Romita periods. I don't think it's that outrageous to have it so high on the poll.

Agreed. Though Peter is more Ultimate than Lee/Ditko.

And I've changed my mind. Though I like the 616 Married to MJ version a tiny, tiny, tiny bit better I'd rather have a movie about the Ultimate comics.