Spider-Man: The Animated Series (Season 05)

The Wedding

"I object to this marriage." - Green Goblin

Story by: John Semper.

Teleplay by: John Semper and Meg McLaughlin.

Mary Jane Watson and Peter Parker are ready to tie the knot, but there are major obstacles to be faced before and during the cerimony. The season starts off in strong fashion, with a dynamic and interesting storyline with the Green Goblin returning to make sure the wedding does not go as planned. My favorite part was both Jameson and the Kingpin trying to get one over the other to see who can better help at the wedding, a funny dynamic that added a lot. The Green Goblin returning is always welcoming and see Harry getting better at the end thanks to Liz is a good way to finish the character's arc. The final season finishes up one of the previous season main storylines to kick us off. Let's hope the momentum can be maintained.

Six Forgotten Warriors: Chapter I

"You must stop May Parker." - Nick Fury

Written by: John Semper.

Now, let's add a little bit of the Cold War to the show. Peter Parker's parents as Russian spies? Worked for me, I guess. While this storyline is a little bit out there, the execution of this first part really sets the stage well. The Sinister Six is back thanks to the Kingpin, Parker convinces Jameson to go to Russia in the funniest way possible and May Parker is a global threat. So much happens in this episode that makes me excited to see long-term storytelling once again. The action scenes are well made and now we will uncover a mystery our protagonist's parents. All of this in Russia. Seems like the show is back on form with a spy novel thriller being developed.

Unclaimed Legacy

"World domination? Kingpin, now you sound like a Saturday morning cartoon villain." - Spider-Man

Written by: John Semper.

Our hero heads to Moscow and all the trouble possible follows him there. Kingpin wants the Doomsday Device and has the Sinister Six to help, and this time they are on the same page. Red Skull almost shows up, but it is his son at this moment. The plot thickens and anticipation begins to mount regarding when Red Skull will show up and what kind of threat will he bring. There was a lot of action and fighting here, with the new surroundings doing the show a breath of fresh air. A good follow-up that did not advance that much of the story, but still brought good action and a resolution to the spy story where we discover that Peter's parents were not spies.

Secrets of the Six

"Miss America? The Thunderer? With those names, they expected to be taken seriously?" - Peter Parker

Written by: John Semper.

The world's tackiest super heroes are revealed. The Six Forgotten Warriors backstory is an interesting one, but the characters themselves are tacky, no doubt about it. We spend ten minutes of the episode learning about these new characters and how Captain America fought Red Skull during World War II, really expanding the show's universe with this decision. I find it interesting how the Insidious Six are being used in this arc, being the muscle to go after the Six Forgotten Warriors. Matching the heroes and villains in groups of six creates good action scenes between the thugs and the old school heroes. From a deeper point of view, the final reflection that Peter has regarding where his life will end up is one of the coolest reflections from the show. While not a top tier story from the show, the arc is a return to form to the show and I am excited for its continuation.

The Six Fight Again

"Nice catch! Did you ever think of trying out for the Yankees?" - Spider-Man

Written by: John Semper.

The Six American Warriors. The Insidious Six. Red Skull's family. Spider-Man. God knows who else. We approach the end of the arc in explosive fashion, with Kingpin finally getting the six statues together and Red Skull coming back. It is always great when the show can put all of the characters interacting together in well-made fight scenes. Even with a lot of people, these episodes do not look bloated since everyone has a part to play. Captain America returning as well is a lot of fun. Everytime someone thinks they have the upper hand, a new development happens and the tension mounts again, which is awesome. The Cold War climate and espionage atmosphere is doing wonders for this arc, so expectations are high for the resolution in the next episode.

The Price of Heroism

"The time has come. Submission or oblivion: the choice is yours." - Elektro

Written by: John Semper.

The Doomsday device is our friend... Elektro, the ultimate weapon. This is an interesting choice, I never saw Elektro as this major threat that warrants a full storyline that culminates on him being the big bad of the arc. While I have this reservation, the execution is pratically flawless, with Elektro being portrayed as an all-powerful entity causing chaos throughout the world and everyone having difficulties stopping him. We see Captain America and Red Skull get absorved in the vortex again and Spider-Man saving the day for everyone, almost putting the world in the status quo of the 1940s. This arc is a victory for the show, being able to keep up good writing through five continuous episodes that felt like a spy novel combined with superhero shenanigans. If you told me that the show would have made a five-part episode with a bunch of new superheroes work, I would bet against, but long-term storytelling is one of the strongest parts of Spider-Man: TAS and this was shown once again here.

The Return of Hydro-Man: Part One

"Is it possible the lady is trying to tell you something? By evaporating you, boiling you and fleeing in terror from you?" - Spider-Man

Story by: John Semper.

Teleplay by: Eileen Fuentes and James Krieg.

So... that ending, huh? Hydro-Man returns and we have what appeared to be a paint by numbers episode very much similar to the Season 2 one. Morrie shows up, is obsessed with Mary Jane, kidnaps her and Spider-Man comes in to save the day. But, actually, this time around the episode finishes with Mary Jane unleashing a water blast that sends Hydro-Man away. Now the cliffhanger is: how is she able to do that? This adds a lot and let's hope the show can deliver a good answer to that question.

The Return of Hydro-Man: Part Two

"If any part of me is anything like the real Mary Jane Watson, she loves Peter Parker more than anything in the world." - Clone Version of Mary Jane Watson

Story by: John Semper.

Teleplay by: Meg McLaughlin and John Semper.

Now, that's emotion. After multiple episodes putting Peter Parker in a happy romantic situation, the show pulls the rug right from under us in a blink, revealing that the Mary Jane that returned is actually a clone created by Miles Warren. This is a great episode that turns the tide for our hero in an emotional level, with him displaying anger and disbelief in incredible fashion at the end of the episode. I remember the first time I watched Spider-Man losing it while the Mary Jane clone disappears and I was shocked at the depth that the series went. The plot twist was executed in brilliant fashion and now Madame Web is back to help him get Mary Jane back in exchange for our new story arc.

Arrival

"This is going to be the biggest battle of all time." - Spider-Man

Written by: John Semper and Karen Milovich.

Secret Wars is one of Marvel's biggest ever arcs and the show's courage to put it here is commendable by itself. We discovered more of Madame Web's plans for Spider-Man and the Beyonder first appearance showed that he is not someone you should mess around with. I liked how the premise is executed and it is good to see Doctor Octopus receive more of the spotlight after being presented too much as a common villain. The show already did a good job whenever needed to combine different parts of Marvel's universe and expectations for this one are sky high. It was good to see the Lizard go back to the hero's side right here, since I do not think he is even that fit for the villain's group. Great writing and great episode to begin the arc.

The Gauntlet of the Red Skull

"You, Spider. You're quite a leader. I wouldn't want to have missed sharing this action with you for all the world. Thanks." - Black Cat

Written by: Virginia Roth.

The main aspect of the Secret War is showing how Spider-Man is a leader of people as a result of his preparation during the last five seasons. It is satisfying to see Spider-Man leading the charge of multiple superheroes in another planet. He is more assertive here than in the rest of the series, showing how much he evolved over the episodes. This time, he brings the Black Cat to help him out, allowing her to have the opportunity of revenge against Red Skull. While the story does well when it comes to character work, I believe that the war goes on way too fast, almost like the show has to put multiple episodes inside twenty minutes and without space to let things breath and the villains to pose a bigger threat.

Doom

"Good has triumphed over evil." - The Beyonder

Written by: John Semper, Mark Hoffmeier, and Ernie Altbacker.

Well, the Secret War is over. Good has won. The final episode of the storyline ends it in great fashion, with Spider-Man facing his final test before his real challenge. All the villains are dispatched to Earth and the good guys have their memories erased. Poor Ben Grimm. I really enjoy how Doom is portrayed here, as a villain with a distorted motive that can reasonate even though he is wrong. The twist at the beginning with new Latveria being a peaceful place sets the episode and Doom apart from anything that we have seen in the series so far, making him a more dangerous threat than many of the villains of the show. While uneven thanks to the small amount of time it had, this arc still is a success in my book, with a great finish that leads us to Spider-Man's real ultimate challenge.

I Really, Really Hate Clones

"This is starting to sound like a bad comic book plot." - Spider-Man

Story by: John Semper.

Teleplay by: James Krieg, Mark Hoffmeier, and John Semper.

The Clone Saga, but good. The final arc of the show does a spin on the infamous storyline and spins it up in the best way possible. Now we have multiple Peter Parkers trying to save the world in which its Peter Parker lost all of his good influences and decided to use his abilities to do evil. Spider-Carnage is a great idea and the scenes explaining how things reached this terrible scenario are amazing. It is rewarding to see how the five seasons comes down to the fight for reality itself. Spider-Man is not only a superhero, it is an inspiration and this episode is the first draft of a love letter to the character. All different dimensions are coming together to save the world and it is our Spider-Man that leads the charge.

Farewell, Spider-Man

"With great power, there must come great responsibility." - Spider-Carnage

Written by: John Semper.

All hell breaks loose and Spider-Carnage wants to take out his frustrations in multiple universes. The show does not waste time in the Series Finale, leaving Peter to save reality on its own instead of with the help of his clones. It is brilliant how the show puts the protagonist in a position to have a life that it's almost the opposite of the one of his reality. Money, fame, wife... Everything a man could have wanted in the middle of chaos. The Series Finale is an emotional rollecoaster packed with action, the way the series always presented itself in its best moments, connecting all different characters fighting all the time. And, with that being said, of course the show resolves its conflict with character-driven development and the presence of Ben Parker. It's an amazing point how great of an idea this was, with Spider-Carnage fighting with himself to get rid of the symbiote.

In the end, even Stan Lee shows up. How lovely.

Unfortunately, the show ended with a cliffhanger and Peter was not able to find Mary Jane since the show got cancelled. Still, this is the Spider-Man of my childhood and rewatching and writing about the show was a personal project that brought me a lot of joy. Spider-Man is the greatest comic book character of all time and Spider-Man: The Animated Series is a beautiful homage to the character.

Farewell, Spider-Man. This show is being missed to this day.