Toon Disney has been showing the 1990s version of Fox's Spider-Man animated series on their "Jetix" block of programming. I currently have close to 50 episodes of the show on my DVR and I have spent far too much time lately watching them late at night. Without a doubt, this version of Spidey stands tall as the finest cartoon adaptation of Peter Parker's adventures.
In the past week alone, I've enjoyed watching Spidey save Mary Jane from her demented ex-boyfriend Hydro-Man, Cleatus Kassidy becoming Carnage thanks to the evil Dormammu, the formation of the "Insidious Six" and the X-Men teaming with our friendly neighborhood hero. I've pretty much been in cartoon heaven.
One of the best things about this series is the incredible amount of characters that are used. I've got quite a ways to go before completing the entire run, but I've seen classic Spidey villians like the Shocker, Rhino, The Scorpion and Mysterio along with allies like the X-Men, the Black Cat, Daredevil and The Punisher. Virtually every corner of the Marvel Universe has been touched in this cartoon, which is part of what makes it so amazingly enjoyable.
Sure, sometimes the story strays a bit too far from what we have come to know and love in the comic books. Carnage, pictured above, gets his symbiote as a gift from Baron Mordo and Dormammu in order to destroy Spider-Man and bring Dormammu into our world. Yeah, it didn't happen that way in the comics but you know what? It works perfectly in this cartoon. I'm all for taking creative liberties here and there in order to tell a fun, well-thought-out story. Then again, that is probably the reason I'm enjoying the "Brand New Day" of Amazing Spider-Man currently being produced by Marvel comics.
As far as current animated Spidey adventures, you can also count me among the fans of the CW's "Spectacular Spider-Man" animated series. I actually find it to be a breath of fresh air and it reminds me a lot of the old Fox series. MTV's computer-animated Spidey series from a few years back just didn't resonate with me. It was alright, but it felt too much like something targeted to the casual fan. Not this new series though, it definitely packs and old-school feel and can be enjoyable for both newbies to the Spidey world and faithful followers of the web-slinger.
The first season just wrapped up and I'm anxious to see what is going to happen the next time around. I already have the DVD on my "to-buy" list, whenever it gets released as a box-set. The whole thing was just fun, it felt like a combination of the classic Spider-Man stories and the more recent "Ultimate" version of the character. Things have changed from the comics, but it all works within the context of the series. Harry Osborn was revealed to be the Green Goblin, despite evidence pointing towards his father, Norman, who as most everyone knows is the original Green Goblin in just about every other Spidey story ever created. I still have my theories about his involvement with the Green Goblin in this cartoon, I'm thinking he may have somehow set his own son up. We'll just have to wait for season two to come out.
"Jetix" has also been airing episodes of "Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends" a few nights a week. I have only caught a few of them so far, but the series is a fun little nostalgia trip back to the 1980s featuring Spidey teaming up with Iceman and a female mutant character named Firestar, created just for the show, to take on his various enemies. Though entertaining, it doesn't come close to the overall greatness of the other Spider-Man cartoons I've rambled on and on about.
DRG4's Marvel Cartoon Pages helped me out a ton with some of the research and pictures used in this blog entry. Do yourself a favor and check out the Web site. You'll find everything you have ever wanted to know about Marvel's classic cartoons from the 90s.
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