Marvel Animation’s latest entry onto Disney+ takes us on a journey with Spider-Man that’s unlike any that has been seen before. Unlike previous shows such as Spectacular Spider-Man or Ultimate Spider-Man, Jeff Trammell takes a route that celebrates the character’s early comic book roots with its unique and eye-catching art style that easily fits the world of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is an animated show created by Jeff Trammell (Craig of the Creek) that follows Peter Parker (Hudson Thames) at the start of his hero career, as we find him getting bit by a spider that has fallen through a portal after the aftermath of a fight between Doctor Strange (Robin Atkin Downes) and a symbiotic alien (Kellen Groff). After the accident, Parker becomes Queen’s friendly neighborhood Spider-Man and accepts an internship with Oscorp’s very own Norman Osborne (Colman Domingo). Along the way he makes friends with Nico Minoru (Grace Song), Harry Osborn (Zeno Robinson), Pearl Pangan (Cathy Ang), and Lonnie Lincoln (Eugene Byrd).
This show was originally announced back in 2021 during Disney+ Day under the name ‘Spider-Man: Freshman Year‘ before it underwent a name change. It has been a long four years while following updates regarding this show, and it had fans questioning how it was going to live up to their favourite Spider-Man shows. With the release of X-Men ’97, it was starting to look promising for the future of Marvel Animation on Disney+. This is a show that won’t disappoint true fans of the web-slinger and will have them wishing there were more than just ten episodes to watch currently; thankfully, they wouldn’t have to wait long, as a third season has already been greenlit.
Jeff Trammell has made it clear that he understands the character of Spider-Man and what’s necessary to make a good show surrounding the character. While it was initially thought that this show would be connected to the Sacred Timeline and showing us the early days of Tom Holland’s iteration of the character. It was soon found out that it was instead going to be a branched timeline where similar things took place but ultimately went in a different direction. This was a smart choice by Trammell and his team, as it allowed them to have creative control over the series and not be limited by what Holland’s films have set in place for the character. Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is able to be free with the characters and villains that they choose to work with.
This is a show that boasts a stellar voice cast from Hudson Thames, who returns as Peter Parker/Spider-Man from What If…?, providing that young teenage voice that’s needed to bring Peter Parker to life. There are moments within the show when Spider-Man makes attempts to mask his voice around people he knows, and this, mixed with the wittiness of the character, is a trait that Thames brings to the character with his voice acting. While Thames gives a great performance as Parker, it’s Colman Domingo who leads the pride with his take as Norman Osborne.
For years, Willem Dafoe has been the definitive voice for Norman Osborne, but Domingo might be able to give him a run for his money. There’s a threatening aura to Norman’s character in this show as his motives are kept a secret even up until the last episode, but fans of the character know that Osborne always has something up his sleeve. Colman Domingo is able to portray this beautifully as he showcases this menacing nature of the character that at the same time can also seem trusting. This allows the audience to believe in Peter’s trust in the man, although we should always expect the worst when it comes down to one of Spider-Man’s greatest nemeses.
Spider-Man fans are strangely enough known for finding enjoyment in Peter Parker getting into tough situations and battles where he finds himself almost beaten to death. Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man feels like a return to form with Spider-Man battles as we finally find ourselves with a Spider-Man that isn’t too experienced and has to fight against his own anger. There are some shocking moments throughout the last few episodes that will showcase how there truly isn’t a limit behind what Trammell is capable of. The dynamic between Peter and Norman makes for an interesting discussion on the famous line “With great power comes great responsibility,” which is twisted ever so slightly in this show and changes the way Peter behaves when playing hero.
The discussion online has boiled down to the art style/animation that they’ve chosen for Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. Like with most discussions, it’s all negativity based on a few clips that don’t showcase the full picture. It takes inspiration from the Steve Ditko era of comics, and it becomes very clear in the character design for Peter Parker and how the animation blends that art style with its editing that never fails to make it seem like you’re experiencing a comic.
There are some obvious flaws that you may come across while watching the show, but it’s nothing that Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man can be faulted for, such as empty streets or still background characters. This all boils down to the budget that they’ve got, and even shows such as Invincible are subject to these issues. As you progress through the episodes, you get to notice how well it all blends together and how colours pop during certain action sequences. There was a creative vision with this show unlike What If…? and it’s noticeable.
The pacing of the first episode can feel slightly all over the place as they try quickly to get to the story they’re telling by jumping straight from Peter’s bite to him as Spider-Man. While fans have seen this story plenty of times, it would’ve been nice to see hypothetically how this peter would’ve handled the situation and instead of it being shown through flashbacks, it’s only quickly shown during the intro sequence for the show.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is a must-watch for any Spidey fan, as it’s a fan’s dream come to life. It honours the early legacy of the character well while providing a new and captivating look into how the story could’ve turned out in the Sacred Timeline. It’s everything that you’d want from a Spider-Man show and is the best one we’ve received since Spectacular Spider-Man, as it offers us one of the best iterations of the titular character. With two more animated shows on the way, we can hope that this is a sign that Marvel Animation has finally learnt their lessons from What If…? on how to create an animated show with an identity that people can fall in love with.
The ending sets up a lot of stories for the second season, which is thankfully already halfway through animatics with a third season greenlit. Will this become Marvel Studios’ and Marvel Animation’s longest-running series? If they’re anything like this first season, it deserves as many seasons to hold that title.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is streaming now on Disney+ with new episodes releasing every Wednesday until February 19.
