Spider-Man

This series has been somewhat overshadowed by the better-known, but in my opinion inferior, "Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends," which aired simultaneously during the early 80s. "Amazing Friends" was produced for network television, and this show was produced for syndication. That's why this show was free of a lot of the clichés and cuteness of most other early 80s cartoons, including "Amazing Friends." There was something genuinely weird and dark about this show, and it captured the flavor of the classic 1960s/early 1970s comic books which inspired it. Instead of teaming him up with countless other Marvel superheroes, Spidey worked mostly alone here, and the show was all the better for it; the only team-up was with Captain America, and even then it was consistent with the tone of the show, as they fought a truly scary villain, Captain America's main enemy, the Red Skull. It is also a historic show, as this was the first series to emerge from Marvel Productions, which went to make some of the greatest cartoons ever, including "Transformers" and "GI Joe." Even though the writing varied in quality from episode to episode, and even though the animation looks somewhat stiff compared to the Marvel shows that followed, this show still deserves more respect.

There were certainly great animated TV series based on Marvel Comics properties coming out in the 80s and this one, featuring Spider-Man, one of Marvel's most prominent superheroes, is no exception. While the series definitely has a few weaker episodes, there's definitely more good ones.

While the premise is lifted straight from the comics, all of the plots are original to the series and the series balances a supporting cast of Spider-Man enemies, guest villains and original characters. A lot of the cast from the comics is present, like Peter's elderly aunt May, his choleric boss J. Jonah Jameson or Peter's love interest Betty Brant. Other characters are mentioned and lots of other Marvel characters have either guest appearances or cleverly hidden cameos.

The series is a big step up from the 1967 TV series and not only features thrilling superhero action but also very human moments like Peter's struggle with money and him trying to balance his private life with his superhero life.

In one very outstanding example, Spider-Man actually tries to help the supervillain get out of his miserable situation instead of just defeating him. Unfortunately, it is a one-time example but it definitely sets the stage for other Spider-Man series to come.

One minor issue I had when watching it was that I noticed that the series could have benefitted from a different episode order in my opinion. There's an epic six-parter with Doctor Doom scattered througout the series and a two-parter with a Kingpin and then the series just ends with a one-shot that not even contains a Spider-Man villain. The Doom episodes certainly have the feeling of a series finale and the viewer experience could enhance if the episode "Countdown to Doom" is watched last.

When I was a little kid, I found this very enjoyable, but today I'm not quite sure. I don't think it's bad but I just did not get the same thrill from it. The animation could have used a little work and so could the stories. I don't think this was a bad show just not as good as some of the other Spidey shows.

I still retain vague memories of watching this "Spiderman" cartoon show from the early 1980s. To me, it was like watching the comics come to life. Bearing in mind how long ago this was made, the animation still holds up very well. The plots in themselves may not be as detailed or as mature as the "Spiderman" show from the 1990s but it doesn't matter to me. There is a whole gallery of villains to watch: The Green Goblin, Dr. Doom, Dr. Octopus, Kingpin, The Red Skull, The Lizard, Mysterio, The Black Cat and other more obscure adversaries. It was slightly unexpected to see Dr. Doom in so many episodes from this show - a total of 6. After all, he has never been a regular "Spiderman" villain. The reason why he was included in so many episodes, was due to the huge following of the "Star Wars" character Darth Vader. There are so many great episodes here to choose from. There are 26 altogether and I would rate 19 from being excellent to very good. The music from this "Spiderman" show is very good as it suits the style and the tone. I was glad when all the episodes were released on DVD, as video releases were fairly seldom. I shall always rate the 1981 "Spiderman" cartoon show as the definitive one.

A great show, but actually not my favorite Spider-Man one! I don't know if it was the animation, the plot, or I don't know, the whole feel of it, I just didn't enjoy it that much!