The Spectacular Spider-Man: The Complete Series [Blu-ray]

When high school teen Peter Parker attends a science exhibit, his life is soon forever changed. During a demonstration on radioactive rays, a spider accidentally absorbs some of the radiation. Parker is bitten by the spider and later learns he has obtained the spiders abilities. Now calling himself Spider-Man, Peter chooses to use his powers for the good of mankind by bringing criminals to justice. -summaryI have to admit that I was one of those individuals whom put this show off for years simply because I didn't care for the wacky like character designs, also at the same time I never really cared for Spider-Man in animated form, and I have that atrocious 90's animated Spider-Man series to thank for that. I mean seriously, that take on Spider-Man and his universe put a nasty taste in my mouth. Recently I decided to go ahead and dive into this series hoping for good things, and it was indeed money and time well spent. The Spectacular Spider-Man is 26 episodes of solid storytelling and above average animation; as a fan of the character I can say this is Spider-Man finally done right.It's ironic that the visuals were originally the aspect of this series that put me off, but now they're my first point of praise. I love the fluid animation going on here; everything looks amazing from Spider-Man's graceful web-slinging to his superior agility during evasive action. There is very little to no reliance on re-used cels, with all movements being very well choreographed. The action segments are too much fun to watch, consisting of some over the top aerial chases and hand to hand. Spider-Man's world is a place where the imagination can run wild, and the animators along with screen writers managed to do just that. The character designs grew on me quicker than I realized with some nice updates to many of the villains. The female characters are rather tame; they're cute without being overly sexy except maybe Black Cat, there's quite a bit of sex appeal with her. The BGM and voice acting further brings out the show's style, with some very talented voice work delivered by Josh Keaton, whom clearly has Spider-Man down to a science; with the always cool Clancy Brown and Steve Blum sporting their goods as well.Although I love the stylistic edge of this show, I have to praise the writing as the strongest point. I remember all of these storylines in their original form, and I love the modern twist to these old classics. Please ignore those purist out there that claim classics were ruined here for a newer audience because this is not the case. Peter Parker's life is almost as interesting as Spider-Man's; with him forced to deal with being an outcast along with his friends, plus hoping to see where his relationships are going to go with the Parker luck in full effect. Spider-Man also has one of, perhaps the most notorious rogues galleries in comics and each of his villains such as Dr. Octopus, Electro, and even Kraven are still just as great as in the comic with some nice makeovers. However, it's Tombstone that received the best makeover being extremely OP despite being pretty tough in the comic anyway. I also must point out how newbie friendly this show is. The writing doesn't demand that a new audience must be familiar in order to enjoy the characters; we're given solid origins and reasons for the characters thinking. The series is so much fun to watch and I couldn't wait for the next episode; I can't think of one moment where I got the crave to see something else. If there's only one issue I have with the writing, then it's how Venom was handled at one point. It's clear that he really hates Spider-Man but he wants Spider-Man only for himself, and he considers it unfair to drag anyone else into their feud, in which he does here. I felt that the episode was unbelievable in how it was wrapped up. Still, this is a small gripe only as a comic fan.Clocking in at nearly 10 hours across 4 disk, The Spectacular Spider-Man is a great show to spend the weekend. The comedy doesn't feel forced at all nor does it even slightly ruin the atmosphere. There's just a perfect blend of entertainment that adults of all ages can enjoy. The language is profanity free and although there is plenty of action and even violence, it's all very tame and doesn't even begin to approach many of the more harsh DC animated films out there. Along with adults this series is great for the kids as well. I can imagine some old school fans not appreciating some changes from the original source material; other than this there's nothing to really complain about. The Blu-Ray looks and sounds very good, plus there's a couple of extras. Highly recommended.Pros: Very fluid animation and solid writing, good viewing for everyoneCons: Some purist may not like the various changes

I love this series. I first watched it on Disney XD in 2009 when it premiered there. Over the years I had forgotten what the episodes and series included but remembered loving it back then so one day I decided to look it up again and once I got the name again I looked it up on Amazon. I was delighted to find that the series was on Blue Ray and ordered it the minute I got the chance to. As I watched it all the episodes and what happened in them came back to me and I fell in love with the series all over again. I just finished re watching it tonight. I have to say I love it just as much as I did when I watched it the first time on TV all those years ago and the fact its on Blue Ray makes it even better. The picture and sound is amazing. My only complaint about the Blue Ray is that each disk lists all the episodes from the season and doesn't just list the episodes on the disk so it made things confusing at first. Also when you select an episode not on the current disk your watching it says insert either disk 1 or disk 2. It doesn't go by disks 1 through 4. However the disks are properly labeled with the numbers 1 through 4 so that doesn't make it a huge issue if you know the disk your currently on. I also wish this came with more special features but oh well I'll take what I can get. I'm just glad the whole series was released and now I can enjoy it forever. It was great re watching the series because it almost felt like I was watching it for the first time because I hadn't seen it in years and forgot most of what happened until seeing it again. I hated that it ended on a cliff hanger though just like I did back then when I watched it years ago. Too bad it was canceled. I always thought it deserved more seasons. Despite the cliff hanger I still love it though and I'm very glad I own it.

A big chunk of my childhood was delivered to me.

This is, simply put, the best animated Spiderman series ever produced (and I'm saying that as someone with dim, nostalgia-goggles memories of long-ago Saturday mornings watching Spiderman and his Amazing Friends, and who became hooked on Spiderman lore due to the 1990s animated series). It's produced by Greg Weisman of Gargoyles fan, so like that show, The Spectacular Spiderman also does an excellent job setting up long-running storylines and contains a sprawling and impressive voice cast. Any longtime fan of the character will find much to enjoy in this series, given that it borrows from nearly every incarnation of the character that preceded it; there are direct adaptations of the early Lee/Ditko issues, characterizations and motivations derived from both the Ultimate Spiderman comics and the Sam Raimi movies, even a subtle reference to the terrible 1970s live-action show. Nearly every villain and supporting character from the comics appears in the show (seriously, they even included Dr. Bromwell as a recurring character). My only criticism of this Blu-ray set is the arrangement of the disc menus, which list all of the episodes from that season, not just the episodes contained on that disc, which is, at worst, only mildly annoying, but it made me long for the early days of DVDs with episode guide paper inserts. As for the show, just be warned that it was cancelled after the 2nd season, so the last episode will leave you wanting more - like all great shows. This was one of the last Saturday morning cartoons, but if this had to be the last, they went out with a bang.