Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man could have been a big swing and a miss for Marvel, but it's actually pretty amazing

Every generation has what they'd consider to be the definitive Spider-Man animated series. From the 60s original and 90s-era Spider-Man to more recent fare like 2008-09's The Spectacular Spider-Man and the ongoing series Spidey and his Amazing Friends, few superheroes have starred in as many animated projects as Marvel's iconic web-slinger.

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (YFNSM) is the latest contender for the wallcrawler's best TV show crown. As a big Spidey fan, the first of six Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) TV shows that'll arrive on Disney Plus in 2025 was always going to interest me, regardless of how good or bad it was. Marvel Studios' first animated Spider-Man offering, though, is far better than I expected it to be. It's not as spectacular as last year's universally adored X-Men 97 – and there's one major reason why, which I've dedicated an entire portion of this review to. Nevertheless, it's a largely pleasing reimagining of the legendary superhero's origin story, vast cast of supporting characters, and unmistakable corner of the Marvel universe that most Spider-Man fans will enjoy.

With great power...

Story-wise, you know the drill by now: nerdy high-schooler Peter Parker gets bitten by a radioactive spider, develops superpowers, and vows to protect New York City from criminals (superhuman or otherwise) while dealing with the trials and tribulations of being a teen.

YFNSM, though, puts a somewhat unique spin on Spider-Man's creation. This iteration of Peter Parker (Hudson Thames) gets bitten by an irradiated arachnid that appears to hail from another dimension. Indeed, it arrives in this universe – i.e. one of the MCU's many parallel timelines – via a sling ring portal made by Doctor Strange as he battles a Shathra-inspired symbiote (just two of an immeasurable amount of Marvel cameos, Easter eggs, and other references in this show, FYI). The 'spider from another reality' plot device isn't dissimilar to Miles Morales' superhero origins in Sony's Spider-Verse movies. YFNSM doesn't copy that film series' take on Spider-Man's inception but, spoilers notwithstanding, we don't learn about the spider's origins until the season finale. Even then, it's a semi-original plot twist that some viewers might work out ahead of time.

YFNSM's setting is vital for the other changes woven into its fabric. It was originally designed as a story that was canon in the MCU, and there are many signs that confirm this. Whether it's the subtle shades of Tom Holland's MCU-based web-slinger in Thames' take on Peter and his superhero alias, or sections of episode 9's climatic fight that mirror the final, fraught set-piece in 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home, YFNSM was clearly intended to be a Spider-Man: Homecoming prequel show.

For reasons outlined by Marvel's Head of TV and Streaming Brad Winderbaum, though, the decision to reshape it into an MCU-adjacent project means it's not beholden to the journey that Holland's Spidey has gone on so far. And, honestly, it's all the better for it. Unshackled by the MCU's often weighty history, YFNSM has the creative and narrative freedom to simultaneously pay homage to the silver age of Spider-Man comics, and reinvent the stories and characters that defined his early crimefighting years.

Take the remodeled dynamic between Peter and one of his most iconic villains Norman Osborn (the excellent Colman Domingo), for example.

Just as Robert Downey Jr's Tony Stark/Iron Man was to Holland's wallcrawler in the MCU, YFNSM positions Osborn as a role model for Peter to look up to and develop a compelling surrogate father relationship with. Heck, Peter and Norman's initial meeting is a near-perfect recreation of Holland's Peter's MCU introduction in Captain America: Civil War, which is another indicator that YFNSM was originally designed as an MCU TV show.

But back to Peter and Norman. Their dynamic not only becomes a central component of season 1's primary plot but also keeps you guessing about the seemingly duplicitous Osborn's true intentions. Is he using Peter to achieve his own goals, or does he actually want to mentor him? It's a question I constantly asked throughout this season and one I still struggled to fully answer as episode 10's end credits rolled. Nonetheless, it's a mentor-mentee relationship that I'm excited to see more of in YFNSM's already confirmed second and third seasons.

Creative deviations like this help to differentiate YFNSM from other Spider-Man animated shows. Before my fellow webheads start frothing at the mouth, though, I'm happy to report that it doesn't neglect the core essence of what makes Peter Parker such a relatable character.

Indeed, the hallmarks of what makes a great Spider-Man story are not only here, but gratifyingly placed front and center of YFNSM's core narrative and various subplots. This universe's Peter is as wracked by self-doubt, guilt, and internal pressure as other iterations of the character have been, so Spider-Man devotees can rest easy that YFNSM retains the heart and soul of what makes its eponymous hero one of Marvel's most popular and enduring individuals.

There's an abundance of teen-based melodrama where the series' supporting cast is concerned, too. Like X-Men 97, there's a real soap opera vibe to YFNSM, whose storylines play out across multiple episodes. It also tackles as many hard-hitting topics as its animated sibling and, surprisingly, even takes a page out of X-Men 97's playbook with the thematically dark places it occasionally goes to. Episode 7 is a particularly sinister chapter that suggests YFNSM isn't as family-friendly as it initially looks.

That said, YFNSM doesn't lose sight of being fun. Sure, some of its humor comes across as corny, but that's in keeping with Spidey's eye-rolling and/or smile-raising quips, and Peter's socially awkward demeanor, from the comics. Thames has a great time bringing both aspects to life, too; YFNSM's star imbues his take on Peter and his superpowered alter-ego with a charm and likeability that's not unlike Holland's.

If there's one area of plot-based improvement the Disney Plus show needs to make moving forward, it's exploring the various character dynamics in more detail. Season 1 spends too much time bouncing Peter off of a few too many characters, which doesn't leave room to examine his closest relationships. Indeed, it sacrifices its exploration of these dynamics to give equal billing to a Lonnie Lincoln (Eugene Byrd) led narrative. While it was important to season 1's overarching plot, it could've been trimmed down to accommodate, say, the gratifying odd-couple friendship between Peter and Nico Minoru (Grace Song).

Animation angst

But now to address the elephant in the room: YFNSM's animation style. Responding to fierce fan criticism about its 3D cel-shaded approach, showrunner Jeff Trammell exclusively told me "I love our look – I think it grows on you" but, having watched the entire first season, that's something I can't fully agree with.

Before I get into that, I do want to say its delightfully retro art style, which is heavily inspired by legendary Marvel illustrators Steve Ditko and John Romita Jr, looks fantastic. It really makes certain scenes pop with its bright color palette, ink pen-based shadow gradient, clever use of comic paneling, and the iconic 'Kirby krackle' to evoke the feeling of a "moving comic book", as Trammell has previously claimed. The addition of comic book-style covers that make each episode feel like the next edition of a comic series, plus an ever-evolving intro sequence, are equally wonderful.

Try as I might, though I couldn't get over YFNSM's jarring animation. There's a sluggishness and clunkiness to character movements, such as lip-syncing the dialog to their mouths, that makes it feel like keyframes are missing or weren't factored into the animation process. A perfect example of how ungainly it can be is during a gang-based fight sequence in episode 5. Characters throw punches or duck and dive in such janky fashion that it distracts from what should be an entertaining and high-stakes set piece.

There are times when the animation feels fluid, especially in later episodes when more polish has been applied, but such instances are few and far between. The sad reality is that YFNSM just isn't visually appealing from an animation standpoint. Sony's Spider-Verse movies, including the series' most recent entry Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (one of the best Spider-Man movies, in my view), did an immeasurably better job of creating a "moving comic book" animation style with real panache and verve.

It's not the only issue I had with YFNSM's aesthetic. By design or not, a higher-than-expected number of scenes and sequences feel devoid of life. Whether that's down to static background characters or, in the worst cases, empty backdrops, YFNSM regularly feels uninhabited. Considering it's set in the bustling metropolis that is New York, there's no excuse for its depiction as a periodically abandoned cityscape.

As much as I praised the use of comic book page paneling to help tell the story, it's used less and less as season 1 progresses. Early episodes indicate it'll be a key creative component of the series but, bizarrely, YFNSM adopts an increasingly frugal approach to what could've been one of the show's artistic lynchpins.

My verdict

Marvel Animation’s Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man | Official Trailer | Disney+ - YouTube

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Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is a fun-filled, bold, and occasionally menacing reimagining that honors the superhero's 60-years-and-counting legacy. It riffs on classic and more recent moments from all corners of the superhero's multimedia library in a largely satisfying manner. However, I suspect some Spider-Man purists will be irked by what they consider unnecessary creative deviations from his source material.

If YFNSM's animation style wasn't such an eyesore, I would've rated it more highly than I did and, despite my other minor quibbles, strongly argued its case for a spot on our best Disney Plus shows list. I'd still recommend it as a pretty amazing series but, given the problems I've outlined, it's not as spectacular as it could've been.

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man's first two episodes are out today (January 29). Episodes 3 to 5 arrive on February 5, episodes 6 to 8 air on February 12, and episodes 9 and 10 launch on February 19.