Created by Jeff Trammell, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man follows Peter Parker’s (Hudson Thames) origin story and his early days using the Spider-Man persona in an alternate timeline within the multiverse. In this universe, Parker gets bitten by an interdimensional spider falling out of a portal created by Dr. Stephen Strange as he is fighting a symbiotic alien, while Norman Osborn (Colman Domingo) becomes Peter’s mentor instead of Tony Stark, like what happens in the MCU main timeline. This in turn leads to a whole chain of events that puts this variant of Peter on a journey full of unexpected twists and turns to become the hero he needs to be for his world.
What started off as an animated prequel series for Tom Holland’s iteration of Spider-Man in the MCU was changed up and turned into its own thing over the years since its initial announcement, allowing it to be free of the creative restraints of Sony and the MCU’s continuity. I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this series as it wasn’t high up on my anticipated list, but I’m shocked to say I ended up being pleasantly surprised by this new adaptation of everyone’s favorite web-slinging hero.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man’s first season is a total blast that delivers a very well-told Spider-Man story with fully fleshed-out characters with respective arcs, great villains plucked from the hero’s expansive rogues gallery, and incredible action created through stunning animation making this look and feel like a comic book brought to life. Like the Spider-verse films and even the What If…? anthology series, this series offers a fun and refreshing twist on the beloved character, featuring an authentic and interesting combination of comic and MCU lore that makes this adaptation stand out from the others that have come before.
It’s clear that Jeff Trammell and his team were intent on creating a unique and passionately crafted Spider-Man story that could appeal to both old and new fans of the character rather than create some cheap cash grab using Spider-Man’s characters and world, much like Sony did for the past few years with their painfully awful spin-off universe of Spider-Man villains.
A great cast of voices was chosen for this series with every single cast member delivering fantastic performances for their respective characters, whether they be variants of familiar Spider-Man and Marvel characters we know of or new and lesser-known characters being brought forth into mainstream media for the first time getting their chance to shine.
Hudson Thames reprises the role of Peter Parker / Spider-Man from his first go at the character in What If…? season 1 but now he gets the chance to have a full series role as the character and once again turns in a great performance. Thames captures all the qualities Spider-Man is known for with his voice, from the perfectly timed humor to the emotional core of the character, making us feel connected to him as he endures the struggles of his two lives. Although his heroic journey is different compared to what we’ve seen before he is still relatable and still compelling as he is in other adaptations, which is one of the most critical aspects of Spider-Man to nail down.
His arc in this season about becoming the big hero that New York needs is brilliantly written as a whole but I love how within that arc the series takes time to explore Spider-Man’s humanity in the smaller moments. There are a few scenes where Spider-Man gets to show himself as a hero who can sympathize with civilians or some villains and find a way to create a peaceful solution with them, which to me is what the character is all about. We got to see the best of his humanity and empathy showcased in Spider-Man: No Way Home but it was great to see more of it shown in this series in several unique situations. Now if only Hudson Thames could just practice what Spider-Man preaches in real life and not be so thickheaded in his interviews going forward.
Acting as both a mentor and ally to Peter in this series in a shocking twist of fate is an alternate version of Norman Osborn, voiced by Colman Domingo. I honestly never thought anyone would be able to reach the same heights of greatness as Willem Dafoe did in his portrayal of Norman Osborn but it seems that Colman Domingo is the one to rise to the occasion as he delivers a truly excellent and spotlight-stealing performance in this adaptation of the iconic Spider-Man villain. While he doesn’t become the Green Goblin yet, Colman Domingo is able to make the character feel layered as well as impactful, with his voice delivering seductive charm and elegance that hides a darker and manipulative side under the surface.
While he seemingly appears to want to help Peter become a better hero for the city and protect the public it becomes clear he is only using him for his personal agenda to benefit his company and himself in typical Norman Osborn fashion. As flawed as Tony Stark was as a mentor he at least wasn’t trying to use Peter for his own gain and wasn’t trying to teach him the wrong kind of lessons, which is what Norman does. I can’t wait to see how the character evolves over the course of the series and see more of Colman Domingo playing him because he was truly a perfect casting choice for this character.
Harry Osborn is also involved in this series, played by Zeno Robinson, but rather than starting off as Peter’s best friend like most other adaptations have done this series focuses on how they first meet and become good friends, as well as eventually becoming his “guy in the chair”. It was refreshing to see a new direction being done with this friendship and how much great chemistry the two end up having despite living two completely different lives. Harry is different in this universe compared to other iterations, having his own development that I found investing and I think Zeno Robinson did an excellent job voicing him.
Aunt May, voiced wonderfully by Kari Wahlgren, plays a minor supporting role in the series but she still plays a crucial role in Peter’s life, as well as delivers touching emotional moments of her own throughout the series, acting as Peter’s moral support and anchor.
We get a number of other familiar and surprising faces from the worlds of Spider-Man and Marvel that play fun roles in the series, including Otto Octavius, brilliantly voiced by Hugh Dancy, and even Daredevil, shockingly voiced by Charlie Cox, but the true standouts of this series ended up being the lesser-known or underrated characters who are brought forth as main characters with their own investing arcs or impactful moments in this season.
Filling in the role of best friend and potential future love interest is not Mary Jane Watson, Gwen Stacy, or even Michelle Jones but is instead Nico Minoru, voiced by Grace Song. If that name sounds familiar you may know her as being the leader of the Marvel team known as the Runaways, who were once adapted into live action in a three-season long series that lasted from 2017 to 2019. Her appearance in this series was already a surprise as it is but having her being a main character was completely unexpected yet it ended up working extremely well.
She is an absolutely awesome and compelling character, both in voice and writing, who shares surprisingly great chemistry with Peter even when it gets put to the test when Peter struggles with his heroic double life. They have the potential to be just as great of a couple together as others before them but they also can work as just friends too with the way they are handled and I find it to be extremely refreshing. Her witchcraft abilities are only lightly teased in this first season but it’s clear we will be seeing more of it the next two seasons.
Then we also have the introduction of quite possibly my favorite character in the series so far who has the best arc and story: Lonnie Lincoln aka Tombstone, voiced by Eugene Byrd. Yes, you read that right! We finally have Tombstone being given much deserved main stream attention and he was handled beautifully in this first season. In this universe, Lonnie starts off as Peter’s classmate and captain of the Bales football team. He reluctantly joins the 110th Street gang to protect his brother, leading him down a dark path that will eventually result in him becoming a powerful villain for Spider-Man to face against.
He is honestly one of the most compelling characters in this series next to Peter and Nico, one I felt emotionally attached to as he is such a tragic character who didn’t deserve to be on the path he is forced upon. His journey from being a kind-hearted soul with a bright future to being corrupted by gang violence and influence is a very realistic transformation that gives this series a grounded character arc to follow in a world full of powerful superheroes. Eugene Byrd does such a phenomenal job voicing this character, really making me feel sympathy as he begins to transition into the villain he is destined to become.
We get other lesser-known villains from Spider-Man’s rogues gallery playing great roles in the series but the one who stood out the most was Mac Gargan, aka Scorpion, voiced by Jonathan Medina, who ends up becoming the primary villain for this season. I’ve always considered Scorpion to be an underrated villain and this adaptation of him is the most vicious version I have seen of the character in media so far with just how f**king brutal he is from the moment he comes in wearing his iconic mechanized suit.
His actions are what cause the season to take a darker and more mature turn, hugely impacting Spider-Man himself on a mental and physical level when he clashes with him. I was really impressed by the way he was handled and I think Jonathan Medina did a wonderful job delivering such an unhinged voice performance for him. This makes me wish to see Scorpion be adapted into the MCU even more after Mac Gargan had been established in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
The narrative may be set in an alternate universe but it perfectly captures all the necessary elements to make an extremely thrilling and emotionally compelling Spider-Man story, while adding its own spins to make this adaptation feel incredibly refreshing. You could look at this series as being a Spider-verse story set in one of the many universes showcased in the animated Spider-verse films because it establishes really quickly how different of a universe it is with the way familiar events occur in a unexpected directions, how certain iconic characters look drastically different in appearance, and has many deep cuts into Spider-Man and Marvel lore that hasn’t been covered much in previous adaptations.
These bold but creative choices that Jeff Trammell and his team have made not only make this stand out from other takes on the character but also help the series avoid repeating things we have already seen, which was one of my initial concerns going into this series. This series retains the charm, the light-hearted elements, and some of the great themes in other Spider-Man stories but it also manages to throw in its own things with its own unique charm, mature elements, and grounded themes that are written extremely well and are blended seamlessly with spectacular action and thrills.
The final two episodes end the first season on a high note, perfectly concluding the first story arcs for all the characters while also setting the stage for all-new arcs for them for the next two seasons to follow. However, there was one bombshell reveal in the last episode that completely changes everything we know about the series. It explores some uncharted territory for Spider-Man that has never been adapted before and I’m really excited to see where it leads.
This series both looks and feels like a love letter to Spider-Man fans with the way it is animated like a comic book brought to life, full of gorgeous colors, creative frames and kinetic energy flowing through it. It adopts a similar art style that has been seen in the Spider-verse films but it still has its own unique visual identity and details to make it stand out. The best of the animation comes out mostly in the action sequences that increasingly get better and more fluid as the season progresses and the stakes increase, resulting in the best action being saved for last. I know some people may have been put off by the animation style upon first glance through the trailers but I highly encourage people to give it a chance especially when so much hard work clearly went into it.
The sound design is solid and the score by Leo Birenberg and Zach Robinson is also really excellent, delivering music that is incredibly fitting for this unique world of Spider-Man. Occasionally you may hear reprises of certain MCU themes that get a bit overused in some places but isn’t a major issue that I’m bothered by.
I wasn’t expecting to be so invested in this series as much as I did and even with all the crazy changes this alternate universe brings forth it stays true to the heart and spirit of the character, from comics as well as other great adaptations of his stories that have come before. I eagerly await to see what the next two seasons of this series have in store for us and I highly recommend giving this series a shot. I’m going to give Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man Season 1 an A = 97.
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