Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

After reuniting with Gwen Stacy, Brooklyn's full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is catapulted across the Multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People who have been charged with protecting the delicate web of all of existence. But when the gathered heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles finds himself pitted against them all, and he must redefine what it means to be a hero in order to save the people he loves most.

Spider-Man was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, first appearing in Amazing Fantasy #15 in August 1962. His name is Peter Benjamin Parker. When Peter was a nerdy and brilliant teenager, being raised by his loving Aunt May and Uncle Ben in the working class neighborhood of Queens, New York City, he was bitten by a radioactive spider while attending a scientific demonstration. Due to that bite, he gained spider-powers, like great strength, agility, reflexes, stamina, durability, coordination, and balance. He could also cling to surfaces like a spider, and was able to detect danger due a precognitive ability he called his "spider-sense.” Also, because he’s a genius, he built a pair of wrist-mounted "web-shooters" that shoot an artificial spider-web, also of his own design. Initially, he uses his powers for his own personal gain, but when his disregard for others indirectly leads to his Uncle Ben being killed by a thief he could’ve stopped earlier that day, he decides to start using his powers to help others by becoming the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, swinging around New York City with his Uncle Ben’s advice ringing in his ears, “With great power comes great responsibility.”

Miles Gonzalo Morales is also Spider-Man. Created in 2011 by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Sara Pichelli, he was bitten by a spider too, but it was a genetically engineered one created by Norman Osborn, the CEO of the OsCorp corporation, and the supervillain Green Goblin, who created it in attempt to duplicate the abilities of his archenemy, the original Spider-man. A biracial teenage boy of African-American and Puerto Rican parents, possessing many of the same spider-powers as the original Spider-man, as well as the power of invisibility and a electrical blast called a Venom Strike, Miles was originally part of the Ultimate Universe, a “side” universe, meant as a jumping-on point for new readers, where the Marvel characters were rebooted, and their stories were retold through a “modern” lens. Miles became Spider-man after the death of the Ultimate Universe’s version of Peter Parker. Then, when the Multiverse collapsed in the big event known as The Secret Wars, Miles was one of the only two survivors of the Ultimate Universe, and after that whole thing was all said and done, and the status quo was restored, Miles was merged into the regular continuity of the Marvel Universe.

And like always, when Miles was first introduced as the new Spider-man, the usual racist shitheads, especially in the FOX News/MAGA zombie/Evangelical Christian end of White America, lost their shit, stumbling all over each other in their rush to show the world how racist they are, because that’s the totality of their being…

But…

Despite those racist assholes, Miles went on to be huge, and like Wolverine, like Deadpool, like Harley Quinn, like Kamala Khan, he joined that very exclusive club of “new” comic book characters who then became A-list stars.

This was especially true after Spider-man: Into the Spider-verse was released in 2018, which told the story of Brooklyn teenager Miles Morales, who was bitten by a spider, transforming him into the one and only Spider-Man. But when he meets Peter Parker, he realizes that there are many others, all across the Multiverse, who share his special, high-flying talents. Miles, along with Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham, as well as the two-fisted, hard-boiled Spider-man Noir, the amazing as always, Peter B. Parker, Gwen Stacy, known as the Spider-woman, and Peni Parker in her psychically-powered mech suit SP//dr, that she co-pilots with a radioactive spider that she shares a psychic link with, he must use his newfound skills to battle the evil Kingpin, a hulking madman trying to tear a portal open in reality, threatening all of creation.

Financially successful at the Box Office, critically praised for its bold storytelling, its striking animation, its heart, its humor, its message, and its thrilling superhero action, the film won the Oscar for Best Animated Movie that year.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse is the sequel.

I loved it.

I’ve covered this a few times already, but give me all that multiversal goodness, baby. That’s my jam, and it has been ever since I was but a wee babe reading What ifs and Elseworld comics while watching a goateed Spock on TV. I love the alternate versions of known characters. I love the plethora of references. It was funny and smart and fun and cool. So, yeah, I loved it.

But I will also acknowledge that it’s a fair question for some of you to ask… Will the film’s heavily multiversal-dependant plot, with its abundance of deep-cut references, be a tad bit confusing for all you Casuals out there?

Hmmmm… maybe. Probably. Also, I don’t care.

Just pay attention and roll with it. My review for this film, in a nutshell… If you liked the first one, then you should like this one too. If you didn’t, kick rocks.

The good news is… a lot of our favorites show up again.

Like Peter B. Parker, my kindred spirit. Also, Gwen Stacy/Spider-woman (not to be confused with the Jessica Drew version of Spider-Woman, who shows up here too, or with the Julia Carpenter version of Spider-woman, who appears in the poster, or with the Mattie Franklin version of Spider-woman, who I didn’t see anywhere, or the May “Mayday” Parker version of Spider-woman, who actually does show up, just not as the version I’m talking about). The Gwen Stacy version of Spider-woman (or Ghost Spider, as she’s known in the comics) is a favorite, and she also has one of the best costumes going in comics at the moment. Plus, speaking of, it’s nice to see that Gwen in converse again, instead of ballet slippers this time.

Even better, not only does pretty much all of the old crew show up again, but we also get a smorgasbord of new faces too… Spider-Man 2099. Pavitr Prabhakar, the Spider-Man of Mumbai. The previously mentioned Jessica Drew version of Spider-woman, but a slightly altered one. Ben Reilly, the Scarlet Spider. Margo Kess, the Spider-Byte. Lego Spider-man. The Bombastic Bagman.

So many Spider-people, on and on, the deepest of deep cuts.

But sadly, there was no appearance of The Spiders-man, a version of Spider-Man that is actually just a Spider-man suit filled with thousands of radioactive spiders, all held together in a hive mind by their universe’s version of Peter Parker, who they devoured when he fell into a science demonstration that involved irradiating a bunch of spiders. That was the only time they ate somebody though, they totally don’t eat people otherwise…

Oh well… maybe next time.

But we do get Hobie Brown, the Spider-punk!

Believe it, bruv.

All of this, plus Miles and his family, who are all still great!

Really, again, if you liked the first movie, then you should love this one, as this film not only maintains all of its previous charm, but creates new. I know Miyazaki is up for the Best Animated Oscar this year, and while I have yet to see The Boy and The Heron, I’ve only heard good things about it, which I believe, and even if it somehow wasn’t actually good, Miyazaki would probably still deserve the Oscar simply because he’s fucking Miyazaki, but still…

This film deserves it too.

With stunning animation, unforgettable characters, and a bevy of fascinating ideas and complex themes, Across the Spider-Verse, simply put, is a smart and a thrilling piece of art. It’s just a good film, building off another good film.

The whole thing is good.

The story hinges on the idea of free will, self-determination, and self-interrogation, talking about how it’s more important to hold onto the present than it is to dwell on the mistakes of the past, or to worry needlessly about potential future calamities, that you should focus on what’s in front of you. It’s about making your own fate. It’s about empowerment, not accepting destiny. The first film is concerned with the question of who exactly gets to be a hero, and this film now asks what defines a hero. For Spider-man specifically, it also asks why the character has to be defined so much by tragedy, and why that is necessary to be a hero. And all this goodness is laid out plainly by a star-studded cast in an action-packed, beautifully animated movie, filled with twists and turns, Easter eggs galore, and a literal buttload of Spider-men and women…

Honestly, what more could you want?

I mean… besides Hostess Fruit Pie Spider-man, obviously…

There was so much happening here, I was like: “How are they going to end this film with 20 minutes left?” Turns out, they’re not… it’s the second film in a trilogy. Love it. Fantastic news. I can’t wait to see how it all ends.

In the meantime, I’m gonna watch both of these films again.