In the forever war between Marvel and DC, Marvel often has the edge. Their comics usually sell better and their movies definitely do. Whereas DC has always had an edge in animation. While that remains the case in 2025, Marvel continues to up its game. First with the runaway success of X-Men ‘97 and now with a new animated Spider-Man show.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man goes back to Spider-Man’s roots, reimagining his origin without walking us through all the usual story beats. This is a drastic change from the initial plan for the show. The series originally focused on Tom Holland’s Peter Parker before his first appearance in the MCU proper, becoming more of a traditional origin story. The creators rightly surmised that this premise was too restrictive and got the okay to set it in an alternate timeline. A move that works for all sides of the creative team? Maybe Marvel should try that out on the live-action side.
The new setting also provides the show with fresh ideas for the character. From the origin of his powers to the supporting cast, the show sets out to make a new version of our favorite web-slinger and succeeds. The biggest change, the one hyped in press releases, is the decision to make Norman Osborn Peter’s mentor. It’s a fun twist that drives the character in new and unexpected directions. The same is true for the supporting cast. Outside of Aunt May and Harry Osborn, Peter’s friend group is full of characters we rarely associate with Spider-Man.
The animation style might prove to be the show’s biggest hurdle. The cel-shaded look harkens back to the classic Stan Lee and Steve Ditko comics and it works great when our masked hero is swinging around the city or fighting baddies. Where it falters is during personal moments like an early scene between Peter and May. The characters lack the expressive faces of your usual animated character, which makes these scenes hard to relate to. To add to it, the city backgrounds feel so empty that you almost forget we’re in New York.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man succeeds more often than it fails. The writing is sharp; the characters are interesting and, most importantly, there is a sense of fun that is a key component of any good Spidey story. If you can make it past the animation, there’s something solid underneath the surface. This isn’t a show that’s going to change the game for Marvel’s animated output, but it’s a breezy watch that’s hard to turn off. I’ll call that a win.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is currently streaming on Disney+.