[8.3/10] Another episode with a lot going on, but also a lot to like given how well it fits together. We continue to fight a war on three fronts, with Tombstone and The Green Goblin locking horns, while Spider-Man has beef with both of them but can’t sit idly by and wait for them to destroy each other. The little triple clash amongst them, with Hammer Head as bait and an acknowledged trap was very well done.
This version of Green Goblin is kind of a mix between The Joker and The Mighty Monach (of Venture Bros. fame) but I like him! He’s got the banter and cackling down, and he and Spider-Man have any number of fun and interesting throwdowns. Their clash through an industrial warehouse of some kind (where it seems like all superhero fights are destined to take place) had a lot of cool framing and direction, like Gobby dragging Spidey through the pipes, and beaucoup explosions to boot.
But the real thrill was finding out Gobby’s secret identity. I had mainly suspected Norman, but was on my toes after the show faked me out while assuming that “The Big Man” was Kingpin, so I had my suspicions. I really like Harry as The Green Goblin, because it adds shades to both him and his dad. For one, the Jekyll/Hyde routine takes some blame off of his shoulders, but reveals his psychological issues. There’s a drug metaphor in him taking the equivalent of a PED to earn his dad’s approval, and I like that he both felt subconsciously protective and resentful of his dad, enough that he attacked both Norman and Norman’s enemies while in Goblin form.
I also like what we learned about Norman here. He’s obviously a bad guy and an amoral businessman, but I appreciate that he genuinely loves his son, enough to regret what happened, blame himself, and offer to take Harry’s place to spare his only child the punishment he’d otherwise receive. That adds depth to one of the series’s main antagonists, and I appreciate it.
Otherwise, there’s some fun stuff in the high school gang participating in the local Halloween carnival. I’m a little annoyed still at how they’re positioning Mary Jane here. Her whole “flirt and then say we’re just friends routine” feels too calculated to create romantic tension without having to pay it off yet on the part of the show, but I still enjoy the interactions from the various high school kids. And Peter “going as Spider-Man’ for Halloween is a cute little bit.
I also like what this episode does with the Jamesons. It’s nice to see the normally blustering Jonah be actually sobered and stoic when his son’s life is on the line (something that creates a parallel between him and Norman). There’s some minor excitement over John flying the shuttle manually as it returns to Earth, but I mostly like it for the effect it has on everyone back home waiting with baited breath. And I even like this event as an explanation both for how Peter could get a regular job at the Bugle (because Jonah’s worried other papers will trounce him if they get Pete’s Spidey pictutres), and why Jonah resents Spider-Man (because the wall-crawler bumped his son from the front page and the popular consciousness).
All in all, there’s a lot of spinning plates here, but they’re all spun very well, and there’s even an inevitable black gooey tease to contend with.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2018-09-11T03:41:45Z
[8.3/10] Another episode with a lot going on, but also a lot to like given how well it fits together. We continue to fight a war on three fronts, with Tombstone and The Green Goblin locking horns, while Spider-Man has beef with both of them but can’t sit idly by and wait for them to destroy each other. The little triple clash amongst them, with Hammer Head as bait and an acknowledged trap was very well done.
This version of Green Goblin is kind of a mix between The Joker and The Mighty Monach (of Venture Bros. fame) but I like him! He’s got the banter and cackling down, and he and Spider-Man have any number of fun and interesting throwdowns. Their clash through an industrial warehouse of some kind (where it seems like all superhero fights are destined to take place) had a lot of cool framing and direction, like Gobby dragging Spidey through the pipes, and beaucoup explosions to boot.
But the real thrill was finding out Gobby’s secret identity. I had mainly suspected Norman, but was on my toes after the show faked me out while assuming that “The Big Man” was Kingpin, so I had my suspicions. I really like Harry as The Green Goblin, because it adds shades to both him and his dad. For one, the Jekyll/Hyde routine takes some blame off of his shoulders, but reveals his psychological issues. There’s a drug metaphor in him taking the equivalent of a PED to earn his dad’s approval, and I like that he both felt subconsciously protective and resentful of his dad, enough that he attacked both Norman and Norman’s enemies while in Goblin form.
I also like what we learned about Norman here. He’s obviously a bad guy and an amoral businessman, but I appreciate that he genuinely loves his son, enough to regret what happened, blame himself, and offer to take Harry’s place to spare his only child the punishment he’d otherwise receive. That adds depth to one of the series’s main antagonists, and I appreciate it.
Otherwise, there’s some fun stuff in the high school gang participating in the local Halloween carnival. I’m a little annoyed still at how they’re positioning Mary Jane here. Her whole “flirt and then say we’re just friends routine” feels too calculated to create romantic tension without having to pay it off yet on the part of the show, but I still enjoy the interactions from the various high school kids. And Peter “going as Spider-Man’ for Halloween is a cute little bit.
I also like what this episode does with the Jamesons. It’s nice to see the normally blustering Jonah be actually sobered and stoic when his son’s life is on the line (something that creates a parallel between him and Norman). There’s some minor excitement over John flying the shuttle manually as it returns to Earth, but I mostly like it for the effect it has on everyone back home waiting with baited breath. And I even like this event as an explanation both for how Peter could get a regular job at the Bugle (because Jonah’s worried other papers will trounce him if they get Pete’s Spidey pictutres), and why Jonah resents Spider-Man (because the wall-crawler bumped his son from the front page and the popular consciousness).
All in all, there’s a lot of spinning plates here, but they’re all spun very well, and there’s even an inevitable black gooey tease to contend with.