Episode 1315 Talkback: Spotlight on Spider-Man in Other Media
Pants
Posts: 567
Time for one last Spider-Man spotlight, this time in other media. The animated series, live action TV show, movies, toys, music, collectibles and so much more are discussed in this episode. (1:46:41)
Listen here.
Listen here.
Comments
I wasn't a big fan of Electric Company and I would only watch until Spidey made an appearnce and would then turn it off.
I don't remember much about the live action Spider-Man series. I was five when that came out, I remember seeing some of the episodes but can't remember much more.
The '81 Spider-Man series was a fun to watch but I never understood why Dr. Doom was the main reoccuring villain. I didn't care, just didn't understand it.
Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends is my happy place. I love this series almost as much as I love my wife and kids. The summer of '82 was bad for me, and this show helped me get through it in a big way. I have the series on dvd and watch it regulary. The other character you were thinking of from the 7 Little Super Heroes episode is Shanna the She-Devil. I have the music from this series also. This is my favorite cartoon of all time.
I didn't care for the 90's animated series when it was airing. I've been watching it recently on Netflix and I'm really enjoying it. I know some arcs of the series were put on dvd, not sure about whole seasons though.
Great episodes guys, thank you, thank you, thank you for doing these spotlights. Spider-Man is the whole reason I got into comics. Since discovering the character in the 70's he has always been in my life in some capcity and I can't imagine what I'd be without him.
Oh, my metal Spidey lunch box story. My dad had a younger cousin that was five to six years older than me and he was my bully. I used my lunchbox to carry my hot wheels and matchbox cars in and I had enough to pack that lunch box full. On one such day he started messing with me and I swung that packed metal lunchbox around and nailed him square in the family jewels and I ran like hell.
JAPANESE SPIDER-MAN!
Newspaper Comic Strip creators got royalties for every newspaper that carried their strips. guys like Alex Raymond & Milton Canniff made a great buck , and had thousands of papers carrying their strips nationwide, and internationally. This and being a illustrator for weekly magazines like Saturday Evening Postr and colier's were the prime illustration gigs of the 30's-60's.
This all continued until the expansion of photoggraphy in magazines and shrinkage of daily newspapers that started in the 90's, plus the tradition of newspaper adventure strips started to wane, in favor of the gag a day humor strips.
As for comic creators being vilified, you have to remember, Guys like Martin Goodman (Timely-Marvel) and Harry Donnelfeld's (National-DC) were making soft porn mags like Spicy Dectetive and Stag. Comic books were only a small part of their biz. Donnefeld even had real ties with mob bosses too.
To the strict moral POV of american society, these books were made by smut peddlers, and is another reason why the US senate connected the publishers with the juvenile delinquency problem
Plus during those infamous senate hearings a few big time comic strip creators testified AGAINST their comic book brethren. Guys like Walt Kelly (Pogo) said unlike comics. Newspaper editors were much more concerned with good taste in their stories, due to the massive readership of the newspaper general audience.
As for the movies I still love the second film the best. I like the first movie but I was never crazy about the Green Goblin costume. As for the third film, yes it has problems, Sandman being involved in Uncle Ben's killing. Venom being shoehorned in their essentially. Emo Peter. But I would prefer it to say any of the Ghost Rider films or X-Men the Last Stand. And I think the Amazing Spider-Man was a very good film.
As for the rest I had the occasional toy here and there mixed in with my other toys.
Finally great series guys, especially you Chris I learned more about Spidey these last few months than I previously have. I have the first four Essentials volumes for a few years. But since listening I've added five through eight along with Marvel Team Up. In fact besides Batman it's all I've recently bought comics wise.
It was actually a good show and I recommend it for its fun stories and unique take on Spidey.
I do agree that Raimi has to bear some of the blame for Spider-Man 3. Venom wasn't the issue...too many characters, Toby McGuire in eye liner, dance numbers, Spider-Man only in the costume for like 5 minutes. Even the MJ, Peter and Harry stuff fell flat.
M
The Comic Scene kits (with the 8 page comic) is a re-issue of the original kits. The original kits didn't come with a comic. The initial Polar Lights re-issue is scaled up from 1/12 to 1/8(?), but didn't have a comic. I did just see a new Polar Lights re-issue that included the comic.
Im sure they ship internationally too.
As for the Raimi movies, I really enjoyed the first two when they came out, but I find I like them less each time I revisit them. There are still parts I enjoy - J.K. Simmons should be JJJ in all things forever, as far as I'm concerned, Willem Dafoe and Alfred Molina were great villains, the Bruce Campbell and Ted Raimi cameos were fun - but I think the movies give in to the usual Sam Raimi tics and quirks a little too much (some scenes are played VERY broadly), and I think Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst don't have much chemistry together and are pretty wooden in any scene they share. Plus there's all that "'Ey, 'Oh, we're from Noo Yawk, we's all stick togetha!" stuff in both, the forced Jesus imagery and the awkward cake girl scenes in 2, the fact that MJ would get so mad at Peter for not seeing her play even when they weren't dating she'd marry some other dude... the problems add up for me.
I think 3 is weirdly and subversively clever, though. It's not very good, but I think it's Sam Raimi's way of giving the studio EXACTLY what they said they wanted and proving to them how just bad those ideas were. It's like he got fed up with the constant prodding and interference and ended up putting every exec's note into the movie somewhere. "You know what, screw it, let's actually go and put a dance sequence into this! Tobey, can you fake being a jazz pianist?" I kind of admire the man for flipping the bird to the studio in such a big, expensive way, and the whole Dancin' Emo Peter section is my favorite part of the movie because of it.
I didn't mind #3, but I also was very sensitive to the "too many villains" issue that also befell the 90's Batman movies.
I think I will read it next. But it will be awhile. I got in the new Dresden files book recently and been reading a chapter or two before bed.