A Spider-Man For Everyone

by Ayana Antoine ‘20

Marvel first introduced the fictional character of Spider-Man August 1962 in Amazing Fantasy #15 comic book. It was a gateway to commercial success for the superhero and inspired the launch of The Amazing Spider-Man comic book series. Dozens of remakes to the teenage hero’s story followed. The new animated movie “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”  introduces new characters while raising the bar for future adaptations. Directed and illustrated by Peter Ramsey, this visually awe-inspiring film utilizes colorful animation to evoke emotional poignancy maintained throughout the entire movie.

“Into The Spider-Verse” focuses on the protagonist Miles Morales, a Afro-Latino student from Brooklyn, voiced by Shameik Moore. His role proves that Spider-Man can be anyone, not just the nerdy, white male portrayed previously. Ramsey felt that it was very important to live up to Stan Lee’s interpretation of Spider-Man as a character “any kid could imagine themselves as.”

In “Spider-Verse,” one of Spider-Man’s lifelong enemies, Kingpin, opened a portal to another dimension in a desperate attempt to bring his deceased family back. As Spider-Man struggles to fight Kingpin, his DNA enters the portal. As a result, anyone with matching genetic information is placed in the same dimension. This ultimately brings several different spider heros all in the same Brooklyn . This introduced Gwen Stacy, the first female Spider-Woman. Voiced by singer and actor Hailee Steinfeld, Stacy has been rumored to get her own spinoff.  The new team works to not only get back to their own dimensions but to save New York.

This PG-rated masterpiece is made with the target audience of ages 10 to 14 but can still be highly enjoyed by any comic fan. But, no matter how much the new adaptation differs for the version before it, “Into The Spider-Verse” balances the classic story so many love while adding new characters for a refreshing change.

Grade: A+