Spiderman: The Ultimate Villain Showdown

This title is very misleading - there's not really anything "ultimate" about it, there are a few villains (but not that many) and there really isn't a showdown. In these animated episodes, Spiderman thinks about quitting, loses his memory, helps Doctor Octopus, is believed in by a little girl, takes on the Green Goblin and a giant wheel, roughly in that order.

Spiderman / Peter Parker (Christopher Daniel Barnes)
The Kingpin / Wilson Fisk (Roscoe Lee Browne)
J. Jonah Jameson (Edward Asner)
Mary Jane Watson (Sara Ballantine)

I had a hard time finding this information, hence the limited cast list

Year: 1997 (for the series)
Censorship Rating: G (for the Saturday morning cartoon violence)

This is actually the set of episodes preceding "Spiderman Versus Daredevil" and has some parallels to the Spiderman 2 movie that is about to be released. It is the first few episodes of the "Sins of the Fathers" storyline, but whatever those Fathers did has little impact on these episodes.

First episode:

Doctor Octopus sneaks into a scientific demonstration through a human-sized ventilation duct that this universe seems to have an abundance of. Judging by the number of people at the demonstration, science is also hugely popular in New York City. The scientist on stage has built a laser that can cut through non-organic matter, but not organic matter, or visa versa, depending on the settings. [Also, we learn there are only two sub-molecule types - organic and non-organic. Ahh, science!]

Doc Ock gets annoyed at the applause this demonstration gets [something about him being involved in creating the laser, but it doesn't matter] and crashes the stage. [If you watch closely, apparently he uses his head to crash through the stage from underneath - I know his arms are indestructible, but didn't think his head was quite so strong... but now I know better.] As always, the police are useless against a villain. J. Jonah Jameson orders Peter Parker to stay back and photo Doc Ock while Jameson runs away. This act of cowardice doesn't bother Parker so much since it means he can change into his constume.

Spiderman swings into action and gets caught fairly quickly. Luckily Doc Ock decides to showboat and use the laser to kill Spiderman rather than just crushing him. Because the laser is still set to "inorganic", only Spiderman's costume is damaged. Spiderman then uses the laser to severe two of Doc Ock's tentacles and free himself. Doc Ock then makes his escape, throwing Mary Jane out of the way (and into the arms of Spiderman). This angers Ol' Webhead, who goes after Doc Ock at full speed and throws him through a concrete floor and onto some computers [ouch!].

We learn from Lydia Hardy that Spiderman and Doc Ock are fighting in "the medical lab" and if any reseach gets damaged "it will take years to replace". [First off, apparently this lab doesn't believe in backing up it's research, which is hardly Spiderman's fault. Secondly, it's apparently the prefered option that Spiderman lets Doc Ock go free, since having a dangerous sociopath on the loose is such a good idea.]

During the fight, the lab blows up and Doc Ock manages to escape. Spiderman is upset over the loss of the lab. Jameson goes into full anti-Spiderman rant mode - apparently it should be the police [who couldn't catch a cold in this universe] who should stop a man who can take on a private army and win [more on this later]. Peter Parker decides that he is a screw-up of a superhero and should quit being Spiderman.

Robbie Robinson gives Peter Parker a fan letter for Spiderman, but Parker ditches it. Finally free of the burden of Spiderman, Parker is happy... for about three seconds, before Madame Web shows up and pulls him back into the spandex.

Madame Web tells Spiderman nothing useful [as usual] but does get him to go see the subject of the fan letter. Spiderman meets a little girl called Maria (but nicknamed Tiena) who is his "biggest fan". We then get an origin story recap as Spiderman tells Tiena how he came to get his powers.

A quick cut to Doc Ock setting up his new Octobot while the Kingpin watches on approvingly (and also silently).

Spiderman's origin story continues and, although Peter doesn't name himself, he gives out enough clues for someone to work out who he his through locations and dates. [Way to keep your identity secret Peter!] Also, after Peter is bitten by the radioactive spider, he collapses at the demonstration, which everyone finds hilarious. [Frankly, if I was at a display involving dangerous radiation and someone collapsed, I wouldn't be chuckling to myself - I'd be heading out the door.]

Peter now has a dream sequence where he is a spider. [This was a bit icky in my opinion - for some reason a human head on a spider body struck me as particularly weird.]

Cut to the Octobot crushing a statue. [In a world where every second person seems to have the ability to do this, it is a less-than-impressive display of strength.]

Spiderman continues on explaining pretty much all of his secrets to the little girl. He tells her he is going to quit his role as Spiderman, which makes her cry. Tiena then manages to convince Spiderman to take her for a swing [which a) given what we find out later and b) given Spiderman's inability to go anywhere without finding trouble, is at best inconsiderate and at worst child abuse]. At the very least he takes her out swinging in her pyjamas, which has got to be cold.

Unsurprisingly, Spiderman runs into Doc Ock while out demonstrating his powers to Tiena. The Octobot almost takes out Spiderman directly, but he manages to outsmart the Octopus temporarily. This time, however, Doc manages to gas Spiderman into unconsciousness and - instead of smashing our hero's head open like a watermelon and being rid of him forever - decides to take him captive. Tiena watches on in shock.

Second episode:

Back at the Octopus HQ, Doc Ock brainwashes (using a neural disruptor or some such) Spiderman into thinking he's a villain. Tiena (who stowed away back to the HQ) tries to go and get help, but no-one believes her. She is found by a policeman who takes her to a police station.

[Aside: I'd just like to say that Doc Ock continually reminds me of a more armoured version of Roy Orbison. Subsequently I find him vaguely ridiculous rather than scary or imposing as a villain.

At the police station, Tiena is saying nothing. She manages to escape when a female Jamacian taxi driver named Mousy drags a fare evader into the station and distracts the police. Tiena hops a lift in Mousy's cab and manages to convince her to help in saving Spiderman.

[Aside: I'll warn you at this point about Mousy - she's got one of the worst attempts at a Jamacian accent I've ever heard. Imagine the whitest person you know trying to do a thick Rasta accent and you will have some idea of how hilariously bad Mousy sounds.]

Doc Ock takes Spiderman out on his first crime at a high-tech lab. It is here that Doc Ock, alone, takes on and beats up a small private army and their robot tanks. [Of course, if one of these rent-a-cops could shoot straight Doc Ock would be pushing up daisies real quick... but that doesn't happen.] During this ruckus, Tiena and Mousy sneak into the lab and almost get Spiderman caught [the girls sneak away in through another spacious ventilation shaft]. A very large number of guards show up to take on Spiderman [where were they when Doc Ock crashed through the wall and started beating up their tanks? Shouldn't they have rushed to that particular event?] but Doc Ock and the Octobot again bust in and take out the guards. Doc Ock and Spiderman escape.

Tiena and Mousy go to J. Jonah Jameson to try to get help, but Jameson only hears the bad parts about Spiderman and discounts the rest [komedy!]. Mousy puts out the call to other taxi drivers to help them find Spiderman. The taxi drivers themselves come from Generic Accents'R'Us, with each getting their moment to shine as they track Spiderman through the city.

Doc Ock and Spiderman raid another facility. Mousy and Tiena again show up to try to convince Spiderman he is a hero, but Mousy gets caught.

Back at Doc Ock HQ, Mousy tries to get Spiderman to remember [Spiderman trying to remember sounds like he's trying to lift some weights] but it doesn't happen. Just as Doc Ock is going to "take care" of Mousy [if you were just going to kill her, why bring her back to the lab, Doc?] Tiena crashes through the HQ door with Mousy's taxi. With Doc Ock buried under some machinery, Tiena has time to make Spiderman remember that he's a good guy. Spiderman and Doc Ock fight, but it's Tiena (controlling the Octobot) who defeats Doctor Octopus. [Maybe you do suck as a hero Spidey - in less than sixty seconds a little girl has defeated a villain that continually knocks the stuffing out of you!]

All ends happily. Spiderman takes Tiena back to her room and reveals himself to her as Peter Parker. [Again, way to keep your secret identity Parker! Sure, the eight-year-old girl promises to keep it secret, but that'll probably last until snack time tomorrow.] Madame Webb shows up for a smug "I told you so"-esque moment. Tiena is revealed to be living at a Make a Wish Foundation Hostel (indicating she is probably terminally ill), which makes Spiderman's decision to take her out for a swing very questionable.

Third Episode:

Norman Osborn has been caught building nerve gas - he's being secretly manipulated by the Kingpin to do so. Oscorp's Board of Directors looks like they are going to throw Norman out as a result of it. [Interestingly, J. Jonah Jameson is on the Oscorp's Board of Directors, raising some interesting conflict of interest issues with his paper reporting on the company. Also on the board are three silent men who are obviously just there to make up the numbers.]

Kingpin leans on Norman to finish the gas. Due to "unsecured airlocks" [ahh, science!] there is an accident that causes the lab to explode. Spiderman is in the area and manages to get some people out, but Norman looks like he's perished in the fire.

The Board of Directors meet to find a new Oscorp chairman, but Harry Osborn objects, muttering something about betrayal of his father by his friends and how they haven't found his Norman's body yet. [Look Harry, Dad was doing something illegal and for which there could be a long jail sentence. Friendship or not, no-one wants to go to jail for something they didn't know about, okay? Also, just because they don't have the body, doesn't make him any more alive...] Anyway, the end result is the chairman position remains empty.

The Green Goblin starts showing up and abducting Oscorp board members. [Apparently after the first two are taken, the police don't think to warn the others]

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Meanwhile, Peter thinks Harry is acting strangely. He acts as a go-between for Mary Jane and Harry while wondering how "fair" it all is. [Yeah Peter, life really sucks - some guys get the girl while all you end up with is superhuman powers.]

Spiderman manages to catch up with the Green Goblin during Jameson's abduction. Despite having a pretty big element of surprise, Spidey blows it when he is thrown off when he sees the Green Goblin instead of the Hobgoblin [which I guess has something to do with cartoon continuity]. The Goblin crushes Spiderman's webshooters then leaves him on a rapidly descending glider. This seems like a pretty dicey situation, but Spiderman gets out of it okay. [How? No idea. The scene just cuts to the next day. Maybe he breaks his fall with some orphans or something.] The Green Goblin gets away with Jameson.

Spiderman investigates Oscorp and sees Harry throwing plans around. From the looks of things, Harry might be the Goblin...

The Green Goblin gets another board member. Spiderman tries to save the Hardys from the Goblin, but only succeeds in getting both Felicia and her mother into trouble. The Green Goblin escapes with Lydia Hardy (the mother) while Spiderman saves Felicia. [You're not very good at this, are you Spiderman?]

The Green Goblin also gets the Kingpin. He certainly leads a busy nightlife, that Goblin!

Cut to Mary Jane talking to Peter about her problems with Harry. During this exchange MJ lands about the biggest hit on Peter seen to date - she calls him "a good friend". [Ouch! Face it Parker - you've got no chance!] In retaliation, Peter slips a spider tracer into MJ's pocket [which is pretty much stalker behaviour, superhero or not].

Mary Jane heads off to Oscorp to look for Harry, but ends up being captured by the Green Goblin. She is taken to GG's secret underwater lair in a submarine... that Spiderman then swims to. [Guess it can't be that well hidden or that far away.] Tied to a wall in the lair are the Board of Directors. The Goblin makes some salient observations about Lydia Hardy, J. Jonah Jameson and the Kingpin (the silent Board members get no attention, however) that everyone just ignores. [Actually, I think he makes a good case - in this universe, funding supervillains is almost a given, so what's a little nerve gas production here and there?]

Spiderman swings into action against the GG, while the Green Goblin proves that throwing bombs around in an underwater lair is a definite no-no. The Board of Directors is freed and make their escape in the submarine. During the escape, the Kingpin uses a laser to seal Spiderman and the Green Goblin in the lair.

After some more wrestling, Spiderman reveals the Green Goblin as... Norman Osborn! Apparently the accident didn't kill him, but gave him superpowers and a split personality. Fortunately for Spiderman, the GG gets himself trapped under a statue of Justice just as his powers wear off. Spiderman undresses Norman out of the Goblin costume [which raises so many issues I won't even start] and appears to be trapped... until Harry shows up, having found the Goblin's "secret" lair under Oscorp. [Or something. Either way, if Harry Osborn can find it, it ain't that well hidden.] Norman Osborn wakes up with amnesia about the whole Green Goblin thing.

Later on, Norman calls a press conference where he announces he'll be stepping back from running Oscorp and expects Harry to be more active. [Apparently that's good enough for federal authorities because we hear nothing more about the nerve gas Oscorp was illegally manufacturing.] At the conference, Felicia Hardy gives Peter a note to give to Spiderman.

Spiderman shows up at Felicia's place, where Felicia displays some interest and lays a smooch on ol' Webhead.

Fourth epsiode:

Spiderman tells Felicia that he can't have a girlfriend. You sure don't catch any breaks, do you Peter?

The "ultimate" [let's use this term loosely] villain in this episode is Big Wheel. [Big Wheel is perhaps most perceptively remembered on Seanbaby's Lamest Ever Villains list (*warning: if you go looking for it, this site contains offensive language*) as, well, a really crappy villain. In the cartoon he has a gang armed with matching suits and rocket packs to go with his Big Wheel, but honestly, he still both sucks and blows.]

[Basically Big Wheel has built a large tank in the form of a big wheel. The inventor keeps going on about "perfect timing" and "precision" when he robs a bank, but when you've got a giant armoured wheel and just blow stuff up, having accurate timing is hardly essential. Furthermore, just look at the destruction this thing leads in its wake. All it would take is one person to follow the Big Wheel (which isn't exactly inconspicuous to start with) back to the hideout by following the torn-up road it leaves wherever it goes. Then it's game over for the gang.]

This episode focuses on one of Peter's science students who has a troubled past but is on the road to redemption thanks to his sick mother but gets blamed for something he hasn't done so he builds an ultra-tech hovering skateboard and becomes Rocket Racer in order to commit crime, but realises just in time that crime is not the answer. It's a cliche-o-rama episode (well, apart from the hovering skateboard part). Big Wheel is really just added-in to fill time - you could have put any villain into this story and have it come out the same. Basically the writer(s) of this episode have taken the Rocket Racer / Big Wheel storyline and jammed it into a "morality lesson for the kids" mold.

As a point of trivia, in this episode Spiderman saves the Big Wheel's inventor from his tank just before it crashes into the water and he drowns. In the comics (according to Seanbaby) Spiderman does no such thing and Big Wheel looks to have drowned. Also, Spiderman is again saved by a child's help, which really doesn't make him look super-heroic in my eyes. It won't take long for villains to realise that when fighting Spiderman, take out any children / troubled youths he has with him first - they're the ones that give Spiderman the edge.

The reason to watch this episode (in my opinion) is to see Felicia Hardy call Peter Parker "a good friend". Double ouch! Twice in a week! Oh Peter, I'd feel sorry for you if you didn't bring it on yourself...

[Still, at least this episode doesn't have Madame Web in it.]

If I thought that "Spiderman Versus Daredevil" had a misleading title, then "Spiderman: The Ultimate Villain Showdown" is an absolute rort. Sure, it's got Doctor Octopus and the Green Goblin, but they don't really seem to have that great of an impact. Then there is Big Wheel, who belongs on an ultimate list alright - Seanbaby's List of Ultimate Lame Villains.

Sadly, this set of "Spiderman" episodes didn't have unintentional hilarity of "...Daredevil" either, leaving it a bit bland and uninteresting. It wasn't terrible, but it just wasn't worth watching.

Having rented this DVD from Blockbuster, my version was a bit scratched so not all of the extras worked. You get more from Stan Lee, an 'interactive' Spiderman villain gallery and an extra episode featuring the Green Goblin. Not bad, but "Spiderman Versus Daredevil" had better stuff.

I assume that these episodes were based on a loose interpretations of Spiderman comics, but since I'm not a big Spiderman fan, I have no idea how close these adaptation come to recaputuring what appeared on the page.

These episodes weren't nearly as interesting as those in "Spiderman Versus Daredevil" and didn't have as many laughable moments in them. If you want to see this series, go and rent that instead.

Not a lot of humourous moments, but lots of plot holes. Characters such as Mousy and her Assorted Ethnic Cab Drivers deserve a mention, while Big Wheel gets a point all on his own.

Date of review: 7 July 2004