The Truly Amazing Spiderman

The Truly Amazing Spiderman:

"Superman and Batman are arguably the most beloved and revered superheroes of all them, Spiderman is up there with those guys. . .it's those three and then everyone else."
~Cinemasins

Spiderman has remained a fan favorite of every child who ever lived. Throughout our lives we become fans of much darker and more powerful heroes and forget the sarcastic and witty superhero that so encapsulated our childhood. So with a new Spiderman reboot on it's way, I invite you all to take a look back to your childhood and review what made Spiderman so Amazing, and why he should remain one of our favorites today.

Why so Appealing:

Why on earth would a guy with the power of spiders be so popular amongst little children? That just sounds like nightmare fuel, (I mean, Ron Weasley was a child once, can you imagine if he knew what Spiderman was?). Regardless, we all had the Spiderman pajamas, played the games, played with some action figures and we all knew who he was. I can't recall just exactly where I heard of Spiderman for the first time, he was just kind of there in my life, (same goes for both Batman and Superman). What I do remember fondly was the Spiderman animated series that aired on television at the time when I was growing up. Not only was it the only accessible animated superhero movie I could get my hands on at the time, it portrayed a likable character with just cheesy enough dialogue and flashy action to keep my interest as a kid. When I heard there were live action films I was immediately hooked, no matter how bad the film could have been, I would have enjoyed it as a kid. That is why Spiderman is so heavily marketed, for some reason kids love him! There is something about sticking to walls, swinging through buildings and quipping sarcastic remarks that really captures kids attention. Because of this, no matter how awful of a movie Spiderman makes (Like that third one!), no matter how obscure the franchise becomes, there will still be Spiderman party decorations and Spiderman toys, (Yes, I'm talking about the Spiderman silly string sprayer that attaches to ones wrist, my six year old brother bought one the other day...I didn't even know they made those anymore.)

Rogues Gallery:

Like Batman, Spiderman has such an expansive Rogues Gallery that I remember getting into as a kid. He had so many well known bad guys to fight, which isn't as common in Marvel anymore. It's so expansive that it rivals Batman's own collection of villains. Because of this, it kept Spiderman interesting. He wasn't always just fighting the Green Goblin the entire time. One time he's fighting Dr. Octopus, then Venom and so on. It made for some fairly entertaining origin stories and a lot to expand upon. A large Rogues Gallery also led to Spiderman frequently needing to team up with a villain in order stop another villain with a little more dastardly plan.

Side Characters:

As well as the villains he had a very nice friend group. Not only were we interested on what Spiderman/Peter Parker were doing, there were side stories/struggles with Aunt May, the Daily Bugle, whichever girl he was dating (Gwen or Mary Jane), and his foibles as a schoolboy struggling with the powers he had obtained. It caused for some interesting dynamics, and enough motivation to protect his city as well as his friends.

He's A Nice Guy:

I think that the number one thing that really made Spiderman an appealing superhero to us a little children was that he was such a nice guy. We wasn't as complicated as characters like Wolverine, and not a complete bloodthirsty maniac like Deadpool. Spiderman was kind to everyone he came in contact with and didn't kill his enemies. We enjoyed to see him save people and watch how he treated the them afterwards with either a snappy remark or a reassuring message. It also created a good dynamic with his job at the Daily Bugle because his boss, J. Jonah Jameson, would treat Peter like garbage and bash on Spiderman when really they both had the best intentions possible.

Why Like Spiderman? Even If You Are Grown Up?

If him being a positive role model for anybody didn't convince you, hopefully this will. Spiderman is, for the most part, the only Superhero from small beginnings and humble backgrounds. He is an average guy who is making a difference in the world and not asking for the fame that comes with it, (Like some iron-clad superhero). If Captain America represents this great country we live in, Spiderman should represent the people who are living in it. Even as Spiderman he deals with similar problems that we face in our daily lives: Struggling to get people to like us, juggling many different priorities, swinging through the day while keeping tabs on what's going on around us, and making sure that those we love are kept safe. Spiderman may not be the most powerful superhero in the entire comic book universe, but he has remained closest to our hearts for a long time and I don't think he's leaving anytime soon.