Spider-Man.. Spider-Man.. does whatever a spider can – and everybody knows it. Unless you’ve been living under a literal rock since the 1960s, chances are you’ve at least heard of the web-slinger Peter Parker a.k.a Spider-Man. The Marvel comic-book character has become an immortal symbol of hope for his never-ending fan base and transcending time by still being (arguably) the most popular Marvel comic-book character to date.

Fans know Spider-Man is a deeply complex character with sacrifice allegedly built into his backstory/canon. Yet, he still manages to always look out for the little guy by staying true to his humble title of a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man – and that’s why audiences the world over love and relate to him. These qualities and obstacles make Spider-Man the perfect character for on-screen interpretations, and Hollywood has milked that cow for as much as they possibly could over the last two decades – and some of those interpretations were better received than others.

Keeping that in mind, let’s look at all of the movies the Spider-Verse has created over the years and see how they stack up against each other. That’s right – it’s time for Spider-Verse Movies

Madame Web

The writing was on the wall long before Madame Web came out that it would be pretty bad. Yet, I don’t think any of us anticipated just how awful this would be, with it on track to be one of the biggest superhero flops of all time. So what went wrong? Plenty. There’s the listless performances, the horrible overdubbing (Tahar Rahim’s performance suffers most of all), and the obnoxious references to Spider-Man (how many times is Adam Scott’s Ben referred to awkwardly by his full name). It’s pretty atrocious. – Chris Bumbray

Morbius

Do we really have to include this movie? We do? Fine, let’s get this over with. Yes, Morbius is technically considered a Spider-Verse movie, but it shouldn’t be. Arguably the biggest flop of 2022, Morbius was Sony’s attempt to add on to the success they achieved with their Venom movies (more on them shortly), and the overall hope was that the combination of movies focused on anti-heroes could eventually result in a Sinister Six project coming to fruition. Instead, Sony completely botched the overall plot and story of the movie in exchange for throwing in a million inconsequential Easter eggs from other Spider-verse films to help tie the movie into the bigger universe they were hoping to create. Regardless of intent, please do not consider this a Spider-Man movie – Peter Parker deserves better.

Editor’s note: For a whole lot more Morbius, check back on Monday for Awfully Good’s take on this.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage

As previously stated, Sony’s botched Morbius movie came from the ultimate success of the original Venom movie that they released in 2018. Unfortunately, the sequel made the same mistakes Sony made with Morbius. Riding high from the possibility of a Sinister Six project, the creators/writers of Venom: Let there be Carnage were more concerned with incorporating the character into a large, anti-hero universe rather than focusing on making a good movie. As a result, any positives of the movie were overshadowed by the fact that Eddie Brock/Venom was ‘transported’ to the MCU at the end, with Sony again trying to ride Marvel’s success train and failing to grasp on.

Spider-Man 3

I’m gonna put some dirt in your eye. Sam Raimi is unquestionably one of the directors who jump-started the comic-book movie wave that has consumed audiences for the past two and a half decades. It’s also unquestionable that Spider-Man 3 is the worst of his three Spider-Man movies. Tobey Maguire did his best with what he was given. The combination of three significant Spider-Man villains in one feature sets the stage for bigger and worse villains. Still, the movie’s overall tone didn’t fit the vibe of the first two outings, leading to a lackluster plot that left fans unsatisfied. The cancellation of a fourth Sam Raimi Spider-Man movie is all you really need to know about how poor this film did.

Venom

Sony came so close… and yet, so far. The Venom movie was one of the most highly-anticipated films of 2018, and it gave Sony the chance to embrace the first true anti-hero movie from their long list of fictional comic-book characters. While the film itself is by no means ‘bad’, the film ran into the same issue as Spider-Man 3 as the tone of Eddie Brock/Venom just didn’t seem to fit the bill of what fans had already set in their minds. After all, Venom is one of Spider-Man’s most notorious villains, and the character is (by nature) a darker one. Instead of honing in on that, the movie felt more like an Odd Couple buddy-cop comedy with hints of darkness sprinkled in. A good movie – yes. A good interpretation of Venom – questionable.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

Despite the flack that Andrew Garfield got for his attempt at playing Peter Parker/Spider-Man, it’s refreshing to see that the Internet has realized that his only sin was not being Tobey Maguire, whom audiences had simply gotten used to seeing in the red-spandex suit. The Amazing Spider-Man 2, oddly enough, also fits into this same kind of category – it wasn’t necessarily a bad film. It just got some things very wrong. In this case, it was the villains. The blue CGI version of Electro, mixed with a watered-down Green Goblin and undeniably the worst live-action Spider-Man villain thanks to Paul Giamatti’s mechanical Rhino, sadly made this film more of a joke than it could have been. Despite these pitfalls, fans can’t forget that the death of Gwen Stacey is still one of the hardest-hitting moments in the entirety of the Spider-Verse films.

Spider-Man: Far From Home

What was Marvel’s solution to helping fans get over the death of Tony Stark in Endgame? Oh yeah – they brought him up during every scene of Spider-Man: Far From Home. To be fair, this wasn’t necessarily the fault of the writing or directing team – in all honesty, it was the MCU’s fault for trying to replace Iron Man so quickly by shoving Spider-Man into his role. Not only that but the first live-action rendition of Mysterio could have been masterfully done with the casting choice of Jake Gyllenhaal. Instead, they turned him into a whiney cry-baby who had a prior grudge against (you guessed it) Iron Man. The first project after Endgame would always have unrealistic expectations to meet, but the MCU didn’t have to lower the bar quite as low as they did with this movie.

Spider-Man

It is where it all began, and credit needs to be given where credit is due. Tobey Maguire was the definitive Spider-Man for an entire generation of movie-goers, making the role his own and immortalizing Peter Parker on the big screen. Willem Dafoe as the Green Goblin is still one of the best casting choices for a villain in cinematic history. Sam Raimi’s interpretation of the comic-book world was masterfully transferred to the big screen (especially considering it was released in 2002). Perhaps nostalgia keeps this movie from being ranked any lower, but it’s more than enough to emphasize that this movie still stands the test of time, which is why it falls smack dab in the middle of our Spider-Verse Movies Ranked list.

Spider-Man: Homecoming

Welcome home, Spidey. Audiences remember the legal issue that prevented Spider-Man from joining his comic-book counterparts in the MCU, and they also remember what a sigh of relief it was when he finally made the crossover. Tom Holland taking up the mantle of the web-slinger was a phenomenal casting choice, and he has held the love of Spider-Man fans ever since his first appearance in Civil War. Despite this film centered around another villain with a petty grudge against Tony Stark, the father/son bond between Peter and Tony and the overall arc of Peter having to become ‘more than just a suit’ perfectly introduced the character into the larger cinematic universe.

The Amazing Spider-Man

Gasp in shock because the truth is a hard pill to swallow – The Amazing Spider-Man is far better than critics or audiences give it credit. Andrew Garfield may not have personified Peter Parker in the ways that audiences had become accustomed to (thanks to Tobey Maguire). Still, any comic-book fan knows that he played the character of Spider-Man to perfection. Also, making Gwen Stacey the main love interest and incorporating more villains into the story that had nothing to do with Green Goblin or any of the staples from the prior Spider-Man movies allowed it to stand on its own amongst them. Is this movie perfect – absolutely not. Is the only reason people hate it because they were still bitter about Tobey Maguire and Sam Raimi getting the boot – absolutely, yes.

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Timing is everything. Just like The Amazing Spider-Man was given more criticism than it deserved, No Way Home was given more praise. Don’t misinterpret that statement – fourth on a list of thirteen films is nothing to be embarrassed about – but No Way Home is far from the masterpiece that fans gushed over back in 2021. The movie itself is a love letter to the cinematic character of Spider-Man and did a masterful job at bringing back Willem Dafoe and the other villains, not to mention Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield as their respected Spidermen. That said, the film is entirely dependent on audiences knowledge and love of all prior Spider-Man movies – i.e. if you’ve never seen any other Spider-Man movies, then (like it or not) this movie was nothing but confusion. If you’re a Spider-Man fanatic, then we could see how this could be your favorite Spider-Man movie. Still, the sad truth that no one wants to accept is that it doesn’t work independently.

Spider-Man 2

Again, fans gushed over Willem Dafoe’s performance as Green Goblin in No Way Home, but it still fell short of the greatest villain in all of the Spider-Man movies – enter Doc Ock. Alfred Molina’s rendition of the villain has not been matched in the two decades since it premiered and arguably never will. The story arc of Peter Parker having to come to terms with the fact that (as Spider-Man) he can’t save everyone, but that won’t stop him from trying made for one of the most relatable heroes in all of cinematic history. Incorporate the incredible fight scenes and special effects (especially for 2004); you get the best live-action Spider-Man movie ever.

Across the Spider-Verse

Spoilers for those who have yet to see it (you’re missing out), but this movie was an easy 10/10, A+, 5 stars, or any other symbolic way of saying ‘perfect’. The sequel to Into the Spider-Verse has blown audiences away despite the nearly 5-year wait and has reminded audiences why we all love Spider-Man in the first place. The animation is just as brilliant as in the first movie, the character development is just as deep, and the story arc is just as enticing. This movie is the longest-running animated movie of all time. It doesn’t waste a second, continuing the narrative that the Into the Spider-Verse movies will go down as one of the greatest cinematic trilogies of all time. This movie’s only pitfall – the original still tops it – for now anyway. If the sequel is great it may retroactively bump this up higher in out Spider-Verse Movies Ranked list.

Into the Spider-Verse

Beyond the Spider-Verse may ultimately prove us wrong, but right now, Into the Spider-Verse is still undeniably the best Spider-Man movie (and believe it or not, there are multiple reasons). Again, Across the Spider-Verse is still a perfect film (heavy praise for a sequel), but its predecessor is more perfect. The animation was revolutionary and ground-breaking; the character arcs and development were pristine; the soundtrack is still one of the best ever created for a movie – and those still aren’t the biggest reasons why this is the best Spider-Man movie ever. The reason why it’s the best (and where a film like No Way Home falls short) because an audience member could have known absolutely nothing about the character of Spider-Man (either Miles Morales or Peter Parker) and walked away from the movie knowing absolutely everything about them. While Across the Spider-Verse didn’t waste a single second, Into the Spider-Verse utilized every second and is arguably the best animated (not just Spider-Man) movie ever. 

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