List of The Spectacular Spider-Man episodes
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The Spectacular Spider-Man is an American animated television series based on the Marvel Comics character, Spider-Man, and developed for television by Greg Weisman and Victor Cook. In terms of tone and style, the series is based principally on the Stan Lee/Steve Ditko/John Romita Sr. era of The Amazing Spider-Man comics, with a similar balance of action, drama and comedy as well as a high school setting. However, it also tends to utilize material from all eras of the comic's run and other sources such as the Ultimate Spider-Man comics by Brian Michael Bendis and Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy[1] The series premiered on March 8, 2008 during the Kids' WB programming block of The CW, and its second season aired on Disney XD in the United States, and ended its run on November 18, 2009, while the entire series was broadcast in Canada on Teletoon. The series received widespread acclaim from both critics and fans, proclaiming the series as the best adaptation of Spider-Man anywhere outside of comics, and one of the greatest animated shows of all time, with praise being aimed at the exploration of surprisingly mature themes, the faithful portrayal of the titular protagonist and supporting characters along with the vocal performances from the cast, the unique character designs and art style, and the use of clever writing while paying homage to classic stories from the comics.
Following the central theme of "The Education of Peter Parker", the series is broken up into loose arcs, each consisting of three to four episodes that take place roughly over a month within the series, with the episode titles in each arc adopting terms from specific fields of study. Both Season One and Two consist of 13 episodes.
Series overview[]
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | Network | ||||
| 1 | 13 | March 8, 2008 | June 14, 2008 | The CW | ||
| 2 | 13 | June 22, 2009 | November 18, 2009 | Disney XD | ||
Episodes[]
Season 1 (2008)[]
The first three episodes are named after notions in biology, the next three are named after ones in economics, the following three are terms in chemistry, while the final four are notions in psychology.[2]
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Survival of the Fittest" | Victor Cook | Greg Weisman | March 8, 2008 | 101 |
| As Peter Parker's junior year of high school begins, his superhero ego, Spider-Man has to face the Enforcers and the Vulture. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Interactions" | Troy Adomitis | Kevin Hopps | March 8, 2008 | 102 |
| Peter Parker reluctantly attempts to tutor Liz Allan, a member of the school's cheerleading squad, while, as Spider-Man, trying to stop Max Dillon who, following an accident at the ESU Labs, has become Electro, and threatens Dr. Curt Connors to find a cure to the accident that gave him electrical superpowers. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Natural Selection" | Dave Bullock | Matt Wayne | March 15, 2008 | 103 |
| Peter Parker and Spider-Man both must learn to face their own choices when Connors transforms into the vicious Lizard. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Market Forces" | Dan Fausett | Andrew Robinson | March 22, 2008 | 104 |
| While Peter takes on the responsibility of helping Aunt May pay bills following Uncle Ben's death, Montana, one of the Enforcers under the Big Man's employ, becomes the Shocker to fulfill his responsibility: eliminating Spider-Man. | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Competition" | Troy Adomitis | Kevin Hopps | March 29, 2008 | 105 |
| As Peter and his best friend Harry Osborn try out for the football team, Spider-Man must face recurring convict Flint Marko, now transformed into the Sandman, following an experiment run by the Big Man in order to kill Spider-Man. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "The Invisible Hand" | Dave Bullock | Matt Wayne | April 12, 2008 | 106 |
| As Peter struggles to get a date for Midtown High's Fall Formal, Alex O'Hirn, Marko's former partner-in-crime, becomes one of the Big Man's latest creations, the Rhino and has sworn vengeance on Spider-Man for putting him behind bars. Spider-Man takes the fight to the Big Man, who has been secretly orchestrating the attacks. The Big Man offers Spider-Man a tempting offer, before he rejects, swearing to put the Big Man behind bars once and for all. Failing to find a date for the Fall Formal, Aunt May sets Peter up with their neighbor, Mary Jane Watson, as his date. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "Catalysts" | Victor Cook | Andrew Robinson | April 26, 2008 | 107 |
| On the night of Midtown High's Fall Formal, the mysterious, and murderous Green Goblin threatens L. Thompson Lincoln (alias Tombstone) to step down as New York's Big Man Of Crime and attempts to destroy Spider-Man. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "Reaction" | Jennifer Coyle | Randy Jandt | May 3, 2008 | 108 |
| Peter and Spider-Man learn that their actions have consequences when nebbish Dr. Otto Octavius becomes Doctor Octopus following an accidental explosion. Spider-Man must prevent him from obtaining an experimental battery pack that can keep his mechanical arms functioning indefinitely. | ||||||
| 9 | 9 | "The Uncertainty Principle" | Dave Bullock | Kevin Hopps | May 10, 2008 | 109 |
| While Colonel John Jameson struggles to land his damaged space shuttle, Spider-Man attempts to defeat the Green Goblin, who also threatens Hammerhead and Tombstone in order to become the reigning crime boss in New York and to destroy Spider-Man. Peter faces his biggest challenge when he faces the truth about the Goblin's true identity. | ||||||
| 10 | 10 | "Persona" | Dan Fausett | Matt Wayne | May 17, 2008 | 110 |
| During an encounter with the Black Cat, the alien lifeform that attached itself to Colonel Jameson's space shuttle, which was then taken to ESU for analysis, bonds with Spider-Man, granting him a new black suit with enhanced abilities. Meanwhile, a master of disguise, the Chameleon, starts framing Spider-Man for various robberies, using inventions and effects provided by Quentin Beck and Phineas Mason. Spider-Man is left with no option but to team up with Black Cat to stop his new enemy's crime spree. | ||||||
| 11 | 11 | "Group Therapy" | Dave Bullock and Jennifer Coyle | Andrew Robinson and Greg Weisman | May 31, 2008 | 111 |
| With Electro's help, Doctor Octopus breaks himself, Vulture, Sandman, Rhino, and Shocker out of Ryker's Island prison to quench their mutual revenge on Spider-Man. Even with his new black suit, Spider-Man finds his old enemies, now called the Sinister Six, are more than he can handle. | ||||||
| 12 | 12 | "Intervention" | Dave Bullock | Greg Weisman | June 7, 2008 | 112 |
| With Aunt May in the hospital and his friendship with Eddie Brock ruined, Peter finally gains enough self-awareness to realize the alien symbiote is starting to affect his personality. The struggle between Peter and the symbiote evolves into a war within Peter's own mind, where Peter is aided by Uncle Ben. | ||||||
| 13 | 13 | "Nature vs. Nurture" | Victor Cook | Kevin Hopps | June 14, 2008 | 113 |
| As Aunt May is released from the hospital, Eddie Brock, (now transformed into the vicious Venom) sets his sights on Peter Parker and Spider-Man, as well as his loved ones, including Aunt May, after learning Peter is Spider-Man. | ||||||
Season 2 (2009)[]
The first four episodes are named after notions from engineering,[2] the next three are named after ones in human development, the following three are terms in criminology, while the final three are drama terminologies.
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | 1 | "Blueprints" | Jennifer Coyle | Kevin Hopps | June 22, 2009 | 201 |
| When Peter gets the chance to talk to Gwen Stacy about their first kiss, he, as Spider-Man, has a run-in with the sorcerer Mysterio, who is in the employ of a criminal mastermind known as the Master Planner. | ||||||
| 15 | 2 | "Destructive Testing" | Kevin Altieri | Matt Wayne | June 22, 2009 | 202 |
| While Peter is conflicted over his choice to be with either Gwen or Liz, Kraven the Hunter has come to New York to make Spider-Man his prey, a hunt that will lead him to cross paths with Miles Warren and the Master Planner. | ||||||
| 16 | 3 | "Reinforcement" | Mike Goguen | Andrew Robinson | June 29, 2009 | 203 |
| Near Christmas Day, the Sinister Six reconstitutes under the Master Planner with Sandman, Rhino, Vulture, Electro, and new members Mysterio and Kraven to destroy Spider-Man. Meanwhile, Peter Parker finds his wandering eye prevents him from being with Gwen Stacy. | ||||||
| 17 | 4 | "Shear Strength" | Jennifer Coyle | Randy Jandt | July 6, 2009 | 204 |
| On New Year's Eve, the Master Planner and the new Sinister Six plan to take over the world by kidnapping Gwen Stacy. A motivated Spider-Man takes the fight to the Planner's secret lair while attempting to save Gwen. | ||||||
| 18 | 5 | "First Steps" | Kevin Altieri | Kevin Hopps | July 13, 2009 | 205 |
| When school reopens, Peter Parker gets invited to Flash Thompson's birthday party. Meanwhile, he, as Spider-Man, has to face Sandman once again, who is attempting to make his big score by robbing an oil tanker. Peter also witnesses Harry's return from Europe, following his reveal as the Green Goblin, but begins to fear Venom's return when Peter spots him throughout the city as he faces Sandman. | ||||||
| 19 | 6 | "Growing Pains" | Mike Goguen | Nicole Dubuc | July 20, 2009 | 206 |
| Spider-Man is framed for a series of crimes when Venom returns. Meanwhile, microscopic spores from the alien symbiote infect John Jameson, increasing his size, strength, and mass. J. Jonah Jameson convinces his son to become a superhero, but John's motivation to help others becomes his motivation to destroy Spider-Man after believing he is a menace, unknowingly due to Venom's motives to frame him. | ||||||
| 20 | 7 | "Identity Crisis" | Jennifer Coyle | Andrew Robinson | July 27, 2009 | 207 |
| Peter Parker's secret identity as Spider-Man has been outed by Venom, leaving Peter and his loved ones vulnerable to his enemies. Spider-Man faces Venom for the last time before he manages to defeat Venom by separating Eddie and the symbiote, leading to Eddie losing his sanity and the symbiote escaping into the sewers. | ||||||
| 21 | 8 | "Accomplices" | Kevin Altieri | Nicole Dubuc | October 7, 2009 | 208 |
| A gang war looms as Silver Sable, Hammerhead, and Doctor Octopus vie for a prize that could change the balance of power in the New York Underworld. Spider-Man finds himself in the thick of this fray and must rely on the help of surprising allies to defeat them. | ||||||
| 22 | 9 | "Probable Cause" | Mike Goguen | Kevin Hopps | October 14, 2009 | 209 |
| Peter winds up on a Midtown High police car ride, along with Sally Avril. As Spider-Man, he must once again face off against the new Enforcers, consisting of Shocker, and an upgraded Ricochet and Ox. | ||||||
| 23 | 10 | "Gangland" | Jennifer Coyle | Andrew Robinson | October 21, 2009 | 210 |
| On Valentine's Day, Peter Parker jeopardizes his relationship with girlfriend Liz Allan when Tombstone, Doctor Octopus, and Silvermane call a Valentine's Day Summit. But when Hammerhead betrays them all in an attempt to become the new Big Man, the summit erupts into a gang war. | ||||||
| 24 | 11 | "Subtext" | Kevin Altieri | Nicole Dubuc | November 4, 2009 | 211 |
| Determined to be a better boyfriend to Liz Allan, Peter Parker attempts to help her brother Mark as Spider-Man. But when Green Goblin turns Mark into Molten Man and blackmails him into doing his bidding, Liz, Mary Jane, and Spider-Man attempt to save him. | ||||||
| 25 | 12 | "Opening Night" | Mike Goguen | Greg Weisman | November 18, 2009 | 212 |
| Spider-Man volunteers to test the Vault's new security system. But when the system becomes hijacked by the Green Goblin, Spider-Man must face his old foes with Black Cat's help, and in the process, faces a shocking revelation about Uncle Ben's death. | ||||||
| 26 | 13 | "Final Curtain" | Victor Cook | Kevin Hopps | November 18, 2009 | 213 |
| Peter breaks up with Liz Allan to finally be with Gwen Stacy. But when the Green Goblin, now the new Big Man, attempts to destroy Spider-Man once and for all, Spider-Man attempts to survive a city-wide fight with him, before he and Harry learn the Goblin's true identity and Norman Osborn's true colors. | ||||||
References[]
- ^ Interview with Greg Weisman (Part 1) by Sean Elliott: Archived 2010-02-11 at the Wayback Machine March 7, 2008
- ^ Jump up to: a b Ask Greg (Weisman): June 27, 2008
External links[]
Categories:
- Lists of Spider-Man television series episodes
- The Spectacular Spider-Man episodes
- Lists of American children's animated television series episodes