| This article is written from the Real World perspective |  |
| Spider-Man | |
|---|---|
| |
| Beginning date | September 9, 1967 |
| End date | September 6, 1970 |
| Number of Episodes | 52 Season One Season Two Season Three |
| Producers | Grant Simmons Ray Patterson Robert L. Lawrence Ralph Bakshi Steve Krantz (uncredited) |
| Original Channel | ABC |
| Previous Series | The Marvel Super Heroes |
| Next Series | Fantastic Four |
Spider-Man was the first series based on Spider-Man and the first Marvel animated series to focus on one character. The series ran between September 9, 1967 and September 6, 1970 alongside Fantastic Four.
Animation[]
The first season was produced by Grantray-Lawrence Animation, who also animated The Marvel Super Heroes. Ralph Bakshi produced the second and third seasons after Grantray-Lawrence went bankrupt.
To keep costs down, Spider-Man was only given his web design over his face, hands, and feet. Much of the animation was reused, usually Peter changing outfits and webslinging across the city. Bakshi was given an even smaller budget. Towards the end of the run, many earlier episodes were simply recycled so the plots were essentially the same.
The episodes "Phantom From the Depths of Time" and "Revolt in the Fifth Dimension" largely reused footage and sound from Bakshi's earlier series Rocket Robin Hood. The animators simply replaced the animation cels of Rocket Robin Hood with Spider-Man.
Cast[]
Bernard Cowan was also the dialogue director.
Carl Banas is the last living cast member.
Theme Song[]
Perhaps more famous than the series itself was the theme song, written by Academy Award winner Paul Francis Webster and composed by Bob Harris. The lyrics have been referenced in numerous comics, films, games, and television series since.
Joe Perry referenced the theme song while making the main theme for Spider-Man. Perry's band Aerosmith also covered a version of the song for the first Spider-Man film. Part of the song can be heard in the theme song for Ultimate Spider-Man.
In The Simpsons Movie, Homer Simpson does a version version of the song for a pet pig he gets dubbing him "Spider-Pig." Composer Hans Zimmer created a version of the Spider-Pig song for the soundtrack. Michael Giacchino, composer for Spider-Man: Homecoming, posted a version of the song with a full orchestra. He used the song over the opening logos. [1]
The theme song was in the film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse along with a corresponding clip of the opening.
Episodes[]
Like The Marvel Super Heroes before it, the series featured many episodes with two segments. Though unlike the previous series, it also featured several episodes with one segment.
Reception[]
John Semper, Jr. was a fan of the series and reviewed episodes when making Spider-Man.
Newsarama ranked the series as the fourth best animated comic book show ever calling it a cultural icon. They cited the theme song as one of reasons it was so high. [1]
Rotten Tomatoes ranked the series among its top one-hundred superhero series with this series at forty above Big Hero 6: The Series at one-hundred Spider-Woman at eighty-nine, Iron Man: Armored Adventures at eighty-six, Ultimate Spider-Man at eighty-three, Spider-Man Unlimited at seventy-three, The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes at sixty-nine, The Super Hero Squad Show at sixty-eight, X-Men: Evolution at sixty-six, Fantastic Four at sixty-four, Avengers Assemble at fifty-eight, Guardians of the Galaxy at fifty-five, The Marvel Super Heroes at fifty-one, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends at forty-eight, The Spectacular Spider-Man at forty-six and below Spider-Man at nineteen, and X-Men at five.[2]
References[]
- ↑ 10 Best Comic Book Animated Series of All Time at Newsarama
- ↑ 100 Best Superhero TV Shows of All Time at Rotten Tomatoes