Spider-Man - Daredevil Vs. Spider-Man (Animated Series)
by Bob Richardson
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DVD Cover Information
Director: Bob RichardsonDVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; Spanish (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Animated, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 80 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-02-11
Audience Rating: G (General Audience)
Studio: Walt Disney Video
Movie Reviews of Spider-Man - Daredevil Vs. Spider-Man (Animated Series)
Movie Review: There was some righteous web-swinging in the 1990s, even on the small screen...
Summary: 4 Stars
It's hard for me to pick out a favorite, from all the animated Spidey TV shows. Basically, I've always just been too busy being thankful that the wallcrawler's on the small screen, in the first place. This dvd here, DAREDEVIL VS. SPIDER-MAN, is from the terrific 1990s Spider-Man cartoon. And while I've been in the recent habit of slamming dvd releases containing paltry sums of episodes, I'm just glad these suckers are made available at all in dvd. Because who the eff knows when we'll get full season releases on this series? Me, I'm hunkering down for a looong wait.
Spidey is an icon, and his fans won't suffer too many years elapsing without his being on TV or, nowadays, in a feature film. This particular cartoon incarnation ran from 1994 to 1998 for 65 episodes, and, even at its final stages, it was still well received enough to garner its own sequel series in 1999, the very short lived (and inferior) SPIDER-MAN UNLIMITED, which placed Spidey on Counterearth.
Back to the 1994 series: Most of the classic Spider-Man elements are here. From his everyday sadsack life to his familiar supporting cast, from his rogues' gallery (excepting Sandman) to his sense of humor and bad guy baiting. And in this one, Peter is still attending college at Empire State U, even as he continues to shoot photos for the Daily Bugle.
The four episodes in DAREDEVIL VS. SPIDER-MAN are pulled from Season 3's "Sins of the Fathers" story arc (Chapters VI - IX). Daredevil, by the way, appears in only the first two of these episodes ("Framed" and "The Man Without Fear"). When Peter Parker is hired by the Kingpin and then framed and arrested for a federal crime, blind attorney Matt Murdock's services are mysteriously engaged in Peter's defense. But when his civilian identity proves inadequate, Murdock dons the more action-friendly guise of Daredevil. Then comes the inevitable misunderstanding and skirmish between superheroes, followed by the teaming up, and ends with Parker exonerated and the Kingpin walking away unscathed.
One quibble I have is that I don't buy the actor voicing Matt Murdock/Daredevil. For whatever reason, I just don't think Daredevil's voice is that deep.
The third episode, "The Ultimate Slayer," revolves around Alistair Smythe and his unwilling transformation into a half-cyborg Spider Slayer, thanks to the Kingpin. Blaming Norman Osbourne for his father's death, Smythe targets him for revenge. Meanwhile, Peter learns that Harry and Mary Jane are engaged.
In "Tombstone," with the Daily Bugle about to publish an expose on Alicia Silvermane and her crime syndicate, the supertough, superstrong albino Tombstone is hired to put pressure on Bugle editor Robbie Robertson. And, surprisingly, these two share a past.
And, throughout all this, the mystical Madame Web occasionally steps in with some obscure, befuddling advice for Spidey, no doubt her way of prepping him for the cosmic events in the final season.
Compared to today's standards, the animation here is more clumsy, not to mention that the occasional use of CG in cityscape sequences tends to clash with the 2D stuff. Also, the wallcrawler is at times depicted as too bulky a figure. However, the quality of the storytelling and the nice continuity make up for whatever the visuals may lack. Because of the restrictions placed on the series by the Fox network, it's still an action packed series, but not as dynamic as it could've been. One of the funnier, more offbeat restrictions prevents Spidey from harming pigeons whenever he landed on a roof. Also, FOX had prohibited the inclusion of genuine firearms, so the bad guys and even the law enforcers made do with laser guns. It's a bit jarring, and initially had me thinking that this Spidey was set in the near future.
For what it is, this dvd actually comes thru with decent special features: optional Stan Lee intros to each of the featured four episodes; a bonus episode ("King Pinned") from the 1966 Spidey cartoon; another bonus episode ("And a Blind Man Shall Lead Them"), from the 1990s Fantastic Four cartoon guest-starring Daredevil, in which the FF lose their super powers; and Stan Lee's Soapbox, as Stan reflects long and nostalgically about Daredevil (around 18 minutes).
Some trivia for fans of the show: Starting with the second year, the episodes in each season began to be linked in a single, season-long, over-arcing storyline. So, for example, the individual episode titles of Season 2 all fell under the "Neogenic Nightmare" banner. Season 3, under "The Sins of the Fathers" banner. Season 4, under "Partners in Danger." And Season 5, "Forgotten Warriors." I understand that the network heads were utterly ticked off at head writer John Semper, whose idea it was to insert long-running storylines.
Most of the dvds available about this series seem to focus on Season 3, which is the "Sins of the Fathers" story arc. Chapters II-V of it are collected in Spider-Man - The Ultimate Villain Showdown (Animated Series). Chapters X & XI are in Spider-Man - The Venom Saga (Animated Series) (along with Season 1's 3-part "The Alien Costume" story). Chapters XII-XIV are found in Spider-Man - The Return of the Green Goblin (Animated Series) (with the first chapter of Season 4's "Partners in Danger" arc). The only episode missing is part one of "Sins of the Fathers" (the one with Dr. Strange) and one can only wonder why it's not included.
Personally, I'm waiting on the dvd release of the last season, which features the "Six Forgotten Warriors" saga, the 3-part "Secret Wars" (based on the Secret Wars comic book maxi-series) and the 2-part series finale "Spider-Wars," as, in another reality, Peter and five other Spideys must go up against Spider-Carnage.
It's gonna be a long wait, it looks like.
Summary of Spider-Man - Daredevil Vs. Spider-Man (Animated Series)
Two legendary superheroes collide as Daredevil faces Spider-Man in an all-out fight for justice. Dwelling in a world of eternal darkness, Attorney Matt Murdock defends Peter Parker by day, but at night he takes to the streets, battling anyone in his path as he searches for truth ... and revenge. Discover the origin of Daredevil, "The Man Without Fear," and witness the thrills as he and the Webslinger ultimately team up to take down their supreme nemesis, The Kingpin. It's an animated, epic clash you'll want to experience over and over again!Spider-Man vs. Daredevil isn't a question of vs. for very long, as they soon get over their initial misunderstandings and team up to battle the Kingpin. It parallels the original Marvel comics on which the story is based, which also saw the corpulent crime lord becoming the nemesis of both heroes. Several more of their arch-foes, such as the Chameleon, also put in appearances in a plot that revolves around Peter Parker accepting a job offer from philanthropist Wilson Fiske, not realizing that Fiske is in fact... but that would be telling. Suffice to say that Daredevil has at least some of the answers.
This whole generation of Marvel animations, which began with the groundbreaking X-Men series, is of an extraordinarily high quality. Their visual style is influenced by the best of the comics' artists, the protagonists are properly fleshed out, and--proving that cartoons don't have to be dumb--the plots and story arcs often have the kind of sophistication you'd expect from the best kind of adventure novel. This example is typically faultless in execution and, unlike most Saturday-morning fodder, bears repeated viewing. --Roger Thomas
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