July 21, 2026

Spider-Noir Season 1 Review

Show Notes
Transcript

Join us on Discord at https://discord.gg/Fghf83q
Listen to the DynaMic Podcast Network at http://dynamicpodcasts.com
Download the bonus episodes: https://dynamic-duel-shop.fourthwall.com/collections/bonus-episodes
• 0:00:00 - Introduction
• 0:01:48 - Cyborg Superman vs Magus (Technarch) duel results
• 0:05:28 - Who's Who?
• 0:10:40 - Spider-Noir Season 1 Review
• 0:22:25 - Sign off
Website: https://dynamicduel.com
Instagram: https://instagram.com/dynamicduelpodcast
Merch: https://dynamic-duel-shop.fourthwall.com/
Blip Stream by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3443-blip-stream
#SpiderNoir #SpiderMan #Marvel

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dynamic-duel-dc-vs-marvel--5414543/support.

WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.960 --> 00:00:03.040
This is a dyna Mic network podcast.

2
00:00:15.720 --> 00:00:19.239
Hi, welcome to the Dynamic Dual podcast, a Rotten Tomatoes

3
00:00:19.239 --> 00:00:22.600
approved to show their reviews superhero films and series through

4
00:00:22.600 --> 00:00:26.399
the lens of the DC and Marble fandoms. I'm Jonathan

5
00:00:26.640 --> 00:00:29.920
and I'm his twin brother Joseph, and this episode coming

6
00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:32.920
a little late is going to be a review of

7
00:00:32.960 --> 00:00:38.119
the Amazon Prime television series Spider Noar. Yeah, well, our

8
00:00:38.159 --> 00:00:41.439
episode's never too early or too late. They come precisely

9
00:00:41.479 --> 00:00:44.759
when they mean to. Yeah, like kandelf Right, No, I

10
00:00:44.799 --> 00:00:48.799
don't think so. Spider Noar is sort of a spinoff

11
00:00:48.960 --> 00:00:52.479
of the Spider Verse animated films as the same producers,

12
00:00:52.679 --> 00:00:55.640
but of course this is live action starring Nicholas Cage,

13
00:00:55.920 --> 00:00:58.280
who cages it up big time. I'd say the show

14
00:00:58.320 --> 00:00:59.719
is about as fun as you would want it to

15
00:00:59.759 --> 00:01:02.439
be exactly. We'll get more to our thoughts later on

16
00:01:02.560 --> 00:01:05.280
in the episode when we give our review. Before that,

17
00:01:05.840 --> 00:01:08.599
our AI co host AJ nine K there's a quick

18
00:01:08.640 --> 00:01:10.560
message for our listeners, so listen up.

19
00:01:12.599 --> 00:01:14.879
Why hello there? Be sure to tune into the other

20
00:01:14.920 --> 00:01:19.040
shows in the Dynamite podcast network, including the Console Combat podcast,

21
00:01:19.200 --> 00:01:22.239
where host John and Dean simulate battles between popular video

22
00:01:22.319 --> 00:01:26.400
game characters. Over on the Max Destruction podcast, hosts Scotti

23
00:01:26.480 --> 00:01:29.239
and Gilly pitch your favorite action heroes from film and

24
00:01:29.280 --> 00:01:32.480
television against each other, and on the Senjo World podcast,

25
00:01:32.719 --> 00:01:36.319
host Zachary Hepburn speculates on fights between fan favorite anime

26
00:01:36.439 --> 00:01:40.280
and manga characters. Visit Dynamic Podcasts dot com or click

27
00:01:40.280 --> 00:01:41.920
the link in our show notes to listen to all

28
00:01:41.959 --> 00:01:43.959
the shows in the Dynamite podcast network.

29
00:01:44.439 --> 00:01:50.840
Pit Pip Cheerio, Thanks aj nine K. In our last episode,

30
00:01:50.879 --> 00:01:54.159
we did a review of the film Supergirl, during which

31
00:01:54.200 --> 00:01:56.000
we discussed a lot of the characters in that film

32
00:01:56.000 --> 00:01:58.840
that appeared in the comic books, and then we asked you, guys,

33
00:01:58.879 --> 00:02:00.879
who you thought would make a good man for some

34
00:02:00.920 --> 00:02:04.200
of those characters. The best response we got, once again

35
00:02:04.319 --> 00:02:08.360
was from Devin on Discord and he suggested Cyborg Superman,

36
00:02:08.439 --> 00:02:11.400
who is probably the most prominent Superman villain that we

37
00:02:11.439 --> 00:02:13.759
never got around to doing good duel with, and we're

38
00:02:13.759 --> 00:02:18.159
going to pit him against the Technark, specifically Magas, which

39
00:02:18.199 --> 00:02:20.759
is a generic term for a leader of the Technark,

40
00:02:20.879 --> 00:02:24.280
which is basically an offshoot of the alien race known

41
00:02:24.280 --> 00:02:28.439
as the Phalanx, which is a techno parasitic artificial intelligence.

42
00:02:28.680 --> 00:02:31.800
So the Phalanx created the technark as like their soldiers.

43
00:02:32.159 --> 00:02:34.639
The term for leader of one of the technark nodes

44
00:02:34.719 --> 00:02:37.879
is called megas. I'm going with the particular Megas that

45
00:02:38.000 --> 00:02:41.560
was the father of Warlock. Oh my gosh, the channel

46
00:02:41.599 --> 00:02:44.199
on board, who is one of the members of the

47
00:02:44.240 --> 00:02:47.599
New Mutants. It's pretty fucking complicated, but all you need

48
00:02:47.639 --> 00:02:51.280
to know is that this particular technark is one of

49
00:02:51.319 --> 00:02:54.719
the more prominent within the Marvel universe. Yeah, I remember

50
00:02:54.759 --> 00:02:58.719
you mentioning the Failanx during our Legion of Superheroes Versus

51
00:02:58.759 --> 00:03:02.159
New Mutants episode. Yeah, because then that duel was Cipher,

52
00:03:02.560 --> 00:03:06.960
who had eventually merged with Warlock, who was Yeah. Anyway, Basically,

53
00:03:07.000 --> 00:03:10.520
Warlock's father pursued him to Earth for fleeing their species

54
00:03:10.759 --> 00:03:14.240
ritual death duel and became an enemy of the New Mutants.

55
00:03:14.599 --> 00:03:17.919
He has the ability to shape shift his techno organic body.

56
00:03:17.960 --> 00:03:21.439
He can alter his size, he can regenerate, and he

57
00:03:21.479 --> 00:03:24.520
could also spread the techno organic virus to other people,

58
00:03:24.919 --> 00:03:28.759
drain their energy, and fly fast enough to fly through hyperspace,

59
00:03:29.240 --> 00:03:32.960
particularly when he transforms his body into a spaceship. That's cool.

60
00:03:32.960 --> 00:03:35.800
I guess not as cool as Cyborg Superman, though, who

61
00:03:35.919 --> 00:03:39.800
was once astronaut Hank Henshaw, and he was bombarded by

62
00:03:39.840 --> 00:03:43.759
cosmic radiation during a doomed space mission with his wife.

63
00:03:44.080 --> 00:03:49.120
His body died, but his mind survived digitally. After Superman's death,

64
00:03:49.360 --> 00:03:55.400
he used Kryptonian tech to become Cyborg Superman, technopathic, technomorphic,

65
00:03:55.800 --> 00:03:59.240
and with all of Superman's Kryptonian powers. The failings are

66
00:03:59.319 --> 00:04:03.360
used to fighting not characters like Superman well and is

67
00:04:03.400 --> 00:04:06.360
most powerful. I saw Magas literally rip a star in

68
00:04:06.439 --> 00:04:10.080
half and then hurl it. So, uh, what you fucked? Yeah,

69
00:04:10.080 --> 00:04:12.439
you're fucked. But let's see how fucked you are by

70
00:04:12.439 --> 00:04:15.360
finding out who wins? Agn I k the results? Please

71
00:04:15.719 --> 00:04:18.720
all right? After running one thousand simulated battles between the

72
00:04:18.759 --> 00:04:23.279
two characters, the winner between Cyborg Superman and Magas the

73
00:04:23.319 --> 00:04:29.399
Technark is technarc shut up, all right, you're right. It

74
00:04:29.439 --> 00:04:32.319
was Cyborg Superman. You know why because he has fucking

75
00:04:32.480 --> 00:04:35.040
Superman in his name and he needs a new fucking name.

76
00:04:35.079 --> 00:04:35.680
That's stupid.

77
00:04:36.360 --> 00:04:36.480
Uh.

78
00:04:36.879 --> 00:04:39.360
He won out of one thousand matches, five hundred and

79
00:04:39.360 --> 00:04:42.600
thirty six battles, whereas the Technark only won four hundred

80
00:04:42.600 --> 00:04:45.959
and sixty four. It was pretty close magas the Technark

81
00:04:46.040 --> 00:04:49.959
had an advantage in evasiveness and damage at his full potential,

82
00:04:50.399 --> 00:04:54.920
But Cyborg Superman has n't be underability and fighting skill

83
00:04:55.040 --> 00:04:58.000
and range because he can also stretch just like Technark.

84
00:04:58.040 --> 00:04:59.839
He can, but he also has like heat vision, and

85
00:05:00.199 --> 00:05:03.240
so he's a really powerful character. Like stats wise, he

86
00:05:03.240 --> 00:05:07.879
would probably even be Superman. He sounds super awesome, awesome.

87
00:05:07.959 --> 00:05:10.600
I hate him for winning, and I'm sick of DC

88
00:05:10.800 --> 00:05:12.720
winning the show. Why do we even do the duels anymore?

89
00:05:12.720 --> 00:05:16.959
Because literally just every character in DC is basically Superman. Yeah,

90
00:05:17.000 --> 00:05:19.240
we are pretty cool like that. Moving on to the

91
00:05:19.279 --> 00:05:23.000
next segment, We're gonna break down the comic book histories

92
00:05:23.079 --> 00:05:26.800
of the characters that appear in Spider Nore season one

93
00:05:27.199 --> 00:05:31.560
in a segment we call Who's who? All right, So

94
00:05:31.600 --> 00:05:35.879
the Spider Man Nor universe is called Universe nine oh

95
00:05:35.879 --> 00:05:39.199
two one four, whereas you know the mainstream Marvel universes

96
00:05:39.279 --> 00:05:41.720
Earth six one six, not all of the characters that

97
00:05:41.800 --> 00:05:44.600
appeared in the show were actually in the Spider Man

98
00:05:44.680 --> 00:05:47.000
Nor comics. They had pulled some of the characters from

99
00:05:47.079 --> 00:05:50.600
Earth six one six and adapted them into this Nor universe.

100
00:05:51.040 --> 00:05:54.160
But of course. Peter Parker Spider Man, is part of

101
00:05:54.240 --> 00:05:56.800
the universe. He was raised by Aunt May and Uncle

102
00:05:56.879 --> 00:06:00.360
Ben during the Great Depression. After Ben was murdered by

103
00:06:00.439 --> 00:06:04.160
the goblins men for organizing glabor strikes, Peter became determined

104
00:06:04.240 --> 00:06:08.199
to fight corruption. While investigating a shipment of stolen antiques,

105
00:06:08.639 --> 00:06:11.399
he was bitten by a spider released from a mystical

106
00:06:11.480 --> 00:06:15.120
spider idol, and he gained spider like abilities. Using a

107
00:06:15.199 --> 00:06:19.000
costume based on his uncle Bann's World War One airman uniform,

108
00:06:19.240 --> 00:06:23.240
Peter became Spider Man, battling mobsters, Nazis, and other criminals

109
00:06:23.360 --> 00:06:26.720
while working as an investigative reporter. Wow, that is way

110
00:06:26.720 --> 00:06:30.480
different from the show. Yeah, absolutely, The show is largely

111
00:06:30.759 --> 00:06:34.800
a original interpretation of the character. Now powers wise. Spider

112
00:06:34.839 --> 00:06:38.839
Man Noar possesses superhuman strength, speed, agility, stamina, and the

113
00:06:38.879 --> 00:06:42.000
ability to cling to walls. His spider sense warns them

114
00:06:42.040 --> 00:06:45.160
of danger ant He can fire organic black webbing from

115
00:06:45.199 --> 00:06:50.360
his wrists. He's a skilled hand to hand combatant, investigator, photographer, scientist,

116
00:06:50.480 --> 00:06:54.319
and marksman. He carries firearms and wears light body armor.

117
00:06:54.720 --> 00:06:58.480
Appearing in Spider Nor Season one is silvermin although he's

118
00:06:58.600 --> 00:07:01.720
not in the Spider Nor comic books, so I'll give

119
00:07:01.720 --> 00:07:07.000
you his mainstream Marvel Universe backstory. Silvio Manfredi immigrated from

120
00:07:07.040 --> 00:07:09.839
Italy to New York as a child and joined the

121
00:07:09.959 --> 00:07:13.959
Maggia crime family while still a teenager. Ruthless and ambitious,

122
00:07:14.000 --> 00:07:16.680
he rose through murder and strategy to become the crime

123
00:07:16.720 --> 00:07:20.639
lord Silvermain, Aging and desperate to avoid death, used the

124
00:07:20.680 --> 00:07:23.480
mystical tablet of Life and Time to restore his youth,

125
00:07:23.800 --> 00:07:28.160
but the process reversed uncontrollably until he vanished. When the

126
00:07:28.160 --> 00:07:30.720
effect wore off and he re emerged, his brain and

127
00:07:30.800 --> 00:07:35.040
remaining organs were transferred into a cybernetic body, allowing him

128
00:07:35.079 --> 00:07:38.079
to continue leading the Maggia. But of course, in Spider

129
00:07:38.160 --> 00:07:40.800
Noor season one, he is not a cyborg. Yeah, and

130
00:07:40.800 --> 00:07:44.639
he's Irish instead of Italian. Right. Black Cat was part

131
00:07:44.720 --> 00:07:48.360
of the Spider Noor comics. Her real name is Felicia Hardy,

132
00:07:48.480 --> 00:07:51.439
and she owned the Black Cat Nightclub, serving as an

133
00:07:51.439 --> 00:07:54.879
informant to the Daily Bugle, helping the newspaper gather evidence

134
00:07:54.959 --> 00:07:58.439
on New York's corruption. After witnessing what she believed was

135
00:07:58.519 --> 00:08:02.360
ja Jonah Jamison murdering reporter Ben Urick, she confronted and

136
00:08:02.480 --> 00:08:06.079
killed the supposed culprit, later revealed to be the Chameleon

137
00:08:06.279 --> 00:08:09.360
in disguise. Felicia was captured by the Goblin, but she

138
00:08:09.519 --> 00:08:12.680
escaped with Spider Man's help and later sheltered Peter Parker

139
00:08:12.720 --> 00:08:15.279
while he recovered from his injuries, prompting her lover to

140
00:08:15.399 --> 00:08:20.240
slash her face in retaliation. Permanently scarred, Felicia adopted a

141
00:08:20.240 --> 00:08:24.160
white mask and became a vigilante, later helping Spider Man

142
00:08:24.199 --> 00:08:28.040
stop the Shocker from selling weapons to the Nazis. Also

143
00:08:28.079 --> 00:08:31.240
from the nore comics is Sandman. Flint Marco was an

144
00:08:31.360 --> 00:08:34.240
enforcer who earned the name Sandman not from his ability

145
00:08:34.240 --> 00:08:37.559
to control sand but because of his proficiency and brutality

146
00:08:37.759 --> 00:08:41.200
in killing victims with his bare hands, basically putting them

147
00:08:41.240 --> 00:08:45.639
to sleep. He helped transport African American captives to Ellis Island,

148
00:08:45.679 --> 00:08:49.840
where Doctor Octavius subjected them to horrific experiments. When Spider

149
00:08:49.840 --> 00:08:53.879
Man investigated the operation, Flint Marco withstood the Hero's attacks

150
00:08:54.120 --> 00:08:57.600
and beat him nearly unconscious before the FBI intervened. Flint

151
00:08:57.600 --> 00:09:00.480
Marco survived an initial gunshot and was only killed after

152
00:09:00.600 --> 00:09:04.679
the FBI agents repeatedly fired on him. His superpower basically

153
00:09:04.799 --> 00:09:08.240
is that he was an extremely tough mob enforcer. Hitting

154
00:09:08.320 --> 00:09:11.600
him was comparable to hitting granite. Also from the Nora

155
00:09:11.639 --> 00:09:14.919
comic books was Tombstone. Lonnie Lincoln was born and raised

156
00:09:14.919 --> 00:09:16.799
in Harlem, New York, where he stood out as the

157
00:09:16.840 --> 00:09:20.759
neighborhood's only albino. His father rejected him because of his appearance.

158
00:09:21.000 --> 00:09:23.440
His mother was the only one who cared for him. Eventually,

159
00:09:23.559 --> 00:09:27.080
Lonnie turned to crime and adopted the name Tombstone. The

160
00:09:27.120 --> 00:09:30.039
Nora comics, he suffers from scleroderma, which is a condition

161
00:09:30.120 --> 00:09:32.679
that causes his skin to harden and tighten over time,

162
00:09:33.039 --> 00:09:35.799
and in his case, the disease gradually encased his body

163
00:09:35.919 --> 00:09:38.759
in this outer layer that gave him resistance to physical

164
00:09:38.759 --> 00:09:43.639
harm and finally appearing in Spider Nor Season one was Megawatt.

165
00:09:43.759 --> 00:09:45.879
I actually thought it was Electro, but it turned out

166
00:09:45.919 --> 00:09:48.960
to be Megawatt. He's not in the Nora comic books,

167
00:09:49.039 --> 00:09:51.840
but he was in the six one six universe, where

168
00:09:51.840 --> 00:09:54.320
his real name was Derek Leyden. He was an Australian

169
00:09:54.360 --> 00:09:57.919
convict who later became an actor before turning to super villainy.

170
00:09:58.279 --> 00:10:01.279
A scientist named Jonas Harrow granted the electrical powers, and

171
00:10:01.360 --> 00:10:04.639
he adopted the name Megawat, battling Spider Man to a draw,

172
00:10:04.879 --> 00:10:07.919
but was defeated when he exhausted his stored energy. He

173
00:10:08.000 --> 00:10:11.440
later was able to parlay that notoriety into becoming an

174
00:10:11.519 --> 00:10:14.919
international film star. His powers are that he can absorb, store,

175
00:10:14.960 --> 00:10:18.360
and discharge large amounts of electricity, basically just like Electro.

176
00:10:18.840 --> 00:10:22.519
I totally thought he was a Noir version of Electro.

177
00:10:22.639 --> 00:10:26.279
Why does Spider Man need two electric villains? I don't know.

178
00:10:26.360 --> 00:10:29.000
Megawatt was used in like a one off story. I'm

179
00:10:29.039 --> 00:10:31.000
not sure why they chose to adapt him instead of

180
00:10:31.039 --> 00:10:35.679
Electro into the Spider Noir series weird, Probably because they

181
00:10:35.679 --> 00:10:37.720
wanted to go with the actor route, and in the

182
00:10:37.720 --> 00:10:44.960
comic books Megawat was an actor. Gotcha interesting set of

183
00:10:45.039 --> 00:10:47.440
characters from the comics. But let's go ahead and move

184
00:10:47.559 --> 00:10:52.799
now into our review of the Amazon Prime television series

185
00:10:53.320 --> 00:11:11.960
Spider Noir Season one. All Right, Spider nor Season one

186
00:11:12.080 --> 00:11:15.440
came out in May six on Amazon Prime and was

187
00:11:15.519 --> 00:11:18.960
show run by Orrin Uziel Think I'm pronouncing that right

188
00:11:19.000 --> 00:11:23.679
and Steve Lightfoot. It also starred Nicholas Cage and Brandan Gleeson.

189
00:11:24.080 --> 00:11:26.480
The show was set in an alternate nineteen thirties New

190
00:11:26.559 --> 00:11:30.600
York City within Sony's Spider Man universe. The show follows

191
00:11:30.639 --> 00:11:34.559
private investigator Ben Riley, formerly a crime fighter known as

192
00:11:34.639 --> 00:11:38.960
the Spider. Several cases entwine him in the dealings of Silvermin,

193
00:11:39.159 --> 00:11:42.679
the city's notorious mob boss, and the emergence of new

194
00:11:42.759 --> 00:11:46.720
superpowered beings with ties to Ben's past. When the Spider

195
00:11:46.799 --> 00:11:50.360
Nor project was first announced, it seemed like a no brainer,

196
00:11:50.720 --> 00:11:53.919
especially when you have a star attached like Nicholas Cage, who,

197
00:11:53.960 --> 00:11:56.399
of course voiced the role of Spider Man more in

198
00:11:56.480 --> 00:12:00.559
the twenty eighteen animated film Spider Man into the Spider Verse.

199
00:12:01.000 --> 00:12:04.039
He was like such a standout character in that film.

200
00:12:04.360 --> 00:12:06.559
They all were, really, and you could easily make a

201
00:12:06.600 --> 00:12:09.440
series based on Spider Ham and Penny Parker as like

202
00:12:09.440 --> 00:12:13.000
a children's cartoon and as an anime, respectively. But Film

203
00:12:13.080 --> 00:12:16.320
Nore is so unique and underutilized in this day and age,

204
00:12:16.679 --> 00:12:19.519
and so fascinating in its vision and tone that I

205
00:12:19.519 --> 00:12:23.480
remember thinking, like, Yes, make a Spider Man noir project first.

206
00:12:23.600 --> 00:12:26.759
Lean into that, because I think it's exactly what superhero

207
00:12:26.799 --> 00:12:30.480
fans need right now, especially to inject some interest in

208
00:12:30.519 --> 00:12:33.279
the superhero genre. Which at this point is largely perceived

209
00:12:33.360 --> 00:12:37.080
as wrote and uninspired. Now, the Spider Verse films are good.

210
00:12:37.600 --> 00:12:40.360
I would not say that Spiderman Noir was my favorite

211
00:12:40.440 --> 00:12:43.559
character out of them, so I wasn't really looking forward

212
00:12:43.559 --> 00:12:46.360
to this, even though I really like Detective Noir. But

213
00:12:46.440 --> 00:12:48.519
I enjoyed the show so much more than I thought

214
00:12:48.519 --> 00:12:50.639
I would. If I could describe it in one word,

215
00:12:50.799 --> 00:12:53.200
I think I would use charming for sure. Yeah, it

216
00:12:53.240 --> 00:12:56.279
has kind of like an old school charm to it. Absolutely.

217
00:12:56.440 --> 00:12:58.480
I'm glad that you were surprised by how good it

218
00:12:58.639 --> 00:13:01.720
was in quality. I think I was too, actually, especially

219
00:13:01.720 --> 00:13:05.360
coming off of something like Supergirl, which felt so familiar

220
00:13:05.399 --> 00:13:07.320
to the point where it's like why even watch it?

221
00:13:07.840 --> 00:13:09.799
This was really unique and how much it took me

222
00:13:09.919 --> 00:13:13.039
back to like old black and white films and even

223
00:13:13.080 --> 00:13:16.120
like the Dick Tracy movie in particular. Yeah, I think

224
00:13:16.120 --> 00:13:19.480
that's a good comparison. Film Nore itself is not necessarily

225
00:13:19.519 --> 00:13:21.879
new to Marvel and DC. It's not like a genre

226
00:13:22.080 --> 00:13:24.840
so much as it is like a style. A lot

227
00:13:24.840 --> 00:13:27.759
of Batman projects are film nor I would say, right,

228
00:13:27.879 --> 00:13:31.799
like especially The Batman with Robert Pattinson, Batman, The Long

229
00:13:31.840 --> 00:13:35.919
Halloween was definitely film noir, so was like Batman Caped Crusader,

230
00:13:36.000 --> 00:13:39.200
the animated series. There have also been projects like Werewolf

231
00:13:39.240 --> 00:13:43.000
by Night. Logan was released digitally with a black and

232
00:13:43.000 --> 00:13:46.320
white version called Logan Noar, And there was like a

233
00:13:46.360 --> 00:13:49.000
film nore segment of Justice League War World that came

234
00:13:49.039 --> 00:13:51.480
out with Superman that was pretty good. Yeah, so I

235
00:13:51.480 --> 00:13:54.440
wouldn't say that like film nore is new to the

236
00:13:54.480 --> 00:13:57.240
superhero genre, but I don't think Marvel or DC project

237
00:13:57.279 --> 00:13:59.480
has ever leaned into it as much as the Spider

238
00:13:59.519 --> 00:14:02.360
Nors series. No, for sure, It's definitely the noorriest of

239
00:14:02.399 --> 00:14:05.799
all the noir. You know. I had the cures hero

240
00:14:05.960 --> 00:14:09.879
contrast lighting, the Dutch angles, the long shadows. It was

241
00:14:09.919 --> 00:14:12.960
a hard boiled detective story. It had the fe fatale,

242
00:14:12.960 --> 00:14:15.600
you know, all those tropes we're far enough now from,

243
00:14:15.600 --> 00:14:18.320
like sin City and the spirit for that style to

244
00:14:18.320 --> 00:14:21.720
feel novel again within comic book films, especially in the

245
00:14:21.720 --> 00:14:24.960
world of Spider Man. The show was released in color

246
00:14:25.039 --> 00:14:27.639
in addition to black and white. They called the color

247
00:14:27.720 --> 00:14:30.279
version True Hue Full Color, which was like a take

248
00:14:30.279 --> 00:14:33.720
on Technicolor recolorization, and after watching the full show in

249
00:14:33.799 --> 00:14:36.360
authentic black and white. I tried to watch it in

250
00:14:36.360 --> 00:14:39.240
color for comparison's sake, but I just couldn't get into it.

251
00:14:39.320 --> 00:14:42.240
Like the colorization was stylish, but it took me out

252
00:14:42.240 --> 00:14:43.919
of the gritty world and made it a little bit

253
00:14:43.960 --> 00:14:47.480
too comic bookie. See. I actually liked that though, because

254
00:14:47.480 --> 00:14:49.559
at first I was going to be a diehard only

255
00:14:49.559 --> 00:14:52.879
black and white for the show, but curiosity got the

256
00:14:52.879 --> 00:14:55.240
best of me and I actually ended up watching a

257
00:14:55.279 --> 00:14:58.320
majority of the series in color. Now. When Spider Man

258
00:14:58.399 --> 00:15:00.919
Noir came on, that's when I switched to black and white,

259
00:15:00.960 --> 00:15:04.440
but otherwise I was watching Get in colored by the end. Interesting,

260
00:15:04.879 --> 00:15:07.279
Like I like watching film nor stories and black and

261
00:15:07.320 --> 00:15:10.039
white more because it kind of forces you to notice

262
00:15:10.080 --> 00:15:13.840
the details. It's like more intimate, it's more impressionistic than literal.

263
00:15:14.200 --> 00:15:17.480
You aren't distracted by like all the pizazz. I think

264
00:15:17.519 --> 00:15:20.679
that really helps sell the tone and therefore helps sell

265
00:15:20.679 --> 00:15:24.559
the story. In black and white both worked surprisingly. I

266
00:15:24.600 --> 00:15:26.360
did not think that was going to be the case,

267
00:15:26.720 --> 00:15:29.720
but it totally did. And shout out to the cinematographers

268
00:15:29.720 --> 00:15:31.679
for being able to do that well. I mean, it

269
00:15:31.720 --> 00:15:35.480
did get nominated for an Emmy Award for Cinematography actually,

270
00:15:35.559 --> 00:15:38.840
the series got nominated for eleven Emmys. I mean that's

271
00:15:38.840 --> 00:15:41.159
a bit much. I don't think he needs that many.

272
00:15:41.440 --> 00:15:44.039
It's a great testament to the show's quality. For as

273
00:15:44.120 --> 00:15:46.919
much as the show leaned into film Nor, the series

274
00:15:46.960 --> 00:15:50.279
still feels modern and flashy in some ways. Like for

275
00:15:50.360 --> 00:15:52.720
all its strengths. As an example of Nor, I think

276
00:15:52.759 --> 00:15:55.720
it could have leaned even more into the style. I

277
00:15:55.720 --> 00:15:57.600
think it would have been cool to see them stick

278
00:15:57.679 --> 00:16:01.120
to practical effects, ditch the CGI, I ditch some of

279
00:16:01.159 --> 00:16:05.399
the Bathos comedy, rework the musical score to dramatic strings,

280
00:16:05.639 --> 00:16:08.879
and go like full Maltese Falcon or double indemnity with it.

281
00:16:09.080 --> 00:16:11.039
I mean, if the show had more courage, they would

282
00:16:11.039 --> 00:16:13.279
have made it look like it was actually filmed like

283
00:16:13.320 --> 00:16:17.039
in the nineteen thirties or forties. This definitely was not,

284
00:16:17.559 --> 00:16:20.240
But you know, I still understand what it was going for. Yeah,

285
00:16:20.320 --> 00:16:21.919
I mean, like I understand that they want to appeal

286
00:16:21.919 --> 00:16:25.080
to modern audiences, but I prefer big, creative swings over

287
00:16:25.200 --> 00:16:27.879
broad appeal, and I think it would have been really

288
00:16:27.919 --> 00:16:31.240
cool to see something made in that style in these

289
00:16:31.240 --> 00:16:34.080
modern times. That said, I do command Spider and Nore

290
00:16:34.200 --> 00:16:36.559
for going as far as they did creatively. I think

291
00:16:36.600 --> 00:16:40.360
despite all the you know, superpower shenanigans, the showrunners and

292
00:16:40.399 --> 00:16:44.320
writers still produce something that is relatively grounded and focused

293
00:16:44.360 --> 00:16:47.159
on what matters most to a project like this, which

294
00:16:47.200 --> 00:16:51.120
is probably story and dialogue. The dialogue was on point,

295
00:16:51.480 --> 00:16:54.320
the story had enough turns to be interesting and complex,

296
00:16:54.480 --> 00:16:57.879
and the pacing kept everything driving steadily, which is probably

297
00:16:57.919 --> 00:17:01.759
the biggest advantage Spider Nore has over it's film or contemporaries.

298
00:17:02.120 --> 00:17:04.319
I kind of buried the lead in this review, but

299
00:17:04.400 --> 00:17:07.400
really the show's biggest straw is Nicholas Cage. I think

300
00:17:07.599 --> 00:17:09.920
who's given a role that he could really sink his

301
00:17:09.960 --> 00:17:12.880
teeth into here. The role kind of fits his inconsistent

302
00:17:12.920 --> 00:17:18.160
approach that often wavers between dead serious and so not serious.

303
00:17:18.400 --> 00:17:20.440
Like we've talked about him before in our review of

304
00:17:20.480 --> 00:17:23.240
Ghostwriter Spirit of Vengeance, and we said that, you know,

305
00:17:23.279 --> 00:17:25.279
like he has the capacity to convince you that he's

306
00:17:25.319 --> 00:17:27.920
the greatest actor of all time in films like Adaptation

307
00:17:28.119 --> 00:17:31.440
or match Stick Men Leaving Las Vegas, Mandy, but he

308
00:17:31.480 --> 00:17:33.880
also has the ability to convince you he's the worst

309
00:17:33.880 --> 00:17:36.920
actor of all time in movies like Vampire's Kiss or

310
00:17:36.960 --> 00:17:40.039
The Wicker man. We did say that regardless of your

311
00:17:40.079 --> 00:17:43.400
opinion of Nicholas Cage, he's always fun to watch, especially

312
00:17:43.440 --> 00:17:45.920
when you could tell he's having fun. And I'm convinced

313
00:17:46.160 --> 00:17:48.240
that he had a blast here. You know, he got

314
00:17:48.240 --> 00:17:53.200
to be clever, yet quirky past his prime, not fully human.

315
00:17:53.720 --> 00:17:56.160
I really loved every minute of it. It was sad

316
00:17:56.200 --> 00:17:59.279
to see how much he's aged. That definitely came across

317
00:17:59.559 --> 00:18:02.880
in this series. That said, I totally agree with you

318
00:18:02.920 --> 00:18:05.880
that he had a blast doing this. From the voice alone,

319
00:18:05.960 --> 00:18:08.480
it was like a mixture between Humphrey Bogart and Jimmy

320
00:18:08.519 --> 00:18:11.319
Stewart for sure. Yeah. I think at first I thought

321
00:18:11.400 --> 00:18:14.519
that they cast him too old and that he wouldn't

322
00:18:14.559 --> 00:18:17.640
be believable as a crime fighter, but the script wisely

323
00:18:17.759 --> 00:18:20.240
leans into that. Like, this isn't a show necessarily to

324
00:18:20.279 --> 00:18:22.640
watch for the action per se. It does have a

325
00:18:22.680 --> 00:18:24.759
decent amount of it, but the show knew what it

326
00:18:24.839 --> 00:18:26.359
was doing and it did cool things like in the

327
00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:29.839
Spider Man Nora comics, as I mentioned earlier, Spidey wears

328
00:18:29.880 --> 00:18:33.359
his uncle Ben's World War One uniform, but in this

329
00:18:33.519 --> 00:18:36.640
show it was he who served in the war. Agent

330
00:18:36.680 --> 00:18:38.880
came up not only gives us the intrigue of like

331
00:18:38.920 --> 00:18:41.640
a down and out protagonist, but it also gives us

332
00:18:41.680 --> 00:18:43.559
like a new type of Spider Man to root for,

333
00:18:43.920 --> 00:18:46.519
one that's not kind of boyish, you know. I like

334
00:18:46.559 --> 00:18:48.720
seeing a Spider Man who's too old for this shit,

335
00:18:49.079 --> 00:18:52.279
who's grown cynical through all the tragedy that he's experienced,

336
00:18:52.319 --> 00:18:55.119
and yet still camp bring himself to stop caring. Oh,

337
00:18:55.160 --> 00:18:58.559
for sure, great take on the character. And honestly, that

338
00:18:58.640 --> 00:19:01.920
flashback episode where they went into his origin probably my

339
00:19:01.960 --> 00:19:05.480
favorite episode out of the whole season. I would agree, Yeah,

340
00:19:05.480 --> 00:19:08.359
I really liked his original story in this show. I

341
00:19:08.400 --> 00:19:10.599
want to talk about spoilers, I can't. I just want

342
00:19:10.640 --> 00:19:13.519
to say his show origin is awesome, probably better than

343
00:19:13.559 --> 00:19:15.839
the comic book. It is better than the comic book

344
00:19:15.920 --> 00:19:18.920
for sure. Other standouts in the cast beyond Cage, I

345
00:19:18.920 --> 00:19:21.799
think we're Brenton Gleeson as Silvermain. They kind of turned

346
00:19:21.839 --> 00:19:24.680
him into more of a Kingpin esque character, which is

347
00:19:24.680 --> 00:19:27.160
different than the comic books. But Brndan Gleeson would make

348
00:19:27.200 --> 00:19:29.839
an awesome Kingpin. And you know what, I hated that.

349
00:19:29.880 --> 00:19:33.039
Initially I was like, oh, great, a kingpin, mob boss

350
00:19:33.079 --> 00:19:36.160
type villain. But as the show went on. Brenton Gleeson

351
00:19:36.319 --> 00:19:39.440
is just an awesome Irish mobster. He's like really good

352
00:19:39.480 --> 00:19:42.079
in the role. Yeah, he's kind of scary even I

353
00:19:42.079 --> 00:19:45.960
thought Lamar and Morris as Robbie Robertson was fantastic. The

354
00:19:46.000 --> 00:19:48.319
guy is so damn good. The more I see of

355
00:19:48.400 --> 00:19:51.079
him in other projects, like that SNL movie that came

356
00:19:51.079 --> 00:19:54.000
out Saturday Night, He's just really showing off his acting

357
00:19:54.079 --> 00:19:57.839
chops and a particular note, I really liked Lee John

358
00:19:57.920 --> 00:20:00.799
Lee as Cat Hardy. I thought she nailed it here

359
00:20:00.839 --> 00:20:04.920
as the femme fatale and entirely believable in Oliver line delivery.

360
00:20:05.079 --> 00:20:08.240
Amazing singer. I thought she was just brilliant. Those musical

361
00:20:08.319 --> 00:20:11.880
numbers were great. I watched them twice. Yeah, and I

362
00:20:11.960 --> 00:20:16.440
was also surprised by how few cast members I knew of.

363
00:20:16.640 --> 00:20:19.480
They were all pretty much no names except for Brandon Gleeson,

364
00:20:19.759 --> 00:20:23.119
but they all held their own with Nicholas Cage's performance,

365
00:20:23.400 --> 00:20:25.799
which is not an easy task to do. No, No,

366
00:20:26.359 --> 00:20:29.559
I can't think of another TV series that Nicholas Cage

367
00:20:29.680 --> 00:20:31.920
is done. No, this is his first leading role in

368
00:20:31.960 --> 00:20:34.039
the TV series. Actually, you know what, he needs to

369
00:20:34.039 --> 00:20:36.279
do more of them because he's talented enough to just

370
00:20:36.519 --> 00:20:40.240
bring you back week after week. I completely agree overall,

371
00:20:40.480 --> 00:20:42.279
like I had such a good time with a show.

372
00:20:42.759 --> 00:20:45.079
I'm really glad that we are taking the time to

373
00:20:45.160 --> 00:20:47.519
review it, because I think there was a point where

374
00:20:47.519 --> 00:20:49.720
we thought we might skip it. I'm proud of the

375
00:20:49.759 --> 00:20:54.480
Emmy nominations that the show's received, including things like production Design, cinematography,

376
00:20:54.559 --> 00:20:57.839
original score, makeup, a lot of technical stuff, nothing for performances,

377
00:20:57.880 --> 00:21:01.039
but I think it's still well deserved. This sharply homage

378
00:21:01.079 --> 00:21:04.240
to classic film nor which includes the standout Nicholas Cage

379
00:21:04.279 --> 00:21:08.319
performance I think is the novel superhero project fans need

380
00:21:08.440 --> 00:21:11.319
right now. I'm giving the show four stars out of

381
00:21:11.359 --> 00:21:15.599
five a fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which yees, is

382
00:21:15.759 --> 00:21:18.039
probably the same rating I would give it. It was

383
00:21:18.119 --> 00:21:22.200
fun to watch. It's definitely not like the Penguin caliber. No,

384
00:21:22.599 --> 00:21:25.799
but what can be really? Yeah, I think if the

385
00:21:25.880 --> 00:21:28.880
series leaned more into the more elements, like I said,

386
00:21:28.880 --> 00:21:31.079
and really produced it like they would in the nineteen thirties,

387
00:21:31.079 --> 00:21:32.200
I think it would be a four and a half,

388
00:21:32.279 --> 00:21:35.359
maybe even five star show. But as is, I truly

389
00:21:35.480 --> 00:21:39.039
enjoyed it. Now. This was a spoiler free review. As

390
00:21:39.240 --> 00:21:42.759
our reviews are going forward. But Joseph, are there any

391
00:21:42.799 --> 00:21:46.920
spoilers you can reveal even out of context ones? Sure?

392
00:21:47.359 --> 00:21:50.640
In Spider Nor season one you can see a drunk

393
00:21:50.680 --> 00:21:56.279
Spidy dance in his underpants. Okay. In Spider Nor season

394
00:21:56.319 --> 00:21:59.960
one you can see a Spider Man lowercase no high

395
00:22:00.599 --> 00:22:03.079
again one of my favorite moments in the season. And

396
00:22:03.160 --> 00:22:06.279

Spider-Noir Season 1 Review

Listen On

Featured Episodes

Recent Episodes

Support On