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Wow Bri, thanks for the input! I never heard of that before. Its funny how little I really know about behind the scenes stuff for my favorite comics. Sounds like the Mantlo tribute book would be up my alley. He was one of my favorite Spidey writers ever.
I actually probably like the reveal the way it ended up, probably because it’s the only way I’ve known it for so many years. And the Jackal has always been on of my fave Spidey villains, even before the clone saga blew a young Cobie’s mind.
One day I’ll do a full review of the Clone Saga. It gets such a bad wrap, but I have to say, within it are moments of brilliance. At least the beginning and some of the many endings (tongue planted firmly in cheek). But so much of the middle was rough on the readers.
Carrion (the original) remains one of my favorite Spidey villains too. I find it fascinating that Mantlo intended it to be the Peter clone. Because yes…that makes *so* much more sense!!
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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I'm not sure (my indexes need updating), but ti looks like the Carrion story came out in 1979, and Marv Wolfman was both writer & editor of ASM in '79. So, we probably have Marv to "thank" for derailing Bill Mantlo's ending.
In the then-heiracrhy of Marvel writers, Mantlo always seemed to be considered 2nd or 3rd level. I'll never forget how he did many fill-ins on IRON MAN, before finally taking over the book after so many others dropped off. Took him a while to get up to speed, but just as it was REALLY getting good-- he got KICKED OFF because David Michelinie & Bob Layton, who'd just come over from DC, wanted the book. I know they did good work-- but I've always thought they way they got the book really stunk.
Registered: Aug 2003
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Marv was his own editor? I know that was fairly common in the 70's. But the quote from Tony Isabella sounds like he was refering to two individuals; who was editor-in-CHIEF at that time?
I think that was before Shooter's time as EiC...
From: Up a Gumtree | Registered: Jul 2003
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Cobie's Spidey Round-up! Well, with One More Day on the horizon and huge changes to come, I'll wrap up my reviews of what I'd say is one of the most controversial times in Spidey's history--filled with both stories I'd consider pure crap, and others that surprisingly impressed me.
PAD's FNSM - despite moving on, PAD did what he always does and provided us Spidey fans with a really great final issue to his run, which lasted an impressive two years. I think all in all, PAD did something very subtly these last two years. While Marvel made Spidey an Avenger, revealed his identity to the world and caused internet controversy about his marriage to MJ, PAD gave real Spider-Man fans a few little gifts that I wish I could thank him for. He restored Betty Brant and Flash Thompson to the Spidey-mythos. He used the Civil War stuff to his advantage to update Debra Whitman. And now, his latest issue, is pure J. Jonah Jameson and Joe Robertson, who longtime Legion Worlders will know are two of my favorite characters in all of comics (JJJ is perhaps the greatest supporting character of all time IMO). And what a great issue it was. PAD seems to get Jonah completely—in that, not only does he understand the motivation of the character as he was created, but he also understands that Jonah has 40+ years of history and character progression and has shown to be a pretty strong character in regards to morals, standing up for what he believes in, and standing by people he admires, such as Robbie.
Eliminating the Daily Bugle from Spidey’s comics was a very, very stupid move. There are ways to have it be a major part without making Peter a freelance photographer. PAD got that, and gave it to us. Thanks for a great run (as always) PAD!
Meanwhile, in JMS’s Amazing Spider-Man, which I can accurately describe as ‘Started out as amazing as the title implies, but quickly turned into a long series of crappy shock value stories, long winded plots and mis-characterization’, I was kind of shocked by his final story. Shocked in how good it was. I guess its fitting that I enjoyed JMS final story almost as much as I enjoyed his first, after living through a pretty crappy middle. But he did a good job with Pete and MJ and he obviously gets the Kingpin very well. While many times his pacing seems slow and long, it actually felt spot on here. Can’t say I’m sorry to see him go. But I do acknowledge that JMS is a pretty good writer—I just want him away from my favorite comics character ASAP. The art has been nothing short of amazing, however.
In Sensational, I have to say, I sometimes can barely make it through an issue. There have been good points (the annual, the Black Cat/Puma subplot), but overall, its kind of dragged lately. The Venom story-arc was not bad, but it wasn’t exactly great.
And so ends yet another era of Spidey’s history. I’ve stated quite vehemently that the marriage was a bad idea. But I don’t want anyone to mistake that notion for me being ‘pro-erasing the marriage from continuity’. I know from DC experience that those decisions never, ever work to the character’s benefit. But Marvel’s caught in a conundrum. Whatever they do, no matter how many fans they anger, I’ll of course stick by Spidey, because that’s where my loyalty lies. But unlike the Legion’s colorful history, Marvel needs to make a final decision and then move the hell on with it—so I can get my head around whatever the hell they’re planning and start enjoying Spider-Man comics again, which I have not for quite a long time (USM not counting). All in all, I’ve read through the Spider-Mobile, the killing of almost 85% of Spidey’s cast, the Clone Saga, the John Byrne Aunt May Reboot and tons of other controversial (and sometimes outright awful) eras. I can live with this. I’ve been more loyal to Peter Parker than any writer, artist, comic book company or fanbase than anything else since I started reading comics on a regular basis at age 11, which happened to be Amazing Fantasy #15 – Amazing Spider-Man #289, in my basement with my Dad. I’ll, of course, maintain that loyalty. Though I hardly expect others to do so.
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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What is the problem with just killing of MJ? I know there is confirmation out there of "erasing" Peter's time with her but why go that route? That's like the stupid House of M and its consequences. Can't anyone at Marvel just come up with a decent story to end the marriage instead of getting rid of it from the collective MU memory?
I don't get the uproar over how no one can get into the Legion because of their history when you look back at Spidey's history or even that of the X-Men. Both are much more confusing and make it hard just to pick up any of the titles, beyond the once promising Ultimate Universe books.
I think Joey Q was the worst thing to happen to Marvel.
From: Utah | Registered: Jul 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Reboot: Basically, Q's argument is that a married, divorced, OR widowed Peter "ages" him.
Ages him? Are we supposed to believe that he's still in high school? College? The last time I really paid attention he was a teacher and I thought that was perfect for him. The MU can be updated but the heroes can't age. I know, a problem with all comics. But fixing it mid-stream without a full reboot is plain dumb.
And sorry if this offends but he's supposed to chose the life of his Aunt over his life with MJ? May is well past her expiration, not that she's not a great old bird. But, no. I don't believe it. May has lived a long and very eventful life and now gets to still be a plot line to be mis-used in favor of MJ no longer figuring into Peter's life.
From: Utah | Registered: Jul 2003
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Basically, it seems like they're doing it as a super-mindwipe, ala Flash #200 (no, I didn't like that either...), rather than a retcon per se. So if you time-travel to pre-OMD, you'll find a married Peter regardless of what any flashbacks say happened, rather than an altered timeline ala Crisis.
quote:Originally posted by Lightning Lad: ...in favor of MJ no longer figuring into Peter's life.
Actually, if Dan Slott's "Jackpot" thing is what it seems to be, it's worse than that...
-------------------- My views are my own and do not reflect those of everyone else... and I wouldn't have it any other way.
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Somehow I got off track with these, and since I really wanted to finish them off, I started watching them again so they'd be fresh in my mind. Yeah, I'm now plowing thru the "WORST" episodes-- deliberately!
Ep.43 "KNIGHT MUST FALL" has a guy in a suit of armor-- whose "steed" is a motorcycle-- stop a robbery of a Broadway threatre, only to make off with the money himself! Jameson naturally blames Spidey when "Sir Galahad" escapes, figuring the "knight" was just a publicity stunt for the play that was robbed, "KING ARTHUR". On the road (where there's nothing to swing from!) Sir Galahad rips off an armored car, and AGAIN Spidey feels foolish when he gets away. But 3rd time's the charm, when Spidey does finally manage to nab the guy when he tries to steal a sword believed to belong to the "real" King Arthur. "Sir Galahad" almost seems a tribute to the villainous "Black Knight" (who started out as a Giant-Man & Wasp villain). Maybe a winged horse was considered too difficult to animate? (They don't even suggest the wheels on his bike are spinning-- it's getting that cheap here.) Like several episodes early in the 3rd season, this feels like a return to the 1st season, except most of the music in this is the really weird stuff, much of it I believe first used in "CLOUD CITY OF GOLD".
"THE DEVIOUS DR. DUMPTY" continues the trend of villains who look like they might have been more at home on BATMAN than SPIDER-MAN (the non-super-powered variety). Described by Spidey as "Dr. Humperdink Dumpty, master thief and despair of Weight-Watchers Anonymous", he reminds one of a cross between The Penguin and W.C. Fields (sort of). Like The Scarf before him, he successfully gets away with one crime (stealing a fortune in jewels worn by a famous movie star during a parade), then decides to be audacious and pull ANOTHER crime later that same night! Will they never learn?
Points of interest this time are the huge balloons used in the parade-- in addition to the Spider-Man balloon, there are also clearly recognizable balloons of Iron Man, Captain America and Thor-- but totally mis-colored, as Krantz Films didn't have the rights to use them. I also got a kick out of "Bubbles", the Doc's half-witted (but very CUTE!) girlfriend, who laments that Spidey was apparently "scragged" (she thought he "looked cute in his Dr. Dentons"), then later bumps into Spidey at a costume party and blurts out, "I thought you was DEMISED or somethin'."
Spidey takes out the baddies this time with the help of "I.B.P."-- Instant Banana Peel-- in his web-shooters. See, this just wouldn't work in the movie series!!
Among the technical flubs this time is a scene where Spidey falls, and the sky is moving in the WRONG direction-- then, when Spidey is climbing, but the animation is running in reverse! OY.
Ep.44 "UP FROM NOWHERE" brings the refreshing new trend of the 3rd season to a crashing halt, by essentially taking one of the 2nd-season episodes-- "SWING CITY"-- and remaking it! AUGH!!! "Dr. Atlantean"-- master scientist of the "lost civilization of Atlantis"-- fills in for The Master Technician, and his underwater craft is a dead ringer for the roof of the Atomic Research Center (gee, I wonder why). The interior is the same, though it seems totally at odds (and far, far too big) to possibly fit inside what looks on the outside like a submersible sphere.
After the army attacks instead of capitulates, Dr. Atlantean uses a ray which covers the entire island of Manhattan with a transparent dome-- and then SINKS the island, underwater! There's a few things wrong with this scenario... topping the list is, there's SOLID BEDROCK under Manhattan, yet we see the island separated, as it was in SWING CITY, wreckage hanging underneath... but WHERE are the foundations of the island? If the solid mass under Manhattan sank in its entirety, that would be one thing, but that's NOT what this looks like at all.
Dr. Atlantean's voice, as far as I can tell, keeps alternating between that used for "The Mole" (in SPIDERMAN BATTLES THE MOLEMEN") and The Master Technician (from "SWING CITY") in some scenes. Weird!
The whole of the climax, where Spidey makes it to Atlantean's craft, is teleported inside, confronts him, is weakened by radiation, sidesteps as the baddie shoots his own control panel... it's all so nearly-identical (yet nowhere near as good as the original cartoon), I could not believe what I was seeing the first time I watched this. There's also loads of flubs, as when Atlantean appears to fade out and into view and moving while Spidey lays helpless, or one scene where his mouth is moving, but no words are heard. I can't be sure, but it's long seemed plain to me many of these later episodes were knocked out just to fill out a nice syndication package of 52 shows (the minimum number for a successful sale, generally), as CHEAPLY as possible. It worked. SPIDER-MAN ran nearly non-stop for the whole of the 70's, while Hanna-Barbera's FANTASTIC FOUR disappeared without a trace. I've long felt this series did more for the popularity of Spider-Man than the comic-books ever did! (Never underestimate the power of T.V.)
[ October 08, 2007, 02:12 AM: Message edited by: profh0011 ]
Registered: Aug 2003
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Ep.45 "ROLLARAMA" --as if "UP FROM NOWHERE" wasn't bad enough, this one is a blatent remake of "VINE"-- which wasn't so hot to begin with. This time, it opens with the city already in ruins, as "another" giant rolling ball smashes its way thru town. Pete & "Sue" (can this be the same one who treated him so bad in the previous season?) are investigating the home of Dr. Karl Von Glutz, who disappeared years earlier, find a mysterious pod, something called "The Glutz Machine", and his journal, which describes the doorway to "The Cave Of Crystal Creation", and has a warning not to expose the pod to air. TOO LATE! The pod grows, smashes its way out, then, STOPS, at the top of a hill, about to smash into missile base "Camp Forward" which is apparently within view of the house.
The police, national guard, army, have no clue, but somehow Pete & Sue figure out where the pods came from? And who let the other pods loose? Never mind... as in the previous version, Pete decides to see if he can find Von Glutz, saying "Our entire free enterprise system is at stake!" (You feel like the writers were into deliberate self-parody by now?) As before, Spidey fights a giant frog, but gets knocked out by it, then wakes up a prisoner of some furry blue guys. This time around, their leader, "Vegio", tells of how Von Glutz created an atomic generator to turn their once-paradise into a frozen wasteland, so the pods he found could grow. After some of the most stilted dialogue in the show's entire run, Spidey goes to "Summit City" to disable the generator, warned that the pods "have eyes everywhere". (HUH???) With no explanation, we find intelligent plants, who reveal Von Glutz is no longer alive, and plan to ambush the approaching "animal" and pit him in the arena against "Goliath".
Instead of a giant idol, Spidey fights the plants atop the atomic generator, the design of which makes it look like it has 2 giant eyes and a mouth. After being clobbered, he awakens to face... a giant caterpillar. He wins, removes 2 big gems, leaves, and the plants die-- for no apparent reason! Meanwhile, the giant rolling pod has waited patiently atop the hill until Spidey arrives before it starts falling, at which point he tosses the gems into the barrel of a cannon, which allows it to destroy the pod. Sue tells Pete he's too modest when he claims Spidey did all the work.
There's SO much wrong with this it's absolutely mind-boggling. When we see the ruler plant, one shot has him floating in mid-air because they used the wrong background. This happens again when Spidey falls to the ground unconscious. All the dialogue relating to "Goliath" suggests Spidey was supposed to fight a giant CAT (they no doubt intended to re-use the black cat from "PARDO PRESENTS"), but we get the same caterpillar seen in "VINE" instead. When Spidey arrives in the city, he sneaks up behind a plant to give it a karate chop-- but when he actually delivers the blow, it's one of the Molemen he hits!! (Were they just trying to see if anybody was paying attention at this point?) As he returns to the doorway, he waves good-bye to the furry blue guys-- and we see Dr. Von Glutz among them, even though he's supposed to be DEAD in this story! Finally, the army destroys one giant pod. WHAT about the OTHER ones???
Ep.46 "RHINO" was actually the first of these later cartoons to be aired on ABC-- smack in the middle of the 2nd season! I'd completely forgotten about this, until I ran across a website dedicated to the show, that listed all the original airdates. And then, the horrible memory came back...
"RHINO" consists of scenes from both "HORN OF THE RHINO" and "THE GOLDEN RHINO", re-edited together, with most of the original dialogue left completely intact! The only new scenes appear to be the ones in Jameson's office, and one short odd scene of the Rhino, in a dark alley, saying "I'll cause such a ruckus he'll come running!" (--but then, he doesn't) I have to figure that what happened was, they were running late, desperately needed something to put on Saturday morning, but instead of a rerun from the 2nd (or the 1st) season, they threw together this abortion of a remake!!
Now here's the WORST part (as if all that wasn't bad enough). I now remember seeing this as a kid. They ran this abortion, and after its 10 minutes was over, went to a commercial break... and NEVER CAME BACK!! Over 15 solid minutes of commercials!!! I'm pretty sure this was nearly the last straw for me. I stopped watching for a few weeks. I did eventually see most of the rest of the 2nd season, but by the time the 2nd season ended, I'd had it with this show, and didn't watch it again until a few years later when it wound up in syndication, where Channel 17 in Philly ran much of the 2nd & 3rd seasons-- OUT of sequence!!
"THE MADNESS OF MYSTERIO" did not, I assure you, run with "RHINO" on the network. But it was lumped together with it in syndication. While "RHINO" was a horrible double-remake, "MADNESS" surprised the heck out of me the first time I saw it-- because it was an actual adaptation of a real comic, and one which I had only recently read a reprint of!
This final adaptation was based on "THE MADNESS OF MYSTERIO!" and "TO SQUASH A SPIDER!" from ASM #66-67 (Nov-Dec'68) Like the comic, it begins with Mysterio looking over a table-top amusement park, talking to himself, and planning the doom of Spider-Man! Soon, he appears in Manhattan, announces his return, then vanishes. Pete races to the Bugle, where Jameson has the TV on. We see Mysterio smash the Brooklyn Bridge, saying, "The sight you have witnessed is only an illusion! But-- it COULD happen! Mysterio has the power to do it!" He then challenges his "sworn enemy" to face him at the sight of their "first battle".
Inexplicably, Spidey shows up at the TV studio rather than the Brooklyn Bridge-- and Mysterio is waiting for him! Some more genuine Stan Lee dialogue is used when Mysterio asks, "So soon Spider-Man? Or do you rent that corny costume by the hour?" Caught in the beam of what looks like a movie camera, Spidey gets dizzy... and suddenly finds himself-- apparently-- shrunk to 6 inches and on the table-top amusement park, about to be crushed by his foe! It's one death-trap after another after another, Spidey never getting a chance to catch his breath, until he wonders if that's what the guy is really trying to do. Suffice to say, Spidey figures out that his foe really has lived up to his rep as Hollywood's "greatest special effects man" (which makes more sense than having him be a "stuntman" as in the earlier cartoon).
This is COOL, and ranks way up there with "The Big Brainwasher". They adapt a story (though simplified), they use actual dialogue from the comic (again, simplified), and the voice-actor even managed to use the ORIGINAL Mysterio voice from "THE MENACE OF MYSTERIO"!! (He got it a bit "off" in "RETURN OF THE FYING DUTCHMAN"-- here, it's spot-on!!) But here's the WEIRD part. Instead of the classic Ditko costume, we get a complete redesign-- a Mysterio who looks like a whacked-out Hollywood movie director-- green skin, orange hair, purple shell-rimmed glasses, long cigarette holder. WHAT th'...??? It also seems this cartoon MAY have been intended for early in the 2nd season, but scrapped at the last minute (the comic would have been done JUST about the same time that Grantray-Lawrence went belly-up!!). According to something I read online (somewhere), it seems when Krantz got their hands on G-L's materials to get their run started, among the materials were the VOICE recordings for this episode! Reading this finally explained why, even though Mysterio looks COMPLETELY different, nobody mentions it, everybody recognizes him, and in one scene, Spidey even calls him "bowl-head"-- when he AIN'T wearing the bowl!!!
Despite this "minor" glitch (heh), I rank this as the LAST really good episode in the run. From here's it's downhill and picking up speed... though there were a couple of interesting shows left to come.
Registered: Aug 2003
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Sorry to change the topic, but what's the story with "One More Day"? I read that Peter's going to have to choose between Aunt May's life and his marriage never having existed?? Did I read that right? How is that even supposed to be an option? if this is the case, it sounds more lame-brained than the whole clone thing...
From: New York, NY | Registered: Jul 2003
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I'm about three weeks behind in my comic shopping, so I've only read part 1, but that issue was typical JMS padding-nothing happening stuff. Basically, Peter is upset because Aunt May is in a hospital bed and he's on the run. A wasted issue.
Reboot could probably tell us more about OMD is supposed to accomplish. My expectations are very low for it. Whatever the end result is, the actual execution of the storyline appears to be very lame indeed.
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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Ep.47 "PHANTOM FROM THE DEPTHS OF TIME" was originally announced as the title of a 2nd-season story which became "THE EVIL SORCERER". The title instead turned up in the 3rd season, on another remake. But this wasn't a remake of an earlier SPIDER-MAN cartoon-- no! This was-- incredibly-- a remake of a ROCKET ROBIN HOOD cartoon!
While Grantray-Lawrence was doing THE MARVEL SUPERHEROES SHOW, and later, the 1st season of SPIDER-MAN, they also did a show for syndication-- RRH. This was the adventures of the descendants of Robin Hood & his Merry Men, fighting the descendants of King John & the Sheriff of Nottingham-- in the 30TH CENTURY!!! What a wild, loopy, yet inherently FUN idea. They did 2 "normal" seasons, distinguishable by the story title cards (1st season had a yellow background, 2nd season had a black background, both with a full figure of RRH holding up his bow & arrow.) When G-L went belly-up, and Krantz hired Bakshi (who in turn hired Gray Morrow) to fill out their contracted (and already-paid-for) next season of episodes, they did the 2nd season of SPIDER-MAN-- and the 3rd season of RRH. The change in look, tone, style, etc., was EQUALLY shocking for both series. My initial reaction was the same in both cases-- "What the F*** is THIS S***??" In retrospect, I've developed a fondness for these dark, deeply demented 'toons-- and once I finally "connected" the Gray Morrow of comic-books as the same guy who did these later shows (with his drawing style clearly INTACT!), my admiration grew... despite the tragically low budgets and unbelieveably inferior animation used to bring them-- just barely-- to "life".
The 3rd season of RRH, if anything, deviated even more from the earlier episodes than the SPIDER-MANs had. Gone were the recurring villains-- no more Prince John, no more Sheriff Of N.O.T.T. (National Outer-space Terrestrial Territories). Instead, RRH became possibly the wildest ride on TV-- a bizarre, mind-expanding SCIENCE-FICTION epic (of sorts), where nothing was too strange, too off-beat, too WEIRD. No Philly-area stations have aired this show since the late 60's. But-- incredibly-- 2 of the WEIRDEST episodes ever made-- live on, remade the following year as a pair of SPIDER-MAN cartoons!
Opening with "Stop Look And Listen" (previously heard in "THE SCOURGE OF THE SCARF" and "SUPER SWAMI"), Spidey enjoys a rare crime-free night, saying, "Nothing to do but swing and dig it!" But on some remote island, terror strikes, as a swarm of giant, robot beetles attack a small town, destroy buildings, stun inhabitants with freeze-rays and kidnap them. In a replay of the JONNY QUEST episoide "TURU THE TERRIBLE", the captives are told they will remain prisoners-- SLAVES-- until "every ounce of precious lavacide" has been mined for their captor-- the insect-like Dr. Mantan! With his demented sidekick Igor (who looks a lot like The Hunchback Of Notre Dame), you've got 2 of the sickest villains in cartoon history!
Before I go on, I'd like to point out a few things. The island looks downright prehistoric from a distance. The buildings look downright futuristic. The fashions worn by the inhabitants also look like something out a sci-fi movie (or maybe the late 60's were really just a wild time for fashion designers??). Originally, this entire story took place in the far future on another planet. But here, it's modern-day Earth. WHERE is this place, and what's it supposed to be? Perhaps it's a some kind of vacation resort island. That could account for the architecture and the clothing. It just would have been nice if it was explained as such in the dialogue.
One of the prisoners slips away and uses some kind of radio (about the size of a modern-day cell phone!) to send a "Mayday" message. Somehow-- Spidey picks it up via his Spider-sense (!!!), and makes a point of saying that the frequency it was on could not have been picked up by anyone else but him! HUH??? Next thing, he decides "I've done everything else, why not test pilot?" --and "borrows" a experimental jet plane! The design changes completely between take-off and flight, becoming in the process a dead ringer for one of Rocket Robin Hood's small spaceships. He finds the island, and no sooner does he land, then... "The hills walk again!" With Dr. Mantan playing a mournful tune at his church-style pipe organ, "hills" transform into robot beetles, and attack-- destroying the "borrowed" jet in seconds. Uh oh...
Spidey climbs inside one of the robots, switches it to manual, and creates a "pile-up". He approaches Mantan's castle, causing Igor to say, "Look, master! They're walking right up to the castle!" Yeah-- "they". They didn't even bother re-recording the dialogue from the earlier cartoon! Spidey's knocked into the moat by a swarm of devil-bats. Mantan says, "We have FRIENDS in the moat, Igor! Friends who need NO ENCOURAGEMENT from us!" And some sort of prehistoric reptile attacks. (Where is this stuff coming from??)
One of my favorite exchanges is when Mantan & Igor are talking... "It's a pity there's no one here who can appreciate my plans." "I am here, master! I appreciate them." "YOU? You cannot appreciate the fear, the sheer TERROR that I inspire! At best, YOUR befogged mind can merely TWITCH in AWE!" "Master, that's not FAIR! I can..." 'NEVER mind! I am my best audience. But I consent to your presence." "Oh, THANK you, master!" Great stuff!!! (I seem to recall The Joker once saying "I'm my best audience." --I wonder if whoever wrote that saw this cartoon and was inspired by it?)
Although he was almost at the castle, it takes Spidey another 5 minutes of story, roaming over what looks like half the jungle island, before he finally makes his way back and into it-- and we don't even get to see it. Abruptly, Mantan is speaking, "As a matter of fact, the lavacide is already loaded onto my spaceship." --and we find he's talking to Spidey (scene missing???). Spidey challenges him, whereupon Mantan, swearing he will have his "revenge" (as if they'd fought each other before!), plays again, and says, "The MOUNTAIN monster is programmed to destroy this ENTIRE ASTEROID!" (This made SO much more sense when it was taking place in space...)
Spidey uses Mantan's ship to take out the Mountain Monster, then is thanked by the freed inhabitants. (But WHAT happened to Mantan & Igor??? No clue!) "Where do you COME from, webbed one?" (These are supposed to be Earth people??) Spidey realizes he has to get the borrowed jet back before it's missed-- and does. But WAIT a minute! We saw it get RIPPED to pieces earlier! Oh, never mind. Even I can't come up with a "no-prize" worthy explanation for that one...
Ep.48 "REVOLT IN THE FIFTH DIMENSION" ranks as the single WEIRDEST episode in this entire run-- and that's really saying something! It's also the ONLY one, reportedly, never run by ABC-- as they considered it "too scary" for the kiddies.
Once more enjoying a "peaceful" night, Spidey looks up at the stars and thinks "Yeah, it's peaceful up there!" Guess again... as we see an entire planetary system WIPED out of existence, by the "mental powers" of Infinata, master of "Dimensia 5". Two scientists on the planet Garth lament their entire civilization is about to end, because they discovered Infinata's secrets. Aton declares all their endless work, all their culture, will live on, as he has the entire "Library Of Garth" transferred via computer onto magnetic tape, and then into cosmic energy stored in a single small sphere. He escapes by spaceship only moments before his planet is obliterated. (This is a SPIDER-MAN cartoon???)
Infinata's "extra-sensory perception" informs him of what's happening, and he sends 3 of his minions to bring down Aton's rocket. But he makes to "another galaxy" (they keep referring to star systems as "galaxies" in this one-- sheesh), and Earth. To escape destruction, Aton magnetically attracts meteors to form a shield around his ship-- a visual later reused in the DOCTOR WHO story, "UNDERWORLD". On entering the atmosphere, his ship somehow causes Earthquakes, until finally a parachute opens, and Spidey sees it's coming down right where he's standing! Right into his HAND, in fact-- as we discover the ship is only about 6 inches long, and Aton even smaller within. By mental projection, he fills Spidey in on what's going on-- before he dies. Spidey realizes he has to get the "Library" to the proper authorities, so it can be decoded, that Infinata can be stopped.
And then, to the tune of Alanb Hawkshaw's "L.S.D." (first heard in "MENACE FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE WORLD"), Spidey is sucked thru a "force field" and straight into another dimension! He finds himself drawn up a twisting stairway to a doorway where there's a clawed hand where the doorknob should be. Pulled thru, he finds himself in "Dimensia 5", and confronts Infinata, who demands the Library. Spidey tries to fight, then escape, but is hauled back before his foe, who now stands atop a giant open hand. Spidey claims the Library was "lost when you pulled me into this dimension"-- and Infinata's E.S.P. reveals it is "not on his person". At which point, not needing him anymore, he says, "To your DEATH!" --and Spidey is pulled down into the ground as if it were quicksand. "How do you fight a thing like this? A malevolent intelligence-- composed entirely of pure evil?" But when his eyes close, he sees himself back in NYC, and realizes "It's all illusion!" He escapes-- and Infinata realizes he must flee and to escape destruction, and "never cross the threshold into reality again."
Back in NYC, Spidey reveals the Library was hidden INSIDE one of his web-shooters (so WHY didn't it show up on Infinata's scan??), and goes to turn it over to the authorities-- then get some much-needed sleep.
The visuals-- both character designs and psychdelic backgrounds-- and the music (some of the wildest in the KPM Library) combine to make this one of the most mind-bending cartoons EVER made. I just wish I could see the RRH version again. After decades, I can STILL recall one piece of very memorable music from that (used in the sequence when RRH was pulled into Dimensia 5), and I know the original was even BETTER than this remake.
Registered: Aug 2003
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Young John Jr. created his own villain to fight Spidey at the tender age of around 6-9 or so. John Sr. was the 'man' at that point in Spidey's history, having done about 45 issues or so at that point, and decided to humor his son, and do some minor tweaking (not much apparently), and then use the character in a Spidey story.
That character was the Prowler. John Rominta Jr.'s first contribution to the Spidey-mythos, and one of my all-time favorite comics characters.
Cobie = big, big, big fan of both Romitas, especially on Spidey and Daredevil. John Sr.'s Gwen, of course, was my first real crush, both fictional and non-fictional
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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