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Dec 18, 2021 · The negative reviews also claimed that the film was hard to follow, which is to be expected with such a massive cast of characters as Spider-Man: No Way Home has, while also trying to introduce the concept of the multiverse in the MCU to audiences for the first time on the big screen.
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- Spinning a new story
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By Tom Power
published 18 December 2021
Opinion: No Way Home can start a new era for the webslinger
(Image credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel Entertainment)
Spoilers follow for Spider-Man: No Way Home, previous Spider-Man film series, Avengers: Endgame and Captain America: Civil War.
Ever since Tony Stark sought out the MCU’s Peter Parker in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, sections of Marvel’s fanbase have disagreed with how the studio has reframed Spider-Man’s story from the comics.
Stark’s unlimited cash reserves and genius-level intellect fundamentally gave his young protégé a leg-up in the superhero world. By providing Peter Parker with new suits, upgraded technology and his first taste of being more than a neighborhood friendly hero, Stark (and Marvel and Sony by proxy) altered Spider-Man’s superhero journey from the comics. True, the MCU’s Peter Parker is as clever as his now-deceased mentor but, by having Stark provide him with resources he wouldn’t ordinarily have access to, we aren’t afforded the opportunity to see Peter create and produce his own suits and tech on a regular basis. Which is what he routinely does in the comics.
No Way Home’s ending changes that. With the world forgetting that Peter Parker is Spider-Man – Doctor Strange’s spell during the film’s climactic finale saw to that – there’s an opportunity for Peter to go back to basics and develop his own gear. We see that he’s sewn himself a new suit in No Way Home’s final moments and, given his own brilliant mind, there’s no reason why he can’t build his own tech – especially now that he’s had some experience of doing so in Spider-Man: Far From Home and No Way Home.
Making the world forget that he’s Spider-Man enables the MCU’s incarnation to effectively leave Tony Stark’s legacy behind, too. Not from a memory perspective – Holland’s Parker will always remember the man who became a surrogate father to him – but from fans’ reservations about Spider-Man becoming the new Iron Man.
A common criticism of the MCU’s Stark-Parker dynamic is that the former was prepping the latter to take his place when Stark was no longer around. Happy Hogan, Stark’s ex-bodyguard/chauffeur/head of security (delete as applicable), even tells Peter in Far From Home that Stark wouldn’t have sacrificed himself in Avengers: Endgame if he knew Peter wouldn’t be around to defend the Earth in his absence.
Again, No Way Home’s ending allows Marvel and Sony Pictures to put those ‘Iron Man Junior’ comments to bed. The world forgetting that Peter is Spider-Man means he can permanently step out of Stark/Iron Man’s shadow and become a hero in his own right. Sure, he’s already proven himself to be heroic numerous times in his solo movies, but even then Stark’s presence has loomed large over proceedings.
It isn’t just the MCU’s Peter Parker who benefits from No Way Home’s reset of the superhero – Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Men also profit from Marvel’s latest multiversal adventure.
Garfield’s Spider-Man is the more notable beneficiary of the two. His portrayal of the superhero was well received by fans and critics alike, but his Spider-Man film series was unceremoniously cancelled due to poor overall critical reception, as well as Sony and Marvel’s eventual partnership that saw the wallcrawler cross over into the MCU.
So bringing Garfield back for No Way Home allows his version of the character to receive some long overdue closure. It’s Garfield’s Spider-Man who saves MJ in No Way Home – a redemptive moment after he failed to save his own girlfriend (Gwen Stacy) in 2014’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Not only that, but his return gives Spider-Man fans the chance to properly say goodbye to his incarnation of Peter Parker, and bring the curtain down on his time as the iconic hero.
Maguire’s Spider-Man arc is similarly brought to a satisfying conclusion. Yes, Maguire’s webslinger trilogy largely tied up its plot threads by the end of 2007’s Spider-Man 3. But, with numerous reports in the years that followed, which heavily suggested that more Maguire-starring Spidey films were in development before director Sam Raimi’s departure in 2010, Maguire’s Parker didn’t get a full story resolution either.
No Way Home gives him that. As the elder statesman of the movie’s Spider-Man trio, his wise words and actions – he stops Holland’s Parker from killing Green Goblin, and provides comfort to Holland and Garfield’s Spider-Men with his own experiences of loss – are a crucial component of the three heroes saving the day. It allows Maguire's Parker to embody his Uncle Ben for one last time, too. Without him, Holland’s Parker may now be walking a dark path, while Garfield’s Spider-Man might still be caught up in his own grief.
In bringing Maguire and Garfield back for Spider-Man: No Way Home, both actors are presented with a chance to bring their Spider-Men journeys to a fitting end. The movie provides both iterations with the closure they deserve, and allows Holland’s Spider-Man – if he sticks around, that is – to look to the future without feeling the weight of his predecessors’ live-actions runs on his shoulders.
So what of Spider-Man’s future? No Way Home put the past to bed, whether that be Tony Stark’s legacy or a fan service-filled flick with multiple live-action Spider-Men interacting on the big screen. But, if Holland stays on as the wallcrawler, forthcoming Spider-Man live-action movies will need to deliver something unique for the actor and fans of the superhero in equal measure.
One last time, Doctor Strange’s spell, which grants Peter anonymity in the MCU, is the key to this. With nobody knowing that Peter Parker is Spidey anymore, there’s a great opportunity to ground him in a ‘friendly neighborhood superhero’ style story once more. As Marvel’s Hawkeye Disney Plus TV series has shown, MCU projects don’t have to be world-ending affairs to resonate with audiences. Re-establishing Spider-Man as a more localized hero – as he’s portrayed early on in the comics, or even in Insomniac Games’ critically acclaimed 2019 video game – would be a bold move to make, but one that could pay off if the right story is told.
There are plenty of characters and locations in Spider-Man’s source material that could help to tell a new tale, too. How about focusing on Peter’s time in college, or having him juggle two jobs – i.e. one as Spider-Man and one as, say, The Daily Bugle’s photographer? That would put him in contact with J. Jonah Jameson, just like Tobey Maguire’s film trilogy did, and we’d love to see Tom Holland interact with J.K. Simmons’ version of the petulant and stubborn Jameson.
And what about introducing us to the MCU’s version of Gwen Stacy or Harry Osborn? Or, if Sony and Marvel really want to perform a hard reset of the character, finally give us a live-action incarnation of another Spider-Man in Miles Morales? Marvel Studios appears to be laying the foundations for a potential Young Avengers movie, with Kate Bishop (Hawkeye), Eli Bradley (Patriot) and Tommy and Billy Maximoff (Speed and Wiccan) all featuring in Marvel Phase 4 projects. That quartet are also part of the Young Avengers line-up in the comics and, while Yelena Belova (Black Widow) isn’t, there’s no reason why Florence Pugh’s version of the character couldn’t be included.
Miles Morales, too, isn’t a Young Avenger in Marvel’s source material, but it wouldn’t be surprising if he became one in the MCU if he’s ever introduced (a version of Miles has starred in Sony’s animated Spider-Man movies). If he is, Holland’s Parker could act as Miles’ mentor as he navigates the superhero world – a scenario that would see Holland’s Spider-Man assume a Tony Stark-esque role, bringing his journey full circle.
Finally, No Way Home’s ending allows Marvel and Sony to reset Spider-Man’s rogues gallery. Willem Dafoe and Alfred Molina’s iconic turns as Green Goblin and Doc Ock have likely stopped both studios from rebooting these villains in the same way Spider-Man has been.
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Dec 17, 2021 · Warning: This article contains full spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home! If you're just curious whether the sequel has any post-credits scenes, the answer is yes.
- Luke Rex
- If There’s Magic Involved, Leave It Alone. Now if Peter Parker took a second to think, the plot of the film would be non-existent. Odds are Peter should have known that he needed to get in contact with MIT to negotiate the enrollment of him and his friends before deciding to change reality itself by brainwashing all of Earth.
- Saving the Villains is Saving a Life. Peter Parker has always had a firm hold on justice. Though he could sometimes be as selfish as any other kid could be early in his career, Peter had a strong sense of what it meant to be a superhero.
- He Will Never Be Alone. Upon Aunt May’s death, Peter made the realization that he had no family left. Grief does extraordinary things to us: it makes us feel alone, feel responsible in some way, it eats us alive.
- Revenge Is Never the Answer. When Aunt May is killed by Green Goblin’s (Wilem Dafoe) hands, Peter Parker is understandably filled with rage and desire for vengeance.
- Uncle Ben's Role In The Marvel Cinematic Universe. Aunt May's death is one of the most tearful scenes of Spider-Man: No Way Home, bearing a striking resemblance to the well-known death of Peter Parker's uncle Ben from the comics and other Spider-Man franchises.
- MJ And Ned's Future In Peter Parker's Life. The finale of No Way Home saw Peter make the tragic choice to cause the rest of the world to forget about his existence, including his best friend Ned and girlfriend MJ.
- Peter Parker's Career With The Daily Bugle. Fans were ecstatic when Spider-Man: Far From Home's mid-credits scene brought back J.K. Simmons as the pernicious Daily Bugle publisher J. Jonah Jameson, reprising his iconic role from Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy trilogy.
- Peter Parker's Life As A College Student. After Doctor Strange's spell erases the world's memory of Peter Parker, it appears that all the hero's high-school records are erased as well, and Peter is shown having a GED workbook in his new apartment at the film's conclusion.
Dec 20, 2021 · ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ can’t exactly rehabilitate the ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ films, but it does stand as good reason to celebrate its star’s unique take on the neighborhood superhero
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Dec 18, 2021 · Spider-Man: No Way Home feels like the end of a story for Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, and Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man movies. Here’s a spoiler-filled look at the movie...
