8 Reasons Why Spider-Man: Homecoming Is The Best Spidey Film

Currently sitting at 94% on Rotten Tomatoes, it's fair to say Spider-Man: Homecoming is a massive hit and a welcome return to Marvel for Peter Parker. While I most openly admit that I don't think it's the best comic book movie of 2017, it's certainly the best film adaptation of the Web-Head to date. A statement such as my last one is sure to raise more than a few eyebrows, especially with the masses of fans of Spider-Man 2 and the three people who actually liked Spider-Man 3. But rest assured, I'm not an Internet troll who says things without backing evidence. I've gone and watched the film once again and taken a pen and Moleskine notepad along, like a proper hipster journalist, to jot down some key points. These will form the basis of my in-depth discussion, which I'll get into on the next page. As always, your opinion is welcome here. So, if you agree or disagree with the points mentioned, please sound off in the comments section down below. Be warned, though: this will be a spoiler-filled piece. If you haven't seen the film yet and don't want to read about pivotal plot points, bookmark this page and come back here after you've watched it. It Hits You Right In The Feels More John Hughes than Marc Webb, there's a heartwarming quality to the latest Spidey flick that's sure to endear it to both the young and young at heart. You can't help but fall in love with the different characters and their quirkiness. None of them are perfect, but they're trying to be the best version of themselves. Even the bozos, like Flash Thompson, are still likeable in their own way, which says something about the cast that's been assembled here. What the story does exceptionally well is cement the notion that Peter is just a kid, trying to navigate these extraordinary powers and normal teenage life, but he's still trying to do the best for everyone around him. Unlike the previous films, this installment truly captures the childish nature of the Web-Head, showing us that he's merely a young boy with no superhero experience. Also, it doesn't hurt that Tom Holland is still so young and actually looks like a teenager, adding more credibility to his performance. On top of that, and apart from Jackson Brice's accidental frying, no one dies in this film. It's a story that doesn't kill its darlings, refusing to fall into trap where every villain needs to die in order to finish an arc. This leads me to the next point… The Vulture Is A Redeemable Villain Right from the get-go, we're introduced to Adrian Toomes as a man who's trying to provide the best life for his kin - something that we can all relate to. He suffers a hefty setback and finds another way to put food on the table for his family and his workers' families as well. Sure, his methods are shady AF, but, deep down, his intentions are pure and honest. Think about it: he wasn't living in a massive house or splashing the Benjamins around; no, he just lived an ordinary, simple life with his wife and daughter. Toomes is a working-class man, much like Peter is a working-class superhero. They're both relatable to the average Joe - and in another world, Peter could've become him in the future and vice versa. There's a unique parallel between hero and villain here, which shows how they're much closer to each other than what they and we might think. However, it's the mid-credits scene that shows us how the character isn't past being saved. When Mac Gargan tries to get Spider-Man's true identity out of Toomes, he doesn't reveal it. The Vulture has lost his "career," his family, and his reputation, but he's accepted his punishment and isn't willing to take anyone else down with him. This alone shows there's some good left in him yet. The Humor Of Spider-Man Before Deadpool arrived on the scene, Spidey was Marvel's resident funnyman. Unfortunately, we've never quite seen the comedian side of him on the big screen, since Tobey Maguire has the magnetism of two rocks trying to mate and Andrew Garfield could only work off a script obviously rewritten by Sony Pictures' resident marmoset monkey. In Tom Holland, we've finally found the perfect blend of Peter Parker and Spider-Man. He's geeky, hilarious, and radiates natural wit. At this stage of the Wed-Head's career, he's only starting off as a superhero, so we can only imagine his sense of humor will grow as he develops his powers and improves his self-confidence. Throughout the film, there were real laugh out loud moments, and the goofiness of the character balanced itself perfectly between the two extremes. Yeah, the hero has had some hardships and tragedies, but he always bounces back with quality one-liners and an unflappable sense of humor. This is the Spider-Man we've all grown up knowing and loving. The Origin Story Is Avoided Apart from the few references to Aunt May's rough times and Peter telling Ned about the radioactive spider, there's literally no origin retelling in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Even Uncle Ben is spared from his Sean Bean-esque fate and left completely unmentioned here. Frankly, this is an excellent and welcome move. We're all aware of Spidey's origins and how his uncle's death drove him to use his powers for good, so it isn't necessary for that to be the expositional center of every story. After five movies focusing on this specific motivation, it's a point that's been driven home by now. We're now poised at the ideal starting point for Spider-Man, where we can explore the other facets of Pete's life as a burgeoning superhero. He's young enough for us to dive deep into all the interesting angles and storylines he's experienced over the years, and you don't need to waste time explaining how he became who he is. It's a win-win scenario for everyone invested in the character. It Knows Exactly What It Is That's the weird thing about Spider-Man movies: the filmmakers never established where he fits in on the spectrum of comic book films. Is he funny? Is he serious? Maybe it's due to studio interference or conflicting visions, but you never quite got the impression that anyone truly understood the character. Jon Watts took inspiration from the source material and introduced the family-friendly version of Spidey. He's the character that kids aspire to be, while the parents can appreciate him for doing the right thing. In other words, the quintessential superhero, much like Superman. If anything, Watts' film is also incredibly fun. This isn't a story burdened with setting up a hundred other events or villains; it works well in isolation (a defining trait of this year's best superhero movies). As we all know by now, there will be sequels, but this wasn't Watts' core focus. He just made the film he wanted to without worrying about the Spiderverse or whatever other universe needs to be created. No Osborns In Sight Oh, thank goodness. Much like the origin shtick, I'm sick to death of the Osborns appearing in every Spider-Man film and taking over. Of course we know the importance of the family in Peter's life, but there's no reason to ensure they're the central point of every plot. I mean, does anyone even know what was the point of Norman Osborn in The Amazing Spider-Man 2? In the latest film, there's not a sniff of them in sight. Instead, it allows bad guys like Mac Gargan (Scorpion), Herman Schultz (Shocker), Phineas Mason (Tinkerer) and Adrian Toomes (Vulture) to take center stage. We all know that Spidey has one helluva rogues' gallery, yet it's those stupid Osborns who've always been the main attractions up until now. It's more than likely they'll appear in a sequel down the line, but we've been spared an Osfest here. The longer we go without the treacherous family, the better it'll be for the franchise moving forward. Lust Versus Love No Web-Crawler film is complete without a love interest for Pete - and the same holds true for Spider-Man: Homecoming. However, one could argue that this film's love interest, Liz, is more lust than love for the young hero. I'm not going to get into the dynamics of love here because that's a slippery slope. All I'll say is the previous films have shown the teenage Peter in deep, Shakespearean-like love with Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson. At the age of 15, I doubt very much that he's head-over-heels in love with all these girls and it's probably just lust. Jon Watts nails this perfectly in his film by Peter revealing to Liz that he likes her - that's it. In a way, Watts has preserved Spidey's innocence for further films without having to capitalize on the whole "I can't be with her because I'm a superhero" trope. Sure, Peter does look upset when Liz leaves the school, but he isn't moping around about it and carries on with his life immediately. That sounds authentically like something a 15-year-old teenage boy would do. It Integrates Right Into The MCU I'll be honest: I thought Tony Stark/Iron Man was going to be a problem in this movie. After seeing all the promotional items, it appeared as if it was set to be Iron Man 4 guest starring Spider-Man. Surprisingly, this wasn't the case and Tony was used rather sparingly, with Happy Hogan having a bigger role to play in actual fact. These "cameos," if you will, were utilized to good effect, and set-up where Spidey fits in the MCU. It left the door open for other Avengers or MCU characters to appear in Spider-Man films as well, and vice versa (depending on Sony's mood on the day). It's every comic book fan's dream come true to see most of Marvel's character coexist in the same cinematic world, and we've waited years to see Peter geek out about Iron Man and Captain America, so it's really something to see it come together. After all, the MCU is a much better and richer universe with Spider-Man in it.