There are plenty of great episodes of Spider-Man: The Animated Series from 1994, but these 10 are absolute masterpieces. Years before Disney bought Marvel and the Marvel Cinematic Universe began, the comic franchise’s main on-screen efforts were in animation. Before the vast majority of the Spider-Man films, from Sam Raimi’s trilogy to the animated Into the Spider-Verse movies, Peter Parker was best known from Spider-Man: The Animated Series.
Though it has been 32 years since Spider-Man: The Animated Series began, and Tom Holland’s Spider-Man is now the MCU’s main continuity, the series is still great. Many of its episodes are timeless; they’re just as entertaining now as they were in the 1990s, and they’re still well worth watching on Disney+. There are even some episodes of Spider-Man: TAS that should be viewed before Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the upcoming live-action film.
There are a few things that make episodes of Spider-Man: The Animated Series masterpieces. One is what makes every Spider-Man story great: a balancing act between Spider-Man and his villains and Peter Parker’s personal life. Spider-Man: The Animated Series also had plenty of crossovers with other Marvel characters, but only a few episodes stood out as great among them. Above all else, however, true masterpieces are still great episodes of television to this day.
10
“Neogenic Nightmare Chapter VIII: Duel of the Hunters” Season 2, Episode 8
One of Spider-Man: The Animated Series‘ darkest story arcs, Neogenic Nightmare, was truly unforgettable. This season saw Peter slowly mutating into the human-spider hybrid known as Man-Spider, which made for some genuinely horrifying moments. The climax of the entire story arc came in “Duel of the Hunters,” when Peter finished his transformation and became Man-Spider.
Not only did “Duel of the Hunters” pay off all the buildup of the seven episodes that preceded it, the images of Peter as Man-Spider are likely still burned into viewers’ minds to this day. This episode also features a tremendous team-up between two unlikely characters, the Punisher and Kraven the Hunter, that is still entertaining today. The entire story of Neogenic Nightmare was also a perfect metaphor for how all-consuming the Spider-Man persona is to Peter’s life, and “Duel of the Hunters” made sure viewers got the message.
Additionally, the entire Neogenic Nightmare arc has recently become much more relevant. Spider-Man: Brand New Day seems to be teasing Tom Holland’s Peter going through a mutation that seems very similar to the Man-Spider mutation. For current fans of the MCU, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to brush up on “Duel of the Hunters” before Brand New Day debuts on July 31.
9
“Partners in Danger Chapter III: The Black Cat” Season 4, Episodes 3 – 5
Spider-Man: The Animated Series season 4 wasn’t the show’s strongest outing, but Felicia Hardy’s expanded role in the season more than made up for it. This season saw Felicia finally become the Black Cat just as Mary Jane was forcibly removed from the picture, and the show handled her story just as well as the comics did. Black Cat’s first three episodes, beginning with “The Black Cat,” were the absolute best of the bunch.
One of the most impressive feats of Spider-Man: The Animated Series was its ability to faithfully adapt the core of its stories, and few episodes prove that more than “The Black Cat.” These episodes are dripping with Peter’s dilemma about his personal life intersecting with his life as Spider-Man, his feelings about both Felicia and MJ, and more. They also present a great and streamlined version of Black Cat’s origins, making them a must-watch for any fans of the character.
8
“Secret Wars Chapter III: Doom” Season 5, Episode 11
One of the best crossovers in Spider-Man: The Animated Series came right at the end of the Secret Wars arc. In this arc, Spider-Man teams up with a litany of Marvel’s best and brightest, including the Fantastic Four, Iron Man, Captain America, and Storm from the X-Men, against some of the Marvel universe’s greatest villains, mainly Doctor Doom. The entire arc is great, but “Doom” brought it to a thrilling conclusion.
Team-up stories are hard to get right, but “Doom” managed it. While there aren’t far-reaching effects of the story, thanks to the Beyonder’s meddling, each member of the team-up really got a chance to shine. The heroes all had their moments, but “Doom” also gave a glimpse at how Doom would rule and why he’s such a compelling villain. The episode also brings the arc’s question of whether good or evil is stronger to a satisfying conclusion, which only put a bow on an already great episode.
7
“The Sins of the Fathers Chapter XIV: Turning Point” Season 3, Episode 14
Though the Green Goblin wasn’t around for long in Spider-Man: The Animated Series, he was responsible for one of the most intense and suspenseful episodes in the entire series. “Turning Point” saw the Green Goblin abduct Mary Jane after learning Spider-Man’s identity and threaten her with an interdimensional gun. That premise alone made every second of the episode feel tense, and while the universe wasn’t on the line, the personal stakes for both MJ and Peter were enough to keep viewers on the edge of their seats.
“Turning Point” is one of the best examples of how to balance Spider-Man’s problems with Peter’s to make a great story. There’s no better type of Spider-Man story than the one where worlds collide and everything Peter holds dear is on the line. Additionally, despite being about MJ, “Turning Point” is also one of the greatest adaptations of The Night Gwen Stacy Died to ever be put to screen.
6
“The Return of Hydro-Man” Season 5, Episodes 7 & 8
There are few episodes of Spider-Man: The Animated Series, or really any superhero movie or show, for that matter, that are as emotionally poignant and heartbreaking as “The Return of Hydro-Man.” In this episode, Peter discovers that the Mary Jane he recently married is actually a clone, and that the original woman he fell in love with is still lost somewhere in the multiverse. By the end of the episode, the cloned MJ evaporates, leaving Peter alone once again.
“The Return of Hydro-Man” is a masterpiece for many reasons. It’s simultaneously a perfect representation of Peter’s troubled love life and a devastating finale to MJ’s story. Christopher Daniel Barnes’ voice acting performance is generational, and his screams force viewers to feel Peter’s anguish right alongside him. The reveal that MJ was a clone was so suprising that it felt like a punch to the gut. Everything about “The Return of Hydro-Man” is meant to hit you in the emotions and stay with you for years or decades, and it excels at that task.
5
“Sins Of The Father Chapter XI: Carnage” Season 3, Episode 11
Venom’s overarching story in Spider-Man: The Animated Series had a lot of high points, but one of the best came in the episode simply titled “Carnage.” Featuring the titular red symbiote villain, “Carnage” made unlikely allies out of Spider-Man, Iron Man, and Venom. That allowed the episode to have some of the best fights in the entire series, and it also allowed Eddie Brock to grow as a character.
“Carnage” had everything: a great villain, a great team-up, great action scenes, and more. Perhaps its best feature, however, is the way it explored Spider-Man’s relationship with Venom in a new light. The episode is proof that Spider-Man: The Animated Series was constantly evolving and, in many ways, improving over the years. It also did quite a bit to set up the best episode of the entire series, which would come much later down the line.
4
“Neogenic Nightmare: The Mutant Agenda & Mutants’ Revenge” Season 2, Episodes 4 & 5
Another team-up story, “The Mutant Agenda” and “Mutants’ Revenge,” saw Spider-Man join forces with some heavy hitters from the X-Men. While not necessarily the most important chapter in Spider-Man’s story, this episode had some great moments that have yet to be replicated in any other show or movie. Spider-Man briefly fights the X-Men, he teams up with Wolverine to track Beast, and more.
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“The Mutant Agenda” and “Mutants’ Revenge” is mostly as timeless as it is because of its meta-textual elements. These episodes have a very strong moral message to convey about prejudice, as so many X-Men stories do, that still works well today. This was also the first inkling of the massive and interconnected Marvel universe that fans currently enjoy in the MCU. It’s hard to imagine Marvel being as prepared for the MCU as it was without Spider-Man: The Animated Series paving the way.
3
“The Sins of the Father: Framed & The Man Without Fear” Season 3, Episodes 6 & 7
As previously mentioned, Spider-Man had quite a few chances to team up with heroes from across the Marvel universe in the animated series. His team-up with Matt Murdock’s Daredevil in “Framed” and “The Man Without Fear,” however, stands out as the best of the best. This two-part episode saw Matt come to Peter’s legal defense, and saw them both team up against Chameleon and the Kingpin.
Spider-Man and Daredevil together are like milk and cookies, and Spider-Man: The Animated Series is proof of how great they work together. Daredevil’s more serious and dark persona acts as the perfect straight man to Spider-Man’s lighthearted banter. Their iconic pairing, coupled with one of Kingpin’s best episodes and a showcase of why Chameleon is such a great villain, made this two-parter an instant classic.
2
“The Alien Costume” Season 1, Episodes 8 – 10
Venom was arguably Peter’s greatest villain in Spider-Man: The Animated Series, and his origin story in “The Alien Costume” was one of the highlights of his story. Peter’s time with the black symbiote suit and Venom’s origin have been depicted several times, notably in Spider-Man 3 and the video game Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. Every Spider-Man fan knows it at this point, but there’s a real case to be made that The Animated Series did it best.
“The Alien Costume” handles all the beats of Venom’s origin story well. Peter’s time with the suit perfectly mirrors the turmoil in his personal life, viewers can viscerally feel how much Peter is being affected by the symbiote, and the moment he fights back against the suit is a triumph. Then, once Eddie Brock gets hold of the symbiote, he becomes a great villain with a fleshed-out backstory, great powers, and a terrific connection to both Spider-Man and Peter. It’s a relatively simple story, but Spider-Man: The Animated Series executed it so flawlessly that it became a masterpiece.
1
“Spider Wars Chapter II: Farewell Spider-Man” Season 5, Episode 13
It’s exceedingly rare for a show with multiple seasons to have a universally beloved conclusion. Viewers have so many expectations, there are so many stories and characters to resolve, and more often than not, studio involvement gets in the way. When a show does have a great ending that fulfills viewers and leaves the story in a satisfying place, it’s almost unforgettable. That’s why “Farewell Spider-Man” is also unforgettable.
“Farewell Spider-Man” is a nearly perfect finale to Spider-Man: The Animated Series, which helped cement it as a masterpiece years ago. The episode is both a direct continuation of “I Really, Really Hate Clones” and the Spider-Wars arc, but it also serves as a beautiful farewell to the series as a whole. It wraps up what it needs to, like Madame Webb and Peter’s multiversal story, but it also left the ending sufficiently open-ended to let viewers fill in the blanks however they wanted.
It’s so hard for a show like Spider-Man: The Animated Series to stick the landing, but “Farewell Spider-Man” did. It felt like a worthwhile culmination of all five seasons of storytelling. It managed to navigate some very heady sci-fi concepts with extreme grace and precision, it had a great threat, multiple Spider-Men teaming up, and basically everything you’d want out of a multiversal story like this. It’s likely because of how well it ended that Spider-Man: The Animated Series is still so beloved today.
- Release Date
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1994 – 1998
- Network
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FOX, Fox Kids
- Directors
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Bob Richardson
- Writers
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John Semper Jr., Mark Hoffmeier, Meg McLaughlin, Stan Berkowitz, James Krieg, Marty Isenberg, Robert N. Skir, Sean Catherine Derek, Brooks Wachtel, Cynthia Harrison, Larry Brody, Doug Booth, Len Wein, Michael Edens, Brynne Stephens, Elliot S. Maggin, Ernie Altbacker, Evelyn Gabai, Gerry Conway, Gordon Kent, J. M. DeMatteis, Jan Strnad, Marv Wolfman, Sandy Fries
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Christopher Daniel Barnes
Peter Parker / Spider-Man (voice)
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Sara Ballantine
Mary Jane Watson (voice)