Spider-Man: Ranking the 8 best TV and film iterations of Peter Parker
By Mark Lynch
3. Ultimate Spider-Man cartoon
This may be the best version of Peter Parker in cartoon form. What’s even weirder is that it shied away from what we know about Spidey and Peter as a person. While he still has a lot of the classic traits, this Spider-Man is a leader. Nick Fury charged him with becoming more than just a hero. Fury said he wanted him to become the “Ultimate” Spider-Man (hence the title of the show). Fury teamed him with Luke Cage, Iron Fist, White Tiger, and Nova and, with this team, he grew substantially. He became a better leader and person being with them.
The show had a ton of camoes from the likes of Captain America, Wolverine, and the Hulk, with each of these encounters making Spidey better in the process. Sometimes characters have one moment of growth and then it disappears, but not with this show. Everything Spidey learned stuck with him. Eventually, it seemed like he didn’t need Nick Fury’s help as much.
Because this series wasn’t like the comics, it allowed for different stories. Even though these tales weren’t taken out of the comic, the core elements of Spider-Man remained. This iterations was so good that he even had a major role in the comic book series Spider-Verse. This should be the new standard of how to make a perfect comic book cartoon TV show. Be original, but stay close to the source material.