Being aSpider-Manfan means I’ve come to expect certain things from Spider-Man media. If Peter Parker (orMiles Morales,or whichever web-slinger is the center of the story) has a win, Spider-Man will have a loss and vice versa. There’s the struggle to maintain a balance between a superheroic life and a regular one. But the biggest element isSpider-Man’s love life, and how it’s never easy. Does Spidey tell his girlfriend about his secret identity? Does that place her in danger, especially with his various villains out to end his life? And why, oh why does the Green Goblin love tossing Spider-Man’s love interests off a bridge? If you ask me, that’sthe real canon eventin the Spider-Verse.
Another recurring element throughout Spider-Man stories is thatPeter Parker breaks up with his girlfriend in every Spider-Man film series.Sam Raimi’s firstSpider-MansawTobey Maguire’s Parker turning downKirsten Dunst’s Mary Jane to try and protect her — only for the two to get together inSpider-Man 2.The Amazing Spider-ManhadAndrew Garfield’s Spidey promise George Stacy (Dennis Leary) that he wouldn’t date his daughter Gwen (Emma Stone) to protect her…only for Peter to turn around and date Gwen at that film’s ending then break up with her in the beginning ofThe Amazing Spider-Man 2(Suffice it to say this had me yelling “What thehellhappened to great power and great responsibility?” at my TV).Spider-Man: No Way Homefinally breaks this trend…or at the very least, adds a more tragic element to it.
‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Ends Peter and MJ’s Relationship on a Bittersweet Note
Spider-Man: No Way Homeopens on the fallout ofSpider-Man: Far From Home, asMysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal)has revealed Peter Parker’s secret identity to the world. Not only does this turn Peter’s life upside down, but it affects his girlfriend MJ (Zendaya) and best friend Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon) as well. When the three are declined entry into MIT, Peter takes matters into his own hands and asks Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to cast a spell that will make the world forget he’s Spider-Man. But the spell gets corrupted, pulling in villains from alternate worlds and leading Holland’s Peter to meet Maguire and Garfield’s Spider-Men. With more villains threatening to break the wall between worlds, Peter asks Strange to cast the original spell…meaning everyone who ever knew he was Spider-Man would forget, including MJ and Ned.
This MCU Moment Is Tom Holland’s Most Badass Scene as Spider-Man
When his Spider-Sense tingles, my Spider-Sense tingles.
This leads to one final talk between MJ and Peter, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t pull on my heartstrings. ThroughoutJon Watts’s trilogy, the two have grown to genuinely care for each other — helped immensely by the fact thatHolland and Zendaya are dating in real life. But even though they have to split apart,this time they part on relatively good terms.Peter even visits the coffee shop where MJ works, intending to tell her…then stops, as he doesn’t want to bring any more chaos into her life. It remains to be seen if Zendaya will return as MJ in the upcomingSpider-Man 4, but the fact that the door is open for Peter and MJ to reunite is a welcome reprieve from the back and forth of previous Spider-Man film series.
‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’s Ending Is the Reverse of an Infamous Spider-Man Storyline
The element that I love most aboutNo Way Home’s ending is that it acts as the reverse ofan infamous Spider-Man storyline in the comics.Spider-Man: One More DaybyJ. Michael StraczynskiandJoe Quesadafound Peter Parker going to great lengths to save his Aunt May after she was hit by a sniper who intended to kill him, but nothing worked. In Peter’s darkest hour,the demon lord Mephistocame to him and said that he could save May’s life…provided Peter and Mary Jane gave him their marriage. Peter initially balked, but MJ agreed on the condition that Mephisto also wipes the world’s memory of Peter Parker as Spider-Man.
One More Dayremains the most controversial Spider-Man storyline to this day;Straczynski opened up about his issueswith the back half of the story, and fans — myself included — feel that Spider-Man making a deal with a demon flies in the face of his “with great power comes great responsibility” mantra.No Way Homefixes thisby having Peter make the choice instead of it being offered to him, which is a truly responsible decision. Also, rather than wiping his relationship with MJ from history, the weight of what they shared is still there even if one of the parties in the relationship doesn’t (yet) remember it.Spider-Man: No Way Homedid a lot of things right, but the most underrated element was flipping the script on Peter Parker’s perennial breakups.
Spider-Man: No Way Home
With Spider-Man’s identity now revealed, Peter asks Doctor Strange for help. When a spell goes wrong, dangerous foes from other worlds start to appear, forcing Peter to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.
Spider-Man: No Way Homeis currently available to stream on Hulu in the U.S.
WATCH ON HULU
