Can't rave enough about this movie. Everything was excellent and I have nothing I can think of to complain about. It was a joy to be back, hanging out with Miles, Gwen, Peter, and the handful of new characters. The film takes it's time early on developing Gwen and Miles as they live their separate lives in their respective dimensions and deal with the frustrations and realities of being their own Spider persons. We're immediately given the emotional weight of Gwen's life, one that is very lonely and who has seemingly lost the only friend she had left after having to say goodbye to Miles. Miles is in a similar predicament, though he is less hung up on being alone and missing Gwen, and more so on having to balance school, his responsibilities to his parents, and his role as Spider-Man.
After spending some time with their respective lives, we get to the meat of the story, which involves new villain-of-the-week-becoming-major-villain The Spot, who is setting out to further disrupt the multiverse after Kingpin's plot in the first movie. Miguel O'Hara, aka Spider-Man 2099, comes into the picture as having established a hub of Spider characters from various dimensions who are attempting to fix the anomalies created by the collider's explosion from the first film. Miguel acts as a darker version of Spider-Man who has little tolerance for anyone treating their task with anything but the utmost seriousness.
The animation and art is once again excellent, this time giving us various designs for the different Spider characters, with Spider Punk and Crimson Spider being highlights. Everyone gets a chance to shine as a character, even when their part is small and the loads of easter eggs and references will delight fans while not feeling superfluous or there purely for fan service. Like No Way Home, this is a celebration of the Spider-Man franchise, but feeling like it's celebrating the entirety of the brand, covering everything from comics, animation, live action, and even the video games. There are quite a few pleasant surprises.
Some might be off put by the abrupt ending, especially if they have no idea this the first part of a two part film duoglogy, but having known this going in, I felt pretty comfortable with where it ended. It is a cliffhanger ending, so don't expect to feel like the story has an ending, but it creates an anticipation for the next movie and it's something I can wait patiently for as it comes early next year. Overall, the film, like the first one, demonstrates itself to be one of the year's best. I even expect this to possibly be my favorite film of 2023.
After spending some time with their respective lives, we get to the meat of the story, which involves new villain-of-the-week-becoming-major-villain The Spot, who is setting out to further disrupt the multiverse after Kingpin's plot in the first movie. Miguel O'Hara, aka Spider-Man 2099, comes into the picture as having established a hub of Spider characters from various dimensions who are attempting to fix the anomalies created by the collider's explosion from the first film. Miguel acts as a darker version of Spider-Man who has little tolerance for anyone treating their task with anything but the utmost seriousness.
The animation and art is once again excellent, this time giving us various designs for the different Spider characters, with Spider Punk and Crimson Spider being highlights. Everyone gets a chance to shine as a character, even when their part is small and the loads of easter eggs and references will delight fans while not feeling superfluous or there purely for fan service. Like No Way Home, this is a celebration of the Spider-Man franchise, but feeling like it's celebrating the entirety of the brand, covering everything from comics, animation, live action, and even the video games. There are quite a few pleasant surprises.
Some might be off put by the abrupt ending, especially if they have no idea this the first part of a two part film duoglogy, but having known this going in, I felt pretty comfortable with where it ended. It is a cliffhanger ending, so don't expect to feel like the story has an ending, but it creates an anticipation for the next movie and it's something I can wait patiently for as it comes early next year. Overall, the film, like the first one, demonstrates itself to be one of the year's best. I even expect this to possibly be my favorite film of 2023.