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(More customer reviews)Like most of us who grew up watching this series, either in it's original first run on TV from 1967-70 or later in syndication, it left an indelible impact. Remember, this was the very first time Spider-Man had ever been made into a cartoon, and so the idea of actually getting to see him swinging from building to building instead of just looking at freeze-frame shots in a comic strip was really a big deal.
The first season of episodes (20 shows, 38 individual stories total), I think, are still the most remembered and most cherished of the series, with Spidey taking on famous villains like The Green Goblin, Dr. Octopus, Electro, The Vulture, ect. While the later seasons, which were exec. produced, directed, as well as story supervised by Ralph "Lord of The Rings - The Animated Motion Picture" Bakshi, are a mixed bag of strange trippy imagery, with some plot points in them that just make you scratch your head in bewilderment. There are some gems in there though. Besides the "Origin" Episode (#21), which is definitely a standout, other highlights by Bakshi include, "Home" (#34), a story about a woman who also has spider powers (no, it's not Spider-Woman), "Criminals In The Clouds" (#24) which involves the kidnapping of a high school student by the villainous Sky Master, "The Madness of Mysterio" (#48), a rare original Season Three episode involving the famous villain, only looking completely different and having green skin. And speaking of green skin, what was Bakshi's fetish with green skinned villains anyway? Just about all of them were green with a few exceptions. And the irony is that he never once used The Green Goblin in any of his episodes.
Most of the last season was just a rehash of earlier episodes, remixed and redubbed to seem like new episodes. I guess when you're given no money to work with, you try to be as creative as you possibly can, and Bakshi did his best, like taking the mad scientist from the "Swing City" episode (#23) and turning him into an Atlantian in episode #46 ("Up From Nowhere") by giving him different ears to look like a fish. Then Bakshi would do another episode with the mad scientist again (#50 "Specialists And Slaves"), back to his normal self. You'd think the scientist would learn to stop shooting at Spider-Man while the webslinger is standing in front of that control panel, but nooooo.
Seriously, these episodes are still great fun nonetheless. Great nostalgic value. However not every episode was properly remastered. Episodes #40 ("The Winged Thing" & "Connor's Reptiles"), #42 ("Sky Harbor" & The Big Brainwasher"), #43 ("The Vanishing Doctor Vespasian" & "The Scourge Of The Scarf"), #46 ("Up From Nowhere") & #52 ("Trip To Tomorrow") all look terrible. Very blurry and grainy, which is a complete shock, especially when you compare them to a remastered episode which looks crystal clear with bright colors and a crisp clean look on practically each and every frame. Episode #52 actually does look perfect...that is until the "Flying Dutchman" segment comes on, then it reverts back to being blurry and grainy ect. It would seem that perhaps this boxset was rushed by Buena Vista in order to be distributed to the public the same week Spiderman 2 was released in movie theaters, even though it wasn't quite yet finished...just so they could make a bigger profit. There's even a misprint on the lyrics to the Spider-Man theme song in the little booklet that comes with the boxset. They forgot the line "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man". Just shotty workmanship, due to it being rushed.
Obviously if you love this series, you'll pick up this boxset regardless of it's flaws. Some have scoffed that there are no special features included, which is true, but considering you're paying around a dollar per episode, there's not much reason to complain too much about it. But many fans are disappointed that the "Next Week" promos at the end of each episode were not restored, except for one episode. Episode #28 ("Phantom From The Depths Of Time") does include the promo at the end (as well as a shot of Spider-Man crawling down a web in the middle of the episode). But what's humorous is that the promo is for "Revolt In The Fifth Dimension" and that's not the next episode...it's not even on the same disc. Another subtle highlight are the character drawings on all the DVD discs of several bad guys, Spidey, and J.Jonah Jameson, and the fact that there's actually an episode of that character on the disc where he's featured as the cover art on the DVD itself. A nice touch.
Despite all the flaws I still enjoy the series and am happy that it has finally been released on DVD. If you're a fan of this series, pick it up. For the most part, this release is the best this show has looked since...ever!
Keep Swingin' Spidey!
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Here they are -- all 52 episodes of Spider-Man's original 1967 classic television series, now completely restored in full color and bursting with spectacular Spidey action! Experience every amazing moment of Spider-Man's first appearance on TV in the animated series that electrified Saturday morning audiences from 1967-1970. Featuring the Web-Slinger's greatest foes, including Dr. Octopus, The Green Goblin, Mysterio, The Rhino, Dr. Magneto, and so many more.
Click here for more information about Spider-Man - The '67 Collection (6 Volume Animated Set) (1967)
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