Ok, let’s do this. One more time. Before the Multiverse Saga was a twinkle in the collective MCU’s eye it was Miles Morales who made the first big jump in the 2018 Into the Spider-Verse. Now some 5 years on we have the next chapter in the mind-blowing Spidey saga, but does it still make our Spidey-sense tingle?
Ok so to catch you up on if you have not seen the first film (which you really should) Miles Morales is the Spider-Man of Earth-1610 taking over from the Peter Parker of that universe who was killed by the Kingpin/Wilson Fisk. Fisk, who in that universe had his wife and son leave him and then die in an automotive accident had been attempting to cross dimensions with the assistance of a collider which brought some alternate Spider-People(?) to the one Universe.
Somewhat of an origin story for Miles who is bitten by a Spider that itself was pulled from another dimension giving him powers before the 1610 Spidey died. With the help of sweatpants Spidey, the black and white Nicholas Cage Spidey aka Spider-Man Noir, the Amazing Spider-Ham, a Spider-Manga and Spider-Gwen, Miles learns his powers and steps up to being the new Spider-Man before sending them all home and blowing up the Kingpin’s collider, thus saving the Multiverse. We assume.
The first Across the Spider-Verse took some concepts from the Earth-616 comics (the main marvel continuity) and changed them up for the story we have. In the comics the Spider-]Insert Noun, Pronoun, Adjective or Verb of your Choice here] across all earths were interconnected by something called the Web of Life.
In it we had Spidey and Miles from Earth-616 (though technically Miles was from 1610 which is the Ultimate Universe that was destroyed as part of Secret Wars) who teamed up with other Spiders across the dimensions who were joined by the Web of Life. In that storyline there existed a group of ‘vampires’ who feasted on Spiders and drew power from consuming the Web of Life. The Spider-Verse saga in the comics was one of the biggest Spider-Events ever to take place with every Spider that had ever existed from Maguire to the Japanese Spider-Man with the giant Spider-Robot appearing.
This series was actually the first appearance of Earth-65 Spider-Gwen in the spin off Edge of the Spider-Verse. The Spider-Man of 2099 aka Miguel O’Hara had already come back from the Future and met Peter Parker before.
The latest film much like the first uses the Spider-Verse as the main thing that makes this all possible but pushes the envelope, A LOT, and changes up the storyline with the events taking place one year and one growth spurt later for Miles. No longer contained to a single Earth, across the Spider-Verse does what we got a glimpse of with the first as we visit other Earths and meet other Spiders who all have their own unique art styles and framerates on film. With maybe some possible exceptions as we spy a Ben Reilly aka the Scarlet Spider who was not from the 616 and Doctor Strange of Earth-19999 (the MCU) gets a shoutout but even the Insomniac Spider-Man game appears.
While the first film was definitely a standalone affair the new film builds on what happened in the first quite a bit. Which while there are recaps if you have not seen the first you may need to just go with the flow and accept what is happening as there is some assumed knowledge about alternate dimensions. Clocking in at nearly half an hour longer than the first film there is not a lot of breaks from what is happening to build up the stakes for the film. If you are unsure of what that means, then possibly watch how big of a drink you take into the cinema with you as there is no good places for a toilet break.
In terms of action vs world building this film has so much going on and so many references that it does focus more on the bigger picture where as the first film was more about Miles’ journey into becoming a Spider-Man. But if you are in anyway a Spider-Man fan there is so much going on here you may not care about that until atleast your 12th viewing (maybe 14th).
So should you go see it? Absolutely yes. We were huge fans of the original film with all of the easter eggs and references to Spider-Man across pop culture and this one seems to have cranked that dial from 11 into the mid 60s. Seriously there is so much going on and so many references, the comics Spider-Verse had every Spider-Man that ever existed and this somehow has more. You are absolutely going to have to see this more than once with the amount of blink and you miss it references.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is in cinemas across Australia from today
