“Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man” is the latest Marvel animated property to expand on the mythos of the beloved Web Slinger, but it’s far from the only one.
With the new series at an end, there is plenty more on offer to dive deeper into the lore of Spidey, the Marvel Universe, and even heroes in the Star Wars Universe and over at DC. Whether it’s the much-beloved ’90s animated Spider-Man series that sparked love for the character for many fans, or the long-running “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” series, which did an astonishing amount of heavy lifting in the prequel era, there are plenty of options on offer.
Below are six options to help fill the void “Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man” left until Season 2 arrives.
What If…
“Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man” is the latest multiverse take on a Marvel character. If you want to see more of what the good people at Marvel can do if they don’t have to worry about long-running continuity or keeping certain characters alive then “What If…” is your next stop.
The three-season series takes a new look at new characters in each episode, ranging from Peggy Carter becoming Captain America to Howard the Duck birthing a multiversal hero and Thor being a frat party star. Nothing is off limits from the series and the more the show leaned into the oddities possible, the stronger the show got.
Spider-Man: The Animated Series
The Spider-Man series that started it all for a lot of people. While the voice acting, animation and some of the stories might not be on par with “Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man,” there is a charm to the ’90s series that is hard to deny.
For those who want to dive deeper into some of the most iconic stories from the Wall Crawler, another boon for “Spider-Man: The Animated Series” takes on animating and adapting many of the great arcs from the comic books with loving care. It’s required viewing for any Spider-Man fan.
X-Men ’97
People had high hopes for “X-Men ’97” but it’s not likely anyone thought it would be as good as it turned out. The series continues the story begun in the beloved ’90s animated series but brings a new maturity to the characters and storylines. The animation is beautiful, the storylines will genuinely make you cry and the ending will leave you begging for more. While the MCU and other Marvel properties are going through growing pains, “X-Men ’97” is taking one confident stride after another.
Spectacular Spider-Man
If “Spider-Man: The Animated Series” was the first to really popularize the Wall Crawler as an animated property, and “Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is the latest,” then “Spectacular Spider-Man” is the best.
The mid-2000s take on Spider-Man and Peter Parker modernizes a lot of what made the ’90s series great and adds – pardon – spectacular animation and great voice performances. If you need more Spider-Man after you finish Disney+’s latest offering, make “Spectacular Spider-Man” your first stop.
My Adventures with Superman
“Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man” offers a fresh look at the early days of the most iconic hero Marvel has to offer. “My Adventures with Superman” does the same thing with DC’s favorite Kryptonian. Jack Quaid voices Clark Kent with a youthful pluck that brings back some of the earnestness the hero was missing in the Zack Snyder era of DC adaptations.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
“Star Wars: The Clone Wars” had the unenviable task of making the titular prequel war interesting in a way that the live-action films failed to do. The show managed in flying colors and, in doing so, even made moments in the somewhat maligned prequel movies richer and more nuanced. The series is a highlight among diehard Star Wars fans for a reason, and the show’s success bloomed to the point that its original character – Ahsoka Tano – was brought into live action by Rosario Dawson in her own Disney+ show.
If you’re a fan of Star Wars and want a deeper dive into the Clone Wars, and in many episodes, the weirder aspects of a galaxy far, far away, then dive into the series.
