Phoenician writes...

Well, with Season Two of Spectacular Spider-Man finally in swing in the United States, I thought, what the heck, why not jot some thoughts down?

**TSS-M SPOILERS**

"Blueprints"

What's funny about the Venom nightmare in the very beginning is that the snow didn't register until after the dream was over, when we pull out of Peter's bedroom. Its a small aspect of this great episode, but when a person can rely on this kind of continuity week in and week out (as I witnessed in season one), it just makes it all the easier to actually get absorbed in the universe being created. I'm actually realizing that the season one finale, though a long wait for me, has only been, say, a week ago for Peter Parker and company :)

I was kinda spoiled that there would be Latin spells a bit back, but as a Latin student back in the day, I loved hearing every bit of it, especially with Mysterio's quicker pace . . . at least, compared to what I've heard in Gargoyles and my own translations.

Fun Fact: Gargoyles is what encouraged me to take Latin back in high school. Most people site Shakespeare as their educational dessert from watching Gargoyles, I took on a dead language. Speaking of Gargoyles, I loved the inside joke of "Fulminos Venite", though I must admit it I only realized it later in the episode, as Mysterio DOES say it differently than the Archmage . . . and quicker. I also TOTALLY loved the line that I was able to decipher on the moment: Nullae Satisfactionis Potiri Non Possum! (I can't get no satisfaction!) Hilarious.

Stan Lee cameo! Was it fun having him on the set?

Spidey in the water! . . . "COLD COLD-COLD-COLD!!!" I live in the desert for a reason, and that just felt horrible even for me d:

The whole Liz-Misdirection scene was bugging me I think more than my roommate, if only because I'm rooting for Gwen and my dorm buddy is enjoying the Liz flirts. The 'tutledge' reminds me of early season one when Liz was dreading being tutored by Peter . . . funny how much has changed in three months time.

The Hormunculi Mysterio unleashed had some funny moments, one of my favorites toward the end of scene where the all vanish, including two holding Spider-Man . . . they realize they're being wisked away and with a line totally reminiscent of the 1993 film Hocus Pocus: "Ohh . . . buh-bye!" Had me laughing, even though I'm unsure if the connection was intentional or not.

The Osborne Dinner Party was interesting . . . Norman gets Peter his internship back, we meet Miles Warren, who's mum on any ideas he'll bring to the lab, the Conners have to swallow some pride in giving Peter a third (or fourth, I forget) chance. Plus: another sighting of the odd Emily Osborne. I'm no Spider-Man virtuoso, and I haven't seen her in really any other incarnation, so she's fun to watch . . . to say the least.

"Robots! To think I used to like them as a kid!" Wonderful line, gives us a glimpse into Peter's geekitude.

The last fight's bar scene was hilarious, already had me grinning when the music took on the sound of the piano, and I was laughing hard as a robot decked Spidey with a prop bottle from behind. This great moment was followed by a Monty Python & the Holy Grail reference (and in turn, reminded me of the Gargoyles episode "Future Tense"). Love the banter on this show.

Norman Osborne becoming Pete's mentor . . . creepy (as well as Norm's breakfast 'mannerisms'). I'm reminded of the first Spider-Man movie where Pete turned him down for a job, which impressed Norman nevertheless acknowledging that Peter wanted to get by 'on his own steam' or something similar.

And then at the end we see it's Quentin and Mason from the episode 'Persona' . . . apparently Chameleon was busy with something. Quentin is an absolute ham, and I love Xander Berkeley's performance from the second he found himself in that bubble. Mason as 'Tinkerer' gave me a jolt of "Lexington!" and I'm left with the thought of who the Master Planner is. Again, I'm no Spider-man expert, so I was eager to see the next episode. :)

Which I might as well review now as well d:

"Destructive Testing"

Of the two Spider-Man incarnations I delved in -- the recent movies and the 90's show -- Kraven was a villain I enjoyed. Couldn't really tell ya why . . . he must have been presented in a way I thought was well done. It's been so long since I've seen the 90s series I was curious if Kraven would have the same effect. Well, in short, Kraven is a ton of fun here, and unlike his 90's counterpart, the evidence is overwhelming. From the voice I hear to the lines he says and the way he looks (before and after Miles) and the way he fights (spears and claws): This guy is cool.

But not cool enough. Spidey owns him easy. "You're out of your league." A great line in that Spidey doesn't seem to JUST be goading him, like he does with other villains we've seen.

Other thoughts:

Was that the Rhino in the photos that Kraven was holding? AFTER Kraven tackled the rhino into a nap? Now that's good storytelling . . . :)

Freakin' Kenny Kong . . . must you make the Peter/Gwen interaction harder than it is? And Pete gets his first "look" of the season. Ouch.

Gwen, Liz, Black Cat . . . rub it in, Pete. Rub it in d:

Other great lines . . . mostly Spidey:

"Two moms and still so ill-behaved?"

"Prey? Silent? Dignity? Oh, you don't know me at all..."

"Now you got me talking in the 3rd person!"

"Okay, the thermals with hearts were half-priced and they do not reflect my very high macho-quotient!"

Hmmm . . . Only the hunt may restore my lost honor? What was Calypso offering exactly? d:

Loved the brief Jameson bit . . . shame we didn't get to hear him chew off Kraven. Here's hoping we see some JJJ soon.

Miles Warren: Wow.

Oh, that Sally Avril . . . poor Rand.

"You can smell him?" a great line from Miles.

The banter in their second fight is just as good as the previous, if not better:

"I could call you a lot of things..."

"All I smell is fear."

"I so prefer my felines female" (focus Peter! Or I'll start calling YOU 'Randy')

Its the return of the Itsy Bitsy Spider! And for once, its not Aunt May d:

And despite the upgrade, Kraven gets decked by all of Spidey's limbs . . . "Excuse me? Who's the prey?" I remember a discussion a while back that had people wonder if Peter was always going to find a geek-solution to every supervillain . . . well, if the many episodes of season one didn't answer it, this one sure did. Spidey swept the floor with Kravenoff. XD

"Courtesy of the original and number one genetic misfit"

"The Hunt is not over" . . . is it wrong of me to think of Gargoyles here? d:

And as we get a frozen Spidey mask in the skyline, we're given the hint that Kraven might not be gone just yet, not to mention we could see some old favorites soon. :)

***END OF SPOILERS***

If you couldn't tell by now, I loved these two episodes. There's ton more I could say, I imagine, but no worries. What I do believe is that these two eps are start of another spectacular season!!