Tom Holland and Zendaya feature in Jon Watts’ latest contribution to the MCU-Spidey franchise, Spider-Man No Way Home.
Apart from focusing more on Peter Parker and his high school years than its predecessors, the only thing that truly distinguishes him is that he isn’t a standalone superhero, meaning he doesn’t stand alone. In a world full of wizards and superhumans, he’s Spider-Man. He’s the Spider-Man who has travelled to space and battled purple aliens with magic gloves. And without those team-ups, millionaire mentors, star appearances, and dazzling technology, the MCU’s Spidey hasn’t been intriguing enough to carry his own franchise thus far. It’s why the Spider-Man films are by far the weakest of the MCU’s solo hero stories.
And, once again, characters from other realities are required for things to get fascinating in No Way Home. It’s also why the best Tom Holland Spider-Man films have featured him in supporting roles, such as his electrifying debut in Captain America: Civil War and his pivotal role in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame as the beating heart. However, with MCU Spider-own Man’s on-screen experiences, I have yet to see anything that establishes director Jon Watts as a unique storyteller. At its best, his adaptation has an irreverent, even sitcom-like tone, ensuring that none of the characters take themselves too seriously.
After Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio broadcasted Spider-true Man’s identity to the entire world, No Way Home follows up right after the events of 2019’s Far From Home, with a newly outed Peter Parker. A perplexing media frenzy ensues, with criminal probes and public trials engulfing Peter and his loved ones. Spider-Man becomes a contentious celebrity figure, with both admiring and hating fans. In other words, he becomes “the most famous person on the planet.” I don’t recall MCU Spidey being presented as a particularly well-known, world-renowned person, which is odd. In a world brimming with them, he was just another hero.
