Spider-Man joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe was considered little more than a pipe-dream as recently as five years ago, to the point that when the most enduringly popular of all of Marvel's heroes finally made his MCU debut in Captain America: Civil War, it was a moment of almost surreal quality.
Now that years have passed since that moment and the character's appeared in 5 MCU entries, let's examine how the Tom Holland portrayal of the Web-Slinger stacks up with the character's portrayal across the comics and other cinematic and animated iterations.
Updated May 21st, 2020 by George Chrysostomou: With the Spider-verse continuing to expand out from the MCU, here's a few more ways in which the universe managed to get the web-head both spot on and a little off.
15 Right: Mysterio
Mysterio is one of Spider-Man's most iconic villains but he's also notoriously difficult to adapt to screen. Asides from his almost laughable fishbowl helmet, the character is known for his tricks and scams.
The MCU managed to portray a Mysterio that was very much a part of the universe, complete with a Tony Stark hating backstory, while actually bringing in many of the classic elements from the comics with an updated twist.
14 Wrong: Flash Thompson's Role
Flash Thompson is usually the jock of the school, picking on Peter Parker because of his superior intelligence and because of his luck with the ladies. The Flash in the films is extremely different though.
Seen as a modern bully, he doesn't really pose much conflict for Spider-Man, meaning his high school days just don't produce as much tension. What's more, the character will likely never take on the Venom symbiote, as he just doesn't fit the bill.
13 Right: Identity Reveal
The big cliffhanger of the previous movie saw Mysterio unveil Peter's secret identity to the whole world. This is an excellent twist and one that finds some of its roots in the source material, although under different circumstances.
Spider-Man's biggest problems has always come with the balance between his student life and that of his alter-ego. He voluntarily gives up his identity in the comics, but by forcing the information out the next few years of the MCU could get very interesting for Peter and his family.
12 Wrong: Iron Man 2.0
There's been a lot of criticism over the years that Spider-Man relies too heavily on Tony Stark as a mentor. There's even been the notion that he's only an Iron Man 2.0, complete with the same technological suits.
While his personality is starkly different, there are a few similarities to be made between him and Tony. It appears that Tony is fulfilling that Uncle Ben role, but it would have been better to see a little more separation of the characters perhaps.
11 Right: Costume
One thing most fans will agree on across all Spider-Man movies is that they succeed in the costume design of the title character; Spider-Man, whether played by Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, or now Tom Holland, always looks like he's jumped out of the comic panels.
The MCU iteration is no exception, but succeeds to an even greater degree with having a variety of costumes; in addition to his primary costumes from Homecoming (the first to include the "web-pits") and Far From Home (harkening back to the original Steve Ditko drawings with its red-and-black colors), MCU Spider-Man has also donned the "Iron Spider" suit and a stealth suit reminiscent of "Spider-Man: Noir." Whatever costume he suits up in next, it will surely honor a suit from the comics, no matter which suit that is.
10 *Wrong: Rapid Expansion
While this isn't the decision of Marvel Studios and instead appears to be the choice of Sony Pictures, there are clear plans to expand this Spider-verse so that it can crossover with characters like Venom and Morbius.
The problem with this is that Tom Holland's web-slinger is only really just getting established. It seems rushed to expand so rapidly, especially since the first film from this Spider-verse certainly released to a number of mixed opinions.
9 Right: Web-Shooters
Debuting in Amazing Fantasy #15 alongside their inventor and wearer, Peter Parker designed his web-shooters shortly after acquiring his powers in order to complete the "Spider-Man" shtick.
The Sam Raimi films took things in a different direction, with the webs emerging from Peter's wrist as a natural part of his powers, while the Marc Webb-helmed Amazing Spider-Man films took things back to the comic roots. Faced with splitting the difference, the MCU went the route of the Webb films and included mechanical web-shooters, emphasizing Peter's scientific genius in the process.
8 Wrong: Solo Hero
Tom Holland's Peter may describe himself as "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man," but in practice, he hasn't done too much to live up to that reputation. Spider-Man is famously something of a loner among superheroes; it took until 2005, his 43rd year of publication, to join The Avengers.
Holland's Spider-Man has been much more of a team player from the get-go; debuting in a team-up film where he was only a supporting player, he's since appeared in two Avengers films and both his solo films have featured guest stars from the wider MCU. Seeing Spider-Man interact with the wider Marvel universe is, of course, a treat, but seeing some solo action with the web-slinger would be welcome as well.
7 Right: High School Hero
Spider-Man debuted as a 15-year-old in Amazing Fantasy #15, and much of the early issues with the character kept him in high school before his graduation in Issue #28, at which point he transitioned to college. Brian Bendis and Mark Bagley's run on Ultimate Spider-Man considered one of the greatest Spider-Man stories ever told and a brilliant re-imagination took a step further kept Peter in high school for the entire run.
Raimi and Webb's Spider-Man had Peter out of High School by both of their second entries, whereas the MCU so far has kept Peter in his teenage years, evidently aiming to have moviegoers grow up with him in the same way comic book readers of both the 1960s and 2000s did with the Lee/Ditkp and Bendis/Bagley versions.
6 Wrong: Working Class Hero
One of the most compelling aspects of Peter Parker is how he often struggles with everyday problems just as much as he does with super-villains; Spider-Man's weekly routine might consist of holding down a job and paying rent while foiling Doc Ock's latest scheme.
Unfortunately, this "Working-Class hero" aspect becomes a bit deluded since the MCU Peter is all but the ward of Tony Stark, who gifts the young hero advanced gadgets left-and-right. Not helping is Peter is also shown in his solo films attending a private school that hosts a field trip across Europe, compared to Midtown Public High School as in the Raimi, Webb, and comic books.
5 Right: No Osborns (Yet)
With how prominent the Green Goblin/Norman Osborn and his son Harry have become in the Spider-Man mythos, its easy to forget that they weren't original supporting cast members in Spider-Man's eponymous comic. Peter first encounter Harry when attending Empire State University in Amazing Spider-Man #31, while his Norman didn't appear outside the Goblin mask until issue #37.
Most media adaptations of Spider-Man have moved the timeline up and had the Osborns already an active part of Peter's life by the time he becomes Spider-Man, but not the MCU. If/when the Osborn family makes their MCU debut, it'll likely be after Peter has left high school behind.
4 Wrong: No Daily Bugle
Peter's first job in the comics was taking photos of himself while Spider-Man for New York newspaper The Daily Bugle; this job featured prominently throughout the comics and in the Sam Raimi trilogy, with Bugle editor-in-chief J. Jonah Jameson (JK Simmons) being one of the trilogy's most important supporting characters.
After being a non-factor in The Amazing Spider-Man films, Jameson and The Bugle made their MCU debut in Far From Home, Simmons reprising his role to boot. However, The Bugle being reimagined as a web program, complete with Jameson outing Spider-Man's identity to the world, makes it unlikely that Peter will be employed there any time soon.
3 Right: Neither Gwen or MJ is His First Love
Mary Jane Watson and Gwen Stacy are certainly the two most iconic love interests of our favorite wall-crawling hero, though contrary to what the Raimi and Webb films might teach you, neither of them was Peter's first love.
Gwen debuted in The Amazing Spider-Man #31, by which point Peter had already entered college, and Mary Jane came soon after in Issue #42. The first girl Peter had a relationship with was Daily Bugle secretary Betty Brant, but his first recurring crush was Liz Allan, who appeared in Spider-Man's first MCU solo outing, Homecoming (albeit with some backstory modifications).
2 Wrong: Minimization Of Uncle Ben
The death of his Uncle Ben Parker, and the role he inadvertently played in it, is the defining moment of Spider-Man's character. It's so significant that it was told twice over in the first Raimi Spider-Man film and The Amazing Spider-Man.
Likely due to its prominence in the previous series, the MCU has elided Uncle Ben, with the character not even netting a name-drop and his role in Peter's life borderline usurped by Tony Stark, particularly post-mortem in Far From Home. While depicting the events leading up to his death would certainly be overkill at this point, the character warrants at least a mention at some point down the line.
1 Right: With Great Power, Comes Great Responsibility
Those iconic words were first uttered at the end of Amazing Fantasy #15, and while Uncle Ben may be absent in the MCU thus far, the lesson Peter learned from his death has been felt throughout his MCU appearances. Peter paraphrases the quote during his first appearance in Civil War, telling Tony Stark "When you can do the things that I can, but you don't, and then the bad things happen, they happen because of you."
Peter's actions in his solo films fit the theme of accepting responsibility, in both Homecoming where he sacrifices his chances with Liz to stop the Vulture and in Far From Home where he accepts Stark's posthumous invention, EDITH, after initially shirking the responsibility.