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The Spectacular Spider-Man

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The most recent animated take on Marvel Comics' web-slinging superhero, headed by Greg Weisman of Gargoyles fame. The series follows 16-year-old Peter Parker through his Junior year of high school, after getting his powers at the end of the previous year and spending all summer as Spider-Man.

The series' biggest influences come from the early comic stories by Stan Lee & Steve Ditko, although numerous elements from the film series and more recent comics have made their way in as well. Combined with fluid animation thanks to the simple art style of artist Sean "Cheeks" Galloway, sharp dialogue, interwoven character origins and a pleasing lack of its predecessor's crippling censorship, it seems set to become the greatest Animated Adaptation of the character to date. A third season has yet to be picked up and, according to Greg Weisman himself, will depend on how well Disney XD's ratings with Season 2 are late in June.

This show provides examples of, well, just about everything:

  • Academy Of Adventure - Midtown High, moreso in Season 2 than in Season 1. Also, Empire State University, though the fact that it's a school in addition to a research lab is barely brought up.
  • Abnormal Ammo - Bazookas and machine guns that fire metal slugs which sprout tiny spikes, and giant staple guns complete with giant staples make the best of the show's prohibition on actual bullets.
  • Absurdly Spacious Sewer - The New York sewer system is marvellously cavernous, used by Spidey and his Rogues Gallery for fights and flights.
  • Abusive Parents - Norman Osborn barely conceals contempt for his son Harry, from snide criticisms to blatant displays of favoritism towards Harry's best friend Peter. Harry's mother barely acknowledges him.
    • Osborn takes this to a whole new level after revealing that he was the Green Goblin, and showing that he not only blamed his son, but faked a limp and then injured his own son's leg to make sure Spider-man would believe it.
  • Accidental Aesop - Every time the show hands us a lesson about responsibility and the right thing in conjunction with Peter's keeping his identity secret, it ends up telling us that secret identities are a stupid idea and nothing good can ever come of them. Which is more or less true, if largely inapplicable to our daily lives.
    • Since no villains have attacked Aunt May I'd say the secret identity is doing some good, its more a double edged sword than an all round bad idea.
  • Achilles Heel - The superstrong Rhino's costume is tough, but fused to his skin, so he only perspires from his exposed face. Spider-Man traps him in a sewer steam-tunnel, which causes Rhino to overheat and collapse.
  • Acquired Situational Narcissism - Harry Osborn snubs his old friends once he's In With The In Crowd.
  • Action Series
  • Adaptation Distillation - The series is already well-thought-of by comic fans.
  • Air Vent Escape - Black Cat uses it as an entrance
  • All Guys Want Cheerleaders - Peter asks The Libby Sally Avril out, and later dates Liz Allan. Subverted when he Dumps Liz for Gwen
  • All Of The Other Reindeer
  • Alliterative Name - Betty Brant, Curt Connors, Glory Grant, J. Jonah Jameson, John Jameson, Kenny "King" Kong, Otto Octavius, Peter Parker, Rand Robertson, Robbie Robertson
  • All Just A Dream - The fight with Venom at the start of "Blueprints".
  • Almost Kiss - Peter and Gwen in "Identity Crisis"
    • and... *sigh* again, as of Final Curtain. They stop just in time to not betray their current significant others till they break-up with other.
  • Amusement Park - Spider-Man and Doctor Octopus duke it out in the middle of Coney Island, causing chaos amongst the fairgoers.
  • And This Is For - Spider-Man delivers a particularly violent kick to Green Goblin for "making [him] protect Tombstone."
  • And Zoidberg - "Yes gentlemen...and Rhino..."
  • Animal Motifs Spidey and Most of his Villains. Lampshaded.
  • Animated Adaptation
  • Animated Series
  • Animorphism - Curt Connors transforms into the Lizard
  • The Apple Falls Far "Shear Strength" When Spidey has The Tinkerer perched on top a tall building we get to see Tinkerer's glasses fall
  • Applied Phlebotinum
  • Appropriated Appellation - Many.
  • Artificial Limbs - Curt Connors' elaborate prosthetic arm, Doctor Octopus' robotic arms
  • Aside Glance - After Spider-Man repeats Tombstone's dialogue verbatim, Green Goblin turns to the camera and quips, "Anyone else getting deja vu? Oh well, let's run with it!" and then repeats his response.
  • Auction Of Evil "Accomplices"
  • Bad Ass - Venom and Kraven
  • Badass Bookworm - Doctor Octopus
  • Badass Grandpa - The Vulture, sort of-he's dangerous because of his outfit, not any inherent ability.
  • Badass Longcoat - Doctor Octopus
  • Badass Normal - Black Cat presumably, and George Stacy. Season 2 gives us Sergei Kravinov (Kraven before his tranformation) and Silver Sable
  • Bad Guy Bar - Montana's Big Sky Billard Room
  • Bait And Switch - Kingsley. He even uses the phrase.
    • The Green Goblin's Identity is also handled in such a manner.
  • Barrier Warrior - This is a secondary function of Shocker's costume, that enables him to survive a building's collapse.
  • Bat Signal - Inverted. Spider-Man uses the Spider-Signal to announce his arrival.
  • Batman Cold Open - Frequently
  • Battle Butler - Hammerhead's Driver
  • Berserk Button - Calling Electro his real name, "Max"
  • Beware The Nice Ones - Otto Octavius
  • BFG - Silver Sable uses one.
  • Big Applesauce
  • Big Bad - Tombstone, Green Goblin, Dr. Octopus or Venom, depending on the Story Arc.
  • Big Eater - Kenny Kong
  • Big No - The Sandman, on seeing his new form. Spider-Man, after being trussed up and threatened by Venom and again when it looks like Spidey's dropped Gwen after Venom hit him... and again in the Season 2 premiere when Venom tosses Spider-Man off a ledge in his dream (Seems like Venom loves this trope).
    • Yet another, by Spidey, after Vulture abducts Gwen.
  • Bilingual Bonus - Speaking Latin allows you to know that some of Mysterio's ominous intonations are actually MC Hammer lyrics.
  • Bitter Sweet Ending - Of course, if there's a Season 3 then this doesn't apply as much. But Season 2's ending took the universe's directive to screw Peter over at every turn and ran with it so fast it mocked the Flash. Congrats, Spidey, you finaly defeated the biggest bad of all. Only a) you had to traumatise your friend to do it and pretty much black spot Spider-Man forever for him as a result (Which will likely drive him into becoming the new Green Goblin) b) you couln't save Doc. Connors from having to move out of fear for his family following the incident you yourself had a hand in c) You don't have a girlfriend to show for it (and on top of that, Gwen is going to be utterly miserable as a result) and d) You didn't really defeat the big bad because Norman Osborn lives.
  • Black Best Friend - Rand Robertson to Flash Thompson
  • Blackmail - Green Goblin unsuccesfully attempts this twice with L. Thompson Lincoln, threatening to out him as Tombstone if he won't step down as Big Bad, or won't come to the Goblin's Death Course.
  • Blasting It Out Of Their Hands - The Green Goblin's mooks shoot a laser rifle out of Heroic Bystander - John Jameson's hands.
  • Blessed With Suck - Electro is Power Incontinent, when angry, which is often. He has to wear an insulation suit at all times.
  • The Blob - The Sandman
  • Bloody Biometric - Black Cat hacks a fingerprint scanning lock
  • Book Ends - In the first episode "Tell me there's something better. Go ahead, try."
    • Season 2's usage of "Don't apologize. I never do."
  • Briar Patching — Used and referenced during one of Spidey's fights with Shocker.
  • Brief Accent Imitation - Spider-Man mocks Shocker in this way.
  • The Brute - Hammerhead, the Sandman, the Rhino
  • Building Swing - Spider-Man
  • Burning Building Rescue - Colonel Jupiter's First Attempt at heroics
  • By Wall That Is Holey - A hole in the bleachers is quite handy when Venom throws them around
  • Cake Eater - Peter very publically proclaims his interest in twenty-year-old Betty Brant, and plays the Dogged Nice Guy to pressure her to be his date for the High School Dance, only to be thwarted by Aunt May.
  • Candid Camera Prank - When Ned asks Aunt May if Peter is Spider-Man, she looks for a hidden camera and asks if she's being "Punked"
  • Cain And Abel - Peter and Eddie, though not blood relatives, fit this nonetheless.
  • The Cameo - Stan Lee as "Stan" the Dockworker in Season 2. Character Designer Sean Galloway also appears at a DJ at the dance in Season 1.
  • Cannot Spit It Out - Gwen's crush on Peter is a secret to him, and almost everybody else, except Mary Jane and the audience, if they've read the comics.
  • Canon Foreigner - Alexander O'Hirn aka The Rhino is this, but is heavily based on the Spider-Man comic's Aleksei Sytsevich.
    • In Season 2 Aaron Warren, and Mayor Waters though the latter is based off a male mayor with the same name in the comic "Spider-Man: Reign"
  • Career Killers - The mercenary Enforcers, Shocker
  • Casual Danger Dialog
  • Card Carrying Villain - Doc Ock drinks out of an Evil Genius coffee mug
  • Cat Girl - Western costumed variant - The Black Cat
  • Ceiling Cling - Spider-Man, Black Cat
  • Channel Hop - Moved to Disney XD from CW4Kids in March.
  • Character Development - Much. Flash Thompson seems to be getting a fair bit.
    • Also notable is Spider-Man's growth. In his first confrontation with Tombstone, he can't lay a finger on him. In Gangland, he can go toe to toe with him, managing to actually win and put him in jail.
    • In this show, it seems even the villains have character development moments.
  • Chair Reveal - Tombstone, Green Goblin in Tombstone's office
  • Check Please - Said by Doc Ock, to a waiter who, fortunately for him, knows better than to respond with anything other than "It's on the house".
  • Chekhovs Gun - Connors' formula, seen in the first episode, and later, the gene cleanser antidote Peter hides in his room. The latter was a subversion, as he eventually decides to just pour it down the sink.
    • Whoa, make that a double subversion, as of "Identity Crisis".
    • from the same episode, Flash's Spider-Man costume distracts Venom long enough to pour the previous Chekhovs Gun in his mouth.
  • Chekhovs Gunman - Most of the series cameos function this way, as ostensibly tertiary characters soon become very important.
  • Chest Insignia - Spider-Man's spider
  • Chewbacca Defense - Venom's attempt to out Spidey as Peter Parker in "Identity Crisis"
  • Christmas Episode
  • Civvie Spandex - Doctor Octopus tops his harness and jumpsuit with an ordinary trenchcoat.
  • City Of Adventure
  • Classy Cat Burglar - The Black Cat
  • Clear My Name - Spider-Man must do this when Master Of Disguise the Chameleon impersonates him for a series of robberies.
  • Cliff Hanger - Venom bursting through the window of the Bugle and shouting to JJJ, "You want the wall-crawler? Than here's a scoop - Peter Parker is Spider-Man!"
  • Clip Show "Intervention" contains a lot of archival footage
  • Closer To Earth - Of the series' Three Amigos, it is Gwen who is most observant and concerned for Harry. May be forgivable due to the age of the source material.
  • Clothes Make The Superman - The Vulture, Shocker, The Rhino. Spider-Man's black costume
  • Clothing Damage - Spidey's suit receives more rips and tears per episode than in any other adaptation. Despite the strong continuity of the series, it's always good as new by the next battle. Although Pete has noted that garbage stink and smoke smell are hard to remove.
  • The Collector Of The Strange - Norman Osborn collects masks and other such antiquities. Spidey even briefly considers that his strange collection might be evidence of Norman being the Green Goblin.
  • Color Character - Green Goblin, Black Cat, Silver Sable.
  • Combat Tentacles - Doctor Octopus' four super strong arms are used for battering and throwing, and the claws can rotate like minature sawblades.
  • Come Alone - Green Goblin's warning when baiting Tombstone into a Death Course
  • Comes Great Insanity - Electro, Doctor Octopus, Green Goblin, and even John Jameson/"Colonel Jupiter"
  • Comes Great Responsibility - Spider-Man. The phrase itself is uttered multiple times throughout the series, which is expected since it's near synonymous with the franchise.
    • Sometimes, it's even subverted:
    Spider-Man: "Well, with great power comes gr—"
    Sandman: "GULLIBILITY!"
  • Compassionate Critic - Norman Osborn towards his son
  • Compilation Movie - The first DVD release "Attack of the Lizard", contains the first three episodes but is advertised as a movie.
  • Complete Monster - Norman Osborn, otherwise known as the Green Goblin. He completely framed his own son, even twisting Harry's ankle, to throw Spider-Man off his track. I repeat, Complete Monster.
  • Composite Character - Montana of the Enforcers and the Shocker originally Herman Schultz in the comics are now a single character.
    • Gwen Stacy is also more teenage Deb Whitman than well... Gwen Stacy. Her design even makes her look just like her.
    • Tombstone is taking the role of the Kingpin from the comics. Quite possibly because the Kingpin's legally attached to unoptioned Daredevil projects that will likely never see the light of day much like its main character.
      • For that matter, People call him Big Man on the show while Big man was a completely different character in the comics.
    • Hammerhead combines aspects of the original comics' Hammerhead and Hammer Harrison of the Enforcers, the latter of which mostly comes through from the punching-based fighting style and distinctive knuckledusters.
    • Mark Allen is Mark Raxton and Bennett Brant, according to Weisman.
  • Conspicuous CG - The 3-D black helicopters tend to stick out against the bright, flat backgrounds and characters.
    • The camera that goes down the stairs in "Group Therapy", kinda looks like something out of Doom
    • And then there's the falling Christmas tree...
    • And the helicopter Harry Osborn is impressively adept at piloting...
  • Conspicuous Trenchcoat - Green Goblin in "Subtext"
  • Continuity Nod - "Tell me I didn't fall for a gag I used on Shocker..."
    • In "Gangland", we see the nerdy guy Spidey webbed up with a hot girl during a car chase in season 1 proposing to said girl.
    • When Mysterio is revealed to be another duplicate in Opening Night, Spidey grimaces "I KNEW he was a bot" after making sure the one he put in jail wasn't, well, a bot.
    • "I can't believe someone is posing as me, framing me, AGAIN! Please be Chameleon, please be Chameleon"
  • Contest Winner Cameo - There was an advertised contest for a given school to appear in a future episode. Appeared in "Gangland".
  • Corrupt Corporate Executive - Norman Osborn, respected Oscorp CEO, very much exemplifies this trope, working both sides of the fence with impunity.
  • Costume Copycat - Chameleon disguises himself as Spider-Man to perform a series of robberies.
  • Could Have Been Messy
  • Crying Little Kid - Inverted. The child's mother pushes her out of harm's way, but remains in danger herself until Spider-Man swings to the rescue.
  • Crowning Moment Of Awesome - Oh so many. Is it too early to make a page for this show?
  • Crowning Moment Of Heartwarming - Much of the later part of Intervention.
  • Cue Cullen - The series gained a lot of fan support when Greg Weisman, the creator of Gargoyles, was revealed to be handling the show.
  • Curb Stomp Battle - Tombstone's first encounter with Spidey
  • Curse Cut Short
  • Cut Lex Luthor A Check - Inverted. Norman Osborn and the Big Man turn a profit by antagonizing Spider-Man. One gets research funding, while the other keeps Spidey too distracted by Supervillains to bother with him.
  • The Cyrano - Flash Thompson enlists Peter's aid to make sure he doesn't sound dumb while trying to impress a smart girl doesn't work, but she likes him anyway.
  • Da Editor - "Jolly" J. Jonah Jameson
  • Dark Action Girl - Black Cat, Silver Sable
  • Dating Catwoman - Spider-Man and the Black Cat
  • Deadly Dodging - Spider-Man does this to cause Shocker to destroy a building, and again to get the Rhino to rupture sewer pipes. And constantly during the Sinister Six fight.
    • Lampshaded in the first season finale when he tricks Venom into punching a float, causing it to slowly desend:
      Spider-man: (to Venom) "Now shouldn't y'all have seen that coming?"
  • Deadpan Snarker - Most of the characters have mild instances of this.
  • Death By Origin Story - Uncle Ben. Come on!
  • Death Course - Green Goblin sets up one of these for both Tombstone and Spider-Man at a refinery with No OSHA Compliance.
  • Death Glare - Gwen has "The Look", which has the same general effect.
  • Defrosting Ice Queen - Cheerleader Liz Allan warms up to Peter.
  • Deliberately Monochrome - The scenes in the Journey To The Center Of The Mind in Intervention, including the Super Hero Origin Flash Back
  • Destined Bystander - Nearly all the villains, as well as, probably, Gwen Stacy
  • Ding Sportswear Pantyhose And Tropes: In "Blueprints".
    Mysterio: "Second Floor - Toys, Housewares, Superhero Defeat."
  • Disco Dan - Hammerhead is a walking throwback to Al Capone-era gangsterism, from his accent to his vintage car.
  • Distressed Damsel - Lampshaded when Spider-Man points out that Norman Osborn is his very first rescue of this type. Liz, Gwen, and Mary-Jane all get their moments too.
  • Do I Really Sound Like That? "Persona"
    Chameleon Spider-Man - "How 'bout a taste of Spider-PUNCH!"
    Spider-Man - "Please tell me I don't sound like that, or at least that I offer a higher-quality quip."
  • Does This Remind You Of Anything - Impressively, Harry's Globulin Green addiction manages to evoke steroid, Ritalin and heroin abuse all at once.
  • Dogged Nice Guy - Subverted when Betty Brant turns down Peter's advances after a talk with Aunt May.
  • Dont Explain The Joke
    Sandman: "I Get it, it's Christmas and he said Sleigh instead of Truck."
  • Do They Know Its Christmas Time - Spidey tries appealing to seasonal spirit to stop the new Sinister Six. No such luck.
  • Double Entendre - The show's favored method of Getting Crap Past The Radar, like when Liz admires Peter's Halloween costume:
    Liz Allan:"You can web me up anytime, Petey."
    Black Cat: ''Just don't get any of your goo in my hair''.
  • Dramatic Irony - Peter sees Jameson is calling him and doesn't pick up his phone, presuming that he's just going to yell about not getting pictures; instead he's calling to let Peter know Aunt May had a heart attack.
  • The Dragon - Hammerhead, right hand of Tombstone
  • Dressed To Kill - Hammerhead, Tombstone
  • Drop What You Are Doing - Gwen Stacy drops her books in shock at finding Harry Osborn passed out cold on the ground.
  • Early Bird Cameo - So very many. The first episode alone introduces nearly a dozen pre-villainy supervillains.
    • And five episodes into season two we've already seen Cletus "Carnage" Cassidy, Miles "The Jackal" Warren, Morrie "Hydro-Man" Bench, and Mark "Molten Man" Raxton. Whether or not they become super-baddies remains to be seen.
      • Not to mention Hobie "The Prowler" Brown and Sha Shan. It seems like every named character is a reference to the comics. Word Of God confirms there will be no "original" characters in this series.
  • Eating Lunch Alone - Gwen in "Intervention".
  • Economy Cast - If an episode needs cops bursting into a scene, it's going to be Jean DeWolff and Stan Carter—a bit surprising, considering the show's surprisingly large cast.
  • Elite Mooks - Tombstone's bodyguards.
  • Embarrassing Old Photo - Flash earned his nickname when he was four, and it wasn't just because he was fast.
  • Enemy Mine - Spider-Man and Rhino extremely reluctantly team up in "Accomplices".
  • Enemy Within - The Symbiote in "Intervention". After its fuses with Eddie Brock at the end of the same episode, they become...
  • Establishing Shot
  • Even Evil Has Standards - Doc Ock politely asks and waits for Aunt May and Anna Watson to excuse themselves from the upcoming brawl between the Sinister Six and Spidey, even halting Rhino as he tries to charge through them.
  • Everything Is Online
  • Evil Albino - Tombstone
  • Evil Costume Switch - Doctor Octopus, Spider-Man
  • Evil Duo - Flint Marko and Alex O'hirn before they became Supervillains
  • Evil Foreigner - If the Chameleon's stuffy Russian accent is any indication.
    • Kraven too.
  • Evil Power Vacuum - Season 2's Gang War story. Even directly referenced as an "Evil Power Vacuum" I think at one point.
  • Evolutionary Levels - "Lizard DNA is more primitive than human."
  • Exact Eaves Dropping - Season 2 finale - Harry overhears Peter and Gwen finally admitting their true feelings to each other... as well as their realization that they have to break up with their current significant others to be able to actually do anything. Guess who Gwen is dating?
  • Exactly What I Aimed At
  • Expository Theme Tune
  • Expressive Mask - Spider-Man, Green Goblin and Chameleon's masks, Doctor Octopus' goggles
  • Eyepatch Of Power - Patch
  • The Faceless - The Chameleon's real face is concealed behind a featureless white full-head mask.
    • Mysterio, when he has his crystal ball-shaped helmet on.
  • Face Framed In Shadow Walter Hardy
  • Failed A Spot Check - "Group Therapy" Peter doesn't know the Sinister Six have escaped despite it being the number one item in the news. Aunt May's absence also alludes him.
  • Faking The Dead - Norman Osborn (Green Goblin) in the season 2 finale. He even changes his appearance and leaves on a plane.
  • Fan Nickname - Many.
    • THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-BRO.
    • Doc Ock has two. Pre-breakdown is "D'awwwc Ock", post is "DOCTOR OCTOPUS, LORD OF THE VAMPIRES". Just watch the episode with the famed opera fight to see what I'm talking about.
    • Do to the various girls Pete/Spidey attracts, fans have decided to rename the show "BITCHES LOVE SPIDER-MAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES".
  • Fantastic Aesop - Green Goblin Harry, Venom and Colonel Jupiter teach us the extremely applicable life lesson that With Great Power Comes Great Insanity.
  • Fastball Special - Spidey and Rhino's Team Up, Ox and Ricochet
  • Fear Leads To Anger - Gwen to Peter
  • Femme Fatale - The Black Cat
  • Fiery Redhead - Mary Jane Watson
  • Five Bad Band - The Sinister Six
    • The Big Bad - Doctor Octopus, the leader of the bunch and perhaps the most competent.
    • The Dragon - Electro wields more raw power than anyone else on the team, and is also the most loyal to Doc Ock.
    • The Evil Genius - Vulture, a Gadgeteer Genius.
    • The Brute - Sandman and Rhino share the position.
    • The Dark Chick - Shocker. The closest thing to an ordinary guy on the team. While quite formidable, his teammates tend to outstrip him in power and/or smarts.
      • The Sixth Column - Mysterio and Kraven, who join in Season 2.
  • Flash Back - "Intervention"
  • Flaw Exploitation - This is Spider-Man's standard MO for defeating villains. Doctor Octopus attempts to do this with a Hostage For Mc Guffin.
  • Flight - The Vulture's magnetic air transport system and the Green Goblin's Tech-Flight glider allow them to fly.
  • First Kiss - Peter's first kiss was actually given to him by Black Cat at the end of "Persona"—a classic Spider-Man Upside Down Kiss.
  • Foregone Conclusion - Do you really think Gwen Stacy's going to survive the series? Considering her place in the Spider-man mythos?
  • Foreshadowing - While virtually all of the Chekhovs Gunman could quality, Season 2 earns mention when Harry literally casts the Goblin's shadow
  • For Halloween I Am Going As Myself - Peter goes to a Halloween festival as Spider-Man, and gets compliments on how well he fills out his costume. Black Cat evidently likes Halloween too.
  • Fourth Wall Portrait - Averted. Mark's drawing of Mary Jane looks lifted straight from of her design.
  • Freak Lab Accident - Spider-Man, Electro, The Sandman, Doctor Octopus
  • Freak Out - Electro snaps, unable to cope with his loss of humanity. Doctor Octopus suffers traumatic electrical shock, and goes from meek to megalomaniacal.
  • Freudian Slip - Pete says Gwen's name instead of Liz's
  • Fridge Brilliance You really have to watch each episode two or three times in order to pick up on the subplots, subtext and foreshadowing that become important later.
  • Fun Personified - Mary Jane Watson
  • Gadgeteer Genius - The Vulture invented his flight-capable Powered Armor, while Mason creates all the Chameleon's Shoe Phone technology.
  • Genetic Engineering Is The New Nuke - Spider-Man, Electro, The Lizard
  • Genius Bruiser - Spider-Man
  • Getting Crap Past The Radar
    Mary Jane Watson:...but if I can't dance with Pete, I guess I'll dance with...it's Randy, right?
    Rand Robertson: Very.
    • and...
    "Well, you are the expert on premature gloatalation."
  • Gilligan Cut "Intervention" Tombstone says "That's the deal." Cut to Martha Connors saying "That's the deal."
  • Glad I Thought Of It - J. Jonah Jameson does this with Peter Parker's idea to take pictures of Spider-Man.
  • The Glasses Gotta Go - Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy
  • Goggles Do Nothing - Averted - Doctor Octopus wears his in place of glasses
  • The Good Captain - Colonel Jupiter
  • Goofy Print Underwear - Peter's Heart-Pattern Thermals.
  • Gosh Dang It To Heck - Spider-Man says "Every single blasted fragment of you?!?"
    • Don't think it was an example, because he meant it literally as that was when he told Green Goblin's mooks that they worked for him and wouldn't get out when he told them there was a bomb at a party.
  • Grappling Hook Pistol - Spider-Man's webshooters, Black Cat's rope shooter
  • Grandma What Massive Hotness You Have - Well, more like Aunt May What Massive Hotness You Have
  • Grenade Hot Potato Goblin tosses up a Pumpkin Bomb in the Billiard Room that gets tossed from person to person until it blows up a pool table.
  • Hard Head Hammerhead.
  • Heart Symbol - Peter and Gwen hide from reporters behind a sculpture with a heart shaped window that frames their faces.
  • Heavy Sleeper: in "Group Therapy", Peter or rather, the symbiote using Peter's body while he's asleep, fights AND defeats the Sinister Six.
  • He Knows Too Much - The motivation behind the Green Goblin's attempted murder of Otto Octavius.
  • He Who Must Not Be Seen - Master Planner
  • Hellish Pupils - The Vulture/Adrian Toomes has comma-shaped pupils, which look particularly odd when he's out of costume.
  • Heroes Want Red Heads - Peter is interested in Mary Jane, but is rebuffed.
  • Heroic Bystander - Eddie Brock defends his friends from Electro, and helps Spider-Man fight the Lizard. John Jameson helps Spidey find a timebomb. Flash Thompson subverts this, putting himself in harm's way.
  • Heroic Sacrifice - Sandman Or Is It?
    • A variation in Opening Night, as the Cat Burglar decides to unleash the tranquilizer gas on the escaped prisoners, leading to him being knocked out as well, and going back to prison.
  • Hey Its That Voice - Betty is Azula, as well as every computer voice in the series. Captain Stacy is Lex Luthor, Long Feng, and a whole mess of others. The Vulture is Freddy Kruger. Black Cat's Number Six. And J. Jonah Jameson is Cosmo.
    • Doesn't anyone notice that Electro is actually Alucard and Albedo? Or Itachi?
    • Not to mention The Shocker is Jeff Bennett, voice of Johnny Bravo and Candle Jack from Freaka
      • Don't forget that Tombstone is the Joker!
      • Though at first he was Goliath. And The Tinkerer is Lexington!
      • Though, one of the best is Uncle Ben being voiced by Edward Asner, who voiced J. Jonah Jameson in the 90's series
    • Harry Osborn is Tidus Test
    • And Steve Blum is Green Goblin (Though when first hearing it, it sounds dangerously similar to Mark Hammil's Joker).
    • Anyone expect Sandman or Hammerhead to have said "Bite my shiny metal ass!"?
    • You'd be surprised upon learning that Mary Jane was Irwin, yo.
    • Doc Ock had once tried to steal the crrrr-EST on Birdman's helmet!!
    • Jim Cummings, who voiced Shocker in the 90's series, voiced the wrestler from Spidey's flashback in this series.
    • Eddie Brock and Nigel Uno have more in common than the letter "V"...
  • High School Dance - The fall formal is the subject of much agonizing as Peter tries to find a suitable date.
  • Hollywood Cyborg - Doctor Octopus
  • Hollywood Nerd - Gwen Stacy and Peter Parker
  • Homage Shot - Numerous Comic Book Covers are used in the series including Amazing Fantasy #15, ASM#33 ASM #39, ASM #100 and more.
  • Hopeless Suitor - Liz Allan verges on this with Peter in the second season, even when they actually are dating. Despite being completely empathetic and nice to him, Peter is preoccupied with Gwen for most of the time, to the point that when leaving in the middle of a date, he apologizes to Gwen who is double-dating with Harry and ignores Liz.
  • Hostage For Mc Guffin - Doctor Octopus takes Liz Allan hostage to force Spider-Man to fork over desired Applied Phlebotinum.
    • The Master Planner also takes Gwen hostage so that Captain Stacy can get him Homeland Security Defense Codes. Doc Ock seems quite fond of this tactic.
  • Hostage Situation - Played straight when Electro holds the genetics lab staff hostage to force them to develop a cure for his condition.
  • How We Got Here - "Catalysts", "First Steps"
  • I Just Want To Be Normal - Peter briefly considers taking a Power Nullifier. Electro is in pursuit of a cure for his powers.
  • Idiosyncratic Episode Naming - Episode titles are all derived from scientific terminology, grouped by field. Weisman has referred the season 1 groups "Biology 101", "Economics 101", "Chemistry 101", and "Psychology 101". He's also mentioned that season 2 will start with "Engineering 101".
    • Season 2 has "Engineering 101", "Pediatrics 101", "Criminology 101" and finally, "Theatrics 101".
  • Idiosyncratic Wipes - Spider hordes, symbiote pseudopods, and pumpkin bombs.
  • Imagine Spot - When asked to try out for the football team with Harry, Peter has a brief, absurdist fantasy of making touchdowns while in costume and wearing a football helmet.
  • Improbable Weapon User - Silver Sable wields a giant staple gun.
  • Incredibly Lame Pun - The Goblin reports to Tombstone that Hammerhead is "tied up at the moment", and chuckles. "You gotta love the classics."
    • In "First Steps" Sandman is hired to steal "The Urn of Morpheus" (Morpheus is the God of Dreams and is also known as "The Sandman")
  • Indulgent Fantasy Segue - Otto Octavius fantasizes about attacking his domineering boss Norman Osborn mere minutes before his high-voltage Freak Out, after which he does it for real.
  • In Medias Res "Subtext"
  • Intrepid Reporter - Daily Bugle reporter Ned Lee is investigating Spider-Man and the Green Goblin.
    • Fredrick Foswell fits this trope as well, if not more so.
  • It Only Works Once - Doc Ock explicitly mentions that none of the previous methods Spider-Man has used to beat members of the Sinister Six will work this time.
  • Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique - Spidey does this with The Tinkerer in "Shear Strength".
  • Jerk Jock - Flash Thompson, Kenny "King" Kong. Flash is softening up, though; He's the one who brought Pete back down to earth and clued him in on the way he was acting
  • Jerk With A Heart Of Gold - J. Jonah Jameson. Phenominal dick? You betcha, but he's a phenominal dick that would risk death by giant rhino-man to protect a worker. Also Flash Thompson by Season 2.
  • Journey To The Center Of The Mind - Spider-Man is forced into one of these by the symbiote
  • Just Friends - This frustrates Gwen, because she doesn't want to risk their friendship by telling Peter that she wants to be More Than Friends.
  • Just Hit Him
  • Just Think Of The Potential - Connors' rationalization for developing his formula
  • Karma Houdini - Black Cat, but thankfully, not her dad, who murdered Uncle Ben, and stays in prison despite Cat's break out attempt
  • Kick The Wrong Dog - Dr. Octopus attacks Spider-Man on the wrong accusation that he tried to kill him because the doc thought Spider-Man figured out he "created" Sandman and Rhino; it was actually Green Goblin behind the accident.
    Doc Ock: Don't play games with me, hero. You tried to destroy me! But you failed.
    Spider-Man: Destroy you? Hell Pal, I don't even know you!
  • Kid Hero - Spider-Man
  • Language Of Magic - Complete with Latin
  • Large And In Charge - Tombstone
  • Large Ham - We're VENOM!! (Interestingly, Eddie, himself, isn't one)
    • And later on Mysterio. Oh so much. As Tinkerer mutters "Actors"
    • Doc Ock, especially the first time he speaks after completing his Face Heel Turn: "Silence!! You imperious moron!!!"
  • Laser Hallway - Peculiarly, appears in the ESU genetics lab to deter theft of the "ooze."
    • Black Cat remarks "Lasers, how original."
  • Latex Perfection - Master Of Disguise the Chameleon wears this type of mask over his own full-face mask.
  • Le Parkour - This Spider-Man doesn't just Wall Crawl, he wall runs, too. Black Cat pulls it off as well.
  • Laughing Mad - Harry Osborn
  • Legion Of Doom - The Sinister Six
  • Lego Genetics - Spider-Man, the Lizard
  • Leitmotif - Snippets from the 60's and 90's series can be heard in the background music.
  • Lex Luthor Security - Tombstone's office, lampshaded.
  • The Libby - Cheerleader Sally Avril is the most abusive girl in M³'s Six Student Clique.
  • Lightning Can Do Anything - Electric and bioelectric shocks grant Electro superpowers, which catalyze a gene-altering formula. Electromagnetic shock fuses Doctor Octupus' harness to his spine, causing his Freak Out.
  • Limited Wardrobe
  • Loads And Loads Of Characters - It's what happens when you take nearly every major and minor character from Spider-Man's history and put them all in one show.
  • Love Dodecahedron - The dynamics of the Midtown high group are enormously complicated, but succinctly - Gwen and Liz both like Peter, Peter likes Gwen & Liz and also MJ, MJ flirts with Flash but also comes to really like Mark Allen, Liz has lingering feelings for ex-boyfriend Flash, who finds MJ attractive but then focusses on Sha-Shan, Gwen dates Harry, who previously dated Glory, who left him somewhat inexplicably for Kenny, and I'm sure there are others in there.
  • Love Triangle - A fairly straightforward one as of the end of season 2 between Harry, Gwen and Peter. complicated by the fact that Harry is aware of Peter and Gwen's mutual attraction, but they are unaware that he knows.
  • Mad Scientist - Doctor Octopus
  • Made Of Iron - The Rhino can bust through walls and survive a fall from the top floor of a building unscathed. His environs aren't so lucky. Hammerhead can likewise smash walls with his extraordinarily hard skull.
  • Magnificent Bastard - Tombstone, Norman Osborn, whose schemes run rings around every other character in the show. It seems to run in the family to some extent; near the end of the second season finale, Harry guilt-trips Gwen into staying with him.
  • Male Gaze - Black Cat + Tight Air Vent =
  • Marilyn Maneuver - Spidey uses a web slingshot that causes a breeze that causes a nearby woman to experience this in "Reaction"
  • The Masochism Tango - Randy Robertson/Sally Avril; seriously, Rand, why?
  • Master Of Disguise - The Chameleon, Fredrick Foswell
  • Master Of Illusion - Beck, the Chameleon's special effects wizard, who, in season 2, dons the guise of Mysterio.
  • Mean Boss - Norman Osborn, J. Jonah Jameson
  • Meaningful Name - Patch
    Spider-Man - Really? Your parents must have had foresight.
  • Meganekko - Gwen Stacy.
  • Melee A Trois - The massive battle between Silvermane, Tombstone, Doctor Octopus and Spider Man in "Gangland".
  • Mind Hug - Peter's memories of Uncle Ben allowing him to fight off the symbiote, culminating in a very heartwarming pair of montages
  • Mirror Scare - Octavius discovers the Green Goblin in this way. It's also inverted when the viewer sees Harry's face reflected as the Green Goblin.
  • Mistaken For Murderer - Doctor Octopus thinks Spider-Man knows about his role in creating Supervillains, and assumes that Spider-Man engineered a Freak Lab Accident in an attempt to kill him.
  • Monster Of The Week - Justified for some examples, as Tombstone explains that he wants to keep Spider-Man busy fighting super-powered brutes to distract Spidey from combating his rather profitable crime empire
  • Morally Ambiguous Doctorate - Doctor Octopus
  • Motifs The Speakspeare Quotes, The Opera, A Midsummer Night's Dream
  • Motive Decay - Averted in "Group Therapy", where after the first go at fighting Spider-Man, the Sinister Six nearly break up because most of them view fighting Spider-Man as a distraction from their personal goals.
  • Multi Armed And Dangerous - Doctor Octopus, yet again.
  • Mythology Gag - many shots are based on or even directly stolen from the live-action movies
    • Some shots are straight from comic book covers, including the famous Amazing Spider-Man #100 cover.
    • Spidey uses one of The Thing's many Catchphrase "What a revoltin' development this is"
  • Name That Tune - Ox hums the show's title theme tune in the elevator, much to the annoyance of the other Enforcers. "It's catchy!"
  • Names To Run Away From Really Fast - Tombstone, Venom. Peter even lampshades it.
    Peter - "The guy calling himself "Venom", Does that name inspire trust?"
  • Necro Cam - The camera dives into Peter's bloodstream after the spider bites him in the opening theme.
    • Also when we see Dr. Octopus' harness merge with his spine.
  • Nerd Glasses - Otto Octavius' coke-bottle lenses reduce his eyes to hazy black dots
  • Never Say Die averted in the first season finale by Eddie Brock/Venom
    • Also when Spider-Man says Black Cat's father murdered Uncle Ben. Word for word.
  • New Transfer Student - Mary Jane Watson
  • New York City
  • Nightmare Fuel - Curt Connors' transformation into the Lizard, around the time that the good doctor's head implodes.
    • Or just a few episodes later when Flint Marko's head explodes after turning into the Sandman.
  • No One Could Survive That - Season 2 finale. The Green Goblin, a.k.a. Norman Osborn, atop his trademark flyer sails right into a roof-mounted pumpkin-bomb launcher—which proceeds to go boom with gusto. At the end of the episode, we see a newly blond and facial-hair-sporting Norman Osborn boarding a flight to a tropical island.
  • No OSHA Compliance - The refinery Death Course Green Goblin sets for Spider-man and Tombstone.
  • Not Now Bernard - Shocker dismisses O'Hirn this way when fighting Spider-Man
  • Not So Harmless - Doctor Octopus
  • Off Model - Occurs throughout the series from time to time. According to Word Of God, the animation was inconsistent
  • The One With - ...insert Supervillain debut here
  • Open The Iris - In particular, Harry's irises shrink to pinpricks when he's angered under the influence of Globulin Green.
    • Hilariously, with the way all characters' irises are huge in this series, when this happens to Harry, instead of making him look scary, it makes him look more normal than his fellow cast members.
  • Ordinary High School Student - Peter Parker
  • Orphaned Punchline - "...making this the third time the singer's baby was found driving her car."
  • The Other Darrin - After the first episode, Keith David is replaced with Kevin Michael Richardson in the role of Tombstone.
  • Paranoia Fuel - Doc Ock's tentacles climbing in through a hole in the wall of a mental institution and abducting him while he protests the whole time.
    • It loses paranoia when it's revealed to have been staged.
    • Eddie Brock uses this to make Peter reveal the location of the symbiotie
  • Peeka Boo - Flint Marko is depicted as nude when serving as an experimental subject, but clever blocking conceals anything below waist level.
  • Pet The Dog - Sandman helps a little girl at the beach. Hammerhead calls him out on it.
  • Playing With Fire - Mark Allan/Molten Man
  • Positive Discrimination - Of the Six Student Clique's three jocks, is the nicest towards the nerd main characters.
  • Post Kiss Catatonia - Peter after Gwen kisses him in the season 1 finale
    • It's turned into a running gag, what with Black Cat kissing him in "Persona", and then Liz Allan kissing him in "Shear Strength". Same reaction every time.
  • Power Incontinence - Electro
  • Power Nullifier - The "gene cleanser" antidote for Curt Connors' transformation, a tube of which Peter considers taking himself, and later washes down the sink, as an affirmation that Spider-man is "his destiny".
  • Powered Armor - Silvermane
  • Power Of Friendship - How Peter fights against the Symbiote for control of his body.
  • The Power Of Love - Pretty much how Spider-Man defeats Venom in "Nature vs. Nurture".
  • Professor Guinea Pig - Curt Connors doses himself with his own formula.
  • Promotion To Opening Titles - The theme from the first few episodes showcased our Three Amigos plus J. Jonah Jameson. In episode 10, Mary Jane replaced Harry's spot and since then, Peter, along with the three other characters most important to the episode's story are used in the credits.
  • Psycho Electro - Electro, in his debut episode, provides a perfect example of this trope, essentially running around in a panic and discharging voltage uncontrollably.
    • Hell, he provides the trope's picture.
  • Psycho Serum - Globulin Green, an addictive steroid, causes blackouts and gives its user a Superpowered Evil Side. It's a handy way to adapt the comic book Harry's famous drug addiction for Saturday morning cartoons.
  • Punch Clock Villain - The reluctant Otto Octavius, before his Freak Out. Also, the Sandman is generally only in it for a "big score," hates revenge, and is kind to children.
  • Put On A Bus - Harry Osborn was sent on a trip abroad to rehab for multiple episodes.
  • Race Lift - Liz Allan is now Latina. Ned Leeds Well, Ned Lee, anyway is now Asian. Kenny "King Kong" McFarlane is now Kenny "King" Kong, also Asian. Jean De Wolff, Debra Whitman and Roderick Kingsley are also noticeably darker than their comic counterparts.
  • Reasonable Authority Figure - Captain Stacy
  • Record Needle Scratch - Accompanies cheerleader Sally Avril's blunt rejection of Peter when he asks her out.
  • Reflective Eyes "Final Curtain" The Unmasked Goblin is reflected in Harry's Eyes.
  • Rescue Romance - Spidey saves a guy and a girl by webbing them together. For them its Love At First Sight
    Spidey - "You Can Thank Me Later Dude."
    • As it so happens, we see this guy propose to the same girl in "Gangland"
  • Rhymes On A Dime - Green Goblin in "Opening Night"
  • Ridiculously Human Robots - Mysterio has many to disguise himself with, fitting his illusionist persona.
  • Right Hand Versus Left Hand - Partially subverted, from a few obscure lines you'd think that the Sinister Six were going to tear themselves apart through arguments, which is what Spider Man has invoked in other adaptations. Instead they stayed relatively cool with each other, but their individual attacks would accidently take out other teammates.
  • Rogues Gallery
  • Roofhopping - Spider-Man, Doctor Octopus
  • Running Gag - Gwen gives her friends "the look" when angry. Mary Jane, before she actually appears, is repeatedly described as having a "wonderful personality shudder." Hobie Brown being interrupted every time he attempts to say something.
  • Save The Villain Spidey saves Electro from the Collapsing Lair.
  • Scary Black Man - Tombstone...no, really. Evil Albino, remember? Also, all his mooks. Except for the albino thing. Oh, and a few of those mooks are Scary Black Women.
  • School Play - The production of A Midsummer Nights Dream becomes a major subplot in Season 2.
  • Screw The Money I Have Rules - Tombstone offers to buy Spider-Man's services in exchange for looking the other way now and then, but he declines. Though he takes the deal when fused with the Symbiote, once it's gone, he rejects the offer again.
  • Screwed By The Network - Why Disney XD waited until summer to air Season 2 I'll never know.
  • Secret Identity
  • Secret Identity Change Trick - Used often. At one point, this backfires on Peter, when it looks as though he lied about where he was going in order to take pictures of Spider-Man.
  • Secret Keeper - George Stacy. Maybe.
  • Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness - Doctor Octopus
  • Shadow Discretion Shot - The first time the Lizard appears, the horror of the transformation is depicted in shadows and the reactions of Mrs. Connor, Eddie Brock, and Gwen Stacy.
  • She Cleans Up Nicely - Gwen shows up to her date with Harry sans glasses and in a dress and heels
  • She Is All Grown Up - Hammerhead says this about Silver Sable
  • Shipper On Deck - Mary Jane
  • Ship Tease ><;;;
  • Shout Out - Greg Weisman's Gargoyles, quite a number of comic book cover homages, and musical leitmotifs from the 60's and 90's series are all referenced.
    • Doc Ock had two girls on his arms in "Accomplices", and the blond one of them bears a resemblance to Stunner, one of Doc's in-comic girls. Some say the black haired one looks a bit like Mary-Alice, his first fiance.
    • As well as some to the fans for example, lack of banter was a complaint about the movies, so when fighting a villain who yells "Why won't you just shut up?!" Spidey responds, "Sorry, my fans expect a certain amount of quippage in every fight."
    • The Season 2 episode "Shear Strength" has Spidey trapped into a situation similar to the comic books, where he had to save the life of a loved one despite being buried under a big fricking machine.
    • The statue of Atlas is a reoccurring feature, likely a shout out to "Atlas Shrugged" in keeping with Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko's objectivism.
    • In "Opening Night" Black Cat uses a fake ID with the name "Selina Drew" "Drew" is probably a reference to Spider-Woman, aka Jessica Drew, while "Selina" may refer to Catwoman, of whom Black Cat is an Expy.
    • In "Nature Vs. Nuture" Peter wonders if "Romita's" delivers Turkey Pizza. A reference to artists John Romita and John Romita Jr.
    • There may also be some homage to Batman Beyond Because, at some point during the fight with the Sinister Six (First fight), Spider-Man defeats Shocker the same way Shriek was defeated.
    • The battle damage that Spider-Man suffers in his fight with the Green Goblin in season 2 looks like it came from the movie.
  • Significant Anagram - Of course a criminal named Alex O'Hirn would be called The Rhino.
  • Sky Surfing - The Green Goblin's Tech-Flight glider allows him to do this.
  • Skyward Scream - A minor version in the season finale; after Venom ties Spidey up and threatens to destroy everything in his life, the camera pulls out just a little bit as Spidey lets out a fairly low-grade Big No.
  • Slave To PR - To preserve his public image, Tombstone refuses to do or say anything villainous when civilians that could incriminate him are around.
  • Slippery Skid - Spidey uses bowling balls to try and stop The Rhino
    Spider-Man: "This always works in the cartoons!" *Rhino smashes them by stepping on them rather than slipping* "Agh! Television ''so'' cannot be trusted."
  • So Proud Of You - Osborn, after revealing to be the real Green Goblin, says he's never been so proud of Harry in the second season finale. A shame poor Harry probably didn't hear him...
  • Soft Glass
  • Soft Water
  • Something Person - Spider-Man, Sandman
  • Something They Would Never Say - "Norman Osborn never apologizes!"
  • Spider Sense
  • The Starscream: Pretty much everyone's dragon in the gang war arc, especially Hammerhead, which is surprising because he seemed to be extremely faithful toward his leader. However, he is understandably fired by said boss shortly after they (Or at least the boss) were arrested.
  • Steven Ulysses Perhero - Alex O'Hirn, the Rhino, Otto Octavius alias Doctor Octopus.
  • Story Arc - There are multiple arcs that overlap one another. They consist of three episodes unless stated otherwise:
    • Season 1: The Lizard, The Big Man, Green Goblin, The Symbiote (4 episodes)
    • Season 2: Master Planner (4 episodes), Venom Returns, Gang War, Green Goblin II (As in the second Green Goblin arc, not a new Goblin)
  • Strange Bedfellows - Hammerhead and Silver Sable, Spidey and Rhino
  • Super Hero
  • Super Hero Origin - presented in flashback during "Intervention"
  • Super Strength
  • Super Villain
  • Supervillain Lair - The Master Planner's Underwater Fortress, complete with Hacker Cave and Self Destruct Mechanism that causes it to collapse.
  • Superpowered Evil Side - Norman Osborn as the Green Goblin. And naturally, with the addition of the alien symbiote, Spider-Man's getting his very own. At first, it simply made him slightly more ruthless and convinced him to lie to protect it. But apparently, it took over completely during his second confrontation with the Sinister Six, given that he doesn't remember the battle afterwards, he didn't make a single quip during it, and he nearly killed Doc Ock before Captain Stacy told him not to.
  • Take That - at Spider-Man 3
  • Talking Is A Free Action - Subverted. When Spider-Man takes the time to say "Woah! My Spider Sense is tingli—!" he is caught in a net before he can finish. Afterwards, his sense is never announced again.
  • Talking To Himself - several instances
  • Throw The Dog A Bone - Hobie Brown is given the role of Puck in "A Midsummer's Night's Dream" after having previously been interrupted every time he opens his mouth in the show.
  • Title Drop - Spidey is referred to specifically as "The Spectacular Spider-Man" during his introduction as a wrestler in "Intervention".
  • Title Theme Tune
  • Too Dumb To Live - When Spidey apparently walks right into an ambush and gets pounded, Shocker uses these exact words to describe him. He is very wrong, and the fact he fell for Spidey playing possum possibly makes him an example.
  • Took A Level In Badass - Eddie Brock returns in the second season with what seems to be his own mechanical webshooters, and, more importantly, enough ninja skills to reliably track Spidey across the city and mislead him into thinking that Venom is back before actually reuniting with the symbiote.
  • Totally Radical - Averted with the usage of common slang, such as "Don't go emo on me, bro."
  • Transformation Trauma - Again, Connors' Lizard transformation. Flint Marko's transformation into the Sandman, a painful process that culminates when he explodes into sand.
  • Traintop Battle - Spider-Man fights the Lizard atop and inside a subway car.
  • Trickster - Spider-Man, Black Cat
  • Trope Overdosed - And how!
  • Two Guys And A Girl - Peter, Gwen, and Harry have been best friends for at least 4 years. It's played at least mostly straight because Harry appears to be the Green Goblin.
  • Underwater Base The Master Planner's HQ
  • The Unfavorite - Harry Osborn
  • Unlucky Childhood Friend - Gwen has this problem when trying to get Peter to notice her.
    • Although by the end of the first season she seems to have a better chance.
      • much better as of the end of season 2, given that they've both admitted their feelings and found them reciprocated. Of course, now the two of them have other problems in that department.
  • Unnecessary Makeover - Gwen though Your Mileage May Vary
  • Villain Ball grabbed very jarringly by Eddie Brock
  • Villain Team Up - "Group Therapy"
  • Villain With Good Publicity - Norman Osborn, Corrupt Corporate Executive and The Big Man, L. Thompson Lincoln, who is the philanthropic public face of crimelord Tombstone.
  • Wake Up Go To School Save The World
  • Wall Crawl - Spider-Man, The Lizard
  • Wangst - Venom's motivation
  • We Can Rule Together - Tombstone again, and later the Green Goblin
  • Well Done Son Guy - Harry Osborn, just, Harry Osborn. When he accomplishes something, he even brushes off his girlfriend congratulating him to call his dad.
  • Wham Episode - Identity Crisis.
    • And now Final Curtain.
  • Where Did They Get Lasers - While the guns most people carry are supposed to be realistic "shoot bullets" ones, they sound more like lasers or silenced shots. High-tech villains such as the Green Goblin, however, are all about the lasers. There's also a couple of instances of abnormal ammo, although these are rarer.
  • Where Does He Get All Those Wonderful Toys - So far, it hasn't been mentioned where his webbing comes from, or where the web shooters themselves came from, or how he got his hands on a spotlight that fits on his belt and projects an image of his mask.
    • Not to mention, how did he sew that suit without his aunt catching on to what he was doing?
  • With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility
  • Wolf Man - Spidey refers to mutant Kraven as one of these, even though there's no evidence of wolf DNA in his change.
  • The Woobie - Gwen, Otto Octavius
  • Xanatos Gambit - "It's all about misdirection", and boy is it ever...
    • Eddie Brock, of all people, pulls a classic one, goading Spidey into leading him straight to the place where the alien symbiote is buried through Paranoia Fuel.
    • Norman Osborn is the undisputed master of this, though it borders on Xanatos Roulette.
      • Still hasn't reached Xanatos' level yet, though.
  • X Ray Sparks - Otto Octavius, during a massive electromagnetic shock
  • Yank The Dogs Chain - Well, it is Spider-Man. Probably the best is "Hey, look, someone else gets superpowers and decides to use them for good! Not."
  • Yawn And Reach - Flash to Mary-Jane
  • You Blockhead - Poor Peter gets this all the time
  • You Fight Like A Cow - Spidey's famous battle patter
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