Recap / Spider Man The Animated Series S 01 E 07 The Alien Costume Part 1

Colonel John Jameson is leading a space shuttle mission to an asteroid. While joking with his co-pilot, Paul Stevenson, about getting food delivered up in space, John takes a sample of rock, but discovers that the rock seems to "bleed" a black, tar-like substance. When the asteroid starts shaking, Paul urges him to return to the shuttle. Once aboard, the crew of the shuttle study the samples found on the asteroid. Back on Earth, a news report details the mission of the shuttle, especially on the discovery of "Promethium X", a powerful new isotope. Following this report are Daily Bugle publisher J. Jonah Jameson, John's father, along with his editor-in-chief, Robbie Robertson, and Peter Parker, Bugle photographer/our hero Spider-Man; Wilson Fisk, alias the Kingpin, and his right-hand man Alistair Smythe; and former Bugle reporter Eddie Brock, who is stuck in traffic on the George Washington Bridge trying to get to JFK Airport, where the shuttle will attempt to land. Peter and Robbie congratulate Jonah for raising Col. Jameson, who is now a hero for his discovery, though Peter thinks the apple fell pretty far from the tree there. As the shuttle begins re-entry, the ooze from the asteroid breaks out of one of the sample jars and attacks the shuttle crew, sending it hurtling towards Manhattan. Peter warns his Aunt May to head to the basement, while Kingpin prepares to evacuate in case the shuttle crashes near his building; Smythe, however, believes the shuttle's trajectory will take it to the George Washington Bridge. Jonah heads for the estimated crash site in the Bugle news copter, while Peter opts to head there as Spider-Man.

At the bridge, the Kingpin takes advantage of the pandemonium by sending in the Rhino, a super-strong brute dressed in a rhinoceros costume, who begins tossing aside abandoned cars to clear a space for the shuttle. As Smythe predicted, John manages to steer the shuttle to the Hudson river, but hits one of the towers on the George Washington Bridge, crashing and just barely avoiding going over the side. Spider-Man arrives at the crash site to find that the door to the shuttle has been pulled off. Going inside to see if the crew needs help, the web-slinger discovers the Rhino onboard, stealing the samples. They briefly tussle, but the tight quarters and Rhino's charging knocking the shuttle towards the river leave Spidey at a disadvantage; however, before Rhino can paste him, Kingpin recalls him, as the police are on their way. Rhino promises to finish things later, which Spidey plans on, as he slips a Spider-Tracer onto the ankle of the grey goon's suit. Getting Jameson and Stevenson out safely, Spider-Man prepares to see Jonah's face when he sees him saving his son, but a noise inside the shuttle distracts him and he goes back inside to check it out, but just barely escapes when the shuttle goes over the edge and falls into the Hudson. Jonah finds John barely conscious and muttering about the crash and Spider-Man, leaving the publisher puzzled as to what he's got to do with this. Eddie Brock, who saw what went down, approaches, lying about seeing Spidey stealing from the shuttle, and promising proof if he gets his job back. Spider-Man climbs out of the river, his costume covered in black ooze, which he at first thinks is merely pollution from the river.

The Rhino returns to the Kingpin's lair with the Promethium X; Smythe is eager to begin examining it, but Fisk informs him that he's got a buyer lined up already. At home in Queens, Peter hears from Aunt May that Spider-Man robbed the shuttle, and that J. Jonah Jameson has put a million dollar bounty up for the capture of the wall-crawler. Incensed at this, and further aggravated at losing the Rhino's trail, Peter goes to bed, unaware that the slime on his costume is moving towards him. That night, he has a strange dream, where a monster made of the same ooze is chasing him down the streets; as the monster moves in for the kill, a giant Spider-Man costume appears and challenges the creature. As they fight, Peter hides in a doorway, but the slime thing overpowers the costume and grabs him. When he wakes up, he's hanging upside-down in the middle of the city, in a black Spider-Man costume he's never seen before. Before he can get his bearings, every police officer and wanna-be bounty hunter in the area spots him and goes after him. Defending himself, Peter finds the suit augments all of his powers, makes its own webbing, and can even transform itself on his mental command, disguising him as a policeman to distract the opportunistic cops.

The next day, at Empire State University, emboldened by the power of his new suit, Peter decided to try to woo Felicia Hardy again, his costume disguised as a fine Italian suit. When Flash Thompson starts pushing him around, Peter starts threatening him. Felicia manages to break it off, and tells Peter that his new behavior frightens her, but he's so high on his new power that he blows it off. Meanwhile, Smythe bemoans that he doesn't have the proper equipment to study the Promethium X, so Kingpin sends the Rhino to get that equipment. After nearly blowing up after Aunt May worries about how the bounty will make Spider-Man more dangerous, Peter picks up the Rhino's trail and decides to settle the score. Spider-Man confronts Rhino at a government repository where the equipment Smythe needs is kept, and this time, he easily overpowers his larger opponent, and is prepared to kill him when he remembers what had happened at ESU earlier, and leaves a terrified Rhino behind. Contemplating what effects this suit is having on him, Spidey is shaken when he sees his reflection turn into a fanged, drooling monster in a flash of lightning.

To Be Continued...

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This episode provides examples of:

• Armor-Piercing Question: How Rhino learns he's not dealing with the same old Spidey.
  Rhino: I'd rather go to jail than to be a snitch.
  Spider-Man: Who said anything about jail?
• Chameleon Camouflage: Downplayed. The symbiote is implied to change its appearance to suit whatever its host thinks of, but Peter only uses this to duplicate street clothes.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: When Spider-Man encounters Rhino the second time, the Venom symbiote helps him utterly dominate the fight. Rhino gives up, but Spidey, under the influence of the symbiote, tries to kill him. At the last minute he stops himself and flees.
• Darker and Edgier: Spider-Man becomes this.
• Dramatic Irony: After saving John Jameson, Peter is initially ecstatic as he goes home, thinking Spider-Man will finally get his due and Jonah will take back every bad thing he ever said... only to discover that, thanks to Eddie's lies, Jonah instead blames him for the attack on John and has placed a $1 million bounty on his head.
• Evil Costume Switch: Classic example.
• Flashback: When he's about to kill Rhino, Spider-Man recalls his recent behavior.
• Flashback-Montage Realization: "She was right. I am different."
• Foreshadowing: The symbiote's weakness to sonics is hinted at in the cockpit when it recoils from John after the co-pilot utters a piercing scream.
• Frame-Up: Eddie Brock fakes his photos of the shuttle crash to make it appear as though Spider-Man stole the Promethium X. In reality, Rhino took the mineral.
• Grew a Spine: Under the influence of the alien costume, Peter stands up to Flash when he starts talking down to him, directly insulting him by calling him a "bonehead" and even getting physical with him until Felicia pulls Flash away. Flash is so shocked by this he just stares at Peter in horror.
  Flash: Well this is a twist. Look who's suddenly developed a backbone.
  Peter: (grabbing Flash by the arm and jacket) I've developed a lot more than a backbone.
• Hero with Bad Publicity: Spider-Man, thanks to Brock's frame-up.
• He Went That Way: Spidey does this while disguised as a police officer.
• Immoral Journalist: Eddie reaches a whole new low by outright lying to Jonah about the attack on John and theft of the Promethium X, taking advantage of Jonah's hatred of Spider-Man to get his job back.
• MacGuffin: Promethium X, a highly explosive mineral from outer space, brought to Earth by astronauts. The Kingpin has Rhino steal it because he wants to sell it as a weapon on the black market.
• The Mirror Shows Your True Self: Just after Spider-Man stops himself from murdering Rhino, he sees his reflection in a window. For a split-second, during a lightning storm, his reflection changes from his own to Venom, causing Spidey further discomfort at his darkening nature. Doubles as Foreshadowing.
• My God, What Have I Done?: Spider-Man after nearly killing Rhino.
  "I almost did something back there that I would've regretted for the rest of my life, and I have no idea why."
• Mythology Gag: The Nightmare Sequence below basically recreates the cover and scene from The Amazing Spider-Man #258.
• Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Rhino was about to kill Spider-Man during their first fight, but Kingpin interrupted to alert him to the approaching authorities and ordered him to leave.
• Nightmare Sequence: The night the Venom symbiote bonds to Peter, he dreams he is being chased by a massive black slime creature through a distorted cityscape. A giant Spider-Man costume fights the slime creature for Peter, but the creature wins, devouring Peter. When he wakes up, he is hanging outside a skyscraper, bonded to the symbiote.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: The entire point, really.
  Rhino: What are you doin'? I told ya, I give up!
  Spider-Man: That's funny. I give up, too. [lifts the metal door above Rhino] I give up trying to be a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
• Oh, Crap!: Rhino when he realizes Spider-Man is serious about killing him.
• Papa Wolf:
  • Jonah after communication with the shuttle cuts out. He later insists on taking a helicopter to the estimated crash site.
    Robbie: Jonah, they're not gonna allow any air traffic in that area!
    Jonah: Robbie, my son is on that shuttle.
• Psychotic Smirk: Peter gets one when confronting Flash.
• Shout-Out: Spider-Man tests out the symbiote's camouflage power by taking on the appearance of "that guy from Aerosmith" (Joe Perry of Aerosmith performed the show's theme tune).
• The Symbiote: Obviously. This depiction is the Mutualistic variation, for now. When the Venom symbiote bonds to Spider-Man, it enhances all of his powers, lets him duplicate any clothing appearance, and shoots webbing on its own. It also makes Spidey more aggressive and brutal, driving him to nearly kill Rhino. This is the Spider-Man story that came up with the idea of the symbiote affecting the host's mind in this way.
• This Cannot Be!: Rhino's reaction to his curb-stomping.
  Rhino: This ain't possible! You can't do this!
  Spider-Man: I just rewrote the rules!
• Took a Level in Badass: The symbiote augments Spider-Man's strength.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: With the symbiote, Peter becomes far more confident to the point of this.
• Villains Want Mercy: Rhino is quick to start pleading when Spider-Man threatens to kill him.
• We Will Meet Again:
  Rhino: We'll finish this some other time.
  Spider-Man: [thinking] You can count on it. [sticks a tracer on him]
• What the Hell, Hero?: Felicia to Peter after he messes with Flash.
  "You are different, and you scare me."
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: With Rhino refusing to name his boss, Spider-Man decides to cut his losses and kill him. He hesitates at the last moment, though.