Recap / The Spectacular Spider-Man S1 E11 "Group Therapy"

Doc Ock: Now then, arachnid, any last words?
Spider-Man: Homina homina homina comes to mind...

Max Dillon is discharged from Ravencroft Asylum with a clean bill of health, thanking Dr. Kafka for helping him recover. Using his newfound control over his electrical powers, he places a phone call to Otto Octavius, informing him to get ready and thanking him for his advice and counselling. At Ryker's Island Penitentiary, Octavius informs Montana, Marko, Toomes, O'hirn, and the Enforcers that it is time for them to escape and exact revenge on Spider-Man. That evening, Electro short-circuits the cell locks, enabling them to escape with the help of Hammerhead, who returns Octavius's tentacles, Vulture's flight suit, and Shocker's equipment and provides them with a ride back to the mainland.

In the morning, Peter prepares to head out, discovering that the Black Suit can flow onto his body to save time dressing and produce its own webbing. He persuades Aunt May to go to the theater with her friend Anna Watson despite her feeling "peakish", missing the muted broadcast revealing the breakout. Peter greets Eddie, who berates him for not calling the police following Spider-Man's theft of the alien. Peter quickly gets over losing "his oldest friend", following a police car to find Rhino trashing Times Square. He is ambushed by Sandman, and is surprised to find Shocker, Vulture, Electro and Dr. Octopus waiting for him as well. Aunt May attempts to stop them from ganging up on Spider-Man and Dr. Octopus calls a ceasefire so they can get to safety, but once inside the theatre May collapses from a heart attack. Outmatched, Spider-Man is forced to retreat into the sewers, where Rhino is too big to fit and Electro's and Sandman's powers prove more a hindrance than a help, enabling Spider-Man to successfully escape.

That evening, Mary Jane arranges to go on a date with Eddie Brock, but is disgusted when he pulls daredevil stunts through traffic, badmouthing Peter the whole time. She realizes he only went on a date with her to hurt Peter and tells him that while Peter is flawed, he is still a better person than Eddie. At the Bugle, Jameson is furious that Peter missed getting a scoop on the Sinister Six until he learns that his aunt was hospitalized, calming immediately and phoning to tell him the bad news. At home, Peter ignores Jameson's call, thinking he was going to berate him for not sending pictures, and heads to bed, assuming Aunt May had safely returned home and gone to bed herself. The Sinister Six commandeer a restaurant, where they bicker over their objectives, deciding to put their differences aside to finish off Spider-Man. When the radio sounds off that the Sinister Six have taken hostages at a bank, Peter dips his hand over the side of his bed and the symbiote latches onto him. Spider-Man arrives at the bank and is captured by Dr. Octopus, but the costume lashes out with tentacles of its own and Electro accidentally blasts Dr. Octopus, enabling Spider-Man to break free. Spider-Man systematically defeats the Sinister Six, flattening Electro beneath Rhino, webbing Vulture between two trees, and using Shocker's gauntlets to disable Sandman. Dr. Octopus grabs him, attempting to impale him on Rhino's horn, but Electro loses control of his powers, forcing Octavius to drop him. Spider-Man knocks Octavius out and lifts him by his coat, about to impale him on one of his own tentacles, but Captain Stacey tells him to stand down and he leaves.

Back at home, Peter wakes up more exhausted than when he'd gone to bed and discovers a cut on his arm. Perplexed, he finds photos of Spider-Man's fight with the Sinister Six that he had no recollection participating in and realizes the symbiote must have taken over his body while he was asleep and used him to fight the Sinister Six, but opts to keep it regardless, reasoning that as long as he got paid it didn't matter. Mary Jane interrupts his brooding and informs him that his aunt, who he had assumed was still in bed, had had a heart attack and was in the hospital.

This episode provides examples of:

• Beware the Quiet Ones: Dr. Octopus quips that Spider-Man had gotten serious when he stopped joking.
• Bring It: It was done by the symbiote to Rhino.
• Chronic Hero Syndrome: Doc Ock knows that Spider-Man has it. Unfortunately.
  Dr. Octopus: We simply engineer a situation that forces Spider-Man to play the hero. He'll come. He can't help himself.
• Combat Tentacles: Spider-Man's underarm webbing extends into these to knock Rhino and Dr. Octopus back.
• Curb-Stomp Battle:
  • The Sinister Six's teamwork enables them to deliver one to Spider-Man.
  • The symbiote then returns the favor to the Six.
• Deadly Dodging: The Sinister Six's attacks repeatedly get turned against each other through a combination of Peter doing this and their own sub-par teamwork. Only Shocker, who's used to working on a team, makes a conscious effort to coordinate with the others.
• Death Glare: The symbiote gives one to Dr. Octopus.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Dr. Octopus stops Rhino from attacking Aunt May and Anna just to get to Spider-Man.
• Everyone Has Standards:
  • Jonah intends to personally call Peter to break the news about May's heart-attack.
  • Mary Jane is appalled by Eddie's dangerous daredevil stunts and rants against Peter, so she walks out on him in disgust.
• Evil Evolves: The web patterns on the Black Suit have faded slightly and the white spider emblems become more stylized than they were in "Persona".
• Foreshadowing:
  • The symbiote is injured by the sound vibrations from Shocker's gauntlets.
  • Eddie's rant against Peter foreshadows his actions as Venom.
  • Aunt May expressed some concerns about her well-being before she is convinced to go out with Anna Watson. Seeing the chaos between Spider-Man and the Sinister Six proves too much for her heart to take and faints.
  • Peter internally refers to himself as "we" several times throughout the episode without noticing.
  • While the symbiote is ruthlessly efficient in fighting the Sinister Six, it isn't until Doc Ock expresses his intent to "peel it away" from Peter that it becomes outright murderous.
• Friendship Moment: After escaping their cells, Rhino and Sandman high five.
• From Bad to Worse: Spider-Man confronts Rhino, only to be attacked by Sandman. The remaining villains then appear in succession.
• Full-Name Ultimatum: A variant. When Electro balks at Doc Ock sending him away (as his powers present a danger to the group wading through water, regardless of his better control), Otto addresses him by his full first name in a tone not dissimilar to that of a disapproving parent. Electro's somber reaction is like a disappointed child being denied going with the family for added hilarity.
  Doc Ock: Electro, I'm pleased you've learned to conduct your power safely through water, but down here you present a danger to the group. Head back up.
  Electro: But the spider freak—!
  Doc Ock: Maxwell.
  Electro: ... Yeah, Doc, okay.
• Great Escape: After hashing things out with his fellow inmates, Doc Ock secures the outside support of both Electro and the Big Man's organization for a breakout and getting their assorted equipment back.
• Heroic Bystander: Aunt May was willing to stand between the Sinister Six and Spider-Man, going as far as to telling them off without a hint of fear.
• Ignored Epiphany: Spider-Man realizes that the symbiote is influencing him, but keeps it anyway. Justified, as a desire to stay bonded is one of the very things the symbiote is influencing in him.
• Impaled with Extreme Prejudice:
  • Rhino intends to do this to Spider-Man, and Doc Ock later attempts to carry out the same when Rhino is unconscious.
  • What the symbiote has in mind for Dr. Octopus before Captain Stacy calls it off.
• It's Personal: The symbiote is simply taking down the Sinister Six so they can be arrested, but when Doc Ock talks about stripping it away for study, it becomes set on killing him.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Jameson goes from raging about Peter's tardiness to quietly offering to call him and tell him about his aunt.
• Let's Get Dangerous!: Subverted. Doc Ock comes to the (not unreasonable) conclusion that Spider-Man's sudden silence was because he was no longer playing around with them. Turns out, it was because the Symbiote was the one in control.
• Living Battery: How Dr. Octopus uses Electro.
• Mid-Season Upgrade: Some of the Sinister Six, such as Doc Ock and Vulture, get better gear to counter Spidey's previous attacks.
• My Friends... and Zoidberg: "Yes, gentlemen... and Rhino."
• Mythology Gag: Doc Ock's relatively courteous behavior towards May when she stands between the Six and Spider-Man recalls the incident where he romanced and almost married her in the comics.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Doc Ock comments that he knew Spider-Man was serious as soon as he stopped taunting them.
• Paint It Black: The more control the symbiote gains over Peter the more it changes to resemble its comic book counterpart.
• Pet the Dog: Jameson attempts to personally inform Peter of May's condition rather than have him find out by reading the paper, though Peter ignores his message under the assumption he's just going to get yelled at over photos.
• Power Incontinence: Electro's control over his powers has increased to the point where he can power up machinery without it exploding and safely move through water, but he still loses control when he gets emotional, which is why Doc Ock elects to send him away to wait with Rhino and Vulture while he and the others peruse the sewer for Spider-Man.
• Pun: In prison, Sandman is served a sandwich.
  Sandman: This is a joke, right?!
• Puppeteer Parasite: The symbiote takes over Peter's body while he's sleeping and defeats the Sinister Six.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: After Eddie's stunt on the motorcycle, Mary Jane lets him have it where it really hurts.
  Mary Jane: Pete may not be perfect, but whatever his faults, he's twice the man you'll ever be.
• Revenge: The entire Sinister Six want payback against Spider-Man, but Rhino in particular is obsessed with it (much to Sandman's chagrin). Vulture also notes his main goal is still revenge against Norman Osborn.
• A Round of Drinks for the House: Said by a waiter when Dr. Octopus sarcastically asks for the bill for the meal the Sinister Six are eating.
  Dr. Octopus: How very kind of you. And wise.
• Superpowered Evil Side: The symbiote acts as one for Peter.
• Tactical Withdrawal: Spider-Man exits the first brawl by fleeing into the sewers.
• Taught by Experience: Spider-Man learns the hard way that Vulture reinforced his harness with steel to avoid a repeat of their last encounter. Rhino also bucks off trying to head into the sewers, referencing how poorly he does in tunnels.
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Downplayed - the Sinister Six work together fairly well when focusing on their shared enmity toward Spider-Man, but their sense of teamwork turns shaky outside that due to their differing priorities: Rhino is obsessed with revenge against Spider-Man, Sandman just wants a big score, Vulture's main grudge is against Norman Osborn, Shocker considers himself a professional who is only with the Six on his boss's orders, and Electro still wants a cure. They are held together by Dr. Octopus, himself having much larger ambitions, who points out that all of their goals will be easier to achieve with Spider-Man out of the picture.
• Tempting Fate: While reflecting on Eddie ending their friendship, Spider-Man spots a police car and figures he's found a distraction to take his mind off his troubles. He ends up encountering six supervillains at once.
• That Man Is Dead: Electro tells Doc Ock that he now prefers this name to his real one.
• Too Dumb to Live: Shocker says this word for word describing Spider-Man's hero complex.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: Eddie becomes more of an arrogant asshole in this episode since his Start of Darkness in "Natural Selection". He takes Mary Jane out on a bike ride just to spite Peter, only for her to become so disgusted by his attitude that she tells him that Peter is better than him.
• Villain Team-Up: The Sinister Six.
• Villains Out Shopping: The cops are surprised to see the villains simply having dinner in the restaurant they took over.
• We Used to Be Friends: Eddie officially severs ties with Peter after his photo of the alien sample theft goes public, no longer calling him "bro". And this is just the start.
• Wham Line: With no recollection of him defeating the Sinister Six, or taking photos of the event, Peter comes to the conclusion that the alien is acting as some kind of symbiote that's been controlling him.
  • Worse, Peter's very next line of inner dialogue is delivered in a much darker, calmer tone of voice that sounds very much unlike him, as if someone else is impersonating his thoughts.
    "Peter": Still, what do we care? The Six got put down hard, Parker gets paid for the photos. What else matters?
• What the Hell, Hero?: Eddie lays into Peter for taking pictures of the symbiote being stolen and never bothering to call the cops. He denounces him as a "user", permanently ending their friendship.
• Wrong Genre Savvy: Doc Ock assuming that Spider-Man not cracking jokes means he's getting serious. Normally, that would be true, but this time, it's because Peter is asleep and the symbiote is in full control.