Josiah McCord

The Adam West era of Batman is one that I actually enjoy, because it's not afraid to have fun. I also love the Nolan and Snyder version of Batman, and Matt Reeves' Batman looks like it will be awesome, but it's nice to look back on this era when Batman was something that any kid could watch and laugh with. Batman and his villains are inherently pretty silly, and at the time that this movie and the Adam West show was being released, Batman was a campy character. And there's nothing wrong with that! This movie has funny moments ("Sometimes you just can't get rid of a bomb!"), fun action (Bat-Shark Repellent), and a colorful cast. Not too much to complain about here. I'm glad this movie has become such a classic.

Spider-Man: No Way Home Review 4/5 stars - SPOILER WARNING No Way Home is the best live action Spider-Man movie. What it manages to accomplish in the brisk-feeling 128 minute runtime is incredible. It not only proves itself to be an origin story for the Spider-Man from the comics and provides an emotional, driven story about Peter Parker becoming a man, but it also is a celebration of Spider-Man and his character, very similar to Into the Spider-Verse. The first half of No Way Home is quite shaky, hence the 4 star review. The fact that Peter ends up losing everyone he loves because he couldn’t shut up during Doctor Strange’s spell is sloppy and frustrating writing. They clearly had trouble coming up with a good idea to open the multiverse. The comedy in the first hour is typical MCU humor. Quips that slightly ruin important moments, and make the film feel really unnecessarily campy amongst a very serious issue of the multiverse tearing the at the seams. But. One scene. One moment. One shot. Changes everything. Destroys all doubts. Turns the film around. The scene/moment/shot of Peter walking around the apartment, almost looking PTSD-ridden, is something we haven’t seen from the MCU or really any superhero movie at all. It evokes intensity, a sense of dread, and utter terror. From that point on, the film becomes an exploration of Peter Parker. Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield are more likable than ever, and the fact that the film carves out about 15-20 mins to just let them goof around is obviously not important to the narrative, but a love letter to the fans. It’s fan service done right. Tobey and Andrew have something to teach Tom’s Peter, and let him realize that Spider-Man is a symbol of good. Not a force of violence. The resolution might feel unearned because of the whole reason it occurs (Peter has a runny mouth. Really? That’s why he loses everything?!) but it has him facing consequences in ways we’ve never seen. He started off as Iron Boy Jr. But he is now Spider-Man! There’s no argument. He has grown into the Spider-Man from the comics. He is who stan Lee wrote Peter Parker/ Spider-Man to be. See No Way Home. You won’t regret it, amidst its issues.