Like a pebble being dropped into water, a ripple of energy begins to form an outline of a portal that connects this world to another. Without warning, a strange-looking wizard in the midst of fighting some sort of symbiotic creature comes tumbling out onto the front steps of a local New York High School. As students and teachers stand in awe of the battle, the creature turns its attention on a young female student named Nico, but never fear because freshman Peter Parker does his best to distract the creature long enough for the wizard to grab ahold of the beast and bring it back to the proper universe. With the battle over, Nico and Pete introduce themselves to one another, but their conversation is cut short. Little does Peter know, there was another that made its way out of the portal, a spider. And with one quick bite on the neck, we begin the epic tale of your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.

With the rumored behind-the-scenes drama, a lead actor who doesn’t understand the definition of “woke,” or ‘animation experts’ on Twitter giving out their incredibly valuable opinions, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is a show that’s been fighting an uphill battle ever since it was announced. In that time, though, Marvel has given us X-Men 97. After that, is there any reason to ever worry about another animated Marvel project? And I don’t bring up X-Men 97 lightly. I understand and respect what that show accomplished. It’s perfect from beginning to end, and at least after the first two episodes of Spider-Man, I’m ready to say Marvel Animation has done it again. Will this live up to the heights of X-Men 97? Honestly, it’s too early to tell, but I can say with confidence that this is a spectacular introduction to a new Spider-Man world.

Whether it’s the avoidance of cliches such as high school bullies or the ability to navigate the world of multiverse fatigue, YFNS’s writing is a breath of fresh air. While only through the first two episodes, the show introduces a wealth of characters that are full of backstories strong enough to not only fill out a Spider-Man show but in certain cases, strong enough for their own spin-offs. Episode 2 especially is a lot of “if you know, you know,” as one new character after another is introduced. And mixed in all of the fun storytelling is exciting action blanketed in a beautiful Steve Ditko-inspired art style that sees a young Peter Parker still trying to get a grasp of what it means to be Spider-Man only a month into webslinging.

I’m a Spider-Man fan, so I was planning on watching this show no matter what, but with what I’ve seen so far, I’m looking forward to having a new show to watch every week. Plus, with the way episode 2 ended… well, no spoilers, but that was a fun twist and I’m excited to see what that means for this cast of characters moving forward. It’s been a long time since I’ve given anything an actual review score on this site, but I’m very comfortable giving the first two episodes of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man 10 free pizzas out of 10.