Review Detail

Recently rewatched TASM 2 before watching this edit and I can definitely see why it had and has it’s detractors and why it had been blotted from my memory for so long as I found that the writing made it really hard to care about the actual characters, that and the amount of plot threads occurring all at once made it feel like it could almost be two or three movies. I definitely agree with you on Max being rather pathetic and the tone feeling rather cartoonish and quite frankly I think you handled both aspects way better than the actual movie as the comedic moments were better timed and spaced out allowing each gag time to breath and sink in with the audio edited gag in the store being a personal favourite of mine though as for Electro.

In terms of his improved characterisation he feels less like a cartoonish butt hurt Spider-Man fanboy and more of a victim of unfortunate and misunderstood circumstances with some sombre psycho vibes to boot thanks to the use of those piano pieces accompanying his body language and facial expressions, I know he heard demented voices in his head in the original though I feel like more of these were added in but perhaps I am misremembering this narrative aspect though either way there inclusion along with the music tone and alteration throughout both fights really gave him a powerful presence.

The eventual presence of this versions iteration of the second Green Goblin was setup and masterfully brought fourth steadily thanks to the incorporation of the deleted and extended scenes with the battle suit scene being an excellent way to foreshadow his eventual intervention into the films final act, the extended transformation sequence is legitimately awesome and terrifying. For all the faults that the original TASM 2 has I feel they definitely portrayed the transitional psycho aspect really well which has been naturally enhanced further in this edit.

Other aspects that have been enhanced through this edit are definitely Peter’s chemistry with the side cast and main cast which is one of the things I really love about the comics as well though as to the handling of them in this edit Harry and Peters friendship feels more genuine thanks to the added scenes in addition to the scenes involving them that were already there which made the growing rift between them all the more gut wrenching though as for the Peter and Gwen stuff there struggle to maintain there friendship and longing to resume there more intimate relationship feels much more realistic and compelling.

Peter now comes of as a slightly more mature individual who weighs the conviction of his promise more carefully and doesn’t pull a complete 180 degree turn on said promise and of course he comes of as less of a demanding stalker than he was in the original, speaking of Peter and Gwen moments the addition of the clocktower scene in Part 1 not only served as an ominous foreshadowing to Part 2’s clocktower scene but it amplified the emotional intensity of said scene. I legitimately felt a sense of dread in the moments leading up to that gut wrenching snap and the funeral scenes that soon followed not only maintained and carried fourth the despairing tone but elevated it to the point I came close to and probably was struggling to hold back tears.

The alternate ending funeral scene was not only a fantastic way to bookend Part 1 but Garfields acting gave so much power and emotion to said scene and it is such a crime that this was relegated to the deleted scenes section when it should have been in the actual movie though it’s a good thing this edit exists as I much prefer this ending to the actual ending and speaking of which the manner in which you rearranged the Rhino scene and altered the tone of the intro after the recap was a great way to not only begin the edit and improve the films pacing but the choice of music gave the intro a sense of class and served as a reminder of what Spidey’s all about and how crime fighting is for the most part just another casual day for him.

In terms of speed and pacing the cuts between scenes were seamless and felt natural and well I could tell stuff was cut out due to my recent viewing of TASM 2 it didn’t feel as if anything was cut out if that makes any sense, well I enjoyed the Roosevelt Subplot as the whole stuff about Peter’s parents is one of my favourite story arcs in both the comics and Spiderman The Animated Series it’s exclusion from the edit makes perfect sense and as a result there is a greater sense of pace and focus to the overall narrative structure of this multilayered masterpiece.