The review embargo for Spider-Noir has just lifted. Now, with the first wave of verdicts counted, the upcoming live-action Spider-Man TV series is currently "Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes' Tomatometer at 82%.
Unsurprisingly, it seems the series won't be for everyone. A heavily stylised take on the wall-crawler that doesn't adhere too closely to the comics, it features a campy turn from Cage and brings something new to the table at a time when people are still complaining about "superhero fatigue."
Some, however, felt the attempt to recapture the charm of 1930s films falls flat, while others were blown away by seeing Spider-Man in such a unique setting. Just brace yourself for things to get weird at times.
While the majority of reviews are clearly positive, the good reviews for Spider-Noir are glowing, whereas the bad ones are scathing. Take Variety, for example, which calls it a "beautiful bore" and writes, "Though the series has a solid cast and some sparkling depictions of a bygone era, 'Spider-Noir' is all style and very little substance."
The Wrap counters that by stating, "Whether your thing is old, existential crime movies, four-color fantasy magazines or TV that aspires to artistry as well as entertainment, 'Spider-Noir' has the goods." On the other hand, The Hollywood Reporter points out, "Periodically, Spider-Noir is, indeed, a hoot. It’s too bad you have to wade through so much nondescript storytelling to get there."
SlashFilm loved it, concluding, "Spider-Noir is one of the most exciting and creatively fertile superhero works to be released in the last couple years, and while it may be a bit batty, I think it's the bee's knees."
AV Club wasn't a fan of Cage's performance, writing, "That, in the long run, is the real harm inflicted on Spider-Noir by Cage’s performance-by-imitation approach: It robs the series of the chance to ever be anything more than a simple pastiche with some clumsy comic book theming stapled onto it." Empire, however, felt that Cage creates an "absurdly brilliant, brilliantly absurd concoction" as Ben Reilly.
Radio Times posits, "In fact, Spider-Noir is far better than such a frivolous spin-off has any right to be, with Cage deserving of high praise as the lynchpin that holds it all together."
GamesRadar+ says it's "A delightfully camp, low-stakes romp through 1930s New York City that proves Nicolas Cage is still cooler than all of us," while IGN explains, "Nicolas Cage’s Bogie-meets-Bugs Bunny pulp hero invigorates the highly entertaining, genre-bending Spider-Noir."
With all eight episodes set to release on the same day, it won't take long for fans to decide whether to binge this bold new take on Spider-Man or quickly find an appropriate jumping-off point. It certainly sounds like it's worth giving a chance, anyway.
Will you be checking out Spider-Noir when it premieres next week after reading these reviews?
Spider-Noir is a live-action series based on the Marvel comic Spider-Man Noir. It tells the story of Ben Reilly (Nicolas Cage), a seasoned, down-on-his-luck private investigator in 1930s New York, who is forced to grapple with his past life, following a deeply personal tragedy, as the city’s one and only superhero.
The cast also includes Lamorne Morris, Li Jun L, Karen Rodriguez, Abraham Popoola, with Jack Huston, and Brendan Gleeson. Guest stars include Lukas Haas, Cameron Britton, Cary Christopher, Michael Kostroff, Scott MacArthur, Joe Massingill, Whitney Rice, Amanda Schull, Andrew Caldwell, Amy Aquino, Andrew Robinson, and Kai Caster.
Spider-Noir is produced by Sony Pictures Television exclusively for MGM+ and Prime Video. Oren Uziel (The Lost City, 22 Jump Street) and Steve Lightfoot (Marvel's The Punisher, Shantaram) serve as co-showrunners and executive producers.
Uziel and Lightfoot developed the series with the Academy Award–winning team behind Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Amy Pascal. Lord and Miller executive produce, with Aditya Sood and Dan Shear. Amy Pascal also serves as an executive producer through Pascal Pictures.
All episodes of Spider-Noir premiere on Prime Video on May 27.