Monster Zero x SciFi Japan - Archive Only

It was a good series until about 2001, then I started to realize how bad it was. The stories weren't bad, but the dialog and animation is so choppy that it really makes the show unwatchable these days. Same goes for X-Men. The only one of the 90s Marvel toons I still love is Silver Surfer, which is a shame it ended on a cliffhanger.

This cartoon was my first exposure to Spider-Man too. It's not a legitimately great series like the '90s Batman, but it delivers in spades when it comes to comic fantasy spectacle and adventure.

It did rely too much on stock footage for completely random instances (a simple shot of Venom turning his head from one episode is inexplicably used again in a later episode, even as a kid it was obvious). Also, unlike the Batman cartoon, the parental reins were tight on this one. Words like "kill" and "dead" were seldom used, always replaced with variations of "destroy," and almost every gun that ever appeared in the show fired lasers rather than bullets.

But the series had a lot of strong points too. Continuity was tight and clearly focused. The first season was mainly made of standalone episodes that introduced most of the villains and established characters arcs that grew over the course of the series. Each subsequent season had an overarching theme, with the same title used for each episode and a numerical chapter and subtitle attached (i.e. "Neogenic Nightmare - Chapter I: The Insidious Six"). A lot of other Marvel characters had crossover appearances on the show too. There was a two-parter in season two with the X-Men; Blade gets involved when Morbius shows up; Iron Man and War Machine help Spidey battle Venom and Carnage in season three; and Captain America and the Red Skull form the foundation for an excellent multi-episode saga toward the end of the series.

The series finale spanned five episodes with a lot of the aforementioned Marvel heroes returning, and a lot of the character arcs and plotlines from the previous seasons all came to a head. Great stuff.

I really am befuddled that the studio didn't jump on the opportunity to release full season DVDs of this show to capitalize on any of the Spidey flicks. Talk about a missed opportunity.