Spider-Man: No Way Home seems to be a hit with near everyone who has ventured out to see it. As an excellent look at why Spider-Man as a character works, the movie has some incredible moments that remind us why our love for Peter Parker and Spider-Man is so enduring across the decades It is, in my opinion, a perfect end to the Homecoming trilogy for Tom Holland and a great demonstration of why he is so good at playing Spider-Man.
So let’s get into why some of the Spider-Man moments in No Way Home work so incredibly well.
**Spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home lie ahead**
Okay everyone who doesn’t want spoiled is gone, right? Because HOLY SH*T TOM HOLLAND, ANDREW GARFIELD, AND TOBEY MAGUIRE ALL AS PETER PARKER(S) IN ONE MOVIE? PINCH ME.
For a long time, I thought I would hate seeing all three of the Spider-Mans together. I thought It would be cheesy or taking away from Tom Holland (who is my favorite at this point) and I almost wanted to preserve my memory of each of these franchises and not have them cross-pollinate. I will very happily admit to being wrong here. Getting to see Peter Parker, Peter Parker, and Peter Parker all swinging into action and yelling at each other or trying to navigate their emotions while realizing they loved hanging out together? Perfection.
The minute Ned opened a portal, I knew. I knew that it was Andrew Garfield because I know that suit and I knew that tall lanky boy. While I grew up watching the Tobey Maguire movies, I ended up liking Andrew Garfield more when his Amazing Spider-Man movies came out. Then by the time that Tom Holland became our MCU Spider-Man, I fell in love with his fresh take on the character. But that didn’t change my Spidey-adoring heart and the soft spot I’ll always have for Maguire and Garfield.
The opportunity to see these three together and shining in their respective roles felt like coming home. It was a home I didn’t know I even needed to visit but once there, I didn’t want to leave. Ever. It was even better that the “visiting” Spider-Men get significant roles, lines, and interactions that were true to their characters; they don’t just swoop in to help at the final battle. Getting to have three Peters in the lab working together? Beautiful. Watching as Garfield just sat in the background because he finished quickly but didn’t want to butt into anyone else’s space? Perfect. Tobey Maguire having almost no personality as Peter but shining as an older, wiser Spider-Man? Exactly what I’ve come to expect from him.
And watching as Maguire and Garfield helped our new Peter grow and come into his own hero? That’s what made No Way Home so special to me. Yes, it was amazing seeing all three swing into action. I’m obsessed with “Spider-Man 1, 2, and 3” and I wish I could have an entire movie of these three just becoming best friends. But Maguire and Garfield served a purpose to Holland’s Spidey and it was to show him what it meant to take on the mask.
Was No Way Home a movie without flaws? No, it was a form of emotional manipulation that paraded itself in a movie I now consider my top Spidey movie (which will move to number two the second I rewatch Into the Spider-Verse and I am well aware of this). But it gave me all the Peter Parkers that I have loved throughout my life and showed me why each of them is important to the mythos and to each other, and I loved it with my entire being.
Sony, if you’re reading this, I’ll take these three just hanging for a three hour movie. Please and thank you.
(image: Marvel Entertainment)
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