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What comes to mind when hearing the word “superhero?” Courage, resilience grace, etc,… but what about loneliness? Superhero films traditionally showcase strong, determined superhumans soaring around and saving the day. Afterward, the superhero goes home, takes off his/her costume and mask, and either goes to bed alone or returns to their double-life.
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) revolves around a young boy, Miles Morales, who discovers that he has been bitten by a spider and obtained the Spider-Man super skillset. However, he soon realizes that he is not the only Spider-Man in town. The “Spider-Man family” that forms highlights just how lonely being a superhero can be and all of the sacrifices one must make. Among all of the antagonists in the superhero world, could isolation be one of the biggest villains of them all? (( “Fandom.” Marvel-movies.fandom.com, 2020. ))
Overnight Superhero
Unlike the original Spider-Man franchise films, Miles is an only child with both of his parents still alive. Like the traditional Peter Parker story, the theme of loneliness had set in right from the start with Miles, as he had a hard time at making friends at his new school after leaving his old life behind. Another contributor to Miles’ isolation was his father; a police officer, who made it clear that he despised Spider-Man and everything that he stood for. Miles already felt somewhat distant from his law-obsessed father, so becoming Spider-Man only increased the gap between the two.
Miles’ uncle Aaron was the first person that he would turn to whenever he was upset, angry, happy, or anything in between. Miles went to visit his uncle, who took him to an abandoned tunnel beneath the city, and encouraged him to express his creativity by spray painting the walls. Miles was bit by a radioactive spider shortly after. It’s ironic how Miles was bit while bonding with his uncle, the only person he felt he could connect with, because that bite is the very thing that is going to create an emotional barrier between him and everyone he loves.
Miles soon began to notice that he had acquired Spider-Man’s superpowers and decided to return to the underground tunnel. During this investigation, Miles ran into the real Spider-Man, who was fighting the villain, Kingpin. Kingpin used his abilities to open up a portal to other dimensions, which allowed several other Spider-Man’s from other universes to enter Miles’ world. Kingpin succeeds at murdering Spider-Man, opening up the spider-verse, and leaving all of the responsibilities of the superhero to young Miles.
The Spider-Man Family
Terrified and alone after becoming a superhero overnight, Miles had no idea how to cope with his new abilities and responsibilities. The newly formed Spider-Man crew quickly bonded and became close comrades. Each member of the spider-verse explained to Miles that they were all just as afraid as he was when they found out about their ‘spidey’ senses. Each Spider-Man felt alone, lost, and hopeless. While many of the members were young, some were older, highlighting the fact that isolation can deeply affect anyone.
With no family, best friend, or love interest to turn to, Miles was able to confide in his Spider-Man gang. As a young kid already going through puberty and attending a new school, having people he could open up to about his hardships was crucial. However, these friendships had an expiration date, as each Spider-Man had to leave the spider-verse and return to their own dimension.
Being the only Spider-Man from his dimension, Miles was forced to go up against Kingpin all on his own. This was no ordinary superhero battle. Miles, a child, who had never been in a fight, and was just getting a hold of his powers, was under an enormous amount of pressure that no child should be subjected to.
Despite the odds, Miles was successful, the spider-verse was severed, and each Spider-Man member returned to their own universe. While the film’s ending was victorious, it’s difficult to ignore the fact that while Miles had somewhat managed to understand his new lifestyle, he would now have to keep this gigantic secret for the rest of his life. (( “The Daily Fandom.” Thedailyfandom.org, 2020. ))
With Great Power…
The fear and isolation set in right away for Miles. A young boy meant to protect the world from evil after becoming a “superhero” in two days? Seems a bit traumatizing, no? (( “UNT.” Blogs.library.unt.edu, 2018. )) Usually, when a child feels frightened, their first instinct is to run to their parents for comfort. Miles was completely robbed of that option, solidifying his loneliness even further. Miles felt that revealing his identity to his family would only have put them in harms way. In addition to this factor, Miles father’s hatred for Spider-Man didn’t exactly give Miles any incentive to disclose his secret.
However at the end of the film, Miles hugged his father as the new Spider-Man. His father, of course, had no idea why this superhero was telling him that he loved him, but it made Miles feel connected to his dad. This moment revealed how Miles would never be able to be fully open with his father about his true self, in order to protect him. He is forced to sacrifice his relationship with his family and somehow maintain these two separate worlds.
As far as Miles’ family goes, he does have the satisfaction of knowing that he altered his father’s opinion of Spider-Man. While this was a pleasant outcome, it didn’t change the fact that the Spider-Man transition would forever damage their relationship. Despite all of these factors, the film ends off on a positive note, as if everything will always work out just fine… or will it?
Not All Sunshine And Rainbows
The original Spider-Man from the other dimension proved the “happy ending” theory to be very incorrect. With superhero stories, it’s often assumed that no matter what the main character goes through, everything will always work itself out. This happy ending trope, where the superhero survives, saves the city, and gets the girl has been done thousands of times. However, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse went against the grain by showcasing a superhero whose experiences weren’t so stereotypical.
Enter the story of the original Spider-Man from the alternate dimension. When Miles met this Spider-Man, he was not at all what he was expecting. Somewhere in his mid-thirties, Spider-Man had lost everything meaningful in his life. Mary Jane decided to leave him, he stopped caring about his appearance, and he lost all motivation to protect his city. Spider-Man became a complete failure by his own doing, but isn’t that kind of unraveling expected when the future of the city depends on a single human who never asked for this life? This version of Spider-Man, the one who constantly wears grey sweatpants, showed Miles the less glamorous side of heroism.
The Superhero Formula
The superhero lifestyle is often depicted as thrilling and fulfilling. Many films ignore the lonely lifestyle that the double-life scenario creates. Unless these superheroes have someone who they can trust with their secret, they’re pretty much on their own. It’s also extremely rare that a superhero will end up in a scenario like Marvel’s Avengers or the Guardians of the Galaxy crew, where they can stay unmasked and have a superhero family to lean on. In addition, being unmasked leaves a superhero quite vulnerable, which is why many characters keep their loved ones a secret. (( “The Conversation.” Theconversation.com, 2018. ))
As a high-school kid, it’s imperative that Miles keeps his identity a secret in order to protect his family and friends. Even in the Marvel films when Parker joins the Avengers, his identity remains unknown to the world, aside from a couple of friends.
Superhero origin stories often begin with a tearful start; an event that gave them the strength to fight against evil. For the original Spider-Man, it was the unjust death of his Uncle Ben. While Miles does lose his Uncle Aaron, it was not what truly gave him the inner vigor to take on the role. What really provided Miles with the fight he needed was the yearning to save his loved ones. The point here is, Miles was given these powers out of nowhere, lost his uncle, and was forced to take on an enormously powerful villain, all at once. Simply imagining the immense pressure on this kid is overwhelming and seems flat out unfair.
The Truth
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse illustrated a realistic superhero portrayal. This was not only depicted through Miles’ journey, but through the character of Peter Parker. Even the original Spider-Man in the film ended up breaking under the pressure of the world. The film reveals that being a superhero is not at all what it’s cracked up to be. (( “Christ Pop Culture.” Christandpopculture.com, 2019. ))
There are always two lines thrown at a superhero during the origin story; “You may not have chosen this life, but this life chose you,” and, “With great power, comes great responsibility.” So, not only does one not have a choice of the superhero life, but they are also now responsible for millions of people’s lives. Spider-Man’s age is also significant, because it makes the character relatable to a younger audience, however having so much responsibility and authority during one’s teenage years is unnatural.
Miles is completely stripped of the childhood carelessness that one needs to be able to feel at such a young age. He is slingshotted into adulthood at an absolutely random time. Many superheroes have struggled with taking on such an enormous role, but at least they were able to have their first awkward kiss, spit out their first sip of beer, or get yelled at while learning how to drive first.
It’s safe to say that if the film’s objective had been to examine just how dark Miles’ character could have gone during this journey, it would have been extremely easy. With that being said, because this is a family-friendly story about faith, love, and inner courage, Miles’ storyline swerves directly in the classic happy ending direction.