Spider-Noir Episode 7 Has One Scene That Finally Embraces Marvel's Goofy Side
by Ben Pearson · /FilmThis article contains spoilers for "Spider-Noir" Episode 7, "Nobody's Hero."
After watching just a few minutes of "Spider-Noir," a viewer can tell that the Prime Video show is working hard to capture a certain visual and storytelling sensibility that was popular in post-war American cinema. (The black and white version is especially evocative.) But when I spoke with creator and co-showrunner Oren Uziel ahead of the series premiere and asked him about some classic movies that influenced the show, his response surprised me — not because of the inspirations he listed, but because of the next part of his answer. You can hear our entire conversation on an upcoming episode of the /Film Weekly podcast, but here's the relevant excerpt:
"'Casablanca' was a huge reference, but 'His Girl Friday,' 'The Thin Man' — because tonally, this is fun. I love 'Sweet Smell of Success' so much, but that movie is so cynical and so dark. We have to remember that we're making something fun, and that this is a Spider-Man show."
With all due respect to Uziel and the rest of the show's writers, after watching this series in its entirety, I think they might have forgotten to focus on the fun. "Spider-Noir" is primarily a pastiche of film noir tropes and just so happens to include some characters with superpowers, and while there are some jokes spread throughout, they largely earn smirks instead of belly laughs. It's not a particularly jovial show. Merriment and mirth are as hard to come by for Ben Reilly (Nicolas Cage) and his pals as a steady paycheck.
Until, that is, we reach Episode 7.
Spider-Noir Episode 7 finally makes room for some fun
The main thrust of this season has been about broken men who were experimented on during World War I, and the horrific changes their bodies have undergone since then. Toss that in a blender with a dash of corruption, a touch of betrayal, and a Blu-ray copy of "The Maltese Falcon," and you've got "Spider-Noir."
However, about 15 minutes into Episode 7, there's a scene where the show springs to life in a way it hasn't before. Nicolas Cage's Ben Reilly is drowning his sorrows at a bar, and the patrons are making fun of his alter ego, The Spider. Reilly gets increasingly frustrated with these dolts, eventually leaving the establishment, changing into his Spider costume, returning, and getting in a brawl with them. This is the most fun the show has had yet — Cage briefly goes full Cage and yells at the guys, and while a jazzy version of "Sway" plays in the background, a drunken Spider shouts "Web! Web! Web!" as he sends lines of webbing flying, sticking the guys to the walls of the bar. It's a micro-moment that would feel right at home in one of the animated "Spider-Verse" movies — and it may be the only thing in this entire show so far that would work in that context. (Despite the ostensible connection, Cage's Ben Reilly is not actually the same character he played in "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse," but an alternate universe riff on that character.)
In any case, this scene marks a very different tone for "Spider-Noir" — one that the showrunner was seemingly hoping to tap into more frequently, but which we finally got a glimpse of very late in the season.
All eight episodes of "Spider-Noir" are streaming now on Prime Video and MGM+.