The recently canceled Silk: Spider-Society series features puzzle decisions
Spider-Man and television seem like an ideal combination lately. Prime Video has a green noir with Nicolas Cage reprising his role as Spider-Man Noir, and Disney+ has retained ‘Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.’ The return of ‘Spider-Man: The Animated Series’ has been questioned even after the success of X-Men 97. However, all is not clear in the Spider-Verse as Prime Video recently canceled Silk: Spider-Man. This cancellation points to several issues surrounding Spider-Man themed media.
Series in constant agitation
Deadline is the first to report that Silk: The Spider-Verse has been cancelled, following its development, which included several creative changes. Lauren Moon was originally hired to develop the project in 2019, which will be the starting point for a series of shows based on Spider-Man for Prime Video. In addition, this project was created through an agreement between Sony Pictures Television, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who revived the franchise with ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’. Finally, with Tom Spezialy (Watchmen, The Leftovers) and Angela Kang (The Walking Dead) coming on board as showrunners, the series got its official title and a new home on MGM+.
Two things influenced Silk: Spider-Man’s path to the small screen. The first was the delay in reopening the writers’ room following the end of the Writers Guild of America strike last year; WGA was on the brink of legal action when Amazon finally opened its doors in January. The second is more confusing, because Kang and the writers were asked to restructure the series to focus less on Silk. This points to a problem Sony has struggled with for years: its handling of the Spider-Man franchise.
A reflection of the biggest problems with the Spider-Man franchise
After Sam Raimi finished his Spider-Man trilogy, Sony struggled to keep the Spider-Man franchise alive. The first major hurdle was the attempt to use Marc Webb and Andrew Garfield’s The Amazing Spider-Man films for a cinematic universe platform. At the time, studios were chasing the appeal of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and with over 900 characters, Sony had a big job with plans to release a Spider-Man-based movie every year. However, the acceptance of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and the internal vacuum in Sony led to the creation of a partnership with Marvel Studios, Tom Holland took over as Spidey.
Still, Sony tried to release more Spider-Man-adjacent films in the wake of Venom’s success, but Morbius and Madame Web were less than stellar box office results and became the subject of disdain from critics and fans alike. In contrast, the Spider-Verse films have been warmly received, especially among characters such as Hobie Brown/Spider-Punk and Gwen Stacy, who appear in both films. The lesson is clear: fans want more Spider-Man in their Spider-Man stories.
Silk can carry its own series
Retconning Silk : Spider-Society ignores decades of stories to focus a little on Silk. Even the origin contradicts the decision. Cindy Moon was an ordinary teenager who was bitten by a radioactive spider, the same spider that turned Peter Parker into Spider-Man. Cindy approached Ezekiel Sims, who also had spider abilities; A vampiric named Morlun hunts her and warns her that he wants to eat her life. Cindy reluctantly locks herself in a cage and is freed by Spider-Man ten years later. As she searches for her missing family, she decides to become a superhero on her own and takes on the name Silek.
This derivation is persuasive in itself, but so is the addition of a footnote. The “Spider-Society” first appeared in Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse and was assembled by Spider-Man Miguel O’Hara in 2099 to repair the rifts in the multiverse. Using the spider community as a backdrop would have dealt with Cindy’s struggles with family and relationships; Not only does it have a new family with members of the Spider-Verse, but it also allows the various Spider-Men to take center stage, just like Miles Morales is the main character of the Spider-Verse movies. Leaving it aside shows a huge lack of vision.
Even though Amazon canceled the project, there is still hope for the silk-spider-community. The series is being brought to buyers, which means it could find life on a new platform, similar to the fate of Batman: Caped Crusader when it moved from Max to Prime Video. Cindy Moon appeared at the end of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 and a Spider-Society comic is in the works, meaning more Silk stories could be on the way.