Doom and Doomer: Spider-Man 3 Part 2


Spidey 3 BClick here to read Part 1, then come on back and join the fun! Or just start reading now. It probably won’t make any sense either way.

Jean-Claude Van Doom: Every important event was based on an incredible coincidence.

Fin Fang Doom: Explain.

JCVD: The alien symbiote crash lands next to Peter in the park. The butler makes a stunning revelation at just the right moment. Eddie Brock happens to go to the same church that Peter runs to….Those are just the first that come to mind.

Jim Doom: Yep, those are some good ones.

JCVD: May as well include the physics experiment at night mess.

Colonel Doom: Yeah, well, Dickens was all about coincidence.

Jim: Don’t forget that Eddie Brock happens to be dating Gwen Stacy, who happened to be modeling in that building where Eddie was shooting photos next to Captain Stacy…

Colonel: …who was in “A river runs through it” with KEVIN BACON

Colonel: SIX DEGREES!

Fin: Wasn’t he not so much dating her as stalking her? That’s not a coincidence, then

JCVD: If Dickens was around now he’d be writing Daredevil and Ghost Rider.

JCVD: It took me a minute to think of that.

Fin: Here’s the thing…without coincidences comics wouldn’t exist. Joe Chill didn’t plot to murder Bruce Wayne’s parents. Jor-El didn’t plan for the Kents to Find Kal. Reed Richards didn’t expect there to be cosmic rays in outer space…

Jim: How are those coincidences? Those are just events.

Colonel: I disagree!

JCVD: Coincidences are what starts a plot moving, not what powers them along.

Colonel: Yeah. Marvel is about coincidences/accidents. DC is about choices.

Fin: Surprisingly, I’m the one arguing the “suspension of disbelief” angle.

JCVD: Take the first two Spider-Man movies. They both have well crafted plots that feature naturally moving developments.

Colonel: But not completely rooted in coincidence.

Jim: Fin, suspension of disbelief isn’t about allowing a movie to have gaping plot holes and illogical twists. It’s about allowing yourself to be lured into a convincing fictional world.

Fin: I don’t see how the symbiote landing near Peter or Eddie Brock being in that same church…

Colonel: Take Doc Ock. His powers-granting accident wasn’t a coincidence, but the direct result of his overreaching ambition, his fatal flaw.

Jim: What’s frustrating is that some of these coincidences could have been easily overcome. Eddie Brock could have just been following Spider-Man, for example.

JCVD: Or the alien could’ve been something Peter studied in a science lab.

Colonel: Yeah, being a creep, and gaining the venom symbiote thru some tragic character flaw

Jim: Yeah – I was actually expecting them to use the Ultimate Venom origin (or something closer to it than the alien symbiote version).

Fin: I was surprised they went the alien angle, too

JCVD: It was almost like they set a high degree of difficulty for themselves. Shall we move on?

Colonel: Yes

JCVD: Sandman?

Fin: Completely unnecessary. Everything they did could have been done with just Harry and Venom

JCVD: He also looked like the Mummy.

Jim: I disagree. I normally am completely opposed to over-using villains, but I was totally okay with the overload because they all contributed to some aspect of moving the plot and carrying the theme of vengeance. If it just involved Harry and Venom, who would Peter be seeking vengeance on?

Fin: Why not Harry? He’s his best friend and he attacked him

Jim: Call me old fashioned, but I don’t equate getting beaten up with killing my uncle. Beyond killing Aunt May, I think finding Uncle Ben’s killer was the only thing that could believably tip goody-two-shoes Peter Parker over the edge.

JCVD: They could’ve sped up that storyline, but it made more sense that Peter would only go to such depths because he wanted to avenge Uncle Ben.

Colonel: I think Jim’s right in that Sandman was necessary as a proper temptation of Peter to go too far with his venom powers

Fin: But the symbiote amplifies your aggression so even though Harry attacking him doesn’t seem like a big deal, with the symbiote attached it’s a huge deal.

JCVD: He knew that, and he didn’t go all the way with the symbiote until he needed to take down Sandy. Really though, I wasn’t impressed with how the Sandman looked.

Jim: Sandman also helped contribute to the theme of good people making mistakes and redemption.

Fin: That was Harry’s arc too. Those two are practically interchangeable. And then you wouldn’t need the stupid butler pep talk at the end. Harry could team up with Venom and then change sides mid-fight because Venom’s kicking Pete’s ass

JCVD: I don’t follow.

Fin: So let’s say instead of Sandman/Venom vs. Spidey/Goblin…

Fin: the last fight was Goblin/Venom vs. Spidey…

Jim: I agree, it was very Mummy. But I’m not really sure how else you’d handle him without just making him look cartoonish and stupid (er).

Jim: that’s why I called it a theme. It happened with Peter as well.

Jim: they are not, come on, at what point did Harry need to commit a crime to save his dying daughter?

Jim: why aren’t my comments posting?

Jim has left the room.

Why did Jim Doom storm off? Will he return to finish off the review? Has our friendship deteriorated to the point where an argument over Spider-Man 3 could result in the end of the Legion? There’s only one place to find out, and that’s right here at noon tomorrow, in part three of our three (yes, three!) part review of Spider-Man 3.