Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Reviews

The Final Nightmare
Review by Stu, Media by Kolbar

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Episode #27 - The Final Nightmare
Original Airdate: February 24th, 1996

Unaware that absorbing Spider-Man's youth would also absorb his DNA, the Vulture begins to mutate in the Man-Spider. Growing weak from the rapid aging, Spider-Man seeks help from Dr. Connors to find a cure. Meanwhile, the Scorpion is back in town and kidnaps Dr. Farley Stillwell to find a cure for his own mutation.

Credits:
Story By: John Semper and Sandy Fries
Written By: Sandy Fries
Music Composed By: Shuki Levy and Kussa Mahchi
Animation Services By: Toyko Movie Shinsha (TMS)
Guest Starring: Christopher Daniel Barnes as Spider-Man/Peter Parker, Joseph Campanella as Dr. Curt Connors/The Lizard, Eddie Albert as Adrian Toomes/ Old Vulture, and Alan Johnson as Arthur Avis/ Young Vulture, Neil Ross as Norman Osborn and Richard Moll as The Scorpion

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Review: Well, after a full season-long story, it came to this - the final chapter of "Neogenic Nightmare." It was certainly a surprising one, specifically the scene where The Vulture attacks Osborn, only to become the Man-Spider; he learned that when he absorbed Spider-Man's youth, he also took his disease. I thought that was awesome. I didn't see it coming, I gotta admit. When this series wanted to be, it was completly and utterly unpredictable.

As with most of the season finales, this one was overrun with characters. The Scorpion and Farley Stillwell were added to the mix and Curt Conners became The Lizard again. Plus, The Scorpion wasn't really needed, and his story here could've easily been translated into another episode of it's own. The Scorpion was is actually very interesting in some episodes, only wanting to seek a cure and get married. In others, he confuses the viewers has entirely different motivations. There was no need for him to be in "The Wedding" or the "Six Forgotten Warriors" episodes at all. Whether or not The Scorpion wasn't selling is unknown but still, he was a great character, when used right.

The subplot with Mary Jane and her father was a confusing one; she disappeared within seconds of turning around the corner. For a cliffhanger we had to wait months for, it could've been done better. Other than that, this episode was a great finish to a daring and unique storyline, which arguably impacted the way Saturday mornings cartoons worked. Before "Neogenic Nightmare," a full season dedicated to one story was almost unheard of, nevermind executed so well. Unfortunatly, networks rarely allow these stories to be told anymore. "Neogenic Nightmare" could very well be one of the last of it's kind.

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