Spider-Man: The Animated Series Episode Reviews

The Man Without Fear
Review by Stu, Media by Kolbar

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Episode #34 - The Man Without Fear
Original Airdate: September 28th, 1996

Spider-Man teams up with Daredevil to confront the Kingpin and to clear Peter's name. With a new ally and the revelation that the Kingpin is in fact Wilson Fisk, Spidey sets off to tackle the Kingpin and his crew once and for all.

Credits:
Story By: John Semper and Mark Hoffmeier
Written By: Sean Catherine Derek
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, Ed Albert as Matt Murdock/Daredevil, Nick Jameson as Richard Fisk and Roscoe Lee Brown as The Kingpin

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Review: This episode was a turning point in the series, as one of the main focus points of the show, the fact that Wilson Fisk is really The Kingpin, was finally revealed to Spider-Man. As cool as it was to finally see Spider-Man learn that Fisk was a criminal, his character peaks here and just ... idles along for the rest of the series. With his identity known, The Kingpin just wasn't as much fun anymore. Not to say he was a bad character, he was just a shade below his usual self after this.

As with part one, this episode was an excellent offering. Featuring nice animation and some very good music, the episode kicked the arc into high gear, and teased the fans by showing The Kingpin apprehended. I remember being shocked watching it when I was a kid, and then being surprised it was actually The Chameleon.

There was something about Daredevil's presentation in the show that stood above all the other guest appearances. Maybe someone was trying to push for a Daredevil spin-off, but it is obvious more effort went into Daredevil than the likes of The Punisher, Dr. Strange and Blade. It may have been the fact Daredevil fit into Spider-Man's world far easier than the aforementioned guests, and was easier to get by the censors. Regardless, truly a fantastic episode, and I'm deeply disappointed the rumored spin-off never appeared. Hopefully, one day, we'll get to see Daredevil animated again!

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