Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends |
|
|---|---|
.jpg) |
|
| Genre | Superhero Action Adventure |
| Developed by | Stan Lee |
| Directed by | Don Jurwich |
| Voices of |
|
| Narrated by |
|
| Composer(s) | Johnny Douglas |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 24 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
|
| Producer(s) | Dennis Marks |
| Running time | 25 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Marvel Productions |
| Distributor | New World Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | NBC |
| Picture format | Color |
| Audio format | Mono |
| Original release | September 12, 1981 – November 5, 1983 |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | Spider-Man (1981 TV series) |
| Followed by | Spider-Man (1994 TV series) |
Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends was a cool animated TV show that aired from 1981 to 1983. It was made by Marvel Productions. This show brought together famous Marvel Comics heroes like Spider-Man and Iceman. It also introduced a brand new hero named Firestar! Together, these three heroes formed a team called the Spider-Friends. They battled many bad guys from the Marvel Universe.
Contents
About the Show
This cartoon was a popular Saturday morning cartoon on NBC. It ran for three exciting seasons. Later, the show was re-aired as part of a longer block called Marvel Action Universe. Other cartoons like RoboCop: The Animated Series and Dino-Riders were also shown during this time.
Title Changes and Narrators
In the second season, the show's title changed to The Incredible Hulk and the Amazing Spider-Man. This was because it aired alongside a new Hulk animated series. The famous comic book writer Stan Lee started narrating the episodes in the second season. He even added narrations to the first season's episodes to make everything flow together.
For the third season, the title changed again to The Amazing Spider-Man and the Incredible Hulk. This title stayed for the rest of the show's run.
The Story of the Spider-Friends
The show follows Peter Parker, Bobby Drake, and Angelica Jones. They are all college students at Empire State University. After they teamed up to defeat a villain called the Beetle, they decided to become a permanent superhero team. They called themselves the "Spider-Friends."
The trio lives together in Peter's aunt's house. Aunt May and their pet dog, Ms. Lion, also live there. Together, these superheroes fight against many different supervillains. Sometimes, other famous Marvel Universe characters joined them. These included Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, Sunfire, and even the X-Men.
New Characters in the Show
Some characters in Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends were created just for the show. They didn't appear in the comic books before the series started.
Firestar
Firestar is one of the main heroes in the series. She was created because the Human Torch couldn't be used in the show due to legal reasons. The creators wanted Spider-Man to have teammates with fire and ice powers. So, Angelica Jones, also known as Firestar, was born! Before her final name, she was almost called Heatwave or Starblaze.
Firestar later appeared in the main Marvel comic book universe in 1985. She joined a group called the Hellions. After that, she became a founding member of the New Warriors. She also joined the famous Avengers team. Today, she is a member of the X-Men.
Hiawatha Smith
Hiawatha Smith is a college professor at the Spider-Friends' university. He is the son of a brave Native American chief. His father fought against the Axis during World War II.
Hiawatha Smith's home is filled with cool decorations from different cultures. The show's producer, Dennis Marks, created Hiawatha Smith. He said he based the character on the famous adventurer Indiana Jones. Smith's father taught him special knowledge and gave him a map. This map led to a huge Nazi treasure that the evil Red Skull wanted. Hiawatha Smith often uses a boomerang in fights. He can also talk to animals!
Lightwave
Lightwave is a mutant whose real name is Aurora Dante. She is the older half-sister of Bobby Drake, who is also known as Iceman. Lightwave has amazing powers to control and create light. She can shoot laser blasts and make strong light shields. She can also turn herself into pure light, which lets her survive in outer space!
Lightwave only appeared in one episode called "Save the GuardStar." In this episode, she was being controlled by a bad agent named Buzz Mason. Mason made her steal devices to create a "quantum enhancer." This device would make her powers super strong. With this power, she could control a satellite that managed all defense and communication systems for the United States. Mason wanted to control the world through her.
The Spider-Friends tried to stop Lightwave. She was very powerful and even defeated them at first. Buzz Mason forced Iceman into outer space, putting him in great danger. Spider-Man helped Lightwave realize that her brother was in trouble. This broke Mason's control over her. She saved Iceman and stopped Mason. After this, Lightwave was likely cleared of any wrongdoing by S.H.I.E.L.D..
Videoman
Videoman is a unique character made of electronic data from a video arcade. He looks like a two-dimensional being with lightning bolt-shaped horns. Videoman appeared three times in the series. He was a villain twice and a superhero once!
Videoman as a Villain
In the first season, Videoman was created by the villain Electro. He could move through electronic circuits and shoot energy pulses. Electro used Videoman to trap Spider-Man and his friends inside a video game. Later, Videoman appeared again with new powers. He could bring video game characters to life. He could also drain the powers of mutants like Iceman and Firestar. The Spider-Friends defeated him by tricking him and his video game characters into fighting each other.
Videoman as a Hero
In the third season, a nerdy video game player named Francis Byte became Videoman. Francis was playing a game when a villain called Gamesman sent out a hypnotic signal. This signal hypnotized thousands of people. Francis was so focused on his game that he wasn't affected. He played so hard that the arcade machines exploded, turning him into Videoman!
Francis discovered he could change into his blue and white, red-eyed hero form whenever he wanted. At first, he wasn't very good at using his powers. He tried to help the Spider-Friends fight the hypnotized crowd, but they didn't trust his inexperience. The Gamesman tricked Francis into helping him by threatening his girlfriend, Louise. When Francis realized he was tricked, he got angry. He helped Spider-Man and the others defeat Gamesman. After that, Francis was invited to join the X-Men.
Episodes
Want to know more about the adventures? Check out the list of episodes!
Cast
Many talented actors lent their voices to the characters in this show.
Main Voice Cast
- Kathy Garver as Firestar/Angelica Jones
- Dan Gilvezan as Spider-Man/Peter Parker
- Frank Welker as Iceman/Bobby Drake, Flash Thompson, and Ms. Lion (the dog!)
Other Notable Voices
- Hans Conried as Chameleon
- George DiCenzo as Captain America and Cyclops
- June Foray as Aunt May
- Dennis Marks as Green Goblin/Norman Osborn
- Alan Melvin as Electro
- John Stephenson as Colossus, Loki, and Shocker
- William Woodson as Doctor Strange and J. Jonah Jameson
Guest Stars
- Michael Ansara as Hiawatha Smith
- Michael Bell as Doctor Octopus
- Peter Cullen as Hulk/Dr. Bruce Banner and Red Skull
- Stanley Jones as Professor X and Dracula
- William Marshall as Juggernaut and Tony Stark
- Neil Ross as Scorpion
- Michael Rye as Magneto
Home Release and Streaming
The complete series has been released on DVD in some regions. The show was also available for streaming on Netflix for a few years. Now, you can watch Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends on the Disney+ streaming service. However, one episode, "The Quest of the Red Skull," is not available there.
Comics Connections
The show also inspired some comic books!
Comic Book Adaptations
The first comic book that was directly about the show was Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends #1 in 1981. This comic adapted the very first episode, "The Triumph of the Green Goblin." It was the first time Firestar appeared in a Marvel Comics story, even though the version of Firestar in the main Marvel comics came later.
Firestar in Comics
After her first appearance in the show's comic, the main Marvel Comics version of Firestar debuted in Uncanny X-Men #193. She got her own mini-series in 1986, which told her origin story. In the comics, her powers were changed from fire to microwave energy. This was because Marvel already had many characters who could control fire.
Amazing Friends in Modern Comics
In 2006, Marvel released Spider-Man Family: Amazing Friends #1 to celebrate the show's 25th anniversary. It included a new story and reprints of older comics.
The comic series Ultimate Spider-Man also had a story arc called "Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends." The cover of issue #118 even looked like the show's title screen! In this comic, Johnny Storm and Kitty Pryde were also part of the team.
Is the Show Part of Marvel's Main Story?
In 2007, Marvel explained that the events of Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends take place in an alternate reality called "Earth 8107." This means the show's stories are part of the larger Marvel Comics Multiverse, but not the main comic book timeline.
Spider-Verse Connections
In the "Spider-Verse" comic event, the Spider-Friends from Earth-1983 (described as a "kinder, gentler" world) were attacked by a villain named Morlun. He was trying to drain the life out of every version of Spider-Man across the multiverse.
Recent Team-Ups
More recently, in 2018, Spider-Man, Iceman, and Firestar teamed up again in the Iceman comic series. They fought an ice monster together, and Iceman even called their team-up "Iceman and His amazing Friends"!
Images for kids
-
Iceman and Lightwave, half-siblings
