I was 7 when Spider-Man first aired and I loved it. It was a different era and we didnt have superhero shows and movies around every corner like you do today, so we appreciated what we got.

I gotta be honest, I kinda like the suit

Say what you will, but the stunts by Fred Waugh in costume were nothing but amazing. No nets, just a real guy climbing real skyscrapers.

This show was great I was four years old when he came out and I didn’t know anything about plots characters I was just waiting for him to put on the suit that was the most important thing to me and that little funky music that they played when he was Spiderman the little guitar pluck that was awesome i used to dress up like Spiderman and make that sound as I was crawling around the house.

Yes I know it is bad when you look back upon it but when I first saw this show it was mind blowing. I actually liked Hammond's portrayal of spider-man at the time

The thing I like about this show is that it feels very grounded and realistic kind of like how it would be if Spider-Man was real.

Spider-mans catch phrase in this version? "call the police!"

for some reason i actually enjoyed this tv show. maybe because its really cheesy, but some of the effects they managed to pull off were pretty impressive at the time, especially considering that they were running on a TV show budget.

I was old enough to watch this when it premiered. And while of course I agree with your retrospective analysis, I feel compelled to defend what was, I confess, my intense excitement for this show. At the time, the only other Spider-Man I knew was from the Electric Company on PBS, so Spidey seemed just like himself to me, only with (yes, it's true) vastly improved special effects. Plus, the scene showing Peter having his successful web-shooter test was so inspirational to me that I managed to built my own. Along with my hand-sewn Spider-Man costume, that web-shooter and I won second place in my elementary school costume competition. And that silver medal victory is by far the greatest accomplishment of my life. Except, maybe, for making a web-shooter that was actually pretty darn cool (Technical note: a spring loaded commercial web-shooter, spring-drive stretched for maximum power, dart suction cup removed, and 6 foot string replaced by easy-flow, high-strength, white dental floss = elementary school kids swooning - plus several very alarmed teachers. Safety note: 1970's toy projectiles actually aim for eyes automatically, many with enough force to penetrate several inches of CPSC legislation.) So that show you so casually denigrate paved the road to where I am today. Someone who is writing this comment from a closet at 4:10 a.m.

I loved the series from the '70s, best stuff ever... back then, we actually had to wait to watch the episodes each week

I was thinking about the power converters when the scene suddenly came. On spot.

It’s funny to hear people talk about “CGI” used in a 1977 TV show. There wasn’t any CGI back then on TV, except maybe a few experimental shorts. They were called Special Effects (SFX) and those chroma key-like effects used to be expensive and not very convincing on film. It was actually easier and less expensive to do them on videotape.

It was shown in the cinema's in the UK with different names. I actually liked the films and I loved the music. The series didn't get shown in the UK until September 1981.

Jameson wasn’t really what you described in this show He has his moments where he’s kinder than you’d expect but usually he was still classic Jameson He got mad at Peter quite a bit, he had so much doubt in Spider-Man He warmed up to Spidey near the end of the show but in most episodes he either didn’t like him or flat out ignored him

Now how the hell did I miss this one? Good video, Cap.

I will say this the stunt men that did Spiderman stunts in the show had balls!

Well I actually saw the Spider-Man show when it first appeared on TV back in 1977 and 78 and me being 6 7 years old it was amazing to actually see a live action superhero like Spider-Man on TV than the Hulk Buck Rogers Battlestar Galactica you can't move forward without looking back where everything started from

Removing the heart of the Spiderman origin story, isn't that the current MCU Ironman Jr?

I was a 17 year old comic book geek when this aired in '77. I should have known better than to expect much from a T.V. movie but I was still majorly disappointed. Quick historical note: Shortly before this show was made the three major networks bowed to pressure from various religious & parent groups to curtail the level of violence on network shows. All of these late 70's superhero shows aired at a time when superheros couldn't be shown fighting!

I loved this show when i was a kid and love it now.

I recall in the first appearance of Spiderman in Amazing Fantasy 15., he almost gets hit by car..causing him to leap to a side of the building thereby causing Peter to find out his wall crawling ability. So that scene in the 1977 TV movie reminded me of that.

7:16 When Peter was talking it reminded me of that scene in Star Wars A New Hope we're Luke wanted to get some power converters and then you put that exact same scene that I was reminded of who else was reminded of that too?

I think in order for this critique to be truly effective, you need to compare this pilot to the other pilots of your chosen comparisons (Cheers, Magnum PI, etc..) It wasn't uncommon in those days for a pilot to be radically different to what a show would eventually end up becoming. There were often false starts. Today a show tends to be fully developed and mapped out by the time the pilot airs. Today we can look at this and find so much wrong with it, but I was about 7 when this was syndicating for the first time in the UK in the early 80s, and honestly - it was so exiting.

Totally disagree with this review!!! I loved this series growing up!!!! It was and still is one of my favorite childhood memories. I use to beg my dad to tape (for those of you too young, "record") episodes for me whensoever it came on TV (since we didn't live together and I had no VCR where I stayed with my mom). I couldn't wait to watch it. Even though now I look back at it and can see very clear problems with it that I didn't see or care about at the time. But I still gotta say, overall it was a blast!! Especially based upon the fact it was a television show, not a big budget film. It was in the 1970s, so no CGI and/or masterful practical effects. And no real MARVEL backed presence on set, Stan "The Man" Lee didn't get along with director and writers so he hated the show. CBS didn't support it correctly either. Because even though it had great ratings, they never put it in a permanent time slot. Then they canceled it for reasons that this video already addressed. But to counter what the reviewer says about the show not knowing what it wanted to be, Spidey being NOT Spidey and Peter and cast being boring, to that I say this....The show (like I aforementioned) was NOT really supported by CBS because of the switching of show directors, writers and the cost of production. This caused it to have a switch in tone between seasons 1 and 2. Maintaining the show they had for what it was were the best they could do. As a kid myself at the time (and for most kids) just seeing a live action Spider-man being Spidey and doing the amazing things Spidey does was more than good enough to satisfy the basic Spidey fan. Yes he didn't speak much, banter and crack jokes but do you really think most children follow or like Spidey because of his quips and quick wit?! But most kids are pretty smart and even I knew at the time that things that cross over from one form of media to another barely ever does it 100% faithfully. As far as Peter and cast being boring or out of character goes, (please see my previous statement lol) I mean come on!! Now your just nitpicking. I loved Nicholas Hammond as Peter Parker. That's the one key element that I can truly say that (even watching the show today) he nailed perfectly. That young intelligent virtuous yet somewhat awkward/naive wide eyed innocence he portrayed as Peter Parker when we first meet him (especially when he first receives his spider powers) personifies the character of Peter Parker IMO. Now the fact that they showed J. Jonah Jameson to be in favor of Spider-man, was (unfortunately like many elements of the show) unlikably noticeable. But he still was a hard-ass on Peter about things. I felt the cast chemistry was fine. Especially that of Rita Conway (basically Glory Grant stepping in for Betty Brant, it always bothered me that they never just named the character that in the first place). I always thought the Julie Masters character was from the comics lol. But when I got older and realized that she wasn't, I assumed that she was sort of a composite character of several of Peter's love interests from the comics. Like Mary Jane Watson, Betty Brant, Liz Allen, Felicia Hardy and Gwen Stacy all in one. But the blonde girl (Peter Parker's apparent love interest) from the pilot resembles Gwen, Felicia or Liz more than Julie did. I know I'm going on and on but it just bothers me how this series is treated. It still hasn't received an HD update. It's NOT available for purchase or viewing on any form of digital media. No DVD, Blu-ray or Streaming Service. And Marvel wants to complete forget it and act like it doesn't exist. Yet totally embrace the Japanese series that premiered around the same time. People say that the 1970s The Amazing Spider-man series sucked and treated the source material poorly, but the Japanese version is completely different and uses Spider-man like some sort of Power Ranger. Yet Stan Lee actually liked the Japanese version and Disney makes it available on VOD and other services. Japanese Spider-man even appears several times in recent big multiverse (Spider-verse) comic book events!!! In conclusion as I have written quite a mouth full, I believe I loved this series for what it was. Could it have been better? Yes. Should it had been better? Of course. Stan Lee is gone now but I wish he would of given this series a second chance and his blessing with having Disney release it on digital video. Which I'm truly starting to believe may NEVER happen. For all its faults it was still a first for Spidey fans like myself to see their favorite and beloved superhero come to life. And for that reason it will always have a special place in my heart. The Amazing Spider-man 1970s TV series was (if nothing else) a classic in Spider-man history. And should be recognized as such.

I remember this Show. it was fun and good considering it's low budget. I still like nicholas Hammond as Peter Parker best.. we've come a long way when it comes to superhero movies..

This was re-released on VHS in the late 90s or early 2000s. I was working at TARGET (in Australia) and I was very excited when I saw these out on the shelf

This is the one thing I never new I needed.

That intro earned my like without question

Hi. Thanks for this as-positive-as-possible review. I don't remember this show and I was about 16 at the time. I remember WW and Hulk. And as a child, I watched the animated series and read a few comic books. I probably preferred WW over the Hulk at the time because I thought the Hulk was just soo howkey. I'm a SF/Trek fan .. and was probably geeking out over SW (not ! ep. 4, NH, just SW) and ST-TMP.

For me, I'm watching those old Marvel movies to appreciate what we have now. There's also a charm in these old movies, giving me a nostalgic feeling, even though I wasn't born yet during that time.

I was born in 78 so only saw these on VHS in the early 80s as a young kid. I was obsessed and made my Aunt hire it over and over again. I just loved it and I still enjoy watching them today.

I watched these as a kid too, but 3:35 whaaat, I had no idea!

I actually liked the show as a kid, hasn't aged well but for some reason I still love that costume even though it doesn't look like he can move in it very well.

You're killing it brother! Excellent channel! Great edits. You da man. Here's to you CaptiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnMIIIIIIIIIIIIDNIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT!

I remember my love/hate relationship with this show as a kid. I hated most of the things that Capt. Midnight pointed out, especially the lack of supervillains; but it was still a draw just because it was Spider-Man. Jameson was awful! But I liked when Spidey shot his webs. Ah, childhood.

The creators of the 90s animated series must have really loved this show because he looks strikingly similar to the peter in this show , blazer and all haha

I hope this comes on dvd I could watch this all day

this is the best spider suit love the web belt and web shooters plus nicholas hammond is still one the best versions of peter parker not to mention that this show had really good ratings at the time it was on TV for the time it was really cool it still is cool as a classic piece of TV

I still love the show with all my heart, no matter how dated some of the things could be. I still love it.

I really like the suit... It's classic looking with bug eyes. Cool in my book.

As a child I absolutely loved the Original 1977 Spiderman Pilot Episode which is really the first episode in the series. Yes it’s very different from comic book Peter/Spiderman but I find that the pilot had a certain charm to it and I thought the FX were great for its time. To have an actual stuntman rigged up to climb real walls and buildings was so cool and blew me away as a child. Even with its many faults I still love this show.

I strongly suggest you review the Japanese Toho Spiderman live TV show. It's very hard to get but if you have understanding for the time and background of the show, you will be pleasently blown away.

I liked their tension-action music. Woop-woop--wop-wop--wop-wop-Wokkaa

5:24 It's Darren Steven's boss Larry Tate from Bewitched! 😂 He's the last person I'd cast as J. Jonah Jameson. 😂😂

It was broadcast on ITV (UK) in the autumn of 1981 on Friday nights, before "Play your cards right". It looks horribly dated now, but I still have fond memories of it!

The best live TV series about Spider-Man is the Toei's version.

I liked it, but I was a kid. You couldn't have comic book comparisons in those days, as they didn't have CGI. So stories and characters had to adapt to technology, or lack of, at the time.

This show was a missed opportunity. When the network saw that the Hulk was successful they attributed that to the way they toned down his power to a more "realistic" level, so they thought that would work for Spider-Man as well, but it just doesn't. The show they should have patterned it after was "The Adventures of Superman". Like Spider-Man the majority of the show focused on his secret identity character and then we got 5 minutes of action of his in costume, but they made the most of those 5 minutes on Superman. That is what they should have done with Spider-Man. This could have been accomplished by giving the viewer exciting fight scenes. All they needed to do was hire a martial arts master or gymnast and tie harnesses to them so that when Spidey punched or kicked them they could go flying. Have Spidey clobber 10 or 15 guys at once.Plus more impressive feats of strength. Instead we saw Spidey get beat up by 3 guys in an alley. Seriously?By de-powering the character they ruined the character.That's what infuriated me about the show back then. Unlike you I did like Nicholas Hammond as Peter Parker, at least physically. I thought in the face he looked more like the comic book Peter Parker than anyone who has played him since. You focused here on the pilot which was the worst of the series. It did improve slightly as it went along and by the last show was not too terrible. Perhaps if we had gotten a 3rd or 4th season they may have gotten their act together, like Smallville who got much better by far as it went along.

Most of this is accurate but the special effects are amazing for the time and the costumes great too

I blame Hulk 1977 - they did a good job with their alterations and origin edits and other changes, and it made future adaptations think they could go wild without considering the consequences. No car accident in Dr. Strange? No WW2 origin for Cap? Now, by the time MCU bypassed Ben and the origin, the small and big screens were overflowing with them, so it could be done (I even think maybe May was Richard's sister in the MCU, not SiL). But this was the first live action outside of the Electric Company. I think my late Dad summed up the problem with context on Spidey when he asked 'So why is he so upset his Uncle died?'. Now here's one I love to bring up: In the 1966 Batman, one ep had Bruce mention (out of costume) how he had abhorred violence since his parents were murdered. This is the one and only mention of his parents' murder in that entire series, and it was not indicated as being the reason he became Batman like at all. Flash forward twenty years and the final incarnation of Super Friends, the Super Powers show and arguably its best episode, 'The Fear' which is the first non-comics depiction (outside of a 1980 Audio Play) of the Waynes' murder and how it shaped him. The Voice Actor for that great episode? Adam West. I think the BTAS crew took direct inspiration from that ep.

What’s the background music in this video?

I loved this show back in the early 80s when it was showing here in the UK. I would have been about 7 and Spider-Man was one of my favourite superheros. It was a great time for US TV shows in general.

You know, I really love this costume in that movie, it’s really cool

JJJ is in fact a nice guy to peter a lot of times heck we can see jjj protecting peter in spectacular spiderman and as well as rami spiderman and the reason why this show lacked action scenes is because it might turn children bad or something like that (basically what happened to the 90s spiderman show but worse) peter can be a mean/stressed person and also this peter does have a personality, and you said the daily bugle was boring? I mean ya that how it is in real life also a lot of stuff happened behind the scenes of the pilot so they had to change a lot of stuff (actors writers etc)

Hey wait A minute the 1977 live action tv show called The Amazing Spider-Man tv show should been out on DVD 📀 from mill creek entertainment or Arrow video?

I'm in UK and watched this on TV as a kid, i thought it was great, i remember after seeing it on TV Spiderman the Movie was shown at the cinema in '81 and i was really p*ssed off to find it was the pilot episodes stuck together like Buck Rogers which did it right having the film out first, small mistake but it's funny looking back how annoyed i was aged nine so it became bargain bin in my mind but it's actually a really decent show in context of domestic TV shows of the time.

If you werent there at the time then u wont get it.... I was and loved it.... so for 70's kids it did its job... it doesnt deserve this level of picking personally.... way better than the recent DC films - they are crap!

Oh I had this VHS! Watched it maybe twice because it was so boring as a kid. I remember being super sceptical of the Raimi movie as a result of associating live action with how this show was haha. Very glad Raimi went all in and showed me that live action could be fun too (if mildly terrifying for me at the time- never change, Dafoe).

Could it be that the Lt. Barbera character was a standin for Gwen Stacys father? That was my thought at the time they aired. (Was 11 at the time and into comics)

Its absolutely impossible to explain to kids the craft of superhero projects for television back in the 60's and 70's when the people making them were not the fans (as they are today)and the budget was nonexistent. I guess what the young critics sadly miss, is all the celebrated directors, writers, and studio heads GREW UP with these shows, which is why they're making them as intended with the technology and budget they can properly offer today. Kids have absolutely no context because they believe every generation is supposed to have what they have available today. BTW, Nicholas Hammond , which this guy just hammers, was sought out by HIP director TARANTINO to appear in his latest film, " Once Upon A Time in Hollywood" , because he was a HUGE fan of the Spider-man show.

The grievances in this video are so ironic after Homecoming, especially this video being made because Homecoming was releasing at the time.

What were you expecting from a series made over 40 years ago?

Nicholas Hammond IS the Superior Spider-Man.

What music you used throughout this video?

you make good content you got a new sub

The film premiered on CBS on September 14, 1977. It received a 17.8 rating with a 30 share, making it the highest performing CBS production for the entire year. The series had consistently good ratings, & was cancelled because of internal politics at the network.

keep it up man, really love your content

When Stan-Lee first made Spider-Man people were thinking that it would be a bad idea to have a superhero like a spider because to a lot of people spiders are scary to a lot of people and they were afraid people wouldn’t like Spider-Man although he made him anyways and it was successful, although I think this Spider-Man was a good example of what the first thought came to mind when Stan-Lee said Spider-Man. Also this person never mentioned how the Peter Parker from 1970s wasn’t really as smart as the Peter Parker we all know and love, he has a difficult time explaining what Spider-Man looks like, and there are other reasons but there is a lot to explain.

Nicholas Hammond could have been a great Peter Parker. If they changed his haircut and gave him the right character motivation and quips, he could have pulled it off.

stan lee said he wanted to play james jona jamson ps most of stanlee stuff hes in them more then once or just once in tv shows cartoons and movies

I was 14 when I watched this movie in 1977. Hammond did great as an adult Parker although you can tell he's not inside the suit (obviously stuntman Fred Waugh) because both Peter and Spidey's demeanor and mannerisms are very different. Would be cool if Hammond appears in a cameo in the third Spiderman MCU movie.

My dad used to talk about liking Captain Midnight as a child. I was 9 in 1977, and loved the Spider-Man TV show. Of course, I hadn't really been exposed to great super hero shows. Well accept for Batman 66 of course (then on every day in syndication). Well and there was something about Wonder Woman I really liked. What could that of been... Come to think of it, I was disapointed in the special effects and action scenes even then. But regardless, you have to love Larry Tate.

You're very talented

I agree, Michael Pataki who played Captain Barbera should have played Jameson instead, since he practically was anyways. Fair review. Good video, thanks for posting.

As a child, I liked the show a lot. Watching it again I understand why people mock it, but they must keep the context in mind. Anyway, I think from the pilot to season one there were some good changes, For instance, Spidey's strength and agility are there (toned down a lot, but in the pilot he could practically just climb walls). Season two, though, was ruined! A stupid and distracting romantic interest, no Captain Barbera (the best supporting character), a Spider-Man who has difficulty to beat a street thug and who can be knocked out by a blackjack or pistol whip... C'mon! The only good change was the awesome opening theme.

It's not Spider-Man! It's Columbo in tights! They tried real hard to make it fit the 70s crime drama mold and occasionally it was okay.

Most realistic Spiderman.

I loved this show as a kid and still do its a product of its time but just pure fun ❤

Loved this show as a kid and still do it was this and 1967 cartoon that introduced me to spider man hating on it because it's low budget is petty this was the 70s and they had severe limitations and guidelines to follow. But despite that it was fun for it's time and was a hit in ratings

“Silent mime in a costume” sounds kinda disturbing, and does not sound like Spider-Man at all.

I loved this show . The spidey suit in this show is still my fave 😃

I like this and they worked with what they have. I know a guy in his 4o's living with his mom. So, 27 is not old and he was in school with a job. Some people are the same age and older living with parents with no job. His boss did yell at him. The reason they went straight into the plot is because unlike Marvel today, they didn't make a 3-hour movie. I think this was a tv movie. I was a child in the 80s, so I wasn't born when it was made, but I still love it. Even with all the special effects in the new Amazing Spider-man 2, it wasn't good. Since, you didn't like that they didn't mention Uncle Ben, how do you feel about Tom Holland's Spider-Man he's not in that one either. It's also just Aunt May.

7:23 That comparison was pretty ironic because I always thought The actor who played spider-man sounded like Luke Skywalker.

Am i the only one who thinks he sounds like tobey magiure

Thank you random guy on ebay that pirated this on dvd 🙏

The Amazing Spider-Man looks terrible but I want to watch it one day.

Difficult to accept when the wall crawling looked too much like he was being pulled up....

9:06 Huh. The ring announcer from Rocky.

Omg i saw a DVD copy of this movie at comic con, i didn't think it was entirely legal so i didn't buy it.

I’m 11 and I love it

And Star Wars and Spider-Man came out in the same year 1977

So, to summarise, it had bad writing and possibly odd casting.

Did you know the producers of the TV show tried to trick Stan Lee into changing the costume?!? I have an interview with John Romita Sr. on my channel where he tells the story!

Well here I go showing my age, I watched the show growing up. Loved it as a young child, but as a teen and older understood how not including at least Uncle Ben, made the series terrible. It's just back then, Hollywood really wasn't banking on a superhero show. Crappy special effects, no respect for source material, and no attempt at a decent structured plot. I mean in the pilot there's a scene where Spidey is sneaking around the villain's high rise office and ninjas jump out. Wait where, why ninjas you ask? Indeed. Sadly that was the 70s and early 80's. Sucky story? Throw in a car chase, explosion, robot, ninja, who cares if it makes sense. That's what I hated about the Supergirl movie with Helen Slater, there's literally 35 min where it's just her flying around. It in no way works like the more iconic flying scene in Christopher Reeve Superman. I'm glad I live to see Hollywood finally daring to make better superhero films. I know they're not Gone With The Wind, but must be some reason they've been published past 75 yrs and merchandised up the yin yang. I'm excited to see Black Panther next week and still optimistic that the book that introduced him, Fantastic Four, can get it right on try number 4.

You got that Mary Jane theory right

Great program thanks

They have this on dvd believe it or not if this show but it’s hard to find they only have it at comic con I believe I was at comic con on Sunday and find it and bounght it complete series on 8 dvd set

I first saw the show when i was about seven and I loved the show. I look back on the show now and well............1. No villains from the comic books. 2. Lack of stories from the comic books, which really sinks the show. 3. Terrible plot lines.

I was a kid when this came out, and even then, I thought it was only so so. But it did have one really great thing going for it, in at least one episode: Joanna Cameron, and in a bikini no less.

Zendiya