Spider-Man Has a Brand New Day in Brand New Day

Spider-Man: Brand New Day Review

Hello, true believers! Five years ago, we saw MCU Spider-Man get put through the absolute wringer. He got doxxed by the late Mysterio, he lost his Aunt May, and to stop reality from collapsing, he had to have everyone forget his real identity as Peter Parker. And while we did get the crossover of live-action Spider-Men fans dreamt of, the ending still left a bittersweet taste in my mouth. To this day, I’ve questioned why Spider-Man has to suffer for the sake of relatability! Needless to say, I was hoping and praying that the powers that be would give Spider-Man happiness in his new film, Brand New Day. Thanks to a family membership at Amazon Prime, I got to see the film a day early! And if I could sum up my experience watching the film, I would boil it down to one word: therapeutic.

The Depressing Spider-Man

It’s been four years since the events of No Way Home, and Spider-Man has become a full-time superhero. He’s repaired the damage to his reputation and is beloved by New York, has a studio apartment, and thanks to his ingenuity, has made his own versions of the tech he previously had. He also happens to be super depressed and reclusive, not really having a life outside of the suit. And just when a new threat emerges in New York, he gets an equally big threat closer to home when Ned and MJ move back after graduating from college.

If you read my review for No Way Home, then you’ll know that while I respected Peter’s decision not to re-enter his friends’ lives, I still hated it. Yes, Marvel likes to keep his life less than perfect because it makes him relatable, but at some point, it just feels cruel! The guy has the right to be happy, and for most of Brand New Day, I had to watch as he mentally tortures himself by thinking about the life he lost. The only reason he even re-enters Ned and MJ’s lives is because he runs into Ned by accident and follows him back to their apartment. As a result, we get the scene where he sees MJ has a new boyfriend, who I desperately wanted to get run over by a cement mixer. Don’t ask me why a cement mixer! It was the first thing I could think of!

No, the Spell isn’t Broken

Now, I know that most people went into Brand New Day hoping that Spider-Man would somehow make MJ and Ned remember who he is. Heck, there’s even a scene where we are tricked into thinking that happens, only for it to be cruelly ripped away from us. It feels like the universe is unfairly punishing Peter for things out of his control! But then we are forced to remember something important: things were more in his control than we want to admit.

I cannot say everything without entering spoiler territory, but there is one scene in the film where Peter gets called out on his decision to not re-introduce himself to Ned and MJ. He had promised them that he would come find them and tell them everything. Yet in the very next scene, he broke that promise out of fear for their safety. He was right to worry about them, but in doing so, the film argues it robs them of their agency. In addition, despite losing their memories, it’s shown that Ned and MJ subconsciously realize something’s missing from their lives and aren’t truly happy either. So, no one is truly happy with anything, and the emotional aspect of the film centers around Peter learning that. Albeit, he does so by his powers mutating.

Emotional Damage!

The trailers for Brand New Day subtly imply it, but the film itself confirms it: the boost to Spider-Man’s powers is due to the emotional trauma of MJ and Ned re-entering his life. Much like how Bruce turns into the Hulk (and the Savage Hulk does return in this film), the stress of four years of isolation makes Spidey’s powers go nuts. At first, he tries to fight it or suppress it, but eventually, he realizes that he can’t fight it. He is pushed to the point where he realizes that he can’t keep punishing himself and that he has the right to be happy. Once that happens, and he fully embraces his powers, he becomes even more badass than he already is.

Spidey and Punisher are Like Abbott and Costello

So, what about the plot of the film? I’m not spoiling the plot! Much! Tom Holland, Jacob Batalon, and John Bernthal attached a message to the start asking people not to spoil it, so I won’t. The most I can do without spoiling everything is talk about the appearances of other superheroes in the film and the role they play.

New York City has often been the hub for most superhero activity in the Marvel Universe, and for good reason. It’s been Marvel’s home for decades (but not for much longer), and it’s the biggest city in America. With so many heroes and villains in one place, it’s common for them to run into one another. And over the course of the film, Spider-Man interacts with the likes of Black Widow (Yelena), Bruce Banner, and most notably, the Punisher. We get to see the relationship he has with each of them and how that reflects on who he is at this point in his life. He doesn’t really interact with Banner much beyond the scene at ESU (and when he goes Savage Hulk), and his interactions with Yelena are largely used for exposition or comedy. The real draw, though, is how he interacts with the Punisher.

The Punisher and Spider-Man have long been excellent foils to each other. They both deal with street-level crimes, but whereas Spider-Man holds back and tries to avoid killing people, Punisher has no such qualms. Whereas Spider-Man tries to be optimistic about the world, the Punisher is very cynical about things. Lastly, and this is important, whereas Peter chose to cut himself off from everyone, the Punisher was forced to do so by the events in his life. He even calls Spidey out for throwing away his chance at happiness. And it actually sticks.

As for who the villain is, I think you’re going to be surprised.

A Nice Return to Spider-Man

Ultimately, Brand New Day lives up to its name, as the events of the film mark a brand new day for Spider-Man. By the end of it, he comes to terms with the fact that he may never get the relationship he had with Ned and MJ back, but that doesn’t mean he still can’t have them in their lives. The film ends on a pretty optimistic note with Peter re-introducing himself to Ned with their handshake, and there is a moment where it seems like Ned might remember something. But then I remembered that MJ had accidentally name-dropped Spidey’s real name. But hey, I’ll take what I can get. It’s a good movie, one with the stakes planted firmly at home and carries a lot of emotional weight to it. The kind of emotional weight that wasn’t there in the Jon Watts trilogy, if you ask me. So, it looks like Tom Holland will keep playing Spider-Man for a little while longer, and I think his life will turn around.

The only thing that would make this movie perfect would be if MJ dumped her nameless boyfriend that I’ve dubbed “Paul Rabin.” If you know, YOU KNOW!

I Give “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” a 4/5