Spider-Man vs Spider-Man vs Spider-Man (films)

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Ares
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Spider-Man vs Spider-Man vs Spider-Man (films)

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So I just watched a Lets Play of the PS4 Spider-Man game, and it got me thinking about the live action Spider-Man portrayals (by Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield and Tom Holland) and how they compare to each other. So I figured, Hell, lets just make a thread about it.

I've thus divided them up into several categories, and you can do whatever you want within those categories. List them from best to worst, include your top pick, list your reasoning, etc.

One category I didn't include was technology/webbing, since the Holland Spider-Man has the distinct advantage with tech due to his Tony Stark built tech, and outside of that their webbings tended to operate in virtually the same way. I also didn't include any category for things like their Spider-Sense and Wall-Crawling abilities, because it's generally hard to compare those abilities and they tend to work similarly anyway.

So, outside of that, how do the Spider-Men compare in-

1) Strength and Durability - Lifting strength, punching damage, damage resistance, stamina, etc.

2) Speed and Agility - Reaction time, leaping ability, fast movement, dodging, acrobatics, etc.

3) Fighting Skills / Combat Creativity - General combat competence, ability to weaponize surroundings, ability to deal with more powerful foes, etc.

4) Acting Ability / Character Portrayal - Which actor really portrayed the character best, which one looks the part, etc.

Have fun.
"My heart is as light as a child's, a feeling I'd nearly forgotten. And by helping those in need, I will be able to keep that feeling alive."
- Captain Marvel SHAZAM! : Power of Hope (2000)

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Ares
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Re: Spider-Man vs Spider-Man vs Spider-Man (films)

Post by Ares »

So I figured I'd give my thoughts.
1) Strength and Durability - Lifting strength, punching damage, damage resistance, stamina, etc.
I'd say this goes to Holland. On average, all three Spider-Men had similar levels of strength. Both Holland and Garfield caught cars that had been sent flying with only a bit of effort, and both Maguire and Garfield showed they could rip open a large, bolted closed pipe with effort. Where they differ is in their big strength feats. Garfield's biggest strength feats were stopping an out of control bus and resisting the gears of a giant clock. Maguire's big feat was when he stopped that subway train, which blows pretty much everything Garfield did out of the water.

Holland, however, has the scene where he held a collapsing passenger boat together, which matches Maguire's best feat IMO. He also caught the airport bridge Capt. America dropped on him, as well as caught and stopped an attack from the Thanos goon that was taking on the Hulkbuster armor. Most of all, he had the scene that replicated the classic comic moment where he lifted that huge amount of debris off of his back.

To me, Holland's Spidey not only has higher end feats, but pulls them off consistently.
2) Speed and Agility - Reaction time, leaping ability, fast movement, dodging, acrobatics, etc.
I'd say this goes to Garfield's Spider-Man. Maguire's Spidey has this one moment where he's fighting Flash Thompson and he sees Flash moving "ironically" in slow motion, but apart from that Maguire's Spidey rarely seemed to capture the kind of speed and agility I associate with Spidey. Holland's did a lot better, but to me, what cinches it for Garfield is his second fight with Electro. That fight, to me, is the closest we've seen to Spidey's agility realized on film. He's pulling off these incredible acrobatics to avoid these lightning blasts, flipping around objects and moving in an incredibly fluid way.

So Garfield gets my vote here.
3) Fighting Skills / Combat Creativity - General combat competence, ability to weaponize surroundings, ability to deal with more powerful foes, etc.
I'd say this is a toss up between Garfield and Holland. All of them are decent scrappers, and have all done that cool "dodge out of the way of a thrown object / snag it with a webline / throw it at the attacker" bit (Maguire vs Doc Ock at the Clock, Garfield in his second fight with Electro, and Holland with a cab against the Thanos goon). Maguire's Spidey came off a bit more like a brawler who would occasionally do something clever, like when he was fighting Venom and used those bars to create a kind of sound prison for him.

Both Holland and Garfield seemed more capable of getting creative in combat, with Amazing Spider-Man 2 showing that version of Peter had some very impressive skills. Meanwhile Holland has been able to go up against guys like the Avengers and Thanos' crew with nothing but raw talent. This would put Holland above Garfield, if not that Holland also has some of the worst combat showings as well, such as his fight with Star-Lord, the difficult time he had with pretty much every fight in Spider-Man: Homecoming, etc. So for me, a case could be made for either Garfield or Holland having the better combat skills.
4) Acting Ability / Character Portrayal - Which actor really portrayed the character best, which one looks the part, etc.
This one is another toss up between Garfield and Holland. Holland really nails the "combat banter" aspect of Peter, and being 19 he actually looks like a teenager. Garfield generally looks and sounds more like what I'd expect Peter to, though he was WAY too awkward and angry in Amazing Spider-Man 1. Holland meanwhile is just a bit too subservient to Tony Stark, lacking the kind of rebellious nature and ability to stand up for himself I expect from Peter when it comes to authority figures pushing him around. Though that might be because I'm use to Peter interacting with these heroes in his 20's rather than in his mid-teens. Holland is more consistent in his portrayal, while Garfield really nailed it in Amazing Spider-Man 2. So again, either one would work.
"My heart is as light as a child's, a feeling I'd nearly forgotten. And by helping those in need, I will be able to keep that feeling alive."
- Captain Marvel SHAZAM! : Power of Hope (2000)

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