Spider-Man TV (1967) - Season 1, Episode 11 (Story 1)

Background

Given the title of this episode, you'd be correct to think that there will be multiple villains. But which ones are they? Is this the Sinister Six or perhaps a Threatening Three? We shall see. (with apologies to Dr. Seuss)

Story 'The Night of the Villains'

The New York pier late at night. The watchman of a freighter is assaulted by an unknown individual. Seconds before he loses consciousness, he screams for help. A few blocks over, Spider-Man hears the watchman and decides to investigate. [Impressive. For someone that is on the verge of unconsciousness, this guy is really able to project.]

When Spider-Man arrives, he finds the watchman and his assailant - Edward Teach aka Blackbeard the pirate! They engage in a quick fight which results in Spider-Man being knocked overboard. Blackbeard completes his task: stealing a treasure-chest-shaped box of jade and leaves before Spider-Man is able to return to the ship.

The scene shifts to Parafino's Wax Museum [Hmm... wonder who's the mastermind here?] where Blackbeard shows his shadowed benefactor the results of tonight's theft. When asked if he had any problems, Blackbeard replies that Spider-Man tried to stop him but failed. The benefactor is confident that Spider-Man poses no threat to him. For his next crime, he chooses a bank robbery - and Jesse James to complete it.

The next night while on patrol, Spider-Man swings by the First Bank. He sees Jesse James knock the guard out and prepare to rob the bank. When Spider-Man interferes, he soon finds himself in an Old-West showdown with the notorious outlaw. [Because Jesse James wanted it to be fair and square, Old West style. Sure, whatever.] Spider-Man's a faster draw than James, but the guns still fire despite the fact that they were pulled from his hands - into the air. [Not exaggerating here, my fair reader.] At this point, the guard regains consciousness and blames Spider-Man for attacking him. He manages to overlook the disarmed cowboy who uses this opportunity to hide behind a nearby Chevrolet. With the guard unwilling to listen to his explanation, Spider-Man webs his gun to his hand and leaves.

The "mysterious" benefactor is enraged by James' failure. He sends The Executioner to eliminate Spider-Man once and for all. The Executioner finds his target on a rooftop wondering why he's the only one seeing these historical anomalies [As do we, Spidey.] The Executioner attacks him but is quickly overpowered, complete with the brilliant line "Sacre blu! I have nevair failed!" [Pepe Le Pew had more realistic dialogue]. A quick examination reveals that The Executioner is made of wax. This confirms Spider-Man's suspicions and heads to Parafino's.

Spider-Man arrives and its greeted by Parafino, still intent on eliminating him. He activates the master robot control and sends Blackbeard, Jesse James, and (another?) Executioner after Spider-Man. Spider-Man quickly rips the control box off the wall, stopping the wax-coated automatons in their tracks. [Anti-climactic, isn't it?]

Undaunted, Parafino resorts to his old stand-by. He begins throwing gobs of his specialty wax at Spider-Man. After dodging a few, he makes a web-net and catches the rest, throwing them back at Parafino. This pins him to the wall, ending his crime spree.

He then dumps Parafino and his waxy henchmen at the Daily Bugle as a surprise for Jonah.

General Comments

I can't help but wonder if this episode didn't fulfill some sort of educational requirement for the show. One would think that if you were going to commit crimes and maintain a low profile, Parafino would have chosen less outlandish characters than a cowboy, pirate, and hooded guy with a giant axe.

It's never explained how Parafino went from wax sculptor to Disney Imagineer since his last appearance. Apparently he double-minored in advanced robotics and super-villainy at sculptor college.

Overall Rating

1.5 webs. This is the type of episode that is entertaining provided you don't think too much. The minute that you do, it becomes irritating.

Footnote

Funny caption game. Match the comments with the screen caps above.

1. Jack Sparrow has put on a little weight.
2. A "fair" fight involves arming both people, Uncle Jesse.
3. "I hate chimneys!"
4. "C'mon lucky seven. Daddy needs a new spider-slayer."
5. The Stay-Put Marshmallow Man