A Spider-filled Multiverse

Sony’s latest installment in the Spider-Verse trilogy, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” was released on June 2 of this year. In theaters, fans noticed a few minor differences when watching the movie for a second or third time. Some scenes had changed dialogue while others were completely reanimated or cut to fit a different tone.

There are many reasons why these scenes could be different, and not just because the movie was about alternate dimensions. While making post-production alterations to movies is not uncommon, the extent to which these edits were made goes a little further than what is usually shown in film. The producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller revealed that their main purposes were logistics, specifically changing the movie for translation and censoring in certain countries. Along with that, they also mentioned that their creative team had offered alternatives to a few of the scenes, and they were allowed to run with their ideas as part of one of the two final movies.

The first two installments of the Spider-Verse trilogy have been cinematic masterpieces, breaking the mold and setting new expectations for the comic book animation industry, but a final film has yet to be released. The third installment, currently titled “Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse” was set to release in March of 2024. Likely due to the writer, actor and animator strike during the summer of 20

23 and some behind-the-scenes drama during the production of Across the Spider-Verse, the film is postponed until late 2024 or even 2025.

One of These Is Not Like the Other

There are a lot of mixed reviews on the newest DC movie, Blue Beetle, which premiered in theaters Aug. 18, 2023. Some people claim it’s a good family movie with great latinx representation while others think it was a waste of time due to its mid-level action sequences and extreme predictability. Nevertheless, it was still a superhero movie based on years of comics, meaning there will be some differences between Blue Beetle in the comics and the movie that casual viewers may not notice.

To preface, there have been three different publishers who have taken on the mantle of the “Blue Beetle”. Passing from Fox Comics to Holyoke Publishing to Charlton Comics before finally being bought out by DC Comics, Blue Beetle has seen a lot of different publications and animated forms. While there were three different Blue Beetle characters in the comics, the movie focused on Jaime Reyes, the third Blue Beetle. As in most theatrical adaptations of comics or books, there are discrepancies between the movie and the source material.

1. Victoria Kord didn’t show up in the comics until the movie was about to be released.

Her first appearance in DC Comics was in issue 2 of Blue Beetle: Graduation Day in February 2023. Many fans speculate that she is a reinterpretation of Jarvis Kord from the older comics.

2. Jaime’s hometown was switched.

In the comics, Jaime fights crime as Blue Beetle in El Paso, but in the movie, it was switched to a fictional Palmera City. The only representation of his hometown in the movie was in the name of his street. Palmera City is now Jaime’s home in the comics as well.

3. Jenny Kord and uncle Rudy didn’t exist until the movie, period.

While her father, Ted Kord, was the previous Blue Beetle in many of the comics, Jenny Kord herself didn’t make an appearance in the comics. On the other hand, uncle Rudy was completely original to the movie, having no tie-in to the comics whatsoever.

4. The scarab is not a secret from his family.

In the movie, Jaime’s family is present when the scarab attaches itself to his back and gives him his powers, allowing them to show their support the whole way through. In the comics, however, he has more of a Spider-Man act to keep up because he keeps hi

s powers secret.

5. The movie is not entirely based off of the comics.

While some of the content was from the comics of ‘Infinite Crisis’ and ‘Blue Beetle: Graduation Day’, most of the inspiration for the movie came from the video game ‘Injustice 2’.

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