We all know that Spider-Man has had somewhat of a complicated past on the big screen, especially due to the film rights being owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment rather than Disney. But ever since a deal between Sony and Marvel Studios introduced the web-slinging hero to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, it has become apparent that Tom Holland’s portrayal of Peter Parker is here to stay; and this action-packed sequel builds off of the foundation built for him in the previous Spider-Man and Avengers installments. 

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While many fans may be torn over this new portrayal of the iconic superhero, especially due to his reliance on high-tech gadgets and relationship with Tony Stark, (a feat only accomplished due to Sony wishing to differentiate this version from their previous two franchises), Spider-Man: Far From Home serves as a massive stepping stone- a clear middle chapter in a trilogy about a young Peter Parker’s journey into becoming Spider-Man. 

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The pacing and tone of the film is reminiscent of its predecessor, Spider-Man: Homecoming, also directed by newcomer Jon Watts. It perfectly captures the spirit of high school, awkward teen relationships and all, in a way that fits the environment of the greater MCU smoothly. While the Jon Watts films are smaller in scale than those of the previous two Sony franchises, it still manages to pull off a charm similar to that found in the Spectacular Spider-Man animated show by balancing its light humor and small-scaled adventures with threatening antagonists and suspenseful consequences.

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The story itself picks up after the events of Avengers: Endgame. Peter Parker is seeking a break from his life as a superhero, finding it to be emotionally and psychologically overwhelming for a 17 year old, so he decides to join his classmates as they depart on a school-sponsored field trip across Europe. Along the way, he joins Nick Fury and Quentin Beck, also known as Mysterio, to fight an army of interdimensional beings called Elementals. Without giving away much more of the story, which is full of plot-altering twists, the film manages to do justice to most of its characters, especially Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio. This was the first time Mysterio was ever adapted into a big-screen character, and the film’s execution of such a ridiculous concept was nothing short of flawless. The movie stayed true to the character’s roots and although Mysterio was slightly modernized, they still managed to make him threatening, cool, and unique, which is just beyond admirable from a creative standpoint. 

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A big part of the reason this and Homecoming felt like such solid films has to do with their reliance on telling a good story over world building. Unlike the previous Amazing Spider-Man franchise, and many of the solo MCU films, these movies don’t go out of their way to reference too many future characters or set up a plethora of sequels (except for the two post-credit scenes, of course, which viewers will not want to miss). Far From Home manages to tell a condensed, fast-paced story about Peter Parker discovering what it truly means to be Spider-Man, and all the sacrifices he makes along the way, including the guilt he feels over a fallen mentor, and the pressure he feels to tell Zendaya’s MJ about his true feelings towards her. From a writer’s perspective, the film stays true to who Spider-Man is as a character, with respect to the greater MCU environment surrounding him, and anyone who disagrees likely cannot see past the subtle changes and differences from the previous franchises, which is a shame. It’s not necessarily about the origin; viewers don’t have to watch Uncle Ben die every time to understandwhy Peter Parker became Spider-Man. We just need to understand who Peter Parker is, what his struggles are, and what he aspires to accomplish while balancing his power with the personal responsibilities of life- and that’s exactly what this film exceeds in doing. 

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While this film has a good story, fun action, and solid character development, there are several aspects of it that audiences may dislike. Without becoming too spoiler-heavy, there is a subplot involving Peter’s best friend Ned, played by Jacob Batalon, experiencing an off-beat high school romance. While it’s meant to contrast the wholesome chemistry and romance arc Holland’s Parker and Zendaya’s MJ share throughout the movie, the whole joke falls flat and doesn’t serve much more to the plot than to poke fun at that trope. Ned Leeds' character could have been utilized in a bigger way, keeping the same sense of humor he had in the first movie, but also exploring more of his role as Spider-Man’s “guy in the chair”. Seeing Ned grow as someone who could help Peter build new gadgets or locate criminals would have been cool, and it would remind the audience why the two are friends in the first place. 

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Additionally, there is a bit of repetition when it comes to the lessons Peter learns at this stage of his life, especially after taking the events of the Avengers films into consideration. This serves mainly as a sequel to Avengers: Endgame’s story, and it's important to keep in mind that we are still very early in Peter Parker’s MCU journey. It’s likely that people craving a more-mature, dramatic portrayal of Spider-Man won’t enjoy this movie because Peter is still finding his footing in both the superhero world and in discovering his own identity, but that’s okay. Audiences will be seeing much more of Tom Holland’s portrayal of Spider-Man going forward, both in the MCU and Sony-produced spinoff films. And after watching the new teaser trailer for Spider-Man: No Way Home, people will discover that things are going to be getting very interesting in the Spider-Man franchise as well as the MCU as a whole.

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This new Spider-Man franchise promised to give us something new, something fresh- and that’s exactly what Spider-Man: Far From Home delivered.