Marvel’s newest animated series, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, may have just premiered on Disney+, but it’s already demonstrating a deep understanding of one of Spider-Man’s most crucial elements: Uncle Ben’s impact on Peter Parker’s (voiced by Hudson Thames). Thatโs a relief for fans, considering Uncle Ben is one of the quintessential characters in the Spider-Man mythos and the Marvel Cinematic Universeโs Sacred Timeline largely sidestepped Ben’s influence in favor of Tony Stark’s (Robert Downey Jr.) mentorship. In contrast, the animated series uses its new timeline setting to prove you can modernize Spider-Man’s origin without diminishing the foundational loss that shaped his heroic journey.
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Before the MCU, Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy and Marc Webb’s The Amazing Spider-Man duology made Uncle Ben central to Peter’s transformation into a hero. In Raimi’s films, Ben (Cliff Robertson) serves as Peter’s moral compass, appearing even after death through impactful flashbacks that remind Peter of his responsibilities. The character’s influence can be felt in every movie, seen as Peter’s guilt over not stopping the criminal who killed Ben drives his decision to become Spider-Man. Similarly, in The Amazing Spider-Man, Ben (Martin Sheen) shapes Peter’s understanding of power and responsibility through their final conversation about Peter’s father, making Ben’s death a catalyst for both emotional growth and heroic transformation.

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The MCU took a radically different approach when introducing their Spider-Man (Tom Holland) in Captain America: Civil War, skipping his origin story to show a version of the hero already fighting crime in New York. On paper, the decision makes sense, as everyone knows Spider-Manโs backstory, and thereโs no need to retread an overworked path. However, the franchise overcorrected by almost entirely erasing Ben’s influence. Instead, Tony Stark became Peter’s primary father figure, teaching him lessons about responsibility and heroism that traditionally came from Ben. This shift fundamentally altered Spider-Man’s emotional core, replacing the weight of personal tragedy with the desire to impress a mentor.
Things only got worse in Spider-Man: Far From Home, in which Peter struggles with his mourning of Tony Stark in a way we never saw him do for Ben. Even in Spider-Man: No Way Home, when the multiverse brought together three generations of wall-crawlers to discuss loss, the MCU’s Peter doesnโt seem too affected by his uncleโs demise โ which is understandable considering he loses his aunt in the movie. The MCU threw so many things in Peterโs direction that their version of Spider-Man failed to show how the death of a close relative can help forge a heroic personality. Fortunately, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is not repeating the same mistake.
How Uncle Ben’s Legacy Shapes Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man honors Ben’s legacy without retelling his death. Like in the MCU, the animated series focuses on a version of Peter Parker, whoโs already testing his footing in the superhero business months after Benโs passing. However, the series weaves his memory naturally throughout its narrative. For instance, in Episode 3, we get a touching scene in which May Parker (voiced by Kari Wahlgren) sorts through Benโs personal belongings, hoping to find items she can sell to pay overdue bills. Peterโs understanding of Mayโs reason, despite her hiding the pain of giving away her late husbandโs affairs, perfectly connects with the teenagerโs hesitation to quit his internship at Oscorp, as he knows the money could help his aunt.
However, Benโs influence on Peterโs emotional growth goes beyond a single scene. The young hero constantly talks about Ben with his aunt, and they miss him a great deal. Without flashbacks or heavy handling, itโs easy to understand how Ben was part of their lives and the hole he left once he was taken by fate. Thatโs an aspect the MCU never got right because Spider-Man was thrust into crossovers and cosmic conflicts too quickly for Marvel Studios to explore Benโs role in his history.
By treating Ben’s absence as an ongoing influence rather than a plot point to reference and forget, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man creates a more nuanced portrait of how tragedy shapes people over time. That doesnโt mean you are forced to redo a scene people know by heart, as Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is extremely comfortable with remixing Spider-Manโs canon. Still, it’s possible to acknowledge past trauma while telling fresh stories, as the animated series brilliantly shows.
New episodes of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man release Wednesdays on Disney+.