COZ Close-Up - Editorial Review
COZ Close-Up - Editorial Review
Following up a record-shattering event film is a terrifying task for any director, and stepping into the wake of Spider-Man: No Way Home is no exception. Spider-Man: Brand New Day hits theaters burdened with monumental expectations. While it doesn't quite match the sheer cinematic lightning-in-a-bottle of its predecessor, it lands as a surprisingly grounded, emotionally heavy, and beefier chapter for Peter Parker. Tom Holland delivers a noticeably more mature, battle-worn version of the web-slinger—a physical transformation accompanied by plenty of gratuitous shirtless scenes that make it clear Peter has grown up.
The undisputed highlight of the film lies in its casting and character execution—specifically the inclusion of Jean Grey. Portrayed with unsettling brilliance by Sadie Sink, the character is stripped of her standard superhero shine and framed instead as a true, sinister threat. Her telepathic and possessive abilities are staged with a chilling atmosphere that feels almost reminiscent of a classic horror movie. It gives the film a distinctly dark, high-stakes edge and forces Peter into a far more raw, emotional space than we are accustomed to seeing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Beyond the villain lore, another glaring continuity issue plagues the film’s narrative integrity: the sudden, unexplained regression of Bruce Banner and the Hulk.
Since the inception of the Avengers franchise, fans have watched a decade-long arc of Bruce slowly mastering, integrating with, and accepting the beast within. We saw him transition at will in the original Avengers with his legendary "I'm always angry" moment, casually converse and banter with Thor in Thor: Ragnarok, and ultimately achieve the ultimate synthesis in Avengers: Endgame as "Smart Hulk"—blending Banner's brilliant intellect with the Hulk's immense physical prowess.
Yet, in Brand New Day, this entire decade of character growth is abruptly wiped clean. We find Banner once again relying on a mechanical inhibitor just to keep an out-of-control, mindless Hulk at bay—essentially resetting his psychological evolution back twenty years.
It becomes painfully clear that this character setback was engineered solely to force classic, comic-book-style brawl sequences between Spider-Man and an enraged Hulk, as well as a heavy-hitting confrontation between Punisher and the monster. While those action set pieces are undeniably thrilling to watch, they didn't require sacrificing Banner's hard-earned character continuity to happen.
A far more respectful, continuity-abiding solution was right on the table: telepathic mind control (perhaps tied into Jean Grey's sinister arc) holding Banner's mind hostage while allowing Hulk to take wild control of the body against Spider-Man, paired with a classic hero-versus-hero misunderstanding between Hulk and the Punisher with both sides seeing the other as the threat to civilians. That approach would have delivered the epic, high-stakes battles fans wanted without throwing away years of Marvel Cinematic Universe character development.
The most baffling thematic misstep occurs in the film's climax. Spider-Man saves MJ, spends a full week protecting her, swings her across the city, unmasks before her, and lets her read his personal letters detailing their shared past. Yet, MJ flatly tells him that while she senses they once had something special, she still has no memory of him and feels nothing—a trope heavily echoing the tragic distance between Star-Lord and Gamora.
What turns this from a bittersweet tragedy into a frustrating plot point is the resolution. The movie concludes with Peter executing his signature secret handshake with Ned, which instantly sparks Ned's complete recall of Peter's identity. Having a secret handshake trigger total memory restoration while weeks of profound, intimate connection failed to move MJ feels bizarrely constructed. Intentionally or not, it speaks poorly of MJ’s deep love for Peter when contrasted with Ned's immediate, effortless recognition.
Finally, the post-credit sequence leaves a sour taste through forced exposition. Ned’s "Spidey Tracker" app—which was explicitly explained earlier in the film as a localized New York network—is shown tracking Spider-Man in real-time all the way into outer space. The logic directly contradicts the film's own established rules, serving solely as a contrived way to signal that Peter's next appearance will be off-planet.
Rather than bending its own technology, the film would have delivered a far more satisfying setup through a surprise MCU cameo. Introducing a Doctor Doom appearance—playing on Peter's deep history with Tony Stark and capitalizing on the massive anticipation surrounding Robert Downey Jr.'s return—would have sent shockwaves through the audience. Alternatively, a Fantastic Four cameo would have honored comic book history, nodding directly to Spider-Man’s legendary debut in The Amazing Spider-Man #1.
Despite its logic leaps and structural stumbles, Spider-Man: Brand New Day remains a strong, four-star entry that takes bold emotional risks, giving fans a darker, harder-hitting look at what it truly costs to carry the mask alone.