At some point, you are going to make a decision that upsets people. I hate to be the one who is maybe being rather blunt to you, but it is going to happen. A famous-to-me quote once said, “You can please all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time. But, you cannot please all the people all the time.” I can see a lot of avid Comic Readers looking at certain parts of this movie and gagging on the decisions they made. Let’s case and point with MJ. Even if you only watched the other Spider-man movies, you’ll know who MJ, Mary Jane, is. However, let’s push past that noise people.

I see so much in “Spider-man: Homecoming,” boy I hate that title, that is so different. It highlights some things while failing in some basic principles, or does it actually fail? I think most people who watch this movie will want to make three comparisons. First, they’ll compare it to the other Spider-man Trilogies. Second, they will compare it to the other Marvel Movies. Finally, they’ll compare it to other movies in general as they do most movies. I don’t think you can get past those questions.

Ultimately, we’re looking at another superhero movie. As Marvel, under Disney, continues to build a film kingdom… no, empire? Maybe Dynasty is an epic enough word for what they are doing with the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). Anyway, as they continue to conquer the summer movie blockbusters battlefield, one may begin to see a pattern throughout their films emerging. I would go so far as to say since the original Iron Man movies, Marvel really hasn’t made an actual ‘bad’ movie. Not to say there isn’t faults in them, but I’ve never walked away saying I wouldn’t buy the DVD. I feel the same way with this installment, but the trend leads into our first question.

So, first question is how does “Homecoming” stack up to the other Marvel films? It’s… different. It’s blatantly obvious that this is on purpose, I mean they screamed it at you in the plot as we join Peter Parker, Tom Holland, and that’s high school version Parker for you Comic book readers, being sequestered from the Avengers in favor of dealing with the ‘little stuff.’ Parker is restless, wanting to rejoin the Avengers on a big adventure like he did in “Captain America: Civil War.”

His mentors/handlers Tony Stark, Robert Downey Jr., and Happy Hogan, Jon Favreau, still question whether a child should be shouldering such a large responsibility. Even in the Comic Books, Spider-man joins a bunch of teams over the years, but never really feels like he fits on any of them. Spider-man is always his own character separate from any team. But in this film, it highlights that especially. And the film itself longs to be different from the Avengers and other movies in how it handles the Superhero genre.

“Homecoming” adds a subtle underpinning of a High School drama along with the Superhero aspect, and with that, you see Peter Parker a little more than his alter ego, Spider-man. As he juggles the costume, a high school crush, an overbearing friend, attempted popularity, and a national debate competition, you even begin to feel a little of his stress as he explores his priorities and awkward teenage years. It establishes Spider-man as a disparate entity that makes me excited to see what the future holds for this series.

As for the other Spider-man trilogies, I think many people may find this iteration far superior in both material and execution. I do miss the funny quips of Andrew Garfield’s version, anyone recall Spider-man’s weakness to small knives, but you do still get a little comedy in Holland’s take. Holland excellently portrays Parker’s confusion about superhero duties and abilities while dealing with trying desperately to have some kind of personal life.

I think you lose some of the seriousness from the original trilogy in this newest take. “Homecoming” avoids the deeper ideas of keeping loved ones safe like the original trilogy did with the ‘Hero’s Choice’ between a personal loved one and a tram full of people on the bridge. Instead, “Homecoming” focuses more on the question, “What kind of hero do you want to become?”

As for the final comparison in general as a movie. I can see some downfalls in the special effects department with some CGI that was noticeably an issue. Before people start quoting my Transformer’s article to me about CGI, I bring this up with Spider-man because the quality jolted me that the characters looked awkwardly different in a few parts. I do say only a few parts because it wasn’t overwhelming. The story it has to tell takes some great risks in the later parts of the movie when, spoiler here, Peter is forced into a far lower-tech costume for a climactic battle. This is one of those interesting decisions that sets Marvel’s take on Spider-man different from a lot of movies I’ve seen.

You can also see the character development throughout the film, even if it is a bit on the nose. I point out a couple flaws to sort of balance out what I am about to say that this could be one of the better summer movies of the year. The story’s duality works well to compliment “Spider-man: Homecoming” as a superbly different film from the usual Marvel action movies. Michael Keaton’s character Adrian Toomes, aka the Vulture, outperforms many other movie villains with his ‘believability’ when the beginning of the movie sets him up as a salvage company who got ousted by a Government/Tony Stark group entity. Toomes responds as a family man who would do absolutely anything to support his wife and daughter.

It’s not just that bit, however, as Keaton’s expertly displays a tension with what he is doing until late in the film. You can almost see him break at one point when he truly embraces the villain persona, and after that when he’s caught. He plays a villain that you want to cheer for and begs the question, “Could he be saved?”

Basic principles of movies suggest that people hate it when you stray from the source material. If that is all you care about, then let’s stamp a big red F on this one. Throw out a vast majority of what you ‘know’ about Spider-man from the comics or the older films. But, sit for a moment and let this new Spider-man, an alternate universe in the vast Marvel multiverse. You may find yourself very happy with the decision to fail at that aspect. New avenues open for exploration with these changes, new ideas and new connections between people that really make it stand out instead of falling to mediocrity. If you are unfamiliar with the source material, well then why did you read this paragraph anyway?

By all means, I highly suggest “Spider-man: Homecoming” to any looking for a good movie this weekend. As it handles a series that many may have lost faith in, I actually did enjoy the other trilogies, you can’t go wrong here so get down to East Towne Cinemas in Ellijay before you miss your chance at this movie. It hits all the right notes with established fans of the MCU and those who may not be so familiar with the character.