Garfield is the Magic Number
If Peter Parker’s character had to be embodied by a single actor, there is no indecision as to who that should be.
Between all four portrayals of Spider-Man, to the animated Miles Morales and three live-action Peter Parkers, there has been a traditional format to create this fun-loving teenager behind a superhero mask.
His formula consists of a heap of awkward nature, a tablespoon of intuition for science, bravery, and a kind spirit.
With that being said, all four portrayals have done no wrong in mastering the comic’s ideals; yet there is one person who’s delivery surpasses the common archetype—Andrew Garfield.
Unlike the other three live-action franchises, Garfield’s character takes an entirely new emotional intensity, the CGI edited over the suit for both Holland and Maguire looking unnecessary for him.
“His expressions when in the suit take the character to another level. While Tom has a mask that allows his face to move and show his expressions, Andrew had to use just body language that was just over-the-top enough to show the emotions of the character,” said Hayley Wilson, senior student and MCU fan.
Even behind the attire, his Peter always succeeds at giving the character a kind of humanism that is both funny and soft-spoken. Whilst defeating common thieves this Spider-Man will make a spectacle of dramatics by drawing his knees to the floor, speaking to the criminal in a false panic only to have him stuck to the wall in webs mere seconds later.
“He was the best at handling the power he had. He was calm in the situations he was put in, so much that he was always adding in some sort of cocky, over-confident banter with his villains.”
This Peter’s reaction to life-changing events like the death of his uncle and love interest Gwen is also especially realistic, as even a soft-spoken character deserves to lash out, the latter making him unfeeling—which Peter Parker most definitely is not. This “lashing out” can definitely be argued through Tom Holland’s portrayal in No Way Home, yet what he accomplished in three movies was already achieved in Garfield’s first and second film.
Garfield’s delivery is also hilarious, having the best comedic timing out of all three live-action Spider-Men. For his newest performance in No Way Home, the character’s abrupt mention of saying “I love you” to the other Parkers whilst in the middle of an intense conflict shows his accuracy in portraying the kind but awkward nature that is Spider-Man.
Emma Stone playing Gwen Stacy is another benefactor, her being the best love interest between the three Parkers combined. Unlike the chaos that ensued with Maguire’s MJ, their relationship is delivered so naturally from the very beginning, the two working through problems and feeding off one another to create a superior duo. Not to mention that Gwen is exceedingly intelligent, her upcoming internship at Oxford and position as Head research officer at Oscorp giving her the ability to aid Parker with his Spider-Man duties like fixing his web shooters.
Whilst Garfilelds’s outstanding emotional performance alone displays his eminence as Spider-Man, other elements including his chaotic humor that works simultaneously with a superhero persona lands him in the number one spot. Or as No Way Home Parker would ironically say, “Peter three!”