“Everything Is Possible” (Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Movie Review)
“There’s a first time for everything, right?”
Spider-Man Miles Morales playfully delivers this line to his crush and other on-screen lead, Spider-Woman Gwen Stacy, at the prospect of breaking a canonical “no-no.” The fixed story point referenced in context is the consistent decision by Spider-Man writers against a world where Spider-Man and Gwen Stacy get to fall in love without interference (comic readers and ASM2 fans can fill in the blanks here).
This line also summarizes the essential answer that the Spider-Verse writers pose to an ethical conundrum placed upon Miles and Gwen in a world defined by a “canonical determinism” that rules the Spider-Man story every time, in every universe. Every Spider-Man must lose a beloved police captain to a sacrificial death, so goes the canon. Interference risks the fate of the multiverse, affectionately called the Spider-Verse by Miles. But, losing father and recently promoted police captain Jeff Morales is something Miles isn’t willing to do.
While this choice of one over a potential infinitude of loss may seem emotionally driven upon a first watch, the movie reaches deeper than that, as Miles challenges a utilitarian system of ethics held by Spider-Man Miguel O’Hara and his “canon integrity” security team of Spider-People. This ethical system held by O’Hara and his associates promotes the good of the many over the good of the one. In a godless world or a purely mechanical, determined universe of simple cause and effect, this may seem to be a fair assessment. But in a universe with a sovereign God who allows choice, expects “great responsibility” with that “great power,” and surprises His creation by love for the one sheep in Jesus, we aren’t allowed to justify nor quantify ethical good so pragmatically. Every life is worth fighting for, every time, in every universe. We have a responsibility to make the next right decision; we don’t get to make a wrong one for a potential right outcome. We aren’t in control of what happens and don’t get to play God in advance.
In perhaps the most visually brilliant animated movie ever put to screen by one of the best animation studios in the game right now (shoutout Sony), where every color speaks the unspoken for its characters and every song adds to the vibrancy and diversity of the scenes, Miles tips the writers hand at what they believe is possible in his defining escape from lead utilitarian Miguel O’Hara: “Nah, Imma do my own thing.”
In this case, Miles’ “own thing” is to be the ethical good guy that Gwen thought the society of Spider-People embodied and to continue being the Amazing Spider-Man that she and we know he is. As Gwen realizes, her only friend has it right and needs her help, preparing for the end of the trilogy in Beyond the Spider-Verse and rounding out the wonderful decision to move beyond merely a continuation of Miles’ coming-of-age story to a coming-of-age story for her as well in Across the Spider-Verse.
Will Miles save his father? Will Gwen and her rag-tag team of familiar faces save Miles? Could the Spider-Man and Gwen Stacy romance that is a canonical “NO” truly have a “YES” and break the canon? Gwen says it best to Jeff and wife Rio Morales when sharing what she had learned from their son Miles: “Everything is possible.” 2027 can’t come soon enough to get the band back together and answer these questions. Until then, soundtrack standouts “Am I Dreaming?” and “Mona Lisa” will routinely find their way back into my playlists.