There’s a lot of great things going on in the animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. The minority lead is incredibly engaging and the first in-motion Spider-Gwen was everything I wanted her to be. I’m secretly hoping she’ll get her own film some day. Combine that with a worthwhile story, heartfelt interactions and pulse-pounding action — you’ve got yourself a fun ride.

Comic Style +

Having this story animated (instead of live action) allowed for some stylistic choices that celebrated both animated and print formats. Especially after Miles gets his powers, the story is presented more and more like a comic book, including thought bubbles and descriptions that pop up on screen. Unlike its comic roots, the film uses these staples of the print format in dynamic ways. Thought bubbles pop up after Miles as he’s running down a street, panel lines slash through the screen and present multiple images at once. It’s a comic on speed and you can’t look away.

Color

Coupled with the general layout of a comic book, the animation is lush with vibrant color. The colors are as vivid as our main character himself, who sings to get himself in a good mood and is full of energy. Adding this to our smooth animation, and 2-D/3-D presentation (even when viewed in standard format, you can tell how much depth the 3-D version has) and you’ve got a visually breathtaking actiony romp. But even with that color and fun, there’s still some darkness to be had, making this a film that’s not just emotionally investing for young viewers.

Otherworldly Designs

Another great stylistic choice was to have the spider-people of different universes look and behave different. Spider-Ham (yes, a spider-pig) is more cartoonish and uses weapons that would have been at home in a Bugs Bunny cartoon). Spider-Noir is depicted in black and white and he can’t see color. Peni Parker is decidedly more anime. This design choice follows when we get glimpses into their worlds in their intros and near the end. Different shapes, color-schemes and physics accompany the buildings and sights populating from the other worlds.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a fantastic addition to the Marvel universe, referencing all the Spider-Men that came before it while securing its own important place in heroic cinema. It’s a fantastic animated film, but it’s also just a really good film in its own right.