I Know Spider-Man 3 Is Often Considered 'The Worst One' Of The Original Trilogy, But Here's Why It's Become My Favorite Spider-Man Movie Over The Years

Is 2007’s Spider-Man 3 the best Spider-Man movie? God, no. In fact, when ranking all of the Spider-Man movies, most people would likely put it dead last.

However, just because something is “bad” doesn’t mean it can’t be somebody’s favorite. Case in point, when I ranked the Batman movies, I put Batman & Robin at the bottom. But, do you know what? I lowkey love that movie, and I only put it last since I know that’s where other people would place it.

So, while I know that either Into/Across the Spider-Verse, No Way Home, or Spider-Man 2 would likely be considered the best Spider-Man movie, I'd honestly rather watch Spider-Man 3 any day of the week. Here’s why.

For One Thing, I Genuinely Like Harry Osborn's Story Arc In This Movie. Amnesia And All

The original Spider-Man trilogy is interesting when it comes to villains. Yes, I know everybody loves Willem Dafoe as the Green Goblin, and Alfred Molina as Dr. Octopus, but pretty much nobody likes Harry Osborn as the New Goblin, and I completely understand.

One of the many complaints that people have with this film is that it just has too much going on, what with three major villains in the New Goblin, Sandman, and Venom. But, even though Norman Osborn and Dr. Otto Octavius have really strong relationships with Peter in both Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 respectively, neither of them have as close a bond with Peter as Harry, who has been his best friend throughout all three movies.

That's why when their friendship goes south here it really hits. I especially like this since Harry's storyline throughout the trilogy has been building toward him learning that Peter killed his dad (By accident!), which causes him to go after Peter, only to get partial amnesia after they battle.

Yes, I know some of this amnesia storyline is kind of hokey, but I like how Harry feels like a central character throughout, only for him to side with Peter in the end, and ultimately give his life to help his friends.

It’s a compelling story arc that I think a lot of people just overlook once they start thinking about Tobey Maguire dancing on a piano, but I really love it. Oh, and speaking about Maguire dancing on a piano…

I Also Love Tobey Maguire's "Evil" Performance

Here’s a bombshell. My favorite live-action Spider-Man isn’t Maguire or Tom Holland. It’s Andrew Garfield. That said, even though most would probably say that the absolute worst version of Peter Parker can be found in Spider-Man 3, it's actually my all-time favorite version of the character. And yes, it’s because of the memes.

What’s often referred to as “Bully Maguire” on the internet, Spidey goes through a sort of transformation once he gets the symbiote, turning super emo in the process.

This is, of course, my favorite part of the movie, especially when he's dancing in the streets (and on a piano), which is really the ultimate legacy of this movie.

As you could imagine, I practically covered my eyes when I first saw this in the theater. All I could think was, what have they done to my beloved Spider-Man? But, over the years (and with the internet’s help), I’ve come to love this part of the film.

Plus, I personally find Peter’s personality in the first two movies to be kind of bland (especially compared to Andrew Garfield’s and Tom Holland’s performances). But “Bully Maguire” has personality in spades! Particularly when it comes to his relationship with Gwen Stacy. Oh, and speaking of her…

Gwen Stacy Is A Nice Addition To The Series

I know a lot of people don’t like The Amazing Spider-Man movies, but out of both of those admittedly flawed films, one aspect – besides Andrew Garfield – that was never a problem was Gwen Stacy.

Played by Academy Award winner Emma Stone, she made Stacy her own, and her chemistry with Peter was often smoldering in the two movies (even though they kept their distance for part of the filming…for a very deliberate reason).

So, does Bryce Dallas Howard come anywhere close to capturing the essence of Gwen Stacy like Stone did? Not even close. That said, she’s not meant to. In a lot of ways, she's supposed to represent the change in Spider-Man as he goes from loving Mary Jane Watson to being infatuated with himself. This occurs early on in the film, where he goes against character and asks Gwen to kiss him right in front of everybody (Including Mary Jane!).

In a lot of ways, her character kind of gets lost in the story, and she's really more of a catalyst to get the events moving rather than her own, fully fleshed out character. I’m well aware of this.

That said, her being in the story does keep the plot interesting, and I like how she even calls out Peter for being a womanizing jerk and apologizing to Mary Jane. That was a nice touch.

I Also Think The Sandman Fights Are My Favorite In The Trilogy

Ask anybody who’s watched this original trilogy, and they’ll almost definitely tell you that the best fight in the entire series was Spidey vs. Doc Ock on the train, and look, I’m not going to argue with you.

I remember seeing that fight for myself the first time, and thinking, yes! THIS is what Spider-Man is supposed to be. This fight is perfect! And, it is perfect. That said, it’s not my favorite fight in the entire trilogy. That would feature another train, but it would also involve Sandman rather than Doc Ock.

Because if you remember correctly, Spidey learns that Sandman, whose real name is Flint Marko, killed Uncle Ben all those years ago, and so he is PISSED. So pissed, in fact, that not only does he want to hurt Sandman…he wants to KILL him. And he tries to! In this brutal fight, Spider-Man at first stalks Sandman from the ceiling, only to kick him into the train, and then put his face up against the train!

Now, yes, one can presume that since Spider-Man fought Sandman earlier, he had an idea that this wouldn’t kill Marko. But, who knows? He was pretty angry, and this is the first time in the whole trilogy where we actually see the hero completely let loose in a fight.

I’m aware that this was partly the black suit’s fault, but it’s still a riveting battle, and there’s so much at stake with Peter wanting revenge. Plus, to top it all off, once Sandman literally goes down the drain, Spider-Man growls, “Good riddance.” And you already know how much I love my Bully Maguire.

Plus, It's My Son's Favorite Spider-Man Movie, So, By Extension, It's Mine, Too

Nowadays, my son is a rabid Minecraft fan, but many moons ago, he absolutely adored Spider-Man. It was his favorite character.

I could honestly show him anything Spider-Man-related, and he would go ga-ga for it. But, nowadays, his passion for the ‘ol webhead has cooled. Yeah, he loves Spider-Man 2 on the PlayStation (He actually 100%ed it), but he didn't even finish watching the movie, Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Do you know what Spider-Man movie he loves, though? Spider-Man 3. It might be because it reminds him of the video game, which has a big fight with Sandman early on, and also features Venom prominently.

So, since my son loves the third film, I kind of (by extension) love it, too. It's the only Spider-Man movie that we've watched together in its entirety, and my son frequently quotes it.

For example, just the other day, I said I got water in my eye, and my son cheekily said, “I'm gonna put some dirt in your eye.”

It's for this reason, and the ones I already mentioned, that Spider-Man 3 is my favorite webhead movie. But, what do you think about the film? I'd love to hear your thoughts.