By Kit-Kat

"Spider-Man 2.1 All New 2-Disc Extended Cut Including Never-Before-Seen Footage!" Call me a Blow Pop but I did get all giddy when I heard about this baby coming out on DVD. I know...I know... these DVD releases generally are nothing more than the company squeeze for an extra buck, to hype up a release of another installment, etc... However, on the rare occasion they are real gems that bring a deeper look into what you may have considered an already great movie. And in the event this is for the hype factor of a third movie, well you know there is that small itty bitty thing called a preview that gets you all excited for a sneak peek before the next installment hits the screen.

While I do not claim to be a Spider-Man walking encyclopedia, I will admit he has always been on my watch and read list. There was never a day I missed an episode on a Saturday or after school - never a minute I missed at least mooning over the comics I never did get to buy. Does this make me bias when a 2.1 DVD comes out - um... sure a little bit but, while I found this DVD worthwhile I was disappointed in a few spots... so there; the rosy glasses were not on the whole time even if I was gazing at Tobey Maguire!

The latest installment in the blockbuster Spider-Man series, based on the classic Marvel Comics hero, Tobey Maguire returns as the mild-mannered Peter Parker, who is juggling the delicate balance of his dual life as college student and a superhuman crime fighter. Peter's life becomes even more complicated when he confronts a new nemesis, the brilliant Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina) who has been reincarnated as the maniacal and multi-tentacled "Doc Ock." When Doc Ock kidnaps MJ (Kirsten Dunst), Spider-Man must swing back into action as the adventure reaches new heights of unprecedented excitement. Nothing earth shatteringly new, no massive plot twists here, but those wondrous eight minutes of footage added back into the movie do make a difference. I can easily go on record to say this was what should've been released in the theatre.

Now, being the Geekette that I am, I could relate to you every bit of extended footage (yes, I daresay I found just about all of it) but what fun is that for you? I will mention a few highlights of what I discovered that make this one DVD you really should get regardless of features (and yes, will discuss that disappointment in a moment). First there is the elevator scene like you have never seen it before, now this second take will have you cracking up I guarantee it (odd that the whole conversation was so different in the theatrical release), two words for you... "Thwip Cologne" that is all I am saying. And the second, now this one takes the cake and makes it all worthwhile; Jameson the closet admirer of the Spider-Man in complete Spidey gear with cigar is something you just cannot miss. Trust me completely on this one - I was in tears from laughing so hard and I must have rewound that bit at least five times before I was willing to move on (grudgingly). Aside from those prize spots, the extended scenes that were sprinkled about gave way to a much better story line, a deeper understanding and reasoning behind some of the character actions as well as slightly changing the tone of the movie over all.

Based on the extra footage added back in I greatly recommend this DVD to add to your collection, whether you're a Spider-Man collector or not - it is totally worth it.

Okay, now that you understand how much I loved the extended version of the movie, and want to provide the proverbial 'push' to get you motivated to buy a copy for yourself; I will delve into the disappointment factor - the special features. It's been awhile since I watched them all from the Widescreen Special Edition but, I do know that these 2.1 features don't hold a candle to them.

The features are split up in between both discs; every DVD has their commentary track - and personally, unless I am in the mood I don't bother, so I cannot say for certain if this was any better than the commentary from 2 - eventually I'll turn it on and check it out (though I do hear it's a bit um...boring). Then we have the Spidey Sense 2.1 (akin to the Spidey Sense 2) which you can turn on as an interactive feature with the movie to get extra tidbits - this was cool, I love behind the scenes stuff. Now bring on disc two containing: the Inside 2.1 Featurette - somewhat interesting featuring on the editors and artists involved in doing the re-edit of the theatrical release. The Visual Effects Breakdown had potential to be my favorite feature (it usually is) since it touched different aspects of the effects with the animation, miniatures, etc... but, it seemed a bit too short for such an effects type of movie, I expected more. Danny Elfman Scores Spider-Man 2 had the oddity of watching from different angles, and while the concept was neat it did nothing for me. So that sums it up... oh, wait - I suppose you want to know about the Spider-Man 3 preview? There is a reason I blocked it out of my memory, I have to say it - this was the most disappointing of the features. Considering how much is on the net (granted not everyone can see the net) and what you see in the true theatrical trailer I had expected at least a gleaning of something new, a different shot angle, a new scene, heck I'd have settled for one word that I've not heard up to now - nada. To me, it was a straight rehash of the first glimmers we saw on the net under the guise of a few cast interviews that really didn't say anything that we as Webaholics didn't already know. It discussed (via cast and clips) Peter's descent to the dark side (insert Lord Vader breathing here), the new edition of Eddie Brock (yet not a peep of Venom) and the addition of Flint Marco (Sandman). I guess I should've watched the features first and then the movie since finishing off my night with the features was a bit of a let down.

There are DVDs out there that merit notice and coveting based on the movie portion alone and this is one of them. The movie with the extended footage replaced makes it well worth your time and cash to add this to your collection. You can rest assured I am going to watch this a few more times before the release of Spider-Man 3, (what? I said I was a Geekette AND Spidey smitten) I'll be wondering which version the third will play on. The 2.1 DVD does give you a different tone on a few things, and if that is reflected in the 3 installment then people who don't watch the 2.1 will be a bit confused I think. Go on... you know you want to... buy it my precious...er... I mean buy it - it's precious! Trust me- it's happily sitting beside all the other Spider-Man DVDs in its worthy spot on my shelf.