The Marvel Cinematic Universe has done a lot of things that have never been done before, from the intricacy of the world-building to the range of characters and types of stories. It’s also in contention for the longest-running movie franchise and has been of overall amazing quality. Spider-Man: No Way Home, continues both those trends. I will be doing my best to avoid spoilers in this review, so it may be shorter than normal and seem light on a lot of detail.

The movie picks up within seconds of the last one ending, with Peter’s identity now public knowledge, him framed for murder, and a host of complications spilling out of that. The first section of the movie deals with Peter, MJ, Ned, and May trying to deal with this new reality, and it’s safe to say it affects all aspects of their lives. When a particularly unfair blow falls on more than just Peter, he finally decides to seek some very special help.

This is when things go off the rails. There’s a solid attempt to enact a fairly unique solution, which gets complicated by attempts to modify things as they go. No good deed goes unpunished, they say, and this is a great example of that concept. Instead of making anything better or simpler, things get so much worse. Peter and his friends have to deal with a constant series of surprises as they have a string of unexpected encounters. The stakes are gradually raised as complications and repercussions pile up.

We get a lot of amazing action sequences, some follow up on stories from a while back and some interesting developments among the Spider-Friends. There are several nods to the MCU in various forms, including at least one tie-in I didn’t expect. I was impressed with the cast and some really fine performances. Finally, there’s no other way to save the day, and Peter has to make a really big sacrifice. It’s safe to say that by the end of this movie, Peter Parker’s life will never be the same.

What I liked: The cast, and the way they brought in various characters, delighted me several times. There were no bad performances. I liked how they addressed various stories from a lot of different places, including an unexpected complication from Infinity War. A lot of the cast played well off each other, and there was a lot of chemistry in this movie. There were several different small things I’d love to see followed up on. We see that, without a doubt, Spider-Man is a hero, whatever J. Jonah Jameson might say.

What I didn’t: Things were busy enough that some characters got limited screen time and motivations. There was one tragic event I really would have been happier without. I’m struggling to wrap my head around some of the ramifications from a few things that happen near the end of the movie. One of the two end credit scenes was funny, but didn’t really make any sense when you think about it.

I loved this movie. I’m giving it a rare 5 out of 5. I’m eagerly awaiting the next MCU movie, and hopefully more Spider-Man appearances.