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Spider-Man Commentary: Between an Ock and a Hard Place

Those of you who know the IRL-series will recognize the events of "S02E02 "Between an Ock and a Hard Place""  as pivotal to the second season. But although Otto Octavius's return and the manner of his exit are taken from two episodes—"Take Two" and "Between an Ock and a Hard Place"— most everything in between has changed. In the original series, Ock was a villain and a villain all the way thru. It was he who hired Silver Sable's gang to steal the Neuro-Cortex, and he also encouraged an Octopus lookalike in a crime spree to keep Spider-Man busy. In my continuity he is much less malevolent. He's not repentant for what he did in Season One (for he never thought he was doing wrong), but when he causes harm it is unintentional. It is his carelessness and arrogance, not malice, that bring him to grief.

All of this (as I've explained repeatedly) is intended to lead up to my version of the "Superior Spider-Man" arc, where Ock and Spider-Man swap bodies. This is where the story starts moving in that direction, so if you haven't been paying attention up to now, this is where you might start.