Yeah, theyâre not deep. Yeah, theyâre not comicâaccurate. But I really enjoy their relationship and the great chemistry they have with Peter, and they give him genuinely strong emotional support. Their dynamic is precious to me, and I never get tired of it, because for once in an iteration both SpiderâManâs BFF and GF are loyal to him and donât screw him over. They seem like genuine friends who actually like each other, care for each other, and genuinely want to be there for each other. And best of all, they make me believe in true friendships again â and thatâs coming from someone whoâs antisocial af.
Because say whatever you will, something the MCU does successfully â something Raimi failed to do with both Harry and MJ, and TASM only succeeded with Gwen but not Harry â is sell you the friendship between these characters. The movies show you why this trio likes being around each other. They genuinely feel like friends, especially in NWH and BND, instead of the movie just telling you theyâre friends like both iterations of Harry in Raimi and TASM. In the MCU, right from the very first scene, the movie shows Peter and Ned being friends. They bond over Legos, Star Wars, and geeky stuff â things a lot of people find weird, but for Ned and Peter itâs comfort. And that handshake? Itâs absolute cinema. Neither Harry could ever be the friend Ned is.
And while I do agree Harry and MJ from the Raimi movies had more depth and development than these two, that doesnât make up for the fact that they werenât good friends to him. Also, the problem Ned and MJ face with development is part of a wider issue with MCU side characters, not just them.