The MCU is no stranger to the multiverse. The idea was first introduced in the movie franchise with Doctor Strange and has subsequently been expanded upon by various films. However, the first time we are truly I experienced it in detail on the Disney + show, Loki.
There is a central body in Loki that is responsible for pruning the shifting timelines and preventing people from interfering with time called the Time Variation Authority (TVA). It’s relevant to this conversation because of its similarity to the Spider Society. Both work towards the ultimate benefit of the multiverse, and both use similar methods, unconcerned with the morality of the issue.
But for all its issues and moral grayness, TVA is at least effective at what it does. The same can’t be said of the Spider Society, the TVA’s parallel in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.
For the Spider Society, the multiverse is personal. As any HR representative will be happy to remind you, never confuse your work and personal life. The Spider Society is not a group of indifferent individuals observing the multiverse. It’s a group of Spider Variants working together to ensure that more Spider Variants go through the same tragedies they’ve been through.
There was a scene in the movie that stuck with me – the chase scene, when the movie strayed from extreme action to show a therapy session between Spider-Man and his patient, who is also Spider-Man. The juxtaposition of the calm atmosphere and the intense action, the collapse of said quiet place as a horde of Spider-Variants storm through the wall, is played for laughs, but it’s the interaction between therapist and patient prior to this event that I found unsettling. “I looked at my uncle and–” Patient Spider-Man says, and Spider-Man therapist cuts him off by saying “Uh, let me guess, he’s dead?”
It’s supposed to be funny, and to a point, because they’re both Spider-Men who have had the same trauma and gone through the same experiences. But this is exactly what the organization as a whole is all about.
Having a society full of superheroes downplaying tragedy isn’t a great idea. Having a society full of superheroes who underestimate tragedy and are responsible for keeping the multiverse in check is something Horrible an idea. Take the responsibility of witnessing said tragedies and making sure they happen, and you can see why I think this whole thing is a bomb waiting to go off.
Of course, there is a rational argument, as told by Miguel O’Hara. Let’s assume that canon events, events that are “meant” to happen in every multiverse (eg, Uncle Ben’s dying), are interrupted by Anomalies (people who are not part of that universe). In this case, reality would collapse in on itself, causing everyone in the universe to die, including the person you’re trying to save.
However, as Miles so eagerly points out, the existence of superheroes is about going against rationality and challenging reason. It does not matter if the evidence supports Miguel’s argument. Superheroes do not consider rational arguments. They only do what they feel is the right thing. The bigger picture is usually something that bad guys use to justify their actions.
Herein lies the crux of the issue. Whether Miguel is right or wrong, the spider community is doomed. Miles’ situation will not be unique. After all, it’s not the only web-slinger in the multiverse. The other spider variants would eventually rebel against Miguel’s decision to allow or force canon events in some cases. So far, many of them have decided to side with Miles in his quest to save his father, choosing to go against the Spider Society.
As more and more Spideys encounter anomalies in their universe, they will join the Society of Spiders. As more of them join, they will reject the idea of leaving their loved ones, even those from other universes, to die, and will take action to prevent that from happening.
If Miguel is right, and not following canon events will result in the world being destroyed every single time, then he’s going to have a lot of collapsing universes on his hands. If he is wrong and stopping the law is not the impetus for complete destruction, then the organization’s existence is nothing more than a flight of energy, and the status quo will not be maintained for long.
No matter which way you swing it, there is no winning. Either the multiverse is going to fall apart because the people who maintain it are emotionally compromised, or the whole process is a farce, and Miguel is on his way to becoming a bigger villain than he is. Of course, it’s more likely than not, that Miles’ work will lead the Spider Society to change for the better before any of that actually materializes. But the possibility is important.
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