Guilty (Spider-Man: The Animated Series)

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“Guilty”
Spider-Man: The Animated Series episode
Episode no.	Season 4 Episode 42
Written by	John Semper Larry Brody Meg McLaughlin
Production no.	311
Original airdate	February 1, 1997
Episode chronology
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"Turning Point"	"The Cat"
Spider-Man (1994 animated series) Episode List

Guilty is the first episode of the fourth season of Spider-Man: The Animated Series.

[edit] Plot

Joseph Robbie Robertson takes a taxi home, but is gassed in the taxi and kidnapped. The next day, Robbie wakes up in a criminal suit and mask, holding a stun-blaster in his hand and a leader of a gang that calls him Mastermind at the docks as they're stealing stuff. The police immediately cover the place and also Spider-Man arrives. Ribbie's gun automatically fires and the laser hits Spider-Man in the chest and has him fall in the water. Later when the police arrives, all the members surrender and let the police arrest them. Spider-Man then gets to "Mastermind", unmasks him and is surprised to realize it's Robbie. Later at the trial all the gang members say that they took their orders from Robbie and testify against him, and Robbie is found guilty.

Later Jameson calls around everywhere, in order to get Robbie freed as he believes that he is innocent, but can't find any help. Later, Peter is investigating the photos of Robbie with the fired gun in a darkroom and notices that in one of the photos, Robbie wasn't pulling the trigger, having Peter realize Robbie was set up.

Meanwhile, at the Kingpin's building, it is revealed he framed Robbie when he says all is according to plan and now, Robbie should be sent to the proper jail. Back at the prison assignment place, the power is immediately shut down just when Robbie's prison assignment would be in New York State Penetentary. Then the Kingpin changes it to Rooker's Island and a moment later, the power is turned back on and his assignment is Rooker's.

At the Daily Bugle, Peter shows Jameson the pictures of the gun Robbie had in his hand was fired but Robbie didn't pull the trigger. Jameson takes the pictures and says he is going to investigate this himself like back when he was younger. He puts on an overcoat and a brown hat and says that "Jigsaw Jameson" is back and will prove Robbie's innocence. Peter puts a spider-tracers on his coat.

In the taxi Jameson took, he orders the driver, who was the same one that knocked out Robbie with the knock-out gas the other night, to go to a street nearby and the cabbie listens. Jameson meets a cop named Officer Jimmy Mills, who had just apprehended two crooks. Jameson asks he needs information about high-tech weapons. But Mills says that he should see Joseph "Joey" Nails about this. Jameson states that Nails stole from him years ago, and now, Nails is big-time, owning a fancy supper club on the Upper East Side of New York, called Baby Joe's. Jameson goes there at night and is seated by a woman Jameson knew in the past, Nora. Unfortunately, Nora unexpectedly has Jameson tied up to a chair. The chair then sinks to the basement, where he meets Joey Nails, sitting at his desk. He releases him from his chair but Jameson quickly snatches a file about a warehouse full of high-tech weapons. Nails tries to get the files back but Jameson tricks him and ties up and leaves with the file.

Spider-Man follows Jameson and they later arrive in a warehouse where they are confronted by a whole group of heavily armed crooks. Once all of them are defeated, a nearby bomb explodes, causing the entire place to catch fire, which knocks out Jameson. Spider-Man then takes Jameson's body, finds a trap door and goes down it. Jameson then wakes up and both he and Spider-Man find themselves in a metal basement of the warehouse. There they find stun-blaster similar to what Robbie had in the crime scene photos and a remote control unit that likely controls the blaster. When he sees the incredible computers and technology, he then believes that the Kingpin is behind Robbie being framed. He then cracks the access code, which is Progeny, and it says that Robbie was framed by the Kingpin and that Robbie's prison assignment was changed from New York State Pen. to Rooker's Island. Spider-Man realizes about the password and progeny means offspring, as in son. Kingpin's son, Richard Fisk, was incarcerated at Rooker's, too.

Meanwhile, at Robbie's prison cell in Rooker's Island, his cellmates are Richard Fisk and... Tombstone. Fisk and Tombstone reveal that ever since after the events of the episode Tombstone when Spider-Man and Robbie had Tombstone captured and jailed, he was, in a mere coincidence, sent to Rooker's, with Richard Fisk. So, they had framed Robbie and sent him to Rooker's so Tombstone can finally have his revenge. Unfortunately, the entire prison is alerted that Spider-Man has comes and saves Robbie.

The next day, Jameson shows the pictures to the court about the gun Robbie had fired but he didn't shoot it, thus officially stating that Robbie was innocent. The judge declares that Robbie is cleared of all charges and as Robbie and his wife kiss each other, people all around in the court cheer.

Later, as Spider-Man is swinging off, he says in his mind that he thanks Robbie - he needed to hear that; more than he'll ever know since Mary Jane is gone.

[edit] Cast

• Christopher Daniel Barnes — Spider-Man / Peter Parker
• Ed Asner — J. Jonah Jameson
• Roscoe Lee Browne — The Kingpin
• David Warner — Dr. Herbert Landon
• Gary Imhoff — Harry Osborn
• Rodney Saulsberry — Robbie Robertson
• Linda Gary — Aunt May
• Iona Morris — Martha Robertson
• Nick Jameson — Richard Fisk
• Alfonso Ribeiro — Randy Robertson
• Dorian Harewood — Tombstone
• Bob Bergen — Ned Leeds
• Nell Carter — Glory Grant

[edit] Trivia

• This is Ned Leeds' first appearance in this show.
• At the end of this episode, Spider-Man states in his mind as he swings that what Robbie had said about Spider-Man being a real hero since he saved him from getting killed when the helicopter crashed would have resolved Spider-Man's inner conflict about Mary Jane's loss. But in the next episode, Spider-Man is still grieving about MJ being gone. Of course, normally, this is how a person should feel when they lost someone.
• This is Glory Grant's second appearance in the show since "Day of the Chameleon".
• This is Tombstone's last appearance on the show.
• This is Randy Robertson and Mrs. Robertson's next appearance in the show since "Tombstone".
• It is never explained what the thieves the gang Robbie looked like he was leading was doing.