The Secret Purpose Behind SPIDER-MAN'S Hand Gesture?! || NerdSync

This week, we're all about Spider-Man! Do Spider-Man's web-shooters work only under extreme pressure? Does organic webbing make it harder for us to relate to the web head? And why exactly does Spider-Man need to extend his index and pinky fingers when he activates his web shooters? Is there a reason behind that hand gesture? We discuss all this and more of your fantastic comments!

Also, if Spider-Man did get his organic webbing from The Other storyline, send me a screenshot of the panel where that happens, because I'm just super confused!

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[bullethead]

in the animated series he says he made the shooter to only trigger with those two fingers so he doesnt accidently trigger it when picking something up or forming a fist :) xx

[GamesFromSpace]

I'm pretty sure "because it looks cooler" is plenty of in-universe reason for spiderman to do anything. It's why he likes to sit on the wall in group settings. Peter Parker is above all else: A huge dork.

[sadplatinum]

I am so super suprised that no one mentioned that Stan Lee said the reason he picked that finger pose for Spider-Man was because it is sign language for love, and he wanted Spider-Man to apprehend criminals with love.

[oct]

I thought the hand gesture was related to the pressure mechanism, so he didn't accidentally fire when making a fist

[StopChangingMyNameYoutube]

Another interesting aspect to Spider-mans hand gesture is from his mystical side that they try to work into his story from time to time. in the *Spider Man: Fever* story arc Parker and Doctor Strange end up showing each other their hand gesture, and they find that there is an uncanny resemblance to how they position their fingers.

It has been alluded to in the past that the spider that bit Peter was actually more akin to the things Doctor Strange deals with but was dying from radiation poisoning; and thus had to impart its powers to the closest and most worthy host it could get too. Spider man has been told that he is only using the bare minimum of his actual abilities while the bulk of his more mystical abilities remain unexplored; Something that the Other wasn't too happy about.

Knowing this, it makes this similar hand gesture with Doctor strange to be less of a coincidence and more of a hint that Peter could be intuitively adept at magic and is both not really aware of it and not really interested in perusing it given his bias towards the sciences rather than the mystic arts.

There is also the fact that he feels incredibly burdened by taking on more power. He HATED having the power cosmic, and Doctor Octopus showed that he could go a lot further with his crime fighting in the Superior Spider man arc. Knowing this he would definitely avoid trying to learn the arcane arts even though he would be naturally adept at them. In a way, his "Great power comes with Great responsibility" motto makes him terrified of gaining any more power than he already has, further explaining why he hasn't really explored his other powers.

[OKA-TOKAT-STORIES]

Spiderman always had organic web. it's just that it comes out on his butt like a real spider. so he developed the webshooters from his wrist to hide his secret.

[IdgaradLyracant]

With the two fingers extended it unlocks the web shooters. If he didn't they could misfire when punching. In short, the two fingers extended take the safetys off.

[gabriel-upkh]

Spider-Man's hand gesture is the sign for "Love".

[BCMZeroZero]

I know I'm super late to this party, but I wanted to contribute to the Spider-Man hand gesture topic. in the 90's cartoon, there is an episode where Spidey talks to a child about his costume. He explains that his web shooters only respond to the precise pressure of the middle and ring fingers. This way, he does not accidentally release webbing while making a fist. So, that explains one continuity, at least.

[vargus]

I had the toy web shooters but since I was use to the old cartoon/comic that was what I pretended to be. I love how Spidey runs out of webbing at some of the worst times possible. not only does it make him less godlike ( like the entire cast of DC basically) but he shows his wits in how he handles the situation without his signature tool.

[Agent_]

spider man explains how his webshooters work in the animated series in the episode where he helps a sick girl

[NickfromRBR]

I seem to remember that in 90's Spider-Man cartoon that he had a fail safe for his web shooters, specifically two buttons where his index and pinky fingers would go when making a fist, so he had to make the hand gesture to ensure he wouldn't accidentally set off the web shooter.

[Sjono]

There should be a discussion how Norman Osborn could be a continuous threat to the Marvel Universe if he didn't focus so much on Spider-Man

[fcantil]

that old hand gesture where it looks like he's making a fist, he actually did that in the old spider-man cartoon.

[BelladRavenwood]

nah those things came out way before the spiderman movie, i had one before it came out, and got silly string on my grandmothers celing, its still there in the ghuest bedroom... blue silly string stuck to the side of the fan... and she can get it off

[davidhendry]

A few years back I had a sort of "Spiderman encyclopedia" that explained that his gesture was so specific because Peter had designed the web shooter trigger with a certain pressing pattern so he didn't accidently trigger the webbing when grabbing things, or anytime he made a fist.

[GianlucaSorrentinoVideos]

I've been a Spidey fan for as long as I can remember but one thing I never figured out. How can he stick to walls through his suit? Now I get it's a very thin costume, but how do you explain thicker shoes, or even armor that he sometimes wears?

[McShmoodle]

4:15 I grew up with the Raimi trilogy and had that exact thought. When I learned Spider-Man needed web shooters in the comics, I was like "that's dumb." It wasn't until I read the comics that I got used to and actually preferred the idea.

[battousai]

I always figured he has those fingers extended because that's a quicker way to grab the web so it doesn't fly away

[Jackattack_]

the gesture spiderman makes with his hands is sign language for "i love you" touching on spidy's sense of humor