[5] The series follows Peter Parker, a college student at Empire State University who struggles to balance his responsibilities as the costumed hero Spider-Man with the problems of his personal life.

In addition to fighting crime, Peter must navigate his romantic affections for love interests Felicia Hardy and Mary Jane Watson; maintain his friendship with Harry Osborn; focus on his academic performance as Dr. Curt Connors' student; and help to support his Aunt May after the death of his Uncle Ben by working as a freelance photographer for the Daily Bugle.

The Bugle is owned by loudmouth publisher J. Jonah Jameson, who often uses Peter's pictures of his alter-ego to discredit and carry out a smear campaign against Spider-Man.

Peter's peers at ESU include football star Flash Thompson, popular barista Liz Allan, scientific genius Debra Whitman, and research rival Michael Morbius.

As Spider-Man, Peter faces various supervillains that threaten New York City, including criminal masterminds such as the Kingpin and the Hobgoblin, scientific mishaps like Doctor Octopus and the Green Goblin, and the extraterrestrial symbiotes Venom and Carnage.

Spider-Man is occasionally aided in his fight against crime by other superheroes, including the X-Men, the Punisher, Blade, Doctor Strange, Daredevil, Iron Man, Captain America, and the Fantastic Four.

Rules for the production of the show included no punching, throwing through glass, putting children in jeopardy or vampires as well as no usage of the word sinister.

Originally, Marvel Films planned to make the backgrounds completely CGI while Spider-Man swung around New York, yet due to budget constraints were forced to use traditional cel based animation while occasionally using CGI backgrounds by video game developer Kronos Digital Entertainment.

The theme for the series was performed by Joe Perry of the hard rock band Aerosmith, although the song was written by Shuki Levy.

[citation needed] Writer and producer John Semper Jr. was nominated for an Annie Award in 1995 for Best Individual Achievement for Writing in the Field of Animation for the episode "Day of the Chameleon".

The first one was Spider-Man Adventures, published for 15 issues between December 1994 and February 1996, which loosely adapted the plot from the series' episodes.

After the success of the Spider-Man films, the series began to air in reruns through its new owners, The Walt Disney Company.

[16] A single VHS volume containing the "Hobgoblin" two-part episode was released on July 2, 1997 by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.

The releases were "The Venom Saga", "Revenge of the Goblins", "Spider-Slayer", "Insidious Six", "Mutant Agenda",[18] "Tablet of Time",[19] "Neogenic Nightmare",[20] "Forgotten Warriors",[21] "The Sins of the Fathers"[22] and "Secret Ward".

[32] Buena Vista Home Entertainment released the compilations on VHS and DVD in the United Kingdom and select other territories.

[43] On November 1, 2014 at the Comikaze Expo, where the show's 20th anniversary was celebrated, John Semper Jr. revealed that much of the cast and crew of Spider-Man, himself included, had agreed to reunite for a new crowdfunded series entitled "War of the Rocket Men".

I don't know if I'd get that on a Spider-Man revival given it's now a property that's owned by [Disney and Sony] and there’s a lot of politics involved, but hey, if someone wants to call me and say, 'Hey, we're gonna do more episodes and we're going to leave you alone', I'd be there in a heartbeat.—John Semper, showrunner of The Animated Series[48] In February 2024, Sempers expressed interest that he would consider reviving the series on Disney+, if Marvel Studios Animation reaches out to him.

—Brad Winderbaum, head of Marvel Studios Animation[49]Spider-Man made a non-speaking cameo appearance in the X-Men '97 episode "Tolerance is Extinction – Part 1", being among the witnesses to the electromagnetic pulse (EMP) wave sent out across the world by Magneto.

He appears again in the season finale, "Tolerance is Extinction – Part 3", this time as Peter Parker, as he, Mary Jane, and Flash watch Asteroid M hurdle towards Earth on a TV in the window of an electronics store.

[51] Christopher Daniel Barnes acknowledged the cameo, expressing interest in returning as Spider-Man in a potential revival, though no one has contacted him about it.