The Parent Deathtrap
The first episode of Marvel’s Runaways was screened at New York Comic Con. This is a spoiler-free review based on what we saw. The series will premiere via Hulu on November 21, 2017.
Marvel’s Runaways delivers a promising start with its adolescent, coming-of-age story where a group of teenagers find out their parents are super villains. Finally, a reason to be angry with your parents that doesn’t have to do with homework or chores. Sometimes the show leans a bit too much into melodrama, but otherwise it captures the essence of the excellent source material and knowingly plays to its biggest strength: it’s completely unlike anything else currently in the superhero TV genre.
Yes, DC’s Arrowverse has strong parent/hero relationships and Marvel’s Netflix shows have a flair for the dramatic, but not quite like this. The Marvel Comics series created by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona that Runaways is based on won readers over not just with its juicy, shocking hook but with its rich cast of diverse, troubled teen characters.
The age demographic, ethnic diversity, and male to female ratio are enough to make this show stand apart from everything else in the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- it stars young teens with various backgrounds and the ladies outnumber the guys two to one -- but there’s also its surprising emotional maturity. Whereas the MCU movies have made a name for themselves with their nonstop gags and jokes, Runaways plays everything earnestly. Tense moments and dramatic confrontations aren’t cut short for a laugh, making this series feel more akin to the Netflix shows than the movies. That said, in place of the more adult themes and subjects tackled by Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage (sorry, Iron Fist), Runaways’ overall tone is one of sadness and pain caused by, well, being a teenager.
The brainy but emotionally detached Alex (Rhenzy Feliz) tries to get out of his sad funk by getting the gang back together for a hangout. Easier said than done with each character belonging to a different high school clique. Nico (Lyrica Okano) is the sad, loner goth kid. Purple-haired Gert (Ariela Barer) is a feminist/activist/protestor all about celebrating self-worth while taking down the man. She’s sad because she has a crush on Chase (Gregg Sulkin), the most handsome jock in school who may be too dumb to get a good grade in Spanish class but nevertheless has a knack for engineering. He gets his sadness from living under the rule of his intimidating father. There’s also beautiful blonde Karolina (Virginia Gardne), who has been raised in a religious cult to be the perfect smiling teen role model, but that smile is just hiding sadness underneath. And Molly (Allegra Acosta) is Gert’s adopted sister, the youngest of the group, who just wants to try out for the dance team despite her body going through some interesting changes. No sadness for Molly yet, but there’s still time.
The writers don’t try to make a comment on these teen stereotypes, but rather use them as a way of showing how fast kids can grow apart during their adolescent years. The Runaways aren’t so much a superhero team as a group of young people who are forced to face a shocking reality together, despite how different they appear to be. Unique and intriguing personalities are hiding under the stereotypes they wear, you just have to go through a thick layer of sadness to get to them.
And I just have to throw it out there that initially it's hard to feel too bad for these teens given that they all go to a cushy private school (it has a freakin' meditation room) and live with rich parents in lavish Los Angeles homes. This isn't really addressed, but could definitely be fodder for a future episodes.
As far as the adults go, Alex’s parents Catherine (Angel Parker) and Geoffrey Wilder (Ryan Sands) have great chemistry and a sense of both tenderness, as they try to get through to their troubled son, and power, as they head up the Pride foundation, a group the parents use as a front for their unsavory activities. Chase’s parents, on the other hand, feel too one-dimensional; Victor Stein (James Marsters) is the genius inventor with high expectations and zero chill, while his wife Janet (Ever Carradine) seemingly exists just to be afraid of him. To be fair, Chase’s parents feel less like oversights and more the result of having 10 parents to introduce on top of everything else.
For those who are fans of the comic book series, worry not, because the show fully embraces the source material. It looks like every member of the cast got up off the comic book page and walked onto set. There are even hints at all the signature powers and abilities, from a special staff to a pair of gauntlets and even a certain character’s trusted pet. Showrunners Joshua Schwartz and Stephanie Savage wisely put the teen drama first and slowly mix in the superhero-y elements as the plot unfolds. That they made their name on The O.C. and Gossip Girl won’t surprise anyone given Runaways’ natural dialogue, teenage yearnings, and engaging character dynamics.
There are several changes from the comic and it’s plain to see how each one was necessary to make the show a strong adaption. Now, there is one huge change from the comic that fundamentally alters the story. I won’t spoil it here, but suffice to say that it was clearly added to start things off with a more dramatic oomph. It often works, driving characters to act out and make hard decisions, but it’s also laid on pretty thick and can occasionally send things into melodramatic overdrive. It’s this addition that causes nearly every scene to be so gosh darn sad.
While the show generally works well, a few elements hold it back. Things like a few odd lines of dialogue and a pair of parents who are too awkward for their own good can be ironed out in later episodes, but one extremely uncomfortable scene brings the show’s momentum to a screeching halt. For a show that seems to understand its characters so well and add such a richness to the teenage experience, it’s shocking to see it use such a serious teen subject as nothing more than a story beat.
Aside from that, the part that most definitely could have benefited from some fine-tuning was the big reveal at the end of the episode. It’s not much of a spoiler to say that it ends with the kids learning the truth about their villainous parents, but the way it’s done is more confusing than anything. Whereas it should leave viewers shocked and shaken, like when Jaime pushed Bran out the window at the end of the first episode of Game of Thrones, it instead creates a haze of uncertainty over what was just shown on screen. With such an excellent concept to work with, it feels like a huge misstep to not nail that pivotal moment.
Still, the show still has some strengths to fall back on. The dynamic between each child and their parents feels authentic. Some kids get along fine with mom and dad, whereas others have a genuine reason to fear or mistrust their parents -- and this is before the supervillain twist. Also, it’s a relief to have a Marvel story where the stakes are both small scale and intensely personal. This show is more in the realm of Spider-Man: Homecoming than The Avengers, just with far less humor than either.
The Verdict
For those looking for a new flavor of superhero show, Marvel’s Runaways definitely delivers. The idea of teens finding out their parents are supervillains is a unique and exciting one, and while the story doesn’t quite stick the landing when it comes to unveiling that concept, it still manages to offer up some watchable moments with its large, diverse cast. The first episode leaves a largely positive impression despite a few flaws, and for comic book fans it’s a big relief that the Runaways are in good hands.
