With Marvel superhero shows now spread far and wide across the US programming spectrum, ABC, Fox, Netflix, Freeform and FX all carrying at least one show apiece, it was easy to predict that Marvel’s Runaways might be different to people’s expectations, as each service needs to distinguish itself from the others. The question was how.
Airing on streaming service Hulu, it has a relatively simple premise: a bunch of California school kids discover that their parents are supervillains who sacrifice young runaways in a weird sci-fi ritual; said kids then have to stop their parents’ nefarious without letting on that they know their secret. Luckily, the kids turn out to have all manner of powers: one’s an engineering genius who designs a special pair of weaponised gloves; another has a pet dinosaur that obeys her commands; a third seems to be a floaty light angel; a fourth has super strength; a fifth has a staff that gives her magic witch powers; and the sixth… is good with computers.
So far, so seemingly predictable. However, in the hands of Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage (The OC, Gossip Girl), season one of this Hulu drama was a more surprising affair, designed to appeal to both kids and their parents. The show effectively played off the two generations against one another, both on-screen and within the audience.
The kids’ storylines showed off their black and white, developing morality, while love affairs aplenty, gay and straight, were soapy and simple, full of fierce, childish emotions and minor slights becoming major incidents.
Meanwhile, the parents in the audience could enjoy the more nuanced storyline of the adults. In a minor stroke of casting genius, many of the adults were played by stars of TV shows older viewers would have watched in the early 2000s, including James Marsters from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Julian McMahon from Charmed, Annie Wersching from 24, and Kevin Wiseman from Alias. Here, relationships are complicated, true love does die, people marry for other reasons, and transgressions can be overlooked, while supervillainy may be caused by degenerative brain diseases, traumatic childhoods, blackmail, progressive compromises or simply a desire to protect your kids.
Basically, adulthood.
Runaways – season two
When we left our teenage rebels at the end of season one, they had finally defied their parents to run away after the stealthy cold war had become a hot war. What would become on them as they went out into the world on their own? Would they survive? What would their parents do? And what would they do to their parents?
Unfortunately, as we learned with both The OC and Gossip Girl before, Schwartz and Savage can do a great first season, but tend to lose their way in their second season – and Marvel’s Runaways is no different.
Surprisingly decent reboot of the classic 80s private detective series remains faithful to the original while making it more diverse. In a world of cop and medical procedurals, a private investigator procedural also feels surprisingly fresh. The first episode is a bit too Fast and Furious for its own good, but fortunately, it settles down soon afterwards to become a solid piece of light fun.
Netflix original created by and starring Idris Elba. Charlie (Elba), a struggling DJ and eternal bachelor is given a final chance at success when he reluctantly becomes a manny to his famous best friend’s problem-child daughter. Also stars Piper Perabo, and features JJ Feild, Angela Griffin, Guz Khan, Jocelyn Jee Esein, Jade Anouka, Cameron King and Dustin Demri-Burns.
It’s “What have you been watching?”, your chance to recommend to fellow TMINE readers anything you’ve been watching this week
Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas! Yes, just before TMINE goes off on its week-and-a-half-long Christmas break, I thought I’d leave you with one final present – a second WHYBW! Yes, it’s a Christmas miracle.
This week’s reviews
There was a decent release of new boxsets this week, but season 3 of Travelers was the only thing I managed to both watch and review, as I was away at a wedding last weekend. I do hope to catch up with season 2 of 4 Blocks, the rest of Plan Cœurand a few other shows at some point, but I’m not 100% sure that’ll be over the Christmas break, seeing as I’m not a member of the Royle Family. But we’ll see.
There’s also some good stuff out today on Netflix, including TheProtector, so I might end up watching something surprising. And Hulu’s just boxsetted the entire second season of Marvel’s Runaways, so I’ll probably watch at least a few episodes of that before we’re reunited in 2019.
Plus Syfy (US) has just released a preview of the first episode of Deadly Class, so I’ll have that to talk about when I get back. It’s US only, but it’s here, if you want to watch it, too, and can:
The Timeless finale
New shows
But that doesn’t mean I’ve watched nothing else but Travelers. YouTube Premium’s Chicago ILL came out recently and I’ll be talking about that after the jump. Oddly, this year, US TV has been taking a leaf out of UK TV’s book and has given us some Christmas specials. Timeless came back for a feature-length conclusion and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina also gave us a suitably festive tale of cannibalism and ritual sacrifice for the solstice. Praise Satan. We can talk about that after the jump, too.
And the regulars… sorry, regular…
Most shows have already had their mid-season finales, but there are a few stragglers left. Frustratingly, Titans‘s final episode is tonight, so that’ll have to wait until 2019 before I talk about the final arrival of Batman to the programme. That means, I’ll be talking about Happy Together… and that’s it. Huh.
And no, I’ve still not watched the final two episodes of Doctor Who.
