Posted in: Adult Swim, Max, Review, TV, Warner Animation Group | Tagged: Adult Swim, clark kent, intergang, jimmy olsen, lois lane, max, my adventures with superman, Review, superman

My Adventures With Superman Ep. 3 Continues Charm Offensive: Review

In the newest episode of Adult Swim's My Adventures With Superman, we see the Man of Steel battle Intergang as Lois hunts for an interview.

The third episode of Adult Swim and MAX's joint animated venture, My Adventures With Superman, opens with a scene of pure Superman action that should leave a big smile on a fan of any age's face.  We see a giant blimp (Man, I love seeing high-tech modern blimps in the skies of Gotham and Metropolis in the comics and animation.  Please bring this to live action!) crash into a skyscraper. The pilot is sent falling to his inevitable doom.  That is until Superman swoops in and catches him, but even with the pilot safe, a large metal girder is sent hurdling toward the ground below, aimed at all of the onlookers standing there.  Superman, of course, catches it just in time while holding the pilot in a bit of an homage to the iconic helicopter scene in Richard Donner's Superman: The Movie.  Lois is on the scene to get the story, but maybe more importantly, get a word with Superman, who is still trying to be as elusive as possible.

This is the main plot of the episode, My Interview With Superman, as we see Lois desperate to get the ultimate interview and what she'll do to get it, while on the flip side, we see Clark apprehensive about doing so, as it might reveal too much of himself to the world.

The character interaction here is terrific and very on-point for them.  Lois is relentless and mission-driven, while Clark is both awkward and skittish as himself and a bit mysterious as Superman.  At this point, he doesn't know who exactly Superman is or should be to everyone.  Should he be an entirely aloof savior who appears quickly to save the day and then disappears just as quickly?  Or should he open up a bit in an effort to have the world trust him?  And then there's the other problem (which humorously presents itself during the titular interview near the end) that at this point, Superman doesn't know much about his background or where he came from, or how he can do what he can do.

The episode isn't all talk, though, as we get a subplot of the show's version of Intergang breaking out an imprisoned teammate, a unique version of the comic villain Silver Banshee, who in this version, instead of being a superpowered monster is a thug criminal with a high-tech mask that emits sonic energy when she screams.  The team is supplied their tech, including a freeze gun that doesn't work quite right, by some mystery doner, and they use it in the climax in an attempt to rob a bank.

Superman shows up to stop them, but when the freezing weapon goes haywire and starts freezing the city, Superman is forced to tap into himself and discover a new power; his heat vision, which he uses to stop all of the shenanigans.  I have to say, even as a Superman purist, I'm enjoying how he didn't quite have all of his abilities or his full power levels until coming into contact with his Kryptonian past and is still getting stronger as he goes further as Superman.  That makes it all feel unique and fresh while also keeping his abilities in check and not just having him as the unstoppable god that some people judge from the outset as "boring".

Lois thrusts herself into danger in an attempt to get Superman's attention, but when he sees that she's not entirely just about the story and is instead helping people in need, he decides to give her the interview she's dying for.  It's all very nice and charming, and we can see the seeds being planted for the Clark/Lois/Superman love triangle that has had storytelling juice for 85 years and counting.

The one part of the episode that did not work for me was the incredibly silly, fourth-wall-breaking introduction of their Daily Planet rivals, Cat Grant and Steve Lombard.  I've heard many people describe the scene as being eerily similar to the Team Rocket intro from Pokemon, and honestly, I can't argue with the comparison.  It's cringe and, even with the anime style, does not fit at all with the very human and relatable presentation of every other character.  There are other ways to handle them, and I beg the animators to please not make this a recurring thing.

Aside from that little blip of nonsense, the episode was prime Superman and pretty much everything fans could want.  It was action-packed, character-focused, and in only the third episode it evolved our main characters and their relationships.  I look forward to next week's episode and to seeing how the season develops because right now, this Superman is flying pretty high.

This episode and the previous two are available to stream on MAX.

My Adventures With Superman Season 1 Episode 3 "My Interview With Superman"

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Review by Ryan Fassett

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8/10

Adult Swim's My Adventures With Superman features plenty to appeal to those who are interested in character-first storytelling and those who are looking for some well-animated superhero action. "My Interview With Superman" is an episode that feels right at home with any classic Superman story from any era.

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