Posted in: Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, Max, TV | Tagged: Adult Swim, cartoon network, dcu, Multiverse, my adventures with superman

My Adventures with Superman S01E07 Couldn't Escape Multiverse Fatigue

My Adventures with Superman S01E07 introduced the multiverse & DC easter eggs way too soon - a rare stumble for the Adult Swim series.

My Adventures with Superman is a fresh reboot of the Superman story through an anime lens to appeal to younger viewers who might be discovering the character for the first time. It is one of the best-written shows on television because of the clarity and precision in its writing that's often missing even in some of the most high-profile live-action dramas on television. However, every show commits a misstep sooner or later, and My Adventures with Superman is no exception. This happened in the seventh episode, "Kiss Kiss Fall in Portal," where the show introduces the concept of the multiverse at a time when we're getting tired of multiverses because they're becoming a dime-a-dozen.

The plot is simple: Clark asks Lois out on a date, but it's interrupted by an adventure. Yet it's loaded with complication that brings the series' themes together. It's "My Adventures with Superman," after all, so Jimmy is also pulled into it as the writers find a way to keep the central trio and the love story in focus. It's everything else that might be complicated: Clark is duped by an interdimensional imp called Mr. Mxyzptlk into breaking into a superhero museum to pull a heist. Lois and Jimmy are recruited by the League of Lois Lanes to stop Mr. Mxyzptlk, and they both open the can of worms called the multiverse way too soon in a new show. When the multiverse popped up in the episode, instead of being thrilled, we just thought, "Oh no! Not this again!" which was probably not the desired reaction the writers were hoping for.

My Adventures with Superman Should Stick to One Universe

On the one hand, the multiverse is a huge easter egg for DC fans. It declares My Adventures with Superman is part of the DC Multiverse, presumably the animated corner. It acknowledges the original Fleisher Superman animated shorts from the 1940s, the Superfriends series from the 1970s, and the Bruce Timm DC Animated Universe era of the 1990s & early 2000s as part of continuity. Both Lois and Clark discover there are multiple versions of them out there. This distracts us from the central story of Clark, Lois, and Jimmy.

On the other hand, the writers used the introduction of the multiverse to make Clark and Lois the underdogs of the multiverse. They're the young Gen Z outliers who are green and still trying to find their own identities, now confronted with other versions of themselves who are, frankly, jerks. Mr. Mxyzptlk tells Clark he's from Krypton, which takes away from Clark finding out on his own. Lois' personal insecurities could have been easily and better explored without her meeting more accomplished and hard-bitten versions of herself. Throwing in the multiverse so soon in a series' start takes away from My Adventures with Superman and becomes more "Oooo! Let's drool over the DC Multiverse!"

Superhero movies and stories are already inundated with multiverses. It's starting to feel like a lazy and overused storytelling trope, like time travel. It's practically rendered the Marvel Cinematic Universe pointless and eroded any emotional investment in those movies and TV shows.  My Adventures with Superman got through this by the skin of its teeth with what mattered most: its lovable heroes. That said, we still recommend watching My Adventures with Superman, which is on MAX.

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