Superman – an ubiquitous name globally when it comes to the world of superheroes. Superman is the embodiment of everything good. He is the beacon of hope, the unabashedly pure symbol of righteousness. Without trying to change the core that inherently makes Superman ‘Superman,’ it is difficult to put any shade or layer on top of Superman’s de facto nature, which is being plain good. That is why we often see writers resort to drastic measures to put a different version of Superman, to make him a little more ‘different.’ The ‘Injustice’ series is a good example of making that work. With “My Adventures with Superman (Season 1),” writers Josie Campbell and Jake Wyatt, however, embrace that one-dimensional goodness of Superman and make it work.
For this, they focus more on the ‘Clark Kent’ side of things, than the ’Superman’ side. They take the inherent childlike innocence of Clark and provide us with a rendition that is joyful and adorable. Currently streaming on Adult Swim (Cartoon Network’s adult-oriented late-night programming block), with the release on Max scheduled the next day, the two inaugural episodes are brimming with positivity and fun.
The story takes us to the early days of Clark Kent in Smallville. It is Clark Kent who is the champion of this story, not Superman. Like many renditions, it is the story of the small-town boy Clark becoming Superman. Now, most fans, like a certain Bill from ‘Kill Bill’ would say otherwise. That Superman has always been Superman. Clark does not become him. He becomes Clark. And I would agree. In “My Adventures with Superman” Campbell and Wyatt, however, try the other way. They tell that Clark has always existed within Superman. Here Clark does not just mean the name of the alter-ego. ‘Clark Kent’ means the unwavering bundle of goodness. ‘Clark Kent’ represents the incorruptible nature that is needed for someone with such godly powers.
“My Adventures with Superman” shows a young Clark (Jack Quaid) trying to get an internship at the ‘Daily Planet’. Along with his conspiracy-theory-loving friend, Jimmy Olsen (Ishmel Sahid), they are assigned to work with senior intern, Lois Lane (Alice Lee) whose indomitable spirit is dangerously contagious. We see the early days of the famous romance between Lois and Clark, but we also see how Lois would eventually shape Clark into becoming the best version of Superman. The trio (Lois, Clark, and Jimmy) immediately gets involved in their first adventure, where they have to save the city from killer robots. The voice work by the actors is absolutely on song. The nostalgia-infused animation (animators Edward Artinian, Ye Aung, and Greg Chen) is top-notch too.
We see that in some early scenes, where Clark cannot help but destroy while trying to do the simplest of tasks like opening a door or switching an alarm off. Now, these scenes are treated with humor and fun. However, it also represents the greatest challenge of Clark. The eternal struggle where he needs to exercise godly restraints for such godly powers. When you have the abilities of Superman, the control you need to exercise is tremendous. Clark cannot afford to make one single misstep.
Now, we go back to Bill’s monologue in Tarantino’s “Kill Bill” where he mentions Clark being weak. He is Superman’s critique of the whole human race. “My Adventures with Superman” sets out to disprove that. Not everyone can be Clark Kent. Not everyone can remain straight when gifted with such immense powers. Clark’s strength to remain righteous, despite the powers that provide a perpetual and unending scope to not remain so, is no less than the strength required to stop a bullet with his bare hand.
In this world of fashionable cynicism, where none of us can always see the light, “My Adventures with Superman” is an optimistic tale of hope and positivity. The animated series, with its twenty-something minutes-long episodes, is visually enriching. The anime-inspired drawing will be intriguing for fans of anime and neutrals alike. Not sure whether we would get it or not, but here’s to hoping for more installments of this series. Perhaps, there can be some appearances from the rest of the DC superheroes too.
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