Sunday, September 15, 2019

It made sense

After charging through Runaways, I went to Marvel's Cloak & Dagger and I have surprised myself by liking C&D even more.  My understanding is that it's rather different than the comics source material.  As small children, Tandy Bowen (Dagger) and Tyrone Johnson (Cloak) are subjected to a blast of supernatural power in an industrial accident; at the time of the accident, Tandy's dad and Ty's brother are killed in separate incidents, but each death has a huge impact on their respective families.  Eight years later, Tandy and Ty's powers start to manifest and they are thrown together - by accident? by fate? - unwillingly at first, and then with relief and trust.  The show is set in New Orleans and gives a rich backdrop as the young superheroes figure out how to use their powers to save their families and their city, all the while facing real life issues like abuse, sexism and racism.

Image result for cloak and dagger

The two leads playing Tandy and Tyrone have great chemistry together.  But I think what I like the best is the series' focus: the Runaways show spends so much time with the parents that we miss out on time spent with the kids.  With C&D, there are only two main kids (as opposed to six), plus a smaller cast of secondary characters.  Tandy and Ty seem more real, somehow, for superpowered teenagers.

I haven't heard yet if there is going to be a S3 (S2's ratings were markedly lower than S1) but there will at least be that crossover in Runaways S3.  I sure hope there's more - I'm really enjoying these street level teenaged Marvel heroes.