Netflix's Jupiter's Legacy

[Bored at 3:00AM]

I was genuinely surprised by Millar & Quitely's comic back in the day. I'd grown tired of Millar's shtick by that point, but he really upped his game thanks to Quitely and seemed to have something to say about Superman and superheroes in general with this series. I think the comics delivered diminishing returns as the series continued, but I still held out hope that the Netflix adaptation might be able to reshape it into something better--which has been the case for several adaptations of Millar's comics.

However, I can't say I was particularly impressed with the first episode. I probably shouldn't have been surprised as it was written by Steven DeKnight, who had previously managed to bore me stupid with both the Netflix Daredevil show and the Pacific Rim sequel.

What was truly disappointing is that there wasn't even a single noteworthy action sequence in the first episode. I figured, at the very least, they'd make sure they delivered some eye-candy to grab audiences out of the gate. Nope. All we got was a fairly limp battle between their Mongul-knockoff and their JLA-knockoff.

Of course, the lesson Hollywood learns from this will be that Superman is boring unless he's evil.

[Robanker]

Of course, the lesson Hollywood learns from this will be that Superman is boring unless he's evil.

So long as Superman & Lois continues to do well, it will act as the silver bullet in that theory for a little while longer. Say what you will about Superdad, in the time of The Boys, Invincible, Injustice and premonitions in Zack Snyder's Justice League, Superdad is the one Superman in multimedia towing the line that absolute power need not corrupt absolutely... except for the Captain Luthor and doppelganger Superman. Well, ****!


Knowing someone responsible for butchering Pacific Rim with that sequel is involved just vindicates my decision to skip this one.

[Kara Danvers]

Everyone I know says it's boring and the only thing some of them complimented were the costumes.

[Frontier]

So long as Superman & Lois continues to do well, it will act as the silver bullet in that theory for a little while longer. Say what you will about Superdad, in the time of The Boys, Invincible, Injustice and premonitions in Zack Snyder's Justice League, Superdad is the one Superman in multimedia towing the line that absolute power need not corrupt absolutely... except for the Captain Luthor and doppelganger Superman. Well, ****! .

Embrace the joy of Superdad:

Everyone I know says it's boring and the only thing some of them complimented were the costumes.

The costumes did look good...

[Killerbee911]

I will say the same thing I said in the other thread. It has slower pace than other stuff and that is okay but it leans to much on the future to interesting and not current stuff they are telling. It is an average show and it feels like one of those cinematic universe or ya adult projects that they try to start but instead of going all to tell the most interesting story they can they hold things back to be interesting.

Now for the Superman part of the equation they do a good job of talking up "the Code" which is don't kill ever and don't interfere in governments. The bad part is they don't focus on enough on why Code is a good thing and makes too much look like it is something just in place to stroke Utopians ego. To be clear I am superhero should kill as option person and to me it felt a little heavy handed the show is forcing that the Code wasn't working. What did like is how they present how much of sitting duck following the code made the heroes in the story and that is always my argument for lethal force, If the other side is trying to kill and has ability to kill you then killing enemy is option. But overall it was little heavy hand for example the supervillain clearly killed 2 superheroes and look like he was going to kill superman figure Utopian and Utopian son jumps in and kills the bad guy. And the Superman figure spazs out on his son like his choice did not make sense in that moment. There was a better way to execute that scene that does make Superman character imo look so bad. To me you can't be screaming "there always another way" when Supervillain is lopping off the head of heroes in the fight.

[bat39]

Just finished it!

It was definitely a fun show. Maybe not the best superhero show I've seen, and perhaps not as well put together overall. But they did a great job bringing this universe to life, the performances were pretty good, and it kept me hooked throughout my binge.

Its a bit more slower-paced than most superhero shows, and the present-day narrative lacks a bit of focus. But I kinda liked this more 'contemplative' style. Its basically the story of the Justice League told as a family drama, with a touch of political discource (which admittedly was a bit shallow). The 1929 narrative was at times more entertaining than the present-day, but at other times, it dragged. But it was intriguing to see how the dynamics between Sheldon, Walter and George in the past ultimately impact the present-day, in implicit and explicit ways.

Anyways, I'm looking forward to reading the comic now

I will say the same thing I said in the other thread. It has slower pace than other stuff and that is okay but it leans to much on the future to interesting and not current stuff they are telling. It is an average show and it feels like one of those cinematic universe or ya adult projects that they try to start but instead of going all to tell the most interesting story they can they hold things back to be interesting.

Now for the Superman part of the equation they do a good job of talking up "the Code" which is don't kill ever and don't interfere in governments. The bad part is they don't focus on enough on why Code is a good thing and makes too much look like it is something just in place to stroke Utopians ego. To be clear I am superhero should kill as option person and to me it felt a little heavy handed the show is forcing that the Code wasn't working. What did like is how they present how much of sitting duck following the code made the heroes in the story and that is always my argument for lethal force, If the other side is trying to kill and has ability to kill you then killing enemy is option. But overall it was little heavy hand for example the supervillain clearly killed 2 superheroes and look like he was going to kill superman figure Utopian and Utopian son jumps in and kills the bad guy. And the Superman figure spazs out on his son like his choice did not make sense in that moment. There was a better way to execute that scene that does make Superman character imo look so bad. To me you can't be screaming "there always another way" when Supervillain is lopping off the head of heroes in the fight.

Honestly, as a deconstruction of the traditional Superman archetype, this show really worked. To the extent that honestly I thought Sheldon was a jerk, to put it mildly. All the worst stereotypes about Superman as a navel-gazer, as this smug self-righteous ass who can't really do anything with all his power, literally come true with the Utopian. I especially loved the bit in episode 6 where he's told that his ''Code'' is basically a way for him to perpetuate his 'legacy' in the minds of other heroes.

But really, he's a pathetic father and not too great a husband (it doesn't help that we don't get to see Grace and Sheldon's relationship explored much). I found Chloe to be the most sympathetic member of the family honestly. Yeah, that's right...a drug-addict girl with serious anger issues is the most relatable member of a family of superheroes.

Brandon's an interesting case where I feel he's someone who wants to be the Snyder/Cavill Superman, but is forced into being a more traditional Superman who doesn't kill. The whole debate around his actions reminded me a LOT of the discource around that scene in MOS. The problem of course is that the show makes the no-killing rule a binary choice between never killing at any cost, or killing as standard operating procedure. Which is how Superman stories and most superhero comics have traditionally portrayed it, but I feel it'd have been better if the show explored some of the middle ground here, and I really felt they were setting something up with Grace on this front. Perhaps Season 2?

[Rac7d*]

Everyone I know says it's boring and the only thing some of them complimented were the costumes.

I hate statements like this becuase it doesn’t mean anything
It’s not data, the tens of people you man know doesn’t compare to the millions watching

[Johnny Thunders!]

I haven't finished the show, but the comic is must read as is Jupiters Circle. The beards and the makeup bother me. I think its second tier to Invincible and the Boys though I like the comic far more than those comics.

[Kara Danvers]

I hate statements like this becuase it doesn’t mean anything
It’s not data, the tens of people you man know doesn’t compare to the millions watching

It has been cancelled already.

[bat39]

It has been cancelled already.

Yeah. No surprises there.

But it seems that they might continue to expand the universe in some form with other Miller properties.

Frankly I think that makes the most sense. Having now read the comics (Jupiter's Legacy AND Jupiter's Circle) I feel that the worldbuilding and the big ideas were the real strength of this property, not the narrative per se which, when all is said and done, is pretty straightforward.

If they really want to focus on the story of the Union, an adaptation of Jupiter's Circle might be a better idea. It'll allow them to focus on the original Union (who were always more interesting than their present-day legacies) and tell a slew of more personal stories, while touching on the kind of socially and politically relevant issues that TV shows these days like to touch upon - LGBT rights, government survelliance, the power and influence of billionaires etc.

And for God's sake, don't focus too much on the Utopian! He's a pretty bland character all said and done (even though in the comics, I agreed with his viewpoint a lot more than I did on the show).

[Nelliebly]

So long as Superman & Lois continues to do well, it will act as the silver bullet in that theory for a little while longer. Say what you will about Superdad, in the time of The Boys, Invincible, Injustice and premonitions in Zack Snyder's Justice League, Superdad is the one Superman in multimedia towing the line that absolute power need not corrupt absolutely... except for the Captain Luthor and doppelganger Superman. Well, ****!


Knowing someone responsible for butchering Pacific Rim with that sequel is involved just vindicates my decision to skip this one.

Literally every review has compared the show unfavorably to Superman and Lois which is hilarious given the fact that Mark Millar spent most of his career being as misogynistic as possible to Lois Lane as a concept and character and now his edge lord fanfic is being compared to the show that actually stars her and it’s not coming out in Millar’s favor at all.

Poetic justice. LOL

[Vordan]

I enjoyed the comic, but it felt like a basic “what if the edgy 90s antiheroes had won the Kingdom Come fight?” in a lot of respects. Utopian not being evil so much as outdated and unable to adjust to the world changing feels like it could be much more interesting than it is, since spoilers:

his brother and son are just evil once they turn on and kill him with zero nuance whatsoever. So any points they have to make are pretty much null and voided.

end of spoilers. This show came at a bad time since the Boys do a better job deconstructing heroes in terms of morals while Invincible does a better job deconstructing the idea of a heroic legacy and the next gen taking over. Then you’ve got S&L which does a far better job of dealing with Superman raising a family and how they cope with the weight of his legacy.

[Ra-El]

The flashbacks are pretty good, the show would be a lot better if it took place only in the past.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

I've only watched the first episode and wasn't that impressed. Should I completely skip the series or are there any standout moments that I should check out? I've read the comics, so I don't have to worry about anything being spoiled.

Agreed with everyone that Superman & Lois has ended up making this show feel kinda old hat.