Supercheese

A friend convinced me to check out My Adventures With Superman a couple weeks ago and I proceeded to watch all then-available seven episodes in a single day. Which is unusual for me — I am incredibly bad at binging tv shows. It’s a very good show.

The cartoon follows a young Clark Kent as he steps up to become Superman, all while juggling a new internship at the Daily Planet and his friendship with Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen. It’s remarkable how well the series is able to feel very refreshing while still feeling very much like a traditional Superman story. Part of it is the tone. It’s a kid-friendly cartoon, but Clark, Lois, and Jimmy all feel very adult. Not so much in the sense of them having it all together and being unflappable, like in the classic Justice League or Batman cartoons, but more in that they feel like real people. There’s nuance to their personalities and the show gives them space to have feelings. 

When Lois finds out Clark’s been keeping his Superman-ness secret from her, she’s hurt — and the show lets those feelings be valid and work is put in to regain her trust. Jimmy’s running a social media site investigating all the odd goings-on, and though it’s often a punchline, his passion for it isn’t. Clark and Lois’ romance feels earned, again, with a depth that wouldn’t be out of place in live-action fare aimed at adults.

That said, My Adventures With Superman has a wonderfully idealistic core. By focusing on the time when Clark is still learning to harness his powers, we end up with a rookie Superman who’s still learning the ropes. He’s still as powerful and idealistic as he ever is, but his conflict is learning how to be the person he’s supposed to be — and not becoming the person he doesn’t want to be. It’s compelling, and it certainly helps that the world he inhabits is one that lets Superman be Superman.

It’s easy to be cynical about Superman, to see the idea of someone with ultimate power using it to help people as being terribly naive. And maybe, in the real world, it is. Even a truly good person would be met with doubt and conspiracy, if not hatred. In the real world, it’s impossible to save everyone. But not in My Adventures With Superman’s Metropolis! The world of the show is joyously optimistic and hopeful.

Is it cheesy? Oh man is it ever, but it feels so right for it. Yes, it’s corny, but that unbridled earnestness belongs in the story it’s trying to tell. All these ingredients — great character work, a great interpretation of Superman, and an optimistic world — come together to make a show that feels tailor-made for me. 

The last episode of the first season just aired on Friday. I haven’t watched it yet, in part because I’ve had other things on my plate, but also in part because I don’t want it to end.