Liam Hoofe reviews the second episode of Marvel’s Runaways…
Marvel’s Runaways premiered on Hulu earlier this week, and after an enjoyable opening episode, the show continued its strong start with its second episode, ‘Rewind’.
In the show’s opening episode, we were introduced to the all of the titular group, and we watched them reunite after two years of distance before discovering their parents were actually part of some sort of villainous cult, where they sacrificed a young girl who they were supposed to be caring for. The show’s second episode, as its title may suggest, rewound the clock and replayed that day again, only this time, it was from the parent’s point of view.
This narrative sleight of hand from the show was a clever touch. After introducing us to the Runaways, it would have been easier to just paint their parents as comic-book villains and just leave them as cliche based parents- you know the types- the over-expectant rich parents, the guy from the wrong side of the tracks gone good, who just wants his child to have a better life than him, the cool parents, the overly-open parents, and so on, and so forth. Instead, we got a chance to explore all of their characters and were given insight into why they were doing what they were doing.
While the show still never made clear exactly why the group were committing the crime they did, it did tell us that these were all conflicted people who really just wanted to protect their kids. It did show us an old man in some sort of resurrection box, which it would appear is the greater good that they continuously refer to.
Showing us into the parent’s personal lives will really benefit the show and its something that is often missing from teen-based dramas. This added dimension allows us to see both sides of the coin, and it really enriches the viewing experience. Creating morally complex parents is something we never get to see. Another aspect of the show that was totally flipped on its head this episode, was the sexualisation so often seen in these kinds of shows. So far, the teens have been painted as normal kids, and the show has made no effort in trying to sexualise them- what it did do, though, was sexualise the parents, highlighting Leslie Dean and Catherine Wilder’s bodies as they were getting changed into their robes during several sequences. This little decision really creates a clearer divide between the adults and the children.
Once the narrative had caught up with itself, we got to watch the children trying to act as though they had witnessed nothing and attempting to get back to their normal lives. The effects of their parents’ actions have clearly taken an effect on the group, and this was highlighted in the closing moments, where we see them all going home and having to face what they had seen. The scene between Gert and Molly was particularly touching, and it will be interesting to see how this develops.
One thing I really like about the show is that despite it only being a ten episode series, it is clearly taking its time to establish a world. The first two episodes have been spending building the characters and this will no doubt benefit the show greatly over the remaining eight episodes. The children have not even discovered their powers yet, which is definitely going to be something to look forward to. ‘Rewind’ was a great episode of Runaways, one that showed that, despite its rough production history, this is a show that is clearly being handled with care.
What did you think of ‘Rewind’? Let us know in the comments below, and let Liam know on Twitter, here- @liamhoofe
