I have not found myself very interested in anything superhero related for well over a decade. For the most part, I just haven't felt remotely close to the target demographic for the live action releases that took over cinemas and pop culture for such a long period of time. These films, these characters, and their performers just never really spoke to me in any way that could obtain my interest and attention. I think I have more interest in the graphic novel and comic book side of things for the most part, if I were to engage in that sort of material in any larger capacity than I do now. The truth is, I do want to enjoy these things. There are many unique characters and styles that I feel are heavily overlooked as a result of incredibly good artists that are highly dedicated to those characters and the stories they're telling. When it came to the live action side, it feels as if all soul has been removed in favour of something that feels incredibly safe and generic. I mean, take a look at some of the art for the comics of your favourite characters and then look at them presented in live action, and you'll see what I mean.

Recently I have been trying to expand my interests and take in the world of comic books, graphic novels, and animation. Very slowly taking a bit of a dive into each. I watched through Amazon's The Boys, but that lost me. I check out Amazon's Invincible, which I actually quite enjoyed. I have also seen the two recent Spider-Man animations, which I also enjoyed. I saw that recently there was a new animation airing that was actually managing to gain some traction, receiving a lot of praise from audiences and artists: My Adventures with Superman. As one would assume, this is a show somewhat about Superman, but from another character's perspective: Lois. I quite liked the general idea to begin with: a show that could feel a bit more grounded with the perspective of who is typically an average person, but caught up in the chaotic life of someone that most certainly isn't. A balance of difficult work life alongside the struggles and drama that come with not just knowing Superman, but having a romantic interest in him.

This definitely seemed more like my mind of thing. Something that took the genre and did something new with it, all with a more anime and western animation inspired style to go with it. And so far, I'm actually quite enjoying what it has to offer.

As you may expect with a Superman show, it of course starts off with the typical basic introduction of who Superman is and how he came into being a, well, superior being. Fortunately, much of the show doesn't seem too focused on this aspect and just quickly introduces the idea without spending too much time on it. I feel one thing that often bored me with superhero shows and films was how they'd all stick to the same story, one way or another. Not really expanding upon or changing much. There's the first two episodes which seem to just introduce the basic idea and characters, the typical farm setting of which Superman grew up in. At first I was a bit sceptical of how this may play out, but fortunately it moved on pretty quickly. After all, this show isn't really about Superman.

At first I didn't think I'd really like the art style, but that is something I also assumed with Invincible when I first watched that. It certainly is a little bit different, a sort of hybrid between anime influence but with some western stylisation still present. A lot of this is evident in the shape design of characters, with minimal lines and the typical comic book technique of drawing characters. But some face designs and colours seem more vibrant and anime influenced for sure. It is a very colourful show as a result, and sometimes it really works in its favour when it comes to displaying various villains that enter the show through different episodes. Some having some very good designs that make them stand out.

Each of these episodes seems different in one way or another, mixing itself up with different scenarios in which the characters have to either work together or figure things out mostly alone. It creates an interesting dynamic where Superman isn't always the one capable of fixing problems with powers and immense strength. It shows that the Superman character still has a human side to him, where perhaps one strength of his certainly isn't dealing with people. We saw this more in the original Superman films, in which Clark's character presented himself as someone nervous, hunched over and with little charisma. So far there have been a few tests of his character, one episode of which being about the public appearance of Superman, whether he can be considered a friend to society or ultimately a danger that could snap at any moment.

Despite the name of My Adventures with Superman, and the chosen screenshot I used in the post image, there isn't a whole lot of drama and romance between the characters, which is something I quite liked. Here and there are some brief hints and attempts at chemistry between Lois and Clark, but that's typical with the characters. So far it seems each episode really is just a different story, with some sort of villain of the week present. I think I prefer this over something more linear, but I assume this will change as the episodes come and a main villain or theme is introduced. Eight episodes in, things still seem a bit fresh and unknown.

So far it seems pretty engaging. There aren't a lot of faults with it, and certainly nothing major that would have me stop watching. Which feels really refreshing given my awful history with the superhero genre. I'm quite glad, in this weird era of animation, that something like this can actually exist. It doesn't have a generic looking style like most western animations, and it doesn't look cheap either. Hopefully the success of this show, providing it continues, can lead the way for more entries in a similar fashion, perhaps with even more stylisation like we have been seeing with the Spider-Man animated films. I'll be watching the episodes and seeing where it goes, optimistically cautious due to the present's trigger-happy cancellation with shows. For now, it's a fun watch that actually seems to take these characters and do something different with them. I can't fault it for that.