Jupiter's Legacy

I have always said that while the first generation of superheroes is interesting, it's their KIDS that are the story that you REALLY want to hear. The punishing pressure of expectations when you live in the shadow of a great hero is a tough road to haul. Finding your place in all that is the basis of any great story and this series had eight episodes to tell me an epic tale of the later days of a superhero family.

With two children, Cloe and Brandon, the Utopian has a difficult road trying to pass his legacy to kids who want no part of the superhero game. Well one of them doesn't. Daughter Cloe is especially troubles, and drunk, and entitled and bratty and seriously messed up. And she has super powers and she is carrying a HUGE chip on her shoulder. BOO HOO..."my dad never spent time with me when I was little because he was a super hero" I hate that kind of whining the most. You have SUPER POWERS so quit your bitching.

Now Brandon has a different issue with his Father. He never meets his Dad's high standards and he can hear his Dad say that to others frequently. One of the drawbacks of super hearing. Then when Brandon solves a super villain problem with a simple murder, everything is thrown into turmoil without the royal house of Earth's superheroes. The Utopian DOES NOT KILL! EVER! And that code is at the center of this morality tale about the benefits and costs of power.

The emotions here aren't complicated but they do let you get to the story right away. I love all the flashbacks to the 1929 stock market crash, where the family's epic really begins. I liked those early scenes when the 'family' gained their powers as much as the later stuff. You are following two parallel stories the entire time. The modern day stuff and the origin of their powers more than 100 years earlier. The two parallel stories are equally interesting with the past affecting the future in ways we didn't expect.

I have to admit that after episode one I was happy for the ability to binge right on to episode two and then onto episode three. And I HATE the binge.

The CGI fight scenes are pretty slick and exciting to watch but the family drama is also very compelling. After only two episodes I am totally invested in this group of characters. I can see where it's going from around the block because I have read thousands of comic books. Mark Millar is a genius at these kinds of superhero reimaginings and this story is no different. Like The Boys and The Umbrella Academy I am happy to see the best comic book stories get their live action due.