Netflix’s take on the gritty, revisionist superhero yarn

With Jupiter’s legacy, Netflix continues to expand its role in the superhero arena. After partnering with Marvel on shows like Daredevil, Jessica Jones, The Punisher and others ended, the mega-streamer built its catalog with titles like The Umbrella Academy, She-Ra and Warrior Nun – now Jupiter’s legacy.

Netflix seems to have its own version of every lively genre under the sun. Ozark, Shadow and Bone, The Crown, BoJack Horseman, and other Netflix original series tend to leverage the zeitgeist. Jupiter’s legacy, in turn, is pretty much stuck in the same wheelhouse as HBO’s Watchmen and Amazon’s The Boys.

But luckily, it offers a new twist on the worn-out dark and gritty revisionist superhero genre. It stands on its own as a worthy entry into the increasingly overcrowded space.

What is Jupiter’s legacy about?

Based on the Image Comics series by Mark Millar and Frank Quietly, Jupiter’s legacy envisions a world with its own celebrity class of superheroes. When the first generation of heroes go out of business, they expect their children to pick up their coats. For over 100 years a “union” of superheroes has been fighting for justice under the guidance and strict moral code of Sheldon Sampson, AKA, the utopian.

The story alternates between timelines, revealing the origins of today’s older heroes. During the Great Depression, while the family business goes under, Sampson embarks on a journey of self-discovery. Led by mysterious visions, he searches for the forces that will eventually strengthen the original six superheroes on earth. In this day and age, he tries to keep his superfamily together and secure his legacy as the world changes around him. Meanwhile, young heroes, including his children, are trying to find their own way.

Truth, Justice, and the American Dream

There is a lot to like in Jupiter’s legacy.

Josh Duhamel anchors a strong Utopian cast in Jupiter’s legacy. It gives the character a degree of depth that helps carry the show. If you’re used to his one-note macho army guy from the Transformers franchise, you’ll see what he can do with a little breathing room and smart stuff.

Leslie Bibb, Ben Daniels and Matt Lanter join Duhamel as pioneering heroes who carry more than just their weight. Among the younger generation, Elena Kampouris, Andrew Horton, Ian Quinlan and YouTuber Anna Akana have put convincing faces to the Millennial / Gen Z battle to grow up in a world defined by the last generation.

Pass the coat

The timeline in Jupiter’s legacy is one of his great strengths. While Watchmen also concerns different generations of heroes, Jupiter’s legacy follows a core group. It gives the mix a sense of continuity. I’ve always wondered how Superman, with its slow aging process, might respond to changing social norms and politics. Jupiter’s legacy goes there.

By giving ourselves to heroes who surfaced during the Great Depression, we see a hero code defined by a broken American dream. It is no coincidence that this version of the Avengers or Justice League is called Union and describes heroes as workers with rights and duties. Presenting heroes as workers and advocating collective action at its (hypothetical) best side is a clever mindset.

The need for new generations to define themselves goes well with these issues. Your own heritage cannot define everything that comes next. Times change, and people – heroes, politicians, average Joes – need to change too. Can the utopian code of never taking a life endure when heroes begin to die in an increasingly hostile world? Isn’t he in touch? Has his mission failed? Does the world need to be fixed or do heroes have to adapt?

Are you relieving yourself, are you?

The show also strikes a great balance in its tone. Although Jupiter covers some important issues surrounding the politics of vigilantism, the individual responsibility that comes with great power (yes, there is an explicit reference to Spider-Man in the first episode), and the consequences of betrayal, it is consistently surprising easy and fun.

Jupiter’s legacy strikes a good balance in his tone, mixing weighty subjects with fleeting fun.

It doesn’t get too cynical or gritty to get its point across. And that makes it a bit more fleeting than The Boys or Watchmen. These shows scored some incredibly high scores. They are definitely worth a visit. But I am not averse to a lighter tariff, especially in these difficult times.

Jupiter’s legacy hits this sweet spot impressively well.

Listen to me if you’ve heard this before

It’s easy to get worn out a little by the superhero content mill. Jupiter’s legacy has the disadvantage of walking into a crowded room. The dark, grainy, revisionist hero story was made and then made over and over and over again.

Self-confidence again

HBO’s Watchmen are possibly the strongest example of the genre to date. The show weaves Alan Moore’s classic comic book into a story that reinterprets historical events and systemic racism in an America populated by superheroes and villains.

Jupiter’s legacy follows this path with his story of the Great Depression and turns to the young in his vision of a Union of Heroes. Jupiter’s Legacy’s Union is the basic worker-run version of The Boy’s Vought Corporation, a cynically commercial version of your friendly neighborhood heroes.

When you’re feeling full, this may not be the show to get you back.

If this sounds like Jupiter’s legacy covers a familiar area, it is. Even the big moral dilemmas felt like we saw them on the early superhero forays of the 00s. And the patriarchal supremacy of the utopian is a bit too natural in a show that wants to unpack hero myths. If you feel fed up with things like this, this may not be the show to win you back.

A not so cinematic appearance

Aesthetically, some of the action sequences also suffer from the so-called CW syndrome. (CW’s DC superhero shows “Arrowverse” have extremely uneven production value, with some special effects looking downright cheap.) As the fighting in Jupiter’s legacy intensifies, a mix of fast-paced editing and a little less-than-top-notch CGI are really driving some compelling storytelling and acting. In combination with the artificial aging make-up and the wigs for the hundred-year-old heroes, the appearance faltered. These moments can turn in the direction of goofy and cartoonish.

They are going to lift your disbelief anyway, so this is by no means a fatal mistake. But it does lead to some tonal blips that are not ideal. The beautiful, haunting and pared-down effects and action sequences from Watchmen would have been welcome here.

Is Jupiter’s Legacy Worth Seeing?

In short, yes.

Despite some flaws, Jupiter’s Legacy feels like a new entry in the superhero genre. With an original backstory, solid performances, and enough twists and cliffhangers to keep you going, I can only hope we get a second season. Jupiter’s legacy scratches the comic strip itch it is aiming for. And it solidifies Netflix‘s reputation for Marvel as a serious gamer of the genre.

Jupiter’s legacy falls on Netflix worldwide today, May 7th.