Summary
- My Adventures with Superman offered a fresh take on Superman’s origin story, focusing on romance and friendship in a relatable way.
- Cast of Jack Quaid, Alice Lee, and Ishmel Sahid brought new dynamic to the iconic trio, receiving warm reception from fans and critics.
- The series emphasized grounding Superman with relationships, making it accessible for viewers of all ages and resonating with kids and parents alike.
My Adventures with Superman premiered on July 7, 2023, and took everyone by surprise. Superman’s origin has been told numerous times in comics, films, and, of course, television, but My Adventures with Superman arrived like a breath of fresh air and told a bold new take on the famous superhero’s story. My Adventures with Superman showed the romance between the greatest couple in comics like never before, depicting them as young people falling in love in a story many could relate to.
But that wasn’t the only fresh spin. Jimmy Olsen is one of Superman’s most important supporting characters, but he often falls by the wayside in adaptations of the comics. My Adventures with Superman puts the focus on the friendship between Clark Kent, Lois Lane, and Jimmy Olsen in a way that feels relevant to a 21st-century audience. While many iconic performers have brought these characters to life in the past, My Adventures with Superman‘s cast of Jack Quaid as Superman, Alice Lee as Lois Lane, and Ishmel Sahid as Jimmy Olsen brings a whole new dynamic to this trio. “Just seeing the reactions from everybody has been unbelievably cool,” said Quaid.
Ahead of My Adventures with Superman season two premiere on May 25, 2024, Jack Quaid, Alice Lee, and Ishmel Sahid sat down with MovieWeb to talk about the upcoming season.
Fan Reaction to the Show
My Adventures With Superman
5/5
Clark Kent builds his secret Superman identity and embraces his role as the hero of Metropolis, while sharing adventures and falling in love with Lois, a star investigative journalist, who also takes Jimmy Olsen under her wing.
- Release Date
- July 6, 2023
- Cast
- Jack Quaid , Alice Lee , Ishmel Sahid , Kari Wahlgren
- Seasons
- 2
- Studio
- HBO, DC Entertainment, Warner Bros. Animation
- Streaming Service(s)
- Max
- Directors
- Jen Bennett , Diana Huh , Christina Manrique
- Showrunner
- Jake Wyatt
My Adventures with Superman premiered just shortly after the Fourth of July holiday and three weeks before San Diego Comic-Con. It quickly picked up positive word of mouth from fans and critics alike, who fully embraced this new approach to Superman. After nearly a decade of the character’s material being defined by grim deconstructions or “what if Superman was evil,” doing a full-blown romantic comedy spin on the comics mixed with anime-inspired action seemed to be just what people were looking for. For the cast, they had no idea just how warmly the series would be received.
“I’m really excited because we recorded [seasons] one and two together, but we’re not sure, right?” said Lee regarding the reaction to the series. “But then, especially after having watched the first season, I’m like, ‘Oh my God, this is really so good.’ Now, knowing that the fans love it and people are responding so well to it, I’m just even more excited to share the second season. It’s just been really touching to see everyone’s responses.”
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Quaid echoed these sentiments, saying that when they recorded Seasons 1 and 2, they hadn’t been able to fully see the show until long after they recorded their lines. He said:
“A lot of us didn’t even really see the show. We recorded our episodes and kind of imagined what they could look like.
We saw our character models, but we had no idea how they would move in the world
. And to see it all with the music and the animation — we did the voices, but the team that made this show really knocked it out of the park, so I’m very, very happy with everything.”
“It’s always shocking,” added Sahid. “This is a legit show that I would watch if I were a kid, especially with the whole anime aspect to it. And so we have something. This is a good show. And I’m just speechless that people enjoy it.”
Is There Potential for a Musical Episode?
Season 2 will already feature plenty of major new developments for the series, including bringing in fan-favorite villain Lex Luthor and Clark Kent’s cousin, Kara Zor-El aka Supergirl. Due to DC having a long history of musical-themed projects, fans certainly hope to see a My Adventures with Superman musical episode, particularly as star Alice Lee is a singer who played Heather Duke in the Off-Broadway production of Heathers: The Musical and also starred in Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.
While a musical episode is not planned, the cast seems open to it. “I mean, for me, 100%,” said Lee. “I’m like, yeah, let her sing. Like, let’s do it. That’d be cool.”
On the Relationship Between Comics and Their Adaptations
Comics and their on-screen adaptations have an interesting relationship, often informing one another. While movies and television shows pull heavily from the comics, adaptations also shape the perception of the comics. Superman, more so than any other hero, is a character whose adaptations have defined him. Elements like Kryptonite and the name of the character Jimmy Olsen originated from The Adventures of Superman radio series. Even Superman’s most recognizable superpower of flight originated in the radio series, as he could only originally leap tall buildings in a single bound.
With elements from the adaptations often finding their way into the comics, Quaid, who is a self-professed comic book fan, explained what he loves about the series and hopes to see it brought into the comics. “I love how they’ve mixed and matched the mythology in our show, and I’d love to see aspects of that brought into the comic book world as well,” said Quaid. “I love these versions of the characters, so I definitely want to see this version of Jimmy and Lois in more things.”
Lois Lane is usually a very mature, no-nonsense, career-focused individual. Fans have gravitated to Lee’s version of Lois Lane because of her youthful energy, which still feels like Lois Lane but one that is slightly more of an outsider. This is an element Lee wants to see brought into the comics as well. She said, “I feel like Lois has always been such a strong character, but I love that she’s a little quirky in our show. Like she’s a little wild and intense. And I love that they’re all youthful. We’re just seeing them from this other perspective.”
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A More Human Superman
Most people, when they think of superhero comics, tend to think of big action spectacles, since that is what is primarily front and center for the movies, but it is the characters that comic book fans fall in love with. My Adventures with Superman has put the emphasis on grounding Superman, not by depowering him, but by playing up those relationships. Sahid said:
“The fact that you were watching three friends in their youth, going through the highs and the lows, the good times and the bad, and then figuring out ways to get through it…you know,
it’s not all about fighting super villains, it’s about going through life. Friendship, love, all the things that young people go through.
”
For fans of My Adventures with Superman who want an entry point into the world of comics, Quaid has a suggestion. “I know they made a few issue comic books, like featuring our characters, to bridge the gap between Seasons 1 and 2,” said Quaid. “I haven’t checked it out yet. I really want to get my hands on it because I’m a huge comic book nerd.”
That comic, My Adventures with Superman, is written by series producer Josie Campbell and drawn by artist Pablo M. Collar, and will be available for purchase on June 4, 2024.
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Superman’s Legacy
My Adventures with Superman might have premiered on Adult Swim, but what was notable about it was how accessible it was for viewers of all ages. The Adult Swim pairing seemed more to do with the series’ anime style influence, crossing over with the programming block’s history with anime. Due to the nature of so much Superman material in the past few years being rather dark and serious, like the DCEU’s Man of Steel or even Superman & Lois‘ emphasis on parenthood and marriage, My Adventures with Superman is the most kid-friendly, accessible take on the hero in years.
Alice Lee shared a great story about her friends who have kids and how it has resonated with them. “The kids were watching it, but they were really quiet, and the parents, who were also so into the show, they were like, ‘They’re never this quiet watching a show. It means they really love it.'”
Jack Quaid has a similar story.
“I have a friend, and he’s a huge Superman fan, and he has a pretty new son, and they watch My Adventures with Superman together.
He records videos of them watching and sends them to me
. This was really surreal for me. I visited him one day, and his son wasn’t there, but he was asking if I could record a voice memo for my son as Superman. That was a trip.”
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The Cast’s Gratitude for the Show
For an entire generation, Jack Quaid, Alice Lee, and Ishmel Sahid will be their first exposure to Superman, Lois Lane, and Jimmy Olsen, respectively. They might be the voices they hear for the rest of their lives when they read Superman comics or play with their action figures, the same way that Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill are still the voices of Batman and the Joker, many fans still hear to this day, 32 years after Batman: The Animated Series debuted. As Alice Lee explained:
I feel like it hit us all. I don’t think it still registers to me that, like, oh, this might be the first introduction to Superman for a lot of kids, but it’s an honor, and it was very cool, and I’m very grateful.
Sahid said, “I just hope that the way that we portray these characters will resonate with them, and they just dive into the lore, into the backstory of Superman and the comics and things like that.”
Jack Quaid, as a comic book fan, knows how important it is to be part of the Superman mythos. “We all feel incredibly lucky if we are, in fact, someone’s introduction to these characters. That’s a very privileged position, and we don’t take it lightly. So thank you all for watching, seriously.”
My Adventures with Superman season 2 debuts on Adult Swim with a two-episode premiere on May 25, 2024. You can watch the first season on Max below:
