10 reasons Runaways is the new Marvel series you need to binge

16 April, 2018 - 05:30

Marvel's Runaways is now streaming first and only on Showmax in South Africa, TVLine hailed it as the richest, best-realized Marvel drama of the new TV season, describing it as The Breakfast Club meets X-Men with a splash of Stranger Things thrown in.

If that's not enough for you, here are 10 more reasons you need to binge this hit teen superhero series immediately.

1. It's a concept all teenagers will identify with

Every teenager has thought their parents were evil, but what if you found out they actually were? Like human-sacrifice-level evil. Runaways is the story of six diverse teenagers who can barely stand each other anymore but who must reunite against a common foe - their parents.

2. It's one of the best Marvel series

Picking your favourite Marvel series is an impossible task, but let's just say that Runaways has an 82% critics score and a 90% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Only Daredevil has a better audience score than that. As Indiewire wrote, it's one of Marvels most promising series to date.

3. It's based on a comic book series by Brian K Vaughan, who consulted on the series

That would be the guy Wired described as the mastermind behind some of the most beloved comic books of the millennium ; who Comic Book Resources called one of the top ten comic writers of all time ; who's won 14 Eisner Awards, 14 Harvey Awards, and a Hugo. The guy who wrote Saga. And Y, The Last Man. And so much more. When Brian wanted to hand over the comic book series of Runaways, he chose one of his biggest fans: Joss Whedon (Avengers Assemble and Age of Ultron, and so much more). And Joss said yes. Enough said.

4. You'll want their superpowers (but mostly Gert's dinosaur)

Alex is a genius. Nico is a witch with the Staff of One, which can cast any spell, but only once. Karolina is an alien, who can fly and fire solar energy bursts. Molly has superhuman strength and is invulnerable. Chase has x-ray goggles and can manipulate fire with his hands. But the coolest of all? Gert has a telepathic dinosaur...

5. It's created by the people behind The O.C. And Gossip Girl.

Josh Schwartz became the youngest person in network television history to create and run a series when The O.C. premiered on FOX (and went on to win 12 Teen Choice Awards). With Stephanie Savage, he then co-created Gossip Girl, which went on to win 17 Teen Choice Awards.

6. It's directed by some unusual suspects

Yes, Runaways is a teen superhero series, but it's directed by some of the best grownups in the business, including Brett Morgen, an Oscar and Emmy-nominated documentary director (Cobain: Montage of Heck; Jane; On The Ropes); Millicent Shelton, Emmy-nominated for her work on 30 Rock; and Jeremy Webb, Emmy-nominated for his work on Downton Abbey.

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7. It's already up for awards

Runaways is nominated for Best Superhero Series at the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films' Saturn Awards in June 2018. Expect more to come

8. The parents are as interesting as their children

The second episode revisits the events in the pilot - from the parents' perspective. Yes, they sacrifice innocent souls, but they have their reasons - and their own struggles. As numerous reviews have pointed out, much more time is spent with the parents than in the original comics - and the series is better for it. Look out for James Marsters looking a lot older than he did as Spike in Buffy The Vampire Slayer, a role that earned him three Teen Choice nominations.

9. It's refreshingly diverse

According to Rotten Tomatoes, the series offers both the youngest team of superheroes on Marvel's TV slate yet and the first predominantly female superhero team on TV or film. There's a lesbian superhero too, for a change

10. Hulu has already ordered season two

Yes, the same people who made The Handmaid's Tale and Harlots think they have another hit on their hands...

Binge-watch the complete 10-episode series of Runaways first and only on Showmax in South Africa.

About Showmax

Showmax is an internet TV service. For a single monthly fee, get all-you-can-eat access to a huge online catalogue of TV shows, movies, kids' shows and documentaries. Start and stop when you want. No ads. Cancel anytime - there's no contract.

Stream Showmax using apps for smart TVs, smartphones, tablets, computers, media players and gaming consoles. Showmax also works with Chromecast and AirPlay. Manage data consumption using the bandwidth capping feature. No internet? No problem - download up to 25 shows to smartphones and tablets to watch later offline.

Showmax was born in 2015 and is part of the Naspers group. Showmax is currently available in more than 70 countries. For a free, no-risk trial, visit www.showmax.com.

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