Filled with adorably ambitious heroes and quips between young lovers, the hit animated series, a coming-of-age story that follows 20-somethings Clark Kent, Lois Lane, and Jimmy Olsen as they discover ‘who they are,’ together, has returned on Adult Swim and Max.
In a world that seems bent on devouring itself more and more every day, a riveting but lighthearted and cleverly animated series is always a welcome – and needed - change of pace. Quips between young lovers, adorably ambitious heroes, and relatable villains who give themselves pep talks before reluctantly rising out of bed in the morning are what great shows are made of.
Ingredients like these are why the recipe that is My Adventures with Superman was gifted a Season 2.
“Because of various Warner Bros. reasons, our four-quad family co-watching show ended up on Adult Swim, and I was like, ‘They're going to eat us alive,’” recalls Jake Wyatt, co-executive producer and showrunner with Brendan Clogher on the series. “But it was genuinely heartwarming and touched me to see a bunch of grown-ups, Adult Swim fans, decide that this show was a nice bright spot in their lives. It was an impact that we never imagined.”
Clogher adds, “When Jake and I originally pitched and developed the show, the idea was that we just wanted to see a Superman we liked again. Writing and coming up with new ideas has been the easiest part.”
The first two episodes of Season 2 of My Adventures with Superman have been released on Adult Swim, with one new episode debuting every Saturday. New episodes will also stream Sundays on Max. Episode 3, "Fullmetal Scientist,” will drop Saturday, June 2.
Enjoy the trailer:
The 2D coming-of-age series, from Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment, centers on 20-somethings Clark Kent, Lois Lane, and Jimmy Olsen as they discover their place in the offices of The Daily Planet, as well as their place as humans and aliens living on planet Earth. In the latest season, the three best friends face a host of new threats. Powerful foes emerge from Clark’s Kryptonian past, antagonist Amanda Waller takes aim at Superman (literally), Lois grapples with the future, and Jimmy Olsen spends an unbelievable amount of money as a new millionaire.
And, on top of it all, Superman is on a mission to find his Krypton cousin Kara, Lex Luthor has come to the party to join forces with Waller, and Lois’ dad is going to be Clark and Jimmy’s third roommate.
“Everyone’s just one big happy family,” says Ishmel Sahid, the voice of Jimmy Olsen. “We also see Jimmy putting his foot down in a lot of situations and deal with his emotions when it comes to his newfound relationship, or what he thinks will become a relationship, without giving spoilers. But it’s with Kara.”
Along with Sahid, the series stars Jack Quaid as the voice of Superman/Clark Kent and Alice Lee as the voice of Lois Lane. Sam Register (Teen Titans Go!) serves as executive producer; Josie Campbell (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power) serves as co-producer.
“I remember seeing fan art pretty quickly into the process of the show being out,” notes Quaid. “And I consider fan art to be the highest form of flattery because people devote their time and their talent to making something that shows their appreciation for something that we do. I thank all the fans sincerely for checking out the show and liking it. We've all watched the YouTube reactions and the amount of people laughing at the jokes, but also having pretty visceral, emotional reactions to some stuff, means everything and is everything you could want in response to a show.”
Lee adds, “From kids to adults, people really care. It means that we're doing something right.”
Along with great scripts and a voice cast so talented you’d never know this was Lee and Sahid’s first voice acting roles, the animation has done a lot to carry My Adventures with Superman through to success. Many great DC and Marvel superhero TV series, animated in 2D, have excelled in creating believable characters eliciting tremendous empathy, from the 1994 Spider-Man to Young Justice, which wrapped Season 4 in 2022.
But this is the first time an anime-inspired Superman series has joined the league, and the style is paying off with the way it enhances jokes, awkward moments, and romantic Valentine's Day flights among the Northern Lights.
“One of the best parts about anime storytelling is it lets you go from like zany, goofy, and chibi-style shenanigans to everybody crying and blood on the floor,” says Campbell. “And every time, the audience goes along for the ride without really questioning how we go from one to the other. Everyone accepts the full gamut of the human experience in an anime. Embracing that both in the visuals and the storytelling is what makes our show so successful and so unique.”
Quaid actually questioned some of the show's more anime-focused aspects, but the voice actor and series fan has since relinquished his skepticism.
“I remember when I saw the opening title sequence for the first time and I was like, ‘We did not have to go that hard on that title sequence,’” remembers Quaid. “But I am so happy that we did. Brendan and Jake and Josie really know their stuff when it comes to Superman, but they're also all huge anime fans, and they’ve thrown in so many references – like the Superman-meets-Sailor Moon transformation – that are just so cool. This show lets them all nerd out as much as they possibly can.”
In fact, the upcoming Season 2 episode, "Fullmetal Scientist,” derives its title from the famous anime Fullmetal Alchemist. But in addition to the show’s anime style enabling a wide range of options for character expression, it also widened the scope of viewership.
“The anime aesthetic scans really clearly as being something ‘for all ages,’” explains Wyatt. “You’ve got Pokémon for kids, Dragon Ball for teens, Cowboy Beebop and Fullmetal Alchemist for adults. Anime lives in that PG to PG-13 space and I think that helped put this show in touch with its audience.”
Even with so much potential, the team was still taken aback by how many couples watch the show as part of date night.
“I was excited, in this season, to put relationships in the show through hard tests, and maybe testing those bonds to see if they’d snap because I'm a cruel, cruel person,” says Campbell, whose relationship-focused script sequences mostly involve human characters Lois and Jimmy grappling with insecurities that inevitably come along while dating super-human aliens.
“I don't think that's something we’ve seen often,” says Lee. “That’s going to be pretty interesting and super deep.”
Sahid agrees, “It’s a cartoon, but it's still real because people’s emotions are affected in very real ways. Jimmy’s always the third wheel between Lois and Clark, but now he has to deal with his own insecurities of not having powers and Kara going off and saving the world.”
But fans will have to wait until next month to dive into the romance drama. In the meantime, the team encourages soaking up as much of the first two episodes as possible.
“I think the first two episodes of Season 2 are some of the most beautiful work we’ve done,” says Wyatt. “I am also excited for people to see our version of Krypton and the supervillain Brainiac. Brendan has all this lore inside him. We would call it the Brendan Clogher Lore and though we definitely won’t get through all of it, we’ve drilled in a bit more into the iceberg.”
Victoria Davis is a full-time, freelance journalist and part-time Otaku with an affinity for all things anime. She's reported on numerous stories from activist news to entertainment. Find more about her work at victoriadavisdepiction.com.
