Streaming: Netflix
Episodes: 13
Source: Original
Episode Summary: Johnny Bolt lives at home with his single mother in an arrangement that consistently pits them against one-another. He’s unhappy about her many trysts and she’s frustrated by his constant presence (thus making those trysts less frequent and more complicated to manage). One evening as he’s being yelled at for existing once again, Johnny discovers a secret that might turn the tables forever – he’s developed the power to control electricity, putting him on the same level as the superheroes he admires.
This power proves to be helpful in many ways; Johnny can switch traffic lights to his convenience, and he’s able get back at Dave, the school bully. But what he really wants is to be a hero, so with the help of his friend Tom, Johnny develops a heroic persona called Electro Boy which he plans to debut on the first day of Summer vacation as all the local kids are gathered at the pool. But Johnny forgets that water and electricity don’t mix, and when his grand entrance is fouled-up by his bully, it ends in several electrocutions, traffic accidents, and the inadvertent demolishment of many buildings in the vicinity. The trauma of the situation hits Johnny like a truck; however, it also opens up a new path for him to use his powers to his own benefit in a much darker way.
Impressions: So, this is a bit of an odd one. A combination of English-Language source material and Japanese animation, this series is written by award-winning comic book writer Mark Millar and animated by Studio Bones, the result being something that feels familiar in two different ways that I’m not entirely sure play nice with one-another.
I’m by no means the person to judge the effectiveness of this type of superhero (or, I suppose, super criminal) origin story, because for as long as I’ve considered myself a geek I’ve been completely unable to maintain an interest in cape comics. I respect their existence, their history, and the fact that they contain some incredibly well-regarded stories within their canon, I just can’t, despite years of trying, make myself be interested in them. I have, however, seen some of the film adaptations of Millar’s past work, in as much as that really says anything about the qualities of his storytelling. Wanted – I found it okay, but kind of lost interest due to some of the more sexist story elements. Kingsman: The Secret Service – I loved it very much in spite of some of its sexism. The others, like Kick-Ass and Logan seem like they’re probably entertaining, but it’s unlikely that I’ll ever make time to watch them. So that’s my background with his work as an anime fan who’s dipped her toes into other waters on occasion.
So, as far as this opening episode goes, I’m very… reticent to call it formulaic (because I don’t particularly feel like getting called-out), despite the fact that it feels a bit that way to me. Johnny is yet another young guy whose life to that point has been, if not directly abusive, then definitely less-than-ideal for his personal and emotional development. He longs to meet the father he’s never known and finds indirect paternal guidance in the type of heroic men he idolizes. When he discovers that he may have a direct genetic link to these very people, he thinks that may be his ticket out of his crappy home life – until, mostly by accident, that gets completely fouled-up. With his one exit door closing in his face and backed into a corner, he elects to utilize his new powers to do unlawful things instead. Cut to the current day, where his existence as a prisoner seems like a fairly logical endpoint to his character arc (but perhaps a new beginning as well, considering that there are a whole season’s worth of episodes after this).
Yeah… I don’t know. When I saw Studio Bones in the credits I got a little excited, and I like the idea of these sorts of collaborations. But in practice this seems to echo a lot of hero/villain tropes that I find to be kind of silly and I found myself resisting the urge to tune out the episode (I also thought about not doing a write-up at all, but my desire to stay more on top of Netflix’s releases caused me to power through). Ultimately, I think that there’s a certain audience for this type of story and that audience is not me.
Pros: I like that the bulk of this episode takes place in the 1980s, and it captures the look and feel of the early part of that decade well. With its tube TVs and arcade cabinets (and one particular pretty terrible mullet hairstyle), it definitely lends a certain stylistic flare and sense of place to the story.
The animation quality is also pretty good, and the visual style is an appealing combination of Western (or at least Western-ish) character designs with Japanese animation sensibilities.
Cons: I’m… unconvinced by Johnny’s nearly instantaneous transformation from hero to villain. To be clear, the chain-reaction accident that he causes, which seems to result in the deaths of several people and a group of livestock, is a traumatic event the likes of which very few real-life folks like us would be able to directly comprehend. Even so, I’m not convinced that one terrible event, even one of this caliber, would be enough to instantaneously supplant a young person’s love of heroes and heroism with a mindset that allows theft and vandalism and an escalation thereof – actions that run completely contrary to heroic ideals and morals.
On the other hand, Johnny does seem a little willing throughout the episode to make use of his powers for petty advantages, like destroying his bully Dave’s boombox or obtaining a “free play” on an arcade cabinet for his friend Tom. I still think that this transformation is unrealistic, though, in that it almost immediately turns Johnny into some kind of cackling malcontent.
Content Warnings: Petty theft, violence, including specifically the electrocution of humans and animals in a pool. Mild sexual content (visually obscured).
Would I Watch More? – I was fairly disappointed by this opening episode, but because the next one seems to pick up with things in the modern day, it may end up feeling a little bit different. I may check that one out, at least.