What They Say:
Runaways – Blue Beetle must chase down a group of potentially dangerous teenage runaways.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The cast for this series is one that’s both a boon and a curse in a way because it keeps adding characters you want to see but also causes others to take the back seat for awhile. This one brings us back into contact with the kids that were kidnapped by the Reach that Blue Beetle and the others rescued. They’ve been kept at STAR Labs since then in order to explore their powers an what the Reach did tot hem, but the scientists there is basically treating them like lab rats than people. Which is a big problem when it comes to them being emotional teenagers. Both sides are doing things wrong here, which is made worse when four of them opt to just skip town only to get into more trouble because of it since their powers are inconsistent at best, but enough to get them out.
Because of his connection to them, the newly freed Blue Beetle is asked to go and try to convince them to go back since it’s the safest place for them while the Reach are on the planet. Not that it goes well for him right from the start as his best friend, Tye, has manifested a huge astral form while he’s asleep and is causing some significant damage. Thankfully, rather than going with just a lot of fighting, Blue Beetle reveals himself to them and to Tye specifically which helps them to trust him a bit more. His option for helping them may be a little unorthodox though as he thinks that Green Beetle may be able to help them with their problems due to the Reach. It’s not a bad approach overall though it makes things a bit awkward with Green Beetle being something that can do anything in unusual situations.
Before they can do that though, the minor subplot of the episode becomes the main point as Red Volcano arrives at the STAR Labs facility to take back the Amazo parts shipment that just arrived earlier. The attack is pretty smartly done since he destroys the Zeta Tube and cuts off access from the League, leaving it to just Beetle and obvious runaways coming back to help out and accept their powers on some level. It may be predictable, but it does work well and it allows some varied powers to come to the fore as the kids have to really accept what they’ve become and understand that there is some use to it, and responsibility. Red Volcano provides a decent opponent here, one that has plenty of power but not exactly the name recognition to be considered a top tier villain, making their fight with him not seem out of place.
In Summary:
While the episode throws a great twist at the end, it’s something that does make certain quirks earlier in the episode a bit clearer and more understandable. The focus on the four kids that were kidnapped before isn’t a bad story idea but it’s one that dominates here when you want to see the focus on other areas that have felt more exciting. The kids come across well here for what they’ve been through, but as the final minutes play out, you see how they’re going to be used in a different way as the show progresses and other factors come into play. The use of Lex Luthor at the very and and the clarity about what’s going on with Blue Beetle ups the ante and makes this a fairly pivotal episode, though I suspect the kids will have only a minor role in an upcoming fight. Still, it’s a solid show that may make some veteran comic fans just see predictable plot points but that’ll cause them to miss out on the twists and real meanings here.
Grade: B
