The Runaways Series Premiere Recap: “Reunion”
The Runaways has been one of the best comic books in recent Marvel history, which means the anticipation surrounding the live-action series has been high.
“Reunion,” does a fantastic job of adapting the first issue while also putting a unique spin on the beloved characters. From the creators of Gossip Girl, Stephanie Savage and Josh Schwartz luck out with a talented young cast as well as the ability to tackle the young adult genre they have conquered, with the freedom to test out new storytelling.
“Reunion,” opens up with the group of teenage misfits disbanded while they deal with the death of one of their friends. Nerdy Alex Wilder (Rhenzy Feliz) is desperate to reunite with his former friends after spending so much time alone. At his parents’ encouragement, he decides to reach out in hopes of getting the gang back together for a small party.
Pretty blonde Karolina (Virginia Gardner) and popular jock Chase (Gregg Sulkin) both rebuff him quickly due to zero interest in returning to their old group. Social justice warrior Gert (Ariela Barer) also says no and despite Alex’s emotional plea to the goth Nico (Lyrica Okano) he gets RSVP’s for his pizza party. He dejectedly returns home to six pizzas and a room full of their parents.
Only a little bit of information is doled out throughout “Reunion,” over the death which tore the group apart. The girl who died is Nico’s sister, and it seems like everyone chose to cope in their own way.
While Alex has escaped in his vintage video games, Nico has been working on her magic in a desperate attempt to bring back her sister, Karolina has bought into her parents’ cult-like religion, Gert has become a social activist, and Chase has escaped into his lacrosse team. The only member who seems to be moving on is Molly, who is no longer a mutant but Gert’s adopted sister. She is excited to try out for the cheerleading squad even though she’s suffering from weird stomach pains.
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Throughout “Reunion,” each of the kids is put on the path of becoming superheroes. It turns out Molly’s weird pain is actually her powers emerging, and she manages to push a car in her garage before taking a nap. Chase skips out on a tutoring session with Gert to go to a high school party where he runs into a rebellious Karolina.
She’s tired of having to maintain her parents’ image of perfection and she chooses to let loose at a party where she takes off her medical bracelet thus changing colors with her powers. After Molly is freaked out by the creature in their basement and Chase punches his friends when they try to rape a passed out Karolina, the group retreats to Alex’s.
It’s understandably an awkward gathering, but thankfully Chase realizes that alcohol could help everyone open up. When they break into Alex’s parents’ office, they discover a secret door leading them into a weird cult-like meeting between everyone’s parents while they sacrifice a young girl.
Next: Check out this first look at Marvel’s Runaways from Hulu
While “Reunion” doesn’t get a lot of time to explore the parents of the gang, they are an ever-looming presence throughout the episode. The Runaways plans to flesh out the parents more as villains compared to the comics and it’s one of the best parts of this live-action adaptation. With the premiere ending with the knowledge that their parents might not be the charitable people they believe, it will be interesting to see how the kids react to this news and how they will push back.