"Jupiter's Legacy" Season 1 - TV Review

"Jupiter's Legacy" started life as a comic book series written by Mark Millar and drawn by Frank Quitely. I tried to read it when it got to the library as a series of graphic novels, but it wasn't really my thing -it's about a bunch of unpleasant people. The story is very much about "The Code," the rules of engagement insisted upon by the leader of the superhero group, which says they never kill their opponents, only bring them to justice. Of course, the supervillains are bound by no such code, and are killing more superheroes every year. Never mind that cops can kill under extreme circumstances (this is mentioned only once in the entire season, it seems to be something they should have been discussing).

The story plays out in two more or less parallel timelines: 1929, as the hero group (not yet superhuman) travel to Africa pursuing the mad dream of Sheldon Sampson (Josh Duhamel). And the modern day as they and their children (the leaders are very long-lived) fight supervillains and occasionally each other. The supervillains aren't particularly likeable, and the superheroes are unpleasant, entitled, or outright assholes. The only semi-sympathetic person is Brandon Sampson (Andrew Horton, playing the son of Sheldon) who's a decent person but horribly conflicted. And the show's not really about him anyway - he's shown as more of a symptom. I don't think I'll be watching the second season.