My Adventures With Superman returns on Adult Swim and HBO Max for its third season, and Jake Wyatt has ensured that this is the best outing yet of the entire show. Here’s what Season 3 gets right and why more from this world is needed.
When My Adventures With Superman first released back in 2023, it wasn’t my favourite iteration of the character, and in fact, the only reason I continued watching was so that I could catch wind of one of my favourite characters in DC, Supergirl. Luckily, Season 2 was an improvement from the first season, and it felt like it was finding its footing.
At the end of Season 2, Superman (Jack Quaid) and Supergirl (Kiana Madeira) were able to defeat Braniac (Michael Emerson), with Kara joining the superfamily back in Metropolis and Smallville. In Season 3, My Adventures With Superman follows the superfamily as they begin to confront new enemies who threaten their future, and they’ll be put to the test to see if their bond will hold them together so they can save the word.
A New Threat Arises in My Adventures With Superman Season 3. Image Credit: Warner Bros. Animation
What’s impressive about My Adventures With Superman is that it manages to take these extremely bold creative decisions surrounding these characters and storylines that are so well loved. Jake Wyatt and the writers of the show have decided to take a beloved story such as The Death of Superman and The Reign of Superman, which has been done many times in media before, in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Superman and Lois, the list goes on.
This is a storyline that feels like it has been run through completely, but they prove that they’re capable of making the story feel refreshing while staying faithful with some elements and providing new surprises and twists for hardcore fans of the character.
There’s a New Superman in Town in My Adventures With Superman Season 3. Image Credit: Warner Bros. Animation
This third season has a message to send, and that’s that anyone can be a hero and that everyone has a purpose. After the second season, Supergirl is left not really knowing what her purpose is anymore after the defeat of her father, Brainiac. She’s still being taunted and hasn’t discovered who she’s meant to be yet or what her place on Earth is yet, but that’s what the season is all about. The writers do a magnificent job with Supergirl this season and are able to mirror her storyline with various other characters.
This season isn’t just about Superman like the two previous seasons have been, and it involves everyone, switching to focus on new characters that enter the fray as they also try to discover who they’re meant to be.
With Season 3 taking from The Reign of Supermen, we know that many other Supermen will make their appearances, from Cyborg Superman (Max Mittelman) to many other characters. Aside from Cyborg Superman, who quickly discovers their purpose, all the Supermen that appear are going through some personal struggle as they all try to break out and be their own person that serves a purpose on Earth similar to Superman’s.
The show continuously manages to subvert expectations as you think it’s going in one direction and then it goes in a completely different one. It kept the show engaging and making me want to watch the next episode straight away with how they made great use of some of the new characters.
Superman (Jack Quaid) and Lois (Alice Lee) Always Find Each Other in My Adventures With Superman. Image Credit: Warner Bros. Animation
Outside of the main storyline which involves various timelines and the Superfamily trying to protect Metropolis, the core of My Adventures With Superman is how they deal with the relationships of the show. In Season 3, Clark and Lois (Alice Lee) are moving forwards with their love; well, at least Clark is ready to move to the next step.
While Clark is ready to buy a farmhouse and seemingly leave Metropolis and have kids, Lois isn’t too sure yet if they’re ready for this type of commitment in her life. She still has so much to do, and it really brings a challenge to their relationship, especially when Superboy arrives and things start to heat up.
Alongside Kara, Lois Lane goes through a lot of growth in this season as she discovers a side of herself that she was scared to confront and didn’t know existed. She wants to set her own path, but after the arrival of some characters, it feels like her path has already been set for her, forcing her down a path that she doesn’t necessarily want to go down in this present time.
The same can be said for Clark Kent; he’s found his place in this world as Superman. He’s moving at the right pace with his relationship, but similar to Lane, when unexpected arrivals take place, it shakes everything up for the Man of Steel. When Supermen arrive, it changes everything he thought it took to be Metropolis’ hero and changes how he perceives his future looking forward.
There’s so much romantic drama between Clark and Lois that’s written beautifully, but they’re not the only couple that are dealing with their own problems. There’s an episode that’s heartbreaking not only for Clark but also for the audience, but it showcases perfectly how Clark will always be Superman no matter what the scenario is. With or without the cape, he’s a hero.
Season 3 picks up on the subplot of Kara’s and Jimmy’s (Ishmel Sahid) relationship, with Kara continuing to show interest in Jimmy, and although Jimmy does like her back, surprisingly, he’s grown in maturity. Jimmy Olsen has always been a great character, and Jake Wyatt showed his team had an understanding of the character from the start as they made sure to show that he wasn’t only Clark Kent’s friend but also Superman’s friend.
His involvement in the show continues to be excellent as he decides not to rush into a relationship with Kara for selfish reasons and instead tells her to experience the world before making such rash decisions. It’s not only a sign of maturity with the character, but it’s also a sign of how loving and caring he is for the people around him. These decisions of him lead into some of his funniest moments of the show as he fights with jealously and gets himself into several slapstick situations.
Time For Some Mobile Suit Action in My Adventures With Superman Season 3. Image Credit: Warner Bros. Animation
The personal highlight of My Adventures With Superman is its anime inspirations. From the animation to the fight sequences, it takes me back to my youth getting to experience glowing fights that don’t hide from any ounce of creativity and instead embrace it. The animation is at its best with this season, and in particular, there’s an episode around the half-mark point that could qualify as the season finale with how action-packed, emotional, shocking, and grand in scale it feels.
For fans of Dragon Ball Z, you’d be happy to know that My Adventures With Superman Season 3 surprisingly takes a lot of inspiration from the Future Trunks arc, and you’ll begin to notice the similarities once storylines begin opening up.
It’s rare for a show to balance its overarching story with its episode-of-the-week format. Season 3 continues to follow that format, and despite it, any time it returns back to the main story, it does so effortlessly and never feels like we’ve missed some needed context. Each episode is important, and even for the episodes you’d probably consider filler, they’re still a lot of fun to watch as the Superfamily find themselves getting up to cosmic antics.
My Adventures With Superman Season 3 feels like it has really discovered its identity, and Jake Wyatt and the entire creative team embrace it. The character development is better than it has ever been, which helps to deliver a complex and profound story that involves all the characters. Whether you’re a Superman, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, Supergirl, or even Superboy fan, you’ll leave by the end of the season satisfied with how everything has turned out.
It was a long wait for this third season, but in that wait, it feels like everything great about the show has matured, which makes just the thoughts alone of a fourth season exciting to think about if it continues to evolve. There’s a handful of DC animated projects that are currently airing, but My Adventures With Superman Season 3 isn’t only the best season of the show, but it also solidifies the show as the best DC animated project we’ve seen in years. This season perfectly teases the future of this universe and it only makes me want more from the Adventure-verse
4/5