Marvel’s Runaways season 1, episode 6 review: Metamorphosis

Six episodes in and Marvel’s Runaways is still delivering greatness. But who really is Jonah?

Runaways is easily becoming one of the best series from Marvel yet. With its cast dynamic, use of setting and curious narrative, the Hulu show doesn’t fail at keeping us waiting for the next episode. And that might be its only drawback. Despite a Hulu original, the show functions as a network television series, meaning we have to wait one week to see subsequent episodes. The latest one, “Metamorphosis,” finally gave us insight into who Julian McMahon’s character Jonah truly is, while also leaving us with more questions than answers.

The episode begins with the revelation that Jonah is Karolina’s real dad, not Frank Dean. Though, Karolina doesn’t know this. The gang (Alex, Nico, Karolina, Gert, Chase and Molly) then meet and huddle together, promising to take down their parents once for all while devising a plan to infiltrate the Minoru-owned company Wizard’s security. Last episode we discovered that deep in Wizard’s servers lies visual proof of Pride’s (the gang’s parent’s evil organization) crimes. The gang decides that the best way to hack into the servers is by attending Pride’s upcoming party, as they’d be virtually unseen among the horde of guests.

Once at the party, the gang splits up. Alex and Nico head to Tina Minoru’s office to plant a bug, while Gert and the others look out for anybody who could mess up the plan. In the midst of the action, though, Karolina steals cheap vodka and goes to the building’s roof. Mad at her friends and family for seemingly telling her how to feel, she gets drunk and accidentally falls over the skyscraper. Chase tries to grab her, but as Karolina’s power-inhibiting bracelet falls off her wrist, she flies off to safety. After the subtle commotion, Chase’s dad gives a speech, announcing that his wife is having an affair with Robert Minoru, Nico’s father. He suddenly faints due to his growing brain tumor, but Jonah secretly heals him with what appears to be a healing factor antidote. The episode ends with Catherine Wilder discovering that Molly knows about Pride’s secret meetings.

“Metamorphosis” keeps Runaway’s streak of amazing episodes going strong. The show took a risk dropping a massive revelation at the beginning of the episode. But it paid off nicely by the end when Jonah and Frank crossed paths. There was an instant where Frank had a vision of his wife, Leslie, in bed with Jonah, adding to Frank’s previous fears that his wife is cheating on him. Frank finally felt like he mattered in this episode. He rarely does anything substantial to the benefit of the show, seemingly existing just to take up space and time. But this episode was thankfully different in that regard.

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“Metamorphosis” also introduced new interpersonal dilemmas between the young gang. When Karolina and Nico were dressing up for the party, Karolina showed affection towards Nico. Gert saw this and immediately approached Karolina, who’s already intimate with Chase. A love triangle is sure to occur between the three, shadowing the love affair most of their parents are already having. It’s classic ‘80s teen romance with a 21st-century spin and I absolutely love it. There’s tension everywhere in Runaways, foreshadowing an end that won’t be good for anybody.

That said, the newfound tension between Jonah and Pride’s members is one the show is heavily leaning on. Jonah seems to be the source of incredible healing powers, but Gert’s dad, Dale, is not very fond of him. We still don’t know who Jonah really is or if he’s any known name from the comics. I’m sure once we find out it’ll change the show for the better. Though, the show is already as good as any of the best Marvel Netflix series.

Now, while “Metamorphosis” was a great episode, I wanted to see the team back in superhero form. Last episode, “Kingdom,” saw the true formation of the Runaways, when they all used their abilities against the gangster Darius. After such a display of powers, it’s only fair the show continues to deliver such spectacle. Hopefully we’ll see more of that in the next episode.

Top Moments

• If there’s one word to describe Victor Stein calling out his wife Janet’s affair with Robert Minoru in front of hundreds of people, it’s definitely “savage.”
• Karolina’s abilities now extend to flight, which just makes me more excited for when she reaches her full potential.
• The most emotional scene in the episode was when Nico Minoru saw her mom, Tina, cry. This happened right after Victor told everyone about the aforementioned affair.
• Julian McMahon’s Jonah seems to have a healing factor as he seemingly cured Victor’s brain cancer. It’ll be fascinating once we know who he really is.
• We also got the long-awaited Stan Lee cameo in this episode, which of course, was hilarious and totally unexpected.

Next: 50 greatest super heroes in comic book history

Stay tuned for more reviews of Runaways.