Jupiter’s Legacy: It came, we saw and why it did not conquer

Why was Jupiter’s Legacy canceled and was it really a surprise? 

Mark Millar is a rock star writer in the comic book world. He’s written classic titles like Marvel’s Civil War, The Ultimates, and Old Man Logan (a story similar in ways to Millar’s story Wanted). That’s just in Marvel Comics. He’s written a plethora of his own titles as well. In fact, his original comic books are so popular that he sold his line of works to Netflix for future adaptations.

Jupiter’s Legacy was the first of the Mark Millar Netflix TV shows. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the opening act that Netflix wanted. After one season, the series was canceled.

In response to the cancellation and the streamer’s decision to move forward with a Supercrooks spin-off instead, Millar released a statement saying, “I’m really proud of what the team achieved with Jupiter’s Legacy and the amazing work everyone did on that origin season.” He went on to say, “I’ve been asked a lot about what we’re planning next with this world, and the answer is to see what the super-villains are getting up to.”

So, why didn’t Netflix stick with Jupiter’s Legacy?

Why Jupiter’s Legacy cancelation is a little surprising

Look, the cancellation of Jupiter’s Legacy wasn’t all that shocking. The shocking part is that Netflix is giving up on the show so quickly. It hasn’t even been released for a month before it was canceled. This seemed a bit rushed.

Granted, the show’s reception was mixed but it did seem popular enough and there is no reason that it couldn’t have received more positive reviews as time went on – even the divisive Iron Fist got two seasons.

The fact that the villains are getting a spin-off called Supercrooks means they aren’t done with the universe. But if Netflix is invested, there have to be some major changes, because, frankly, Jupiter’s Legacy wasn’t a good show.

The best and worst of Jupiter’s Legacy’s main characters

The main characters are supposed to be the focal point of the show and Brainwave, Lady Liberty, and George Hutchence were phenomenal. They gave you everything that you could want from protagonists. Lady Liberty’s thinking evolved as the show continued, George was aces from start to finish and Brainwave was easily the best part of the show. And then we have The Utopian, – who was boring in a way that made the show feel unwatchable at times.

The character felt like he was incapable of showing emotion (even when he was being emotional) and we just weren’t given a real reason to care about him. Now, when he was Sheldon in the past, he rocked. The crazy and passionate Sheldon made you care about him, his journey, and what he was going through. Despite knowing he would eventually get powers, you still wanted him to succeed. Once he got his abilities, however, everything went downhill.

Jupiter’s Legacy’s obnoxious children

The sins of the father were seemingly reflected in the children. For starters, Brandon Sampson often came off as obnoxious. To put it simply, he was a bad version of Peter Petrelli from Heroes. He had his father’s broody lack of enthusiasm and spent much of his time on-screen complaining.

And then there’s Chloe. In her defense, she got better as the show went on. But the problem was the fact that the creative team made her character hateable when they seemed to be going for sympathy instead. However, Elena Kampouris did a great job with what she had to work with and shouldn’t be blamed for her poor character. Since Supercrooks will be about the villains, maybe we’ll see her and Hutch return in the future.

Jupiter’s Legacy’s predictability

Here is the worst part of it all: Jupiter’s Legacy was predictable. It was easy to tell where things were going from the moment you met Brainwave. It was obvious that he was the antagonist all along (and you didn’t need Agatha to tell you this either!). What’s worse is that nothing was done to try and hide the fact that he was behind everything.

Not showing George/Skyfox made things even clearer. The sad part is that showing Skyfox in the present may have been a nice bait and switch. Having him deny it could have led to the, “Who really did it?” storyline. It’s a trope that’s often used, but, as long it’s well done, no one would have questioned it.

We also knew that Lady Liberty was going to kill someone at some point. When she walked into the warehouse, the audience knew that this was when she’d break the code. Sadly, the fact that we saw it coming took away from the impact of the moment. Moreover, it should have felt bigger than it was. Yet, there it was. Another scene that everyone saw coming.

In conclusion…

Going forward, let’s hope the problems Jupiter’s Legacy had are fixed in Supercrooks. Otherwise, it’s at risk of dividing people as well.

The spin-off simply can’t have a predictable plot. This will get viewers to check out early if they know what’s coming. Similarly, if the story moves slowly, people will also stop watching.

As of now, it’s doubtful people will be scouring the internet for the Supercrooks trailer after seeing what Jupiter’s Legacy produced. However, this writer has faith in Mark Millar and his universe. We’ll have to wait and see if Supercrooks can succeed where Jupiter’s Legacy did not.

What do you think? Is this writer being too harsh on Jupiter’s Legacy? Are you excited for Supercrooks? Let us know in the comments below.