As the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to expand its presence across all platforms, it recently unleashed “Marvel’s Runaways,” a new superhero team web series.
Unlike the Avengers and the X-Men, the Runaways consist of six teenagers from different backgrounds who unite against a common enemy — their criminal parents. The Runaways are also at war with angst, hormones and other typical teenage concerns.
The first three episodes of “Marvel’s Runaways” debuted on Hooq’s video-on-demand service in Southeast Asia last week with a brand new episode to follow each week, same day as the U.S. and according to Hooq Chief Content Officer Jennifer Batty, “fully localized” for Asian viewers.
“Marvel’s Runaways” stars Rhenzy Feliz (“Teen Wolf”), Lyrica Okano (“The Affair”), Virginia Gardner (“Project Almanac”), Ariela Barer (“Yo Gabba Gabba!”), Gregg Sulkin (“Sixty Six,” “Wizards of Waverly Place”) and Allegra Acosta (“100 Things To Do Before High School”).
Feliz plays Alex Wilder, a nerd longing to reunite with his childhood friends. Okano is Nico Minoru, a Wiccan (a pagan religious new movement) who is distinguished by her gothic appearance. Gardner portrays Karolina Dean, an alien disguised as a human model. Barer is Gert Yorkes, a riot grrrl and social justice warrior, Sulkin plays Chase Stein, a high school lacrosse player whose brilliance in engineering sets him apart from the typical dumb jocks, while Acosta essays the role of Molly Hernandez, the constantly optimistic baby of the Runaways.
The teens battle The Pride, a supervillain criminal organization which also happens to be composed of the Runaways’ own parents.
“We’re very excited that ‘Runaways’ ticks all the boxes that we are looking for in a comic book entertainment series. Every teenager thinks their parents are evil but what happens when they find out they really are evil?,” Batty wondered.
“With show runners like Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, who produced ‘The O.C.’ and ‘Gossip Girl’ that are also available on Hooq, we can expect the series to break away from some of the conventions and tropes that muddle teenage dramas.”
The first three episodes have so far garnered favorable reviews with review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes giving it an 81 percent approval rating. “Earnest, fun, and more balanced than its source material, ‘Runaways’ finds strong footing in an over-saturated genre,” reads the site’s consensus.
Created for Hulu in the U.S., “Marvel’s Runaways” is also part of an exclusive landmark deal between Hooq and The Walt Disney Company that gives Hooq exclusive rights to it in Southeast Asia as well as for two other Marvel series namely “Marvel’s Inhumans,” and “Marvel’s Cloak and Dagger.”
Watch the trailer here:
