Thoughts on The Cape

Suit up. Fight back.

We’re living in the Silver Age of superheroes in cinema. They’re the cornerstone of the multiplexes, but when it comes to TV, they’re still in the Golden Age, if at all. NBC had premiered The Cape, a new mid-season replacement series, and the show’s first two episodes offer us enough to discuss. Ultimately, the show wants to get picked up. But will it? Killer Film analyzes…

When it comes to superheroes on TV, we generally begin in the 1960′s, with two shows, in various quality, tone, and success. Airing on ABC was The Green Hornet, a series based on the radio shows of the 1940s (even though there were serials at the time) that last just two seasons. The series is remembered today as our first exposure to Bruce Lee as Kato (re-watch Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story for some great origins to his casting), but the show was also a serious crime series, a stark contrast to the more popular ABC series in Batman. Bold, colorful, campy, Batman out shined that series, even with a few crossovers hoping to help the fledgling Green Hornet.

The late seventies brought the average, but fan favorite series in Wonder Woman, mostly now remembered for Linda Carter’s body than anything else, Greatest American Hero which was more sci-fi, but had our superhero elements still, and of course, The Incredible Hulk, which is possibly one of the most fondly remembered superhero-based TV series ever. The success of that show was due to the duality of the man and his inner beast, mixed with fugitive-on-the-run stories, fans still clamor for more Hulk.

The 1990s brought us some other less successful attempts, but both have gained cult status in Flash and Birds of Prey. Still, TV superheroes made a huge rating splash a few years later with Smallville and Heroes. Despite the fan base of all of these shows, even at the height of the ratings popularity of Smallville cannot compete with even a modestly successful film. Why? TV, especially with genre shows, just don’t have the time to grow and find an audience. Most shows begin mildly, maybe even stumble out, but will a network allow it to grow is the question and outside of The Incredible Hulk and Smallville, the answer is no.

Created by Tom Wheeler (who is currently writing the Shrek spin-off film for DreamWorks), The Cape certainly has promise. While the two episode premiere focused on the origin, the basis for how this show can succeed and find an audience is there. Palm City is facing political and police corruption, and when one cop tries to make a difference, he is framed for a corporation’s profit. Thought dead, he meets up with the Carnival of Crime, who aid him in his new goal: cleaning the city up. The Cape wouldn’t be exist without Batman Begins. Nolan’s film is all around in these two episodes. I call it a newbie crutch.

Overall, the show needs more episodes to start to develop its own mythology and the writing needs not to rush through events. The graphic novel approach needs to find arcs, but again, with more episodes. Chess could be interesting, although right now he’s one-dimensional. The heart of the show is our lead, The Cape/Vince Faraday. His moral compass will be our pin into this new series, but its his love for his family and especially his son, that will carry the series. It’s the backbone. Flashback scenes of Vince and his son reading a comic called The Cape, is his inspiration, and as the series continues to grow, this will ultimately be its heart.

It’s episodic, fun, and could be great. It’s just the show that the genre needs now since Smallville is almost done. Will ratings be there so the writing can align and develop what should be a fun mythos? Will NBC continue to care once May hits? The Cape is like any other genre show: it needs time and support from fans. It started off good enough to cast a return visit to Palm City when it airs in its new time slot on NBC Monday nights. But most importantly it has potential and with all the genre shows ending or getting the axe, there’s hope. There’s always hope.

Here’s its official site and Twitter.

Thoughts?