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Two-and-a-half years after her introduction in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the MCU’s version of Riri Williams aka Ironheart (Dominique Thorne) has finally returned in her own Disney+ series, which is being released in two halves (directed respectively by Sam Bailey and Angela Barnes). Picking up shortly after the movie, the six-parter sees Ironheart return to her hometown of Chicago after getting expelled from MIT, and join a gang of thieves led by Parker Robbins/The Hood (Anthony Ramos).
It’s an unexpectedly dark premise for a young adult superhero show, although showrunner Chinaka Hodge et al. definitely make the Hood feel more like his Medieval namesake by giving him an unsympathetic bunch of targets, clearly modeled on today’s tech bros. It reflects a desire to ensure Riri is not perfect, that she is as flawed and messy as another certain young superhero, whose rash behaviour not only stems from a touching backstory, but also reflects the “move fast and break things” mentality of the modern tech industry.
Along the way, Riri inadvertently creates an AI based on her late friend Natalie (Lyric Ross), and befriends nervous tech ethicist/parts collector Joe (Alden Ehrenreich). Joe is everything Riri is not, and their friendship makes for an amusing and even poignant contrast, with the two bonding over the memories of their late fathers in one particularly pivotal scene. Her ambitiousness starts to rub off on him, and it’ll be interesting to see how (and how well) it pays off in the latter half of the season.
Speaking of the decision to air Ironheart over two weeks: each episode would’ve worked just fine if they’d been released weekly, even if the first episode is fairly slowburn (although that decision was appreciated because it brought to mind Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man films, where viewers could soak in the feeling of being in New York with its quirky denizens, and it’s very much the case for Chicago and its people here.) Each episode has a satisfying set piece and/or cliffhanger, which would’ve allowed excitement and speculation to increase over Natalie’s arrival, the Hood’s true nature, or Joe’s past.
Regarding the set pieces, the emphasis on heists is a really nice change of pace for the usually fight-dominated superhero genre, and the realization of the MCU Chicago’s underground in the second episode is money especially well spent; it’s a very good thing the show was pushed back a couple of years to spend more time on effects sequences like it. And all in all, it’s very cool seeing a more tactile suit of armor again, that makes you want to imagine flying inside of it, after the nanotech suits Tony Stark wore in the last two Avengers films.
Dominique Thorne remains an engaging presence as Riri, coming across as formidable and charismatic despite her small stature, and Lyric Ross is delightful as Natalie (or N.A.T.A.L.I.E. to be more accurate). Anthony Ramos is unsurprisingly charismatic as the Hood, as are Manny Montana as his brother John, and Shea Couleé as their software expert Slug (credit also has to be given for casting not just one, but two non-binary actors in their crew, with Zoe Terakes also playing fighter Jeri Blood.) Alden Ehrenreich is funny, endearing, and even a little unnerving as Joe, while Anji White is a winning addition as Riri’s mother Ronnie, although she doesn’t have much screentime; and Eric André, who’s always fun, is used briefly but impactfully with his surprise guest appearance in the first episode as tech expert Rampage Stu.
The show’s cinematography and use of locations in Chicago is excellent, and while some instances of exposition come across slightly clumsily, the show is as well-written and thoughtful as any MCU project, emphasizing characterization, wit, dialogue, relationships, and surprises over action and visual effects. (Likewise, the soundtrack has some predictably great choices.) When MCU projects crumble, it’s typically because the finale feels anticlimactic, or because they made the wrong choice of villain, and we’ll see if this is also the case when Ironheart concludes next week, but overall, these three episodes were an enjoyable trip to the MCU’s Chicago, with an refreshingly flawed young protagonist.
Excelsior!
English (US)