Naomi review: Ava DuVernay updates a DC comic for a world without Superman

The CW’s Arrowverse has been on the wane over the previous few years, with Arrow, Black Lightning, Constantine, and Supergirl wrapping, and viewership for the remaining exhibits largely trending downward. On the identical time, superhero exhibits and franchises generally appear to be more and more geared toward generational themes and passing-the-torch tales, with youthful, hipper, extra numerous heroes like Miles Morales in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Kate Bishop on Hawkeye, and Kamala Khan within the upcoming Ms. Marvel seizing the highlight from legacy heroes.

These two traits collectively could clarify the brand new CW present Naomi, a few high-school lady obsessive about Superman, and the way she discovers her personal superpowers and super-legacy. The present is one other DC Comics adaptation, nevertheless it’s additionally a continuation of a thread operating by way of superhero media generally, as showrunners and filmmakers experiment with reenvisioning older characters and archetypes in ways in which make them related to youthful audiences. It’s additionally a cautious step away from the Arrowverse — a collection that’s leaving its tie-in choices open, however not but committing to being a part of a much bigger continuity exterior its personal superhero story.

What’s Naomi?

Picture: Danny Delgado/The CW

In DC Comics continuity, Naomi McDuffie is a superhero launched within the 2019 miniseries Naomi, written by Brian Michael Bendis and David F. Walker, and drawn by Jamal Campbell. Within the six-issue introductory arc, Naomi turns into conscious of irregularities round her adoption, and confronts her mother and father and some different figures in her small group till she will get some startling solutions about the place she got here from, and what that means for her future. Naomi continued her comics profession, adopting the hero title Powerhouse, by way of arcs in Motion Comics, Justice League, and Younger Justice, amongst different titles. The Naomi comedian is scheduled to proceed with a brand new arc on March 8.

Naomi the CW collection begins in the identical place as that first arc, however diverges considerably from Bendis and Walker’s comedian within the setup. Particularly, it begins the lead character off in a extra mundane world the place superheroes apparently don’t exist. In its first season, at the very least, Naomi gained’t happen in the identical continuity as the opposite Arrowverse exhibits — although given The CW’s historical past of DC Universe crossovers in all its superhero collection, it stays to be seen whether or not that’ll maintain true over time.

Who’s behind Naomi the present?

Naomi is a challenge from Array Filmworks, the distribution firm based by Selma and When They See Us director Ava DuVernay. DuVernay and showrunner Jill Blankenship (a author and government producer on Arrow) are credited because the screenwriters and government producers. Bendis and Walker gave the present their blessing, however aren’t concerned in its manufacturing.

What’s the Naomi pilot about?

Naomi McDuffie (Kaci Walfall) is a 16-year-old lady who’s so universally widespread, just about everybody in her small Pacific Northwest city enthusiastically greets her on sight, whether or not she’s cruising right into a weekend social gathering, skateboarding to highschool previous an array of wholesomely beaming native shop-owners, or interviewing folks for her Superman fan web site, the third-most-popular Superman web site on the planet. The one individuals who by no means appear glad to see her are Zumbado (Cranston Johnson), the glowering proprietor of a used-car lot, and Dee (Alexander Wraith), a tattoo artist who appears extra cautious than resentful round her.

Naomi additionally has quite a lot of romantic attachments to juggle — she’s nonetheless hanging out along with her hopeful ex Nathan (Daniel Puig), whereas additionally flirting with comics-shop worker Lourdes (Camila Moreno) and attempting to resolve how she feels about longtime good friend Anthony (Will Meyers). Nonetheless, when her army father Greg (Barry Watson) tells her pointedly that she wants to decide on between them as a result of making selections is essential, it appears like he’s speaking about much more than who she would possibly take to junior promenade.

Superman is fictional in Naomi’s world, so when the Huge Blue Boy Scout himself briefly exhibits up on the town for a blurry struggle sequence, a lot of the locals assume the occasion was a very well-orchestrated viral publicity stunt of some form. However Naomi, who’s abruptly experiencing quite a lot of bizarre, unexplained phenomena, begins obsessively digging into what different folks noticed and skilled, what it means about her personal identification and adoption, and what the city’s two large weirdos are hiding from her.

What’s it actually about?

Picture: Danny Delgado/The CW

“Don’t imagine every little thing you suppose,” one character tells Naomi in a very ominous second. That wording sounds odd — “Query your beliefs” can be extra direct and fewer complicated. However DuVernay has referred to as out that phrase as a tagline and theme of the present, highlighting how folks can stay with longtime assumptions that aren’t essentially true. “What you thought final 12 months, do you continue to suppose this 12 months?” she asks. “As a result of it’s all a rising course of, and actually to interrogate our beliefs, our ideas, and to consistently be rising — that’s what’s occurring to Naomi. […] I feel that’s stunning, and I feel that’s what that age is all about. All of us have to take the curiosity and exploration that we expertise as younger folks, and take that into the remainder of our lives.”

That’s a reasonably heady (and given the state of the nation, brazenly political) theme for a present a few universally beloved and extremely profitable teenager studying she additionally has superpowers. However open-mindedness and embracing likelihood are the sorts of values DuVernay repeatedly contains in her work. Aside from that messaging, although, Naomi’s pilot additionally units up a journey of self-discovery and an empowerment fantasy, as Naomi figures out what makes her totally different, and decides whether or not she will emulate her hero Superman in a world the place he doesn’t exist already to be her mentor, as he’s within the comics.

Is Naomi good?

The pilot is a bit of rocky. It’s refreshing to see a high-schooler who’s a wise, pushed tutorial success and can be universally favored, and who’s widespread however not a queen bee or mean-girl sort. Naomi is mighty healthful, with its pansexual flirtations and warmly supportive, non-competitive central feminine friendship.

However that additionally makes Naomi really feel a bit too good to be actual. She has an amazing relationship along with her mother and father, along with her ex (who would love extra of her consideration, however isn’t pushy or entitled about it), even seemingly with the fandom tuning into her fan web site. She has time to be an ace scholar, study a number of languages, run a massively profitable web site by herself, and in addition take the lead function on the varsity debate staff. If a job interviewer requested her for her greatest flaws, she’s the sort of one who’d should reply, “Oh, some folks suppose I’m simply simply too pushed and devoted!” Regardless of Naomi’s large questions in regards to the Superman phenomenon and a few eventual drama with the 2 oddballs on the town, Naomi’s pilot is gentle on any sort of character friction or inner battle, the sort of hooks that permit folks establish with a protagonist.

The Naomi pilot additionally doesn’t do a lot to determine her group as something apart from a assist system and booster squad. She has a big group of associates who’re desperate to throw themselves with out query into her Scooby-Doo investigative adventures, however nearly none of them get any private improvement. Each main factor we learn about them factors again to how they really feel about Naomi, or what they do to assist or encourage her.

In such a Naomi-centric world, a used-car supplier performing kinda hinky doesn’t appear to be sufficient drama to floor the collection. The pilot strikes shortly, and it wraps on some extent that may instantly give comics followers a lure into another elements of the DC Universe. But it surely doesn’t initially really feel prefer it’s aiming on the identical viewers as different Arrowverse exhibits. Its vivid, cheerful teen story appears to be skewed lots youthful, towards tweens who’re nonetheless excited by the social promise of highschool.

It’s value seeing how the present develops — DuVernay mentioned at a TCA panel in 2021 that it’s headed in a radically totally different route than the comics. And with the Arrowverse struggling, exhibits like this can be consciously geared toward veering away from these exhibits’ now-traditional method and viewers. However like all of the newer, youthful superheroes being developed for the display over the previous few years, Naomi is coming into a crowded area with quite a lot of competitors, and the present will should be much more distinctive than this opening pilot if it’s going to face out.

How can we watch Naomi?

New episodes of Naomi air on The CW on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET. The pilot is streaming free on-line on CWTV.com.