September 20, 2024
Column

Stan Lee’s latest crop of superhero hopefuls just superstrange

In the past, I’ve tried to like science fiction and fantasy. I’ve read books, watched movies and television shows, but it’s just not for me. As a little girl, I read “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.” When “Harry Potter” hit the shelves, I gave it a try, too. No matter what, I had to force myself to move on to the next page or not flip channels during a commercial.

In short, it’s not my cup of tea, so perhaps this review isn’t fair to begin with, but here goes.

Stan Lee has come out with a new season of “Who Wants to be a Superhero?” You may remember my take on the first season with the column headline of “Nothing super about SciFi’s new series,” and this season is no different.

A few months ago, I did a very fun feature story about a Brewer man who was auditioning for the show. Even though I’m not a comic book aficionado, Chris Florey’s passion, excitement and sense of humor was contagious, and I was hoping to open the press kit for this season and find his picture among the 10 contestants.

Unfortunately, comic creator Stan Lee screwed up and Florey isn’t among those who were chosen for the show. Instead, there’s a list of crazy superhero contenders that’s so nutty I didn’t even make it through the preview DVD.

The strangest is Mr. Mitzvah. Yes, as in bar mitzvah. There’s no good way to explain his character so you get the full effect, but his weaknesses are nonkosher foods, the swastika, and Ku Klux Klan hoods. His catchphrases: “La Chaim!” “Oy Veh!” and “Mazel Tov!” don’t seem to fit with the others and are not very superheroish, although I’m not sure any of the contestants would be able to save me from a burning building or oversized ape.

Mr. Mitzvah is competing against Hygena and her cleaning powers, Braid and her funky fighting hair, and Mindset and his telekinetic time-travel talents for a chance to become one of comic creator Lee’s characters and action figures.

For those of you who faithfully followed the first season, I hope my negativity isn’t contagious. To each his own, and I hope you enjoy round two. Tune in at 9 p.m. Thursday, July 26, on the SciFi channel to see how this season’s competition stacks up.

Also, don’t forget to check out the Reality Bytes blog at www.bangornews.com for more reality TV.


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