Take a shot any time someone brings up “the future” in the new season of My Adventures with Superman — but do so at your own risk. The heroes and villains of Adult Swim’s animated super-series are vocally preoccupied with the passage of time: nearly every monologue, heart-to-heart, or teachable moment revolves around their fear of the future. Some fear that it’s coming too fast, while others feel like it’s been wrenched out of their hands. When taken one episode at a time, it’s not terribly noticeable. But if you’re binging the new season (as this writer did), all that handwringing can start to sound like a bludgeon to the head — or Squidward’s “future” meltdown in that now-iconic episode of SpongeBob dragged out across 10 zig-zagging episodes.
That repetition speaks to one of the series’s longstanding issues. My Adventures might premiere within Toonami’s late-night anime/action block, and it might have a more grown-up premise this season to go with it, but it still moves like a show designed for a much younger audience. That, or an audience who doesn’t fully “get” what showrunners Jake Wyatt and Brendan Clogher are trying to set up. Whatever the intent, the third season of My Adventures could have benefited from a little less spoonfeeding. But that doesn’t mean that this series — which has been an underrated bright spot in the struggling DC Universe since 2023 — has hit a new low. In so many other ways, Season 3 is the most ambitious thus far. Its attempts to push these episodic, anime-inspired adventures in a more serialized direction don’t always work, but My Adventures rises above in other ways.
To put it another way, My Adventures works hard to justify its laser focus on the future. After the world-breaking events of Season 2, which saw Metropolis rocked by an impromptu visit from the Brainiac, it makes sense that almost everyone is thinking about their next chapter. The mild-mannered Clark Kent (Jack Quaid), for example, is ready to settle down with Lois Lane (Alice Lee) — but a wholesome farm on the outskirts of Metropolis, marriage, and kids are the last things on the reporter’s mind. Lois is one of those aforementioned characters who doesn’t want anything to change just yet; meanwhile, Kara Zor-El (Kiana Madeira) is thrilled about the prospect of the future after a lifetime of manipulation from Brainiac.
As with past seasons, Season 3 of My Adventures might be at its best when splicing the gang’s day-to-day struggles with superhero hijinks. Wyatt and Clogher also know exactly what they have with Supergirl: the season’s best moments feature her front and center, on the battlefield or off. Lingering trauma from her time with Brainiac comes second to her “will they, won’t they” with Jimmy Olsen (Ishmel Sahid), who’s trying admirably to help Kara embrace her newfound freedom... by friendzoning her. Obviously, these crazy kids are meant to be together — but every moment Jimmy waffles paves the way for an odyssey on the dating apps (one of which was made by and for hot mad scientists) or soul-searching trips to the mall.
Of course, it can’t all be fun and games. Lex Luthor (Max Mittelman) is naturally worried about a future that would bring about extinction for humans and the reign of Kryptonians like Clark and Kara. Ironically, though, he’s turning to Kryptonian DNA to affirm his place at the top of the food chain. As much as he claims to hate Superman, he sure spends a lot of time this season building his own version of the hero. First, it’s Cyborg Superman, an amalgam of the human pilot Hank Henshaw (also Mittelman) — who nearly perished defending Metropolis from Brainiac — and the cybernetic system now keeping him alive. Then, it’s the Eradicators, hulking Superman clones programmed to follow Lex’s every command via neuropathic link. Neither of these creations has any business “defending” Metropolis; in fact, their very existence makes the future all the more precarious.
That’s where someone like Superboy (Reid Scott) comes in. An agent from another time, he embodies this season’s obsession with The Future better than anybody. Though he’s mostly around to even the odds for Clark and Kara as they face the mounting threats at their door, his youthful, rambunctious nature also forces Clark and Lois into impromptu parenting roles. Other adventures-of-the-week — like a trip to a Superman-themed convention in one episode, or a brief alt-universe romp that feels like a small-scale riff on DC K.O. in another — bring their role in shaping the future into overbearing focus. When it’s answering questions that have been quietly plaguing our heroes for years, that tunnel vision works. But too often it is a tool to unite one-off episodes and overarching storylines under one thematic banner, and too often does that feel like overkill.
My Adventures has always been at its best when trusting its instincts, and nowhere is that clearer than in Season 3. The series doubles down on its fresh perspective, and its unique animation style, courtesy of South Korea’s Studio Mir, has long helped it stand out from the pack. This season gets another boost by remixing a well-known storyline from the comics, “Reign of the Supermen.” The big swings it takes with various Superman copycats are inspired, as is its ongoing exploration of Clark’s Kryptonian heritage. Despite some clunkier storytelling choices, My Adventures serves up an epic new season that speaks to its growing ambitions — if it could only take the training wheels off and embrace its bigger risks without apology.
