The perhaps oversaturated superhero genre of this era continues to flourish, and the online streaming service industry has only taken advantage of the booming market. Thankfully for myself, I don’t mind the influx of superhero films and television series, and Netflix’s latest super-outing is yet another delightful experience.
Raising Dion is a television series based on the comic of the same name by Dennis Liu. Liu then joins Michael B. Jordan among many at the producers table, who all clearly had care and a vision for the material at hand. It’s a fun and thrilling contemporary adventure, but above all, Raising Dion is a breath of fresh air in a beloved genre.
Raising Dion follows Nicole Warren (Alisha Wainwright) and her son Dion (Ja’Siah Young) after the loss of Dion’s father, Mark (Michael B. Jordan). In his adolescence, Dion begins to develop superhuman powers that he can’t quite control. As Nicole and Pat (Jason Ritter), a family friend, help Dion hone his abilities, he’s further met with the natural troubles of being a kid.
A Child’s Dream
I’d say the most interesting thing about this series is definitely its premise. The only other live-action super-child in recent memory is Sony’s Brightburn, and even that was greatly its own. Raising Dion shines a light on the repetitive beats that superhero cinema tends to fall into, and it truly feels like a child’s dream unfolding on screen; with that said, it is heavily a family friendly show. How you feel about the series’ overall tone may effect your viewing experience if you prefer the grime and grit of Netflix’s Daredevil or DC’s Titans.
Another factor that uplifts the series is its structure. Raising Dion does a great job at building a cohesive story through ongoing plot points, where as I’d say many other superhero shows tend to work as episodic storylines while lacking an overarching narrative. We’re not met with another B-list villain every episode, and instead, we’re given a coming-of-age superhero drama that develops fluidly over the course of a 9 episode run.
Small Heroes
As with making a show revolving children, there is a lot of young talent in this series. Although acting is a challenging profession and one that improves over time, the young actors do an impressive job at bringing a believable lightheartedness that envelopes the show. Young is joined by Sammi Haney (who plays Esperanza), and they both helm the series with their own kiddish charm. The performances here are engaging all around, and the rare shakiness from some of the younger talents is hardly noticeable.
Many of the special effects used to bring Raising Dion to life also work well, but for the most part, the effects are justly passable. You can expect visual telekinesis, CGI storms, and other effects that are not as impressive as some films or series that do the same, but they’re captivating enough to keep the show flowing. In some ways, I’d say the effects in Raising Dion are on par with those in Netflix’s Umbrella Academy, although the latter ultimately had the tougher task.
Superhero Cinema
What may be bothersome for some viewers the way it was for me is that Raising Dion occasionally reads meretriciously. Plenty of the dialogue seems predictive and you can scout out a handful of lines that are on the line of cheesy. The acting ultimately raises the scripts value, and the show seems to be aiming for a wholesome overtone regardless, so it may simply be a matter of preference.
In regards to the direction, production design, and cinematography, Raising Dion is fine by being completely adequate; by that, I mean that this series finds no need to go overboard with the way it chooses to tell its story. The way this series is captured is engaging and creative enough to unravel an intriguingly distinctive concept, which is the highest achievement of Raising Dion.
The narrative of the show is unique and just plain fun to watch. It does take an episode or two to completely find its footing, but once it has it it works well. A child superhero from an indie comic may not sound as exciting as the next Marvel adaptation, but Raising Dion becomes completely its own and shows confidence in that.
Raising Dion: Conclusion
Choosing a Netflix series to binge can feel like a coin flip, but with some of the weaker television series the streaming giant has recently produced, Raising Dion definitely feels like a safe pick. Although it can fall into some common tropes and cliches, Raising Dion enlivens the superhero genre by offering a fresh tone and concept, and it also has some subtle messages that resonate with personal growth and sociopolitical challenges still being faced today. It’s an enjoyable experience overall, and I look forward to seeing where Dion’s journey goes next.
What did you think of Raising Dion? Where does it rank among your favorite superhero shows? Let us know!
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