Alright! Today I'm reviewing the fifth series in the DCAU, Static Shock. Static Shock follows young teenager Virgil Hawkins after he becomes an electricity-charged metahuman following a gas explosion, and his later attempts to become a superhero.
And it's really good. Surprisingly so.
You know, I wasn't terribly excited for Static Shock. I was hyped to watch Batman Beyond and to rewatch Justice League, so this unforeseen 4-season long show bout some character I've never heard of before? I wasn't too sure. But hey! They're making a Static movie, so... I guess I'll watch it?
And it's actually pretty dope. Definitely the most kid-oriented of all the DCAU projects seeing that it actually stars a kid and is full of dated one-liners, but it's still fun. And I'm not saying being kid-friendly is a bad thing, my favorite TV shows are kid-friendly, I'm just saying it's brighter than the comparatively darker shows in the DCAU.
That's mostly due to the one-liners. Static and Gear are non-stop quipsters. It's not to the show's detriment, but when everyone's the comedic relief it certainly does take some bite away. The show still gets really serious though - I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Virgil Hawkins' identity as an African American plays heavily into the show's thematic arcs.
You see, for the most part, Static Shock was fairly light and fun, but not really special. But then it had those few episodes that just grabbed your attention and didn't let it go. Episodes touched on topical issues such as racism, heritage, homelessness, the Welfare system, gun violence, riots, and how to move on when a loved one passes.
I mean... that's a lot... and all of it is just as relevant as it was back in 2001. And every episode they did on those topics were the series' best and handled in an incredibly delicate and emotional manner. Static Shock had its fair share of relatively subpar episodes, but when it hit it hit hard.
Something else I loved about Static Shock was the title character. Virgil Hawkins is such a likable, round character that it's really disappointing that he's not more well known. He's a lot of fun and surprisingly overpowered for his age. Gear, his best friend, worked really well as the "guy in the chair" best friend far before Ganke Lee.
Virgil's enemies aren't bad either. Ebon's epic design and voice overcome the limitations of his limited screentime and inefficiency, while Rubberband Man's terrible costume is the biggest blight against the surprisingly developed and eventually reformed character.
And the costume design for Static was on point. Everyone else had a pretty simplistic and terrible costume, but Static's was nice. And I legitimately went through the entire show believing his superhero name was "Static Shock," not just "Static." He's still Static Shock in my heart.
Static Shock is a reminder of how good TV is. While streaming places more and more emphasis on making TV into a six-hour-long movie, TV still works great in 22-minute long episodes with little relation to each other. It doesn't need to be grand as long as it's enjoyable.
I really enjoyed my time vibing with Static. It can't be stressed how fun of a protagonist he is. He's like the annoying but lovable little brother we've all known at some point. His interactions in his crossover episodes still make me laugh.
Also, it is wrong that some of my favorite episodes were crossovers? I feel bad about it like I did for Superman: The Animated Series, where I didn't want to say I loved the Batman episode more than most episodes. And that's true. The Batman episodes here rock (Even if they do make Batman a lot nicer than he normally is). We even get a Batman Beyond episode! That's awesome!
Aside from crossovers, Static does hold the show on his own. He's fun. He's quippy. And it all works.
Overall, I give Static Shock a 9/10. "A first weak season notwithstanding, Static Shock earns a place in the hall of animation fame with surprisingly thoughtful stories and likable leads."
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| Definitely liked the first theme song better than the second one. |
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