Oh Inhumans. As I said previously, there has to be something at the bottom of every list and while I felt sorry to label Iron Fist that for the Marvel/Netflix bunch, I say so with a kind of relish for Inhumans. Maybe I’m still steaming over the loss of Agent Carter. But this series is so laughable in execution. Not quite into “so bad it’s good” territory, but enough that I finished it without ever becoming overly frustrated and wanting to walk away. High praise indeed!
The cast is likable enough, and some of them do try very hard to elevate the material they are given. But they’re written in such a bland manner, it’s good they got actors people don’t hate. Ken Leung as Karnak would be the prime example. He imbues his character with enough humor that his schtick never really gets old. But I think the real standout is Anson Mount as Black Bolt. Due to his Inhuman powers, he cannot speak and Mount is forced to convey everything through his face. While this frees him from the dreadful dialogue, it also puts enormous pressure on the actor. But Mount succeeds and I found myself smiling at a lot of his expressions. He was recently announced to be playing Captain Christopher Pike on Star Trek: Discovery and I think he’s a solid choice to follow in Jeffrey Hunter and Bruce Greenwood’s footsteps.
But again, there’s always a worst and for Inhumans that is Iwan Rheon as Maximus. How do you take one of the characters you loved to hate the most from Game of Thrones and turn them into this whiny, uninteresting a-hole you just want to slap rather than kill? Ramsay was filled with charm and menace. None of that is on display here. His scenes were the ones I wanted to fast forward through the most in this rewatch. You need someone charismatic here. Whether Rheon just decided to phone it in or Ramsay was more the product of great writing than acting, I don’t know. But he is possibly the worst villain in the entire MCU.
If you want to be a Marvel completist, go ahead and watch Inhumans. You won’t love it but I don’t think it’ll be as much of a chore as it would seem if you go in with low enough expectations. But it’s entirely skippable and given its brief, pointless life, I doubt will come back into play in the MCU. But never say never!
Again, I have not watched the Defenders so if anyone has and wants to provide some thoughts, feel free to do so. This will be last pilot rewatch for me. Please don’t be too upset. 😉
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