Last week, DC tweeted out a clip from its new animated series, My Adventures With Superman, and anime fans recognized an homage to a classic anime.
My Adventures With Superman, which premiered on Max on July 6, focuses on Clark Kent’s quest to learn about his mysterious origins while he builds his secret identity as Superman. Together with aspiring reporter Lois Lane and alien conspiracy theorist Jimmy Olsen, Clark interns at The Daily Planet, experiments with his new and continually developing powers, and helps defeat various villains and threats.
The clip that DC released is Clark’s transformation into Superman. While vintage Superman media is famous for having Clark duck into a phone booth to tear off his glasses and suit and reveal his super suit underneath, this clip shows Clark going full Shoujo (“magical girl”) anime.
Do you like the nod to Clark’s secret identity problems at the very end? No, Clark, no one will recognize you without your glasses. You look like a completely different person.
Anyway, if you’re picking up Sailor Moon vibes from Clark’s transformation sequence, you’re exactly right. Back in the ’90s, Sailor Moon set the standard for magical transformation sequences, with Usagi (Serena in English-language dubs) glowing and twirling as her everyday clothes transformed into her sailor outfit.
Of course, My Adventures With Superman isn’t the first American show influenced by Shoujo anime. The 2018 She-Ra reboot, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, updated She-Ra’s transformation sequence from the original ’80s series into a more anime style.
But why should female characters get all the fun? With anime becoming a bigger and bigger influence on American animation, especially with the success of shows like She-Ra and Avatar: The Last Airbender, it only makes sense that some of the conventions of anime would find a broader application. Here’s to Superman, one of the most classically masculine superheroes out there, getting a chance to tap into his inner Magical Girl.
(featured image: Adult Swim)
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Julia Glassman
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