Runaways 1.02: “Rewind”
After the huge reveal at the end of the last episode, the Runaways are desperate to rationalize what they saw their parents doing, throwing out theories of time travel and religious healing ceremonies and science experiments. Nico makes them come to grips with reality: They just saw their parents kill that girl.
The show shifts perspective, rewinding back to the beginning of the day to show what the parents were up to.
We learn their backstories and what it means for the present day. Alex’s dad Geoffrey used to be in jail, which comes up later when a former associate threatens one of his construction projects.
Unsurprisingly we learn Chase’s dad Victor used to physically abuse him. Oh and Chase’s mom Janet is having an affair, but who can really blame her. So far no one is winning parent of the year in this show The Steins also have a pet rat whose purpose isn’t clear but I am going to call Scabbers until he gets another name.
Switching to Karolina’s perfect parents we see they have their own flaws. Leslie has lost track of Destiny, the runaway murdered in episode 1 and Frank’s acting career is dead. His plan b is to worm his way into a bigger role in the church but Leslie either doesn’t trust him or doesn’t want to expose him to the danger.
Nico’s parents Tina and Robert have their own marital struggles, unsure what to do with Nico and unable to communicate about what happened to their daughter Amy. Tina also brings out a magical staff we know is called the Staff of One from the comics and considers sealing off Amy’s room in her grief. While we learn little about the staff and its powers at this time, it’s obvious it will play a bigger role later on.
Molly and Gert’s parents Stacey and Dale don’t add much to the story other than to complain about the other Pride members and add a glimpse of the monster Molly saw in the basement in the last episode.
Things are honestly pretty boring until a gangster named Darius Davis threatens one of Geoffrey Wilder’s construction sites which seems to have a lot of value to the Pride. We see Geoffrey’s dark side in this scene as he threaten’s Darius’ family. Even though Geoffrey lives a clean life now, he’s not afraid to play dirty, something that’s sure to impact the Pride as well. Darius isn’t just some street-level thug though. During the meeting, he has his associate download the data off Geoffrey’s phone which I would guess includes some secrets about the Pride.
Going Ultra
Leslie finds Destiny who tries to leave so she can return to her young daughter. Leslie seems torn, she clearly has been grooming Destiny for the ceremony she calls “going Ultra” (aka BEING MURDERED) but feels guilty now that she knows Destiny does have a family. In the end, it doesn’t stop her from offering Destiny up to the Pride who are starting to question the ethics of sacrificing someone the same age as their own children.
During the ceremony, it turns out the same pod Victor was working with earlier is the one used on Destiny. The scene is even more painful to watch from the parent perspective since you see Destiny claw and scream to escape.
Fast forward to the present, and the teens are figuring out how to cover for the flash of light. Alex’s parents find them playing Twister and a blown breaker box, convinced that it was Stein’s device’s power surge that caused the light flash. The kids are safe for now.
Nico doesn’t want to let it go though, stating, “Finding out my mom is evil would actually be the least surprising explanation.” Chase agrees while the others are quick to defend their parents.
Just when it seems like things are dying down, Victor hears a knocking inside his machine where they killed Destiny…
The kids aren’t the only suspicious ones as Karolina’s dad Frank continues to snoop around realizing his wife is hiding something from him during her frequent “meditation” appointments and the Pride meeting she won’t let him attend. An assistant stops him before he breaks into the chamber holding her barely alive father.
After leaving the Runaways receive a text from Alex. This isn’t the end of their investigation.
The episode ends with the Wilders lamenting over the sins they’ve committed with the Pride. As they leave the office to go to bed Geoffrey notices something on the floor…a pink cat pin that definitely doesn’t belong there.
Additional thoughts on this episode:
- I still won’t remember half of the parents’ names after this episode. I liked seeing things from their perspective but it’s hard enough keeping track of six kids let alone 10 parents!
- The two standouts in this episode were Tina Minoru and Victor Stein. Tina is a powerful CEO and clearly holds some magical powers and Victor is the fake Elon Musk Marvel needed. Both are villainous and I would bet money they play bigger roles as the season progresses.
- Nico continues to have the most intense emotional arc as she deals with her grief. While it’s hard to flesh out six characters, I do hope we get to see more out of the other teens.
- We also get a better look at the creature living in the Yorkes’ basement. And it looks an awful lot like a dinosaur. (OK, we already know from the comics it IS a dinosaur).
Read on for our recap of 1.03 “Destiny.”