Naomi is a new CW superhero show created by Ava Duvernay and Jill Blankenship, with Kaci Walfall starring as Naomi McDuffie.
Season 1, Episode 2, “Unidentified Flying Object” was directed by Demane Davis and written by co-creator Jill Blankenship. While this new series may not be on-par with the offerings of Marvel Studios & Disney+, Naomi and the entire CW slate has merit.
Naomi Continues To Expand The Mystery Of Port Oswego This Week
At the very least, the 2022 season has kept me hooked for the first two weeks. Naomi is a show about a confident, admirable comic book fan and blogger/internet personality whose favorite character is Superman. When Superman, a comic book character in her world, seems to appear in her hometown of Port Oswego, Naomi begins looking for answers with her friends. At the same time, she begins to develop powers. Fortunately for Naomi, Dee, the owner of a local tattoo shop takes her under his alien wings and begins to help her understand her superhuman abilities.
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Dee tells Naomi this week that her world has fundamentally changed. While Naomi’s universe is supposed to mirror ours, and Naomi is a comic book fan, heroes like Superman and Batman are supposed to be works of fiction. Yet Superman has appeared, leaving behind a piece of his cape, which makes me really curious about the identity of the villain he fought in Episode One.
Naomi: Don’t Expect Many Answers In “Unidentifed Flying Object”
On top of that, Dee has revealed himself as a Thanagarian, a humanoid alien with metal wings from the planet Thanagar. Alexander Wraith plays Dee, and not only is his character the most interesting element of the series so far, Wraith has delivered the strongest performance two weeks in a row. For those unfamiliar with “Thanagar”, the DC Superheroes Hawkman & Hawkgirl are Thanagarians.
Aldis Hodge is set to play a version of Carter Hall, AKA Hawkman in the upcoming DCEU film Black Adam. That character will be a member of the Justice Society of America. While Naomi and Black Adam will probably never crossover, it is exciting to see DC exploring the Thanagarian part of their universe on TV before introducing it on the big screen later this year.
Naomi: Dee The Thanagarian Is The Series MVP For Now
My only complaint with Dee in the show is that the budget has held him back from using his wings in a meaningful way. His flight has been implied, never portrayed, for the show has really only shown Dee levitating with his wings out briefly. The uneven distribution of budgetary financing between this series and other ones like Batwoman and Superman & Lois can be quite frustrating to watch.
Naomi’s relationship with her friends, both romantically and just as friends was fleshed out a bit more this week. Her ex is clearly still into her, and one of her best guy-friends is too. Watching him flail in the friendzone couled be cringey, but it was relatable to me and anyone else who remembers awkwardly doing a similar thing in high-school. The most painful part was when she told Anthony (Will Meyers) something along the lines of “I’m not saying no, we can’t date, I’m just saying that you have to wait for me”.
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The complicated love-triangle being configured in the early episodes of the series could evolve into something more noteworthy later. But for now, it’s another cliche teen romance, and the least interesting love story currently airing on the CW.
Revelations about Naomi, Superman and the cosmos kept me engaged this week, but for the most part these “revelations” only gave way to more questions. Is she, a huge DC Comics fan, unfamiliar with Hawkman and Thanagar? Is Superman in Naomi’s universe really the hero of another planet amongst the stars, and not earth? Where do Naomi’s powers come from, and what are the details of her alien heritage?
Naomi returns on Jan 25th at 9PM EST. The next episode, “Zero To Sixty” is directed by Sheldon Candis and written by Jill Blankenship. Hopefully Episode Three provides a bit more clarity on Naomi’s secret and DC Comics’ relationship to this new universe.
What did you think of Episode Two? Would Thanagarian weaponry hurt Superman? Will Dee ever really fly? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below or on our social media!
KEEP READING: Naomi Episode 1 Review: “Don’t Believe Everything You Think”
