Wonder Man S01E06 Review: Auditions

Wonder Man S01E06 Review: Call Back

I liked this a lot more than the previous two episodes. Granted, I like it because it actually explores the roles of being an actor rather than the superhero stuff, which I really do feel is the strength of Wonder Man as a show... and it's something that's going to be a take-it-or-leave-it in terms of this particular Marvel project. When the superhero plotline came back as Agent Cleary came to try and get Trevor to continue his spying job, I was actively groaning. 

Which I suppose does speak to the strength of this show in being such an atypical piece of superhero fiction. It's a really fun little exploration about acting and writing and embodying a character, and I enjoyed it because of that. But anyone who's expecting a lot more 'Marvel' and a lot more 'superhero' probably won't enjoy these episodes. 

I did really like it. The episode just has Simon, Trevor and a bunch of other actors who don't really matter show up in the house of director Von Kovak, who is a wacky director who wants to get into the heart of what the actors are. None of Simon's super-meticulous practice mattered, because Von Kovak tosses out the audition callback script and just gets them to improvise scenes. Simon, trying to hold things back about who he really is, ends up subconsciously gimping himself in his performances; something that isn't helped by his fatigue from the filler episode. 

Again, Trevor is brilliant in these scenes, and so does Simon. There is a 'dream' sequence where Simon punches an actor through the head with his superpowers after being pushed too hard in a scene. I felt it was a bit overindulgent and could've worked better if it was adapted into part of the real audition showing Simon's true emotions or something? 

Regardless, the episode ends with Von Kovak praising Simon's rapid improvement during the impromptu acting coaching-cum-audition, and hires Simon and Trevor as the lead roles for the Wonder Man movie. This is great for the acting sub-plot... but not so much for the aforementioned superhero subplot. Trevor gets a bit cocky and drags things out a bit longer with Damage Control, saying that he's got confirmation, but he needs time to get the proof.

With two more episodes left, I am absolutely far more invested in the acting storyline than anything involving superheroics or the little spy stuff. Replace Simon's 'superpowers' with something else that could get you fired in the Hollywood industry -- drug addiction, sexual orientation, political leanings, etc etc, and Wonder Man would still stand up quite well as a story about acting. Episodes 4-5 were very strange diversions that I felt didn't add much to the show, but I am quite interested to see how this strange little Marvel project is going to end. 

Marvel Easter Eggs Corner:

• Trevor's audition, of course, is for his lines as the fake Mandarin from Iron Man 3.