By Jonathan Klotz | Published
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is huge, especially now that Disney+ includes sections on Fox’s X-Men and Fantastic Four, even recognizing shows like Legion And The giftedAnd Morbius is part of the Spider-Verse collection. However, hidden on the service, where no one can find it without specifically searching for it, is the only Marvel series that launched on Freeform, formerly ABC Family, Cloak and dagger. Airing for two seasons, the series brought to life the adventures of teenage runaways (no, not those runaways), Tandy and Tyrone, normally secondary characters of Spider-Man, but stuck in their own series with no connection to anything either in the MCU.
The angst of super-powered teenagers
In the series, Tandy and Tyrone are played by Olivia Holt and Aubrey Joseph respectively, as the action is moved from New York to New Orleans, and the superhero couple’s drug-fueled origin story comics is replaced by an industrial accident. . Cloak and dagger is one of those series that could get away with radically changing the origins of its heroes because even in the comics, the two men are always stuck in a supporting role and rarely given their own title.
It is a testimony from the stars that Cloak and dagger is that good. The series leans heavily on teenage angst and takes advantage of the lack of defining stories featuring the heroes to rebuild them as new characters without any fan expectations. This time around, Tandy is tired, down, and defeated, but she has the power to see everyone’s hopes and dreams when she touches them. Tyrone maintains his connection to the Darkforce dimension but is also able to see people’s fears.
Freeform has never given Cloak and dagger plenty of budget to play with, but luckily the pair’s powers are some of the cheapest that can be displayed on screen since all you need is bright light and deep darkness. While the Disney+ MCU shows feel like movies, Tandy and Tyrone’s world feels like The secret life of the American teenagerif demons sometimes appeared. D’Spayre, a D-level Doctor Strange villain, plays a major role in the series alongside, as it is New Orleans, Baron Samedi, the famous Vodou Ioa.
Banished to the Dark Dimension
Cloak and dagger spends its first season explaining how the pair got their powers and the trauma that binds them together, while the second season addresses them using their abilities to help change the world for the better. It never reaches the heights of Netflix Daredevilbut each season is over 85% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and has set a Freeform audience record with over 7 million viewers. Critics praised the series for embracing dark, teen-centric storylines head-on, in a way that never insulted the intended audience or made it feel like they were being talked down to.
Tyrone and Tandy have only appeared in one other Marvel show, Hulu Original The runawaysafter the end of Cloak and dagger. This is fitting, as both shows have been removed from Marvel’s homepage on Disney+, and the only evidence of their existence in the MCU is their standalone crossover. Now, Cloak and Dagger are finally finding a large fan base thanks to their inclusion in the free-to-play hit Marvel Rivalsbut despite the new attention, we’ll never see them in the MCU.
Cloak and dagger is broadcast on Disney+.
