Episode Guide
ISSUE #201: The ISS is a great place to visit, but it can be a little too noisy for some people. ISSUE #202: The ISS is a great place to visit, but it can be a little too noisy for some people. Some people find the noise level to be too high.
Dion is a young superhero who must balance his duties as a father and hero with his schoolwork and social life. He must also navigate the challenges of growing up in a world where superpowers are common and where secrets can be revealed at any time.
Superheroes can be a great way to explore the lives of suburban families, and 7-year-old Dion’s story was especially poignant. His mother Nicole was struggling to come to terms with her son’s powers, but the show also left plenty of room for a second season to explore more deeply the characters and their relationships. ..
Fast forward to 2022 and Raising Dion feels like a very different show. Now, that’s not to say there aren’t parts to like here but compared to the charm and hook of the 2019 offering, this follow-up feels like it’s lost sight of what made the original so endearing. ..
Dion is a young man who has been struggling to find his place in the world. He’s a superhero, but he’s not sure if he wants to be one. He’s also been trying to learn how to control his powers, and he’s found that BIONA is a great place to do that.
Brayden Mills and the Crooked Energy are set to clash in season 2 of “The Walking Dead” as the two compete for control of Atlanta. Things quickly go from bad to worse for Mills as he’s pitted against the protagonist, who is also trying to stop the Crooked Energy from taking over the world. Meanwhile, the mother/son relationship between Dion and Nicole is at a breaking point as they both try to keep up with the demands of their new roles.
The writing feels forced and unfulfilling, as if the author was only interested in writing a story about Dion and Nicole’s love story. There is no real development or conflict between them, which makes for a very bland and unengaging read.
That’s a real shame because there are a few good moments here, including a teary-eyed video message Nicole leaves in episode 7. The ending also shows some development but not the steps that took to get there, thus feeling undeserved. ..
Dion and Brayden have a really nice ebb and flow between them, although the very-obviously-evil Brayden and his manipulation takes Dion far too long to realize. While that on its own would be fine, after what happened with Pat last season you’d think he would have wised up to this.
The series just sort of falls apart. Esperanza has a whole subplot involving her singing while Jonathan gets a couple of redeeming moments with the “Triangle of Justice” but largely falls into the background. New players like Janelle and her mum Simone are completely under-utilized, including an unearned romance between Janelle and fellow Powered teen Fernando, which is given about 5 minutes of screen-time.
While all these critiques may sound like I’m being overly critical, it’s mostly because of how much I enjoyed season 1. These 8 episodes are less about raising Dion and more about raising hell. The added stakes and drama feels overdone and leans way too hard into the usual superhero clichés we’ve seen a million times before. ..
The second season of “Dion and Nicole” falls short in many ways, most notably its relationship between Dion and Nicole. This lack of chemistry is likely due to the writers not having enough material to work with, as there is little development between the two characters.
