Overview of The Watch
In this episode of The Watch, Chris Ryan and Andy Greenwald split their time between the latest D23/Disney news and two TV premieres they’re especially excited about: HBO’s Lanterns and the latest episode of Furious. The conversation is mostly about how big franchise projects can still feel fresh when they make bold creative choices—whether that’s Marvel finally filling out its X-Men cast, Avengers: Doomsday footage that actually creates some tension, or a DC series that tries to be both a superhero show and a prestige crime drama.
D23 / Marvel and Disney News
X-Men cast reactions
The hosts spend the bulk of the opening segment on Marvel’s newly announced X-Men casting, and they’re largely enthusiastic about the direction.
- Kit Connor as Scott Summers/Cyclops is seen as a smart, promising choice.
- Sadie Sink as Jean Grey also gets a strong reaction.
- Indy Navarrette as Rogue, Maya Boyd as Storm, and Samara Weaving as Emma Frost round out the team.
- Adam Driver as Mr. Sinister is the biggest “wait, really?” casting, but one they both find fascinating.
- Christopher Abbott is discussed as another unexpected but interesting addition.
Their main point: this cast feels like Marvel is making a serious bet on younger performers and on a version of the X-Men that does not have to retread the usual “Professor X vs. Magneto” material.
What this means for the X-Men story
They argue Marvel may be trying to avoid the familiar, overused origin-story template and instead jump into a different era of the team’s mythology.
- They like that the studio is acknowledging the X-Men’s soap-opera scale and long history.
- They think the challenge is less about production and more about storytelling infrastructure: building a world where the X-Men already feel established.
- The two compare it to how Spider-Man movies now work because the character, his tone, and his supporting world are already locked in.
Avengers: Doomsday footage
Their reaction to the new Doomsday footage is mixed.
What they liked:
- The footage apparently has actual conflict and yelling, which makes it feel alive.
- They appreciate that the scene gives Pedro Pascal and others something emotionally playable.
What they didn’t like:
- Visually, they think it looks dull and over-processed.
- They repeatedly complain that it feels like it was shot in a drab, low-energy environment with very little sense of place.
- Their big concern is that Marvel keeps trying to make Doom feel iconic before the audience has had enough time to care about him.
Other quick Disney notes
They also briefly mention:
- Frozen 3
- the live-action Tangled project
- Star Wars: Starfighter
- a teaser for the Bluey movie, which they jokingly say would be emotionally devastating for children if it goes fully 3D
Lanterns Series Premiere
What the show is
The hosts are highly optimistic about Lanterns, calling it one of the most interesting genre-TV launches in a while. They praise the creative team:
- Chris Mundy (Ozark)
- Damon Lindelof (Lost, The Leftovers, Watchmen)
- Tom King (a major modern comics writer)
The setup
They describe the premiere as a mix of:
- DC mythology
- rural mystery
- prestige detective drama
- dual-timeline storytelling
The show follows:
- Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler)
- John Stewart (Aaron Pierre)
They become involved in a rural Nebraska case tied to a mass shooting, a militia family, and a larger cosmic mystery.
Why it works
The hosts like that the show is trying to be two things at once:
- a grounded crime story
- a cosmic superhero story
They especially praise:
- a strong alien interrogation scene
- the chemistry between Chandler and Pierre
- the show’s willingness to let Hal be funny, flawed, and slightly ridiculous
- the way it treats comic-book lore as something to translate, not just dump on the audience
Their one big caveat
The premiere is heavily expository and very ambitious, so it can feel effortful rather than effortless. But they see that as part of the challenge, not a dealbreaker. Their takeaway is that the show has a high ceiling if it can keep balancing its two halves.
Furious Episode 6
What happens in the episode
They say episode 6 is one of the strongest installments so far, leaning hard into the show’s procedural and psychological elements.
Key threads include:
- Nora navigating the FBI office and the surrounding bureaucracy
- Alice at the shelter
- Catherine’s disturbing behavior
- Marshall tracking Alice
- a big confrontation between victim, abuser, and law enforcement
- a final sequence involving a thumb drive and more questions than answers
Why they loved it
They think the show is doing something rare: taking familiar crime/thriller ingredients and making them feel unpredictable.
They praise:
- the rhythm of the episode
- the way comedic moments heighten the emotional turns
- the performances, especially Quincy Tyler Bernstine
- the writing and direction, which they say are operating at a very high level
What stands out thematically
They emphasize how the show explores:
- abuse
- rage
- trauma
- dissociation
- revenge
- the blur between victim and perpetrator
They’re especially struck by how the episode makes character psychology feel inseparable from plot mechanics.
Main Takeaways
- Marvel’s new X-Men casting feels intentionally bold and refreshing.
- Avengers: Doomsday footage may have tension, but visually it still doesn’t fully convince them.
- Lanterns looks like a serious attempt to fuse superhero lore with prestige mystery storytelling.
- Furious continues to be one of the year’s most impressive TV dramas because it uses familiar structures in unexpectedly smart ways.
- Across all three topics, their recurring theme is simple: franchise storytelling still works best when it takes real creative risks.