Marvel’s Strangest Show Renewed, But It’s Not Associated With Marvel Anymore
Hit-Monkey was renewed for a second season at Hulu, but it will no longer be associated with Marvel.
Marvel Television seems to be a game of last one standing as both the Netflix aired series of shows and the Hulu animated series of shows now only have one survivor. While Charlie Cox’s Daredevil is the only surviving member of the now-defunct Defenders franchise on Netflix, Hit-Monkey is the only surviving member of the Hulu animated franchise. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the series is not only surviving but continuing, as it is getting a second season, only this time dropping the Marvel label.
According to the report, the series will be dropping Marvel from its name and continuing the storyline in Season 2. While it was initially a part of the now-defunct Marvel Television (which was responsible for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Netflix’s Defenders franchise, The Inhumans, and Agent Carter), it has been moved to 20th Television Animation. So far, it seems the series will keep the co-creators Josh Gordon and Will Speck, who will remain as executive producers.
When Netflix began developing a shared universe of live-action series following Matt Murdock, AKA Daredevil, Danny Rand, AKA Iron Fist, Luke Cage, and Jessica Jones, to culminate in The Defenders, Hulu looked to create an animated counterpart. Hit-Monkey was one of the animated series meant to lead up to a shared universe involving MODOK, Howard the Duck, and Tigra & Dazzler, leading up to their own culmination in The Offenders. Of course, MODOK was the only other series to get a season before it was scrapped along with the rest, making Hit-Monkey the last one standing in the animated world.
The series follows the titular character, a wronged Japanese macaque, also known as a snow monkey, who is mentored by the ghost of an American assassin named Bryce Fowler. The two make life difficult for the Japanese crime world, making quick work of the Yakuza before heading to New York. The end of season one left the series open to see a new version of the primary villain, Lady Bullseye, in the future.
The cast of Hit-Monkey has plenty of names you likely know from many other projects, including Olivia Munn, Jason Sudeikis, George Takei, and Reiko Aylesworth. While Munn is best known for her role as Psylocke in X-Men: Apocolypse, the rest of the cast cut their teeth in the superhero genre with the animated series. Sudeikis is best known for his comedic films and his leading part in the Apple TV production Ted Lasso, Takei is one of the most recognizable faces in the industry thanks to his role as the original Sulu in Star Trek, and Aylesworth is best known as Michelle Dessler in 24.
With Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox and their animated studio, there is some flexibility on what they continue to produce with shows like Hit-Monkey. While this show may not fit quite well in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there is a definite audience for the lesser-known properties that may find a home on Hulu. It remains to be seen if this is a sign of things to come or simply a one-off Season 2.
