Nowadays, pop culture fanatics are increasingly obsessed with the subversive, deconstructionist approach to the superhero genre, resulting in the light-hearted fun elements, which used to be a staple of the genre, getting entirely snuffed out of the said narratives. Obviously, we are not talking about the MCU’s monotonous, generic, and botched attempts at humor, which feel more like humiliating treatment of the characters than witty amusement. The original humour was more about self-awareness and unabashed acceptance of all the zaniness of the genre, which allowed it to connect with the young target audience in the first place. Nickelodeon’s wildly popular sitcom superhero series, The Thundermans, was an exception in this regard, as it effortlessly channeled old-school campiness through the adventures of the eponymous superpowered family.
However, despite having a nearly hundred-episode successful run, the series was cancelled after its fourth season premiered in 2018. Fans had hoped for a comeback, and their wishes were granted with The Thundermans Return. While the movie turned out to be the closest we have gotten so far in terms of a live-action The Incredibles adaptation, the short runtime and uneven pacing made the movie feel incomplete, leaving much to be desired. Anyway, the chemistry between the cast was the selling point of the original series, which remains intact in the cinematic venture despite a long hiatus.
Spoilers Ahead
Why Did The Thundermans Return To Hiddenville?
As the movie begins, we follow the Thunderman family—parents Hank and Barb, twins Phoebe and Max, younger siblings Billy and Nora, and the youngest member of the family, Chloe—all dressed in capes and tights, protecting the city of Metroburg from an oncoming asteroid impact. The Thunder twins, Phoebe and Max, are way too enthusiastic about their superhero lives for reasons of their own. For Max, it’s mostly about clout-chasing on social media using his powers, whereas Phoebe is too serious and obsessed with the superhero job to care much about anything else. Hank and Barb lament there being hardly any family time left in the midst of the kids growing up and the demanding responsibilities of superheroing.
On one occasion, Thundermans, or, as Phoebe terms it, T-Force, intercept a robbery orchestrated by the villainous Blue Flame, and the new superhero team in the block, the V-team, joins the party as well. Considering the possibility that the fledgling superheroes will steal their glory, Phoebe rushes Nora into taking a hasty decision, which leads to one of the V-team members getting injured. The new team also manages to capture Blue Flame, making T-Force appear to be a total failure in the process. Later, Super President Evelyn Kickbutt decides to fire the Thundermans for violating protocol and makes their apartment the new headquarters for the V-team. Relieved from their superhero duties, once again, the Thundermans return to the small town of Hiddenville to start their lives anew.
What Is V-Team Planning?
In their own way, the Thunderman family gradually tries to reconnect with their past at Hiddenville. Phoebe and Max reunite with their old friends and also with their supervillain-turned-talking rabbit acquaintance, Colosso. Nora and Billy start attending high school and use their powers to get famous. Barb and Hank, feeling left out as parents, get overly concerned with their youngest daughter Chloe’s wellbeing and start tracking her using Uncle Blobbin’s chopper, which leads to an accident and embarrassment. Phoebe and Max admit that they are missing their old lives and try desperately to get back to them. However, the rest of the family seems to have gotten themselves accustomed to the new normal, more or less.
Meanwhile, V-Team meets the captive trio of infamous Villain League members, Dark Mayhem, King Crab, and Strongdor, in Metroburg prison. It is revealed that the new superhero team actually comprises the children of the supervillains, Dark Mayhem Jr., She-Crab, and Krondor, respectively, who strategized to get the Thundermans out of the picture to initiate their evil scheme. They want to gain control of the legendary Power Plant, which granted the first superhumans their powers, and use it to turn the entire population of Metroburg into supervillains. Phoebe and Max learn about their true identities through their investigation, but as they try to gain evidence by infiltrating their headquarters in Metroburg, the duo gets caught. The V-team ensnares them to the torture machine in the secret lair of Dark Mayhem Jr. and proceeds to find the power plant, which is revealed to be under the protection of Hank Thunderman at Hiddenville.
How Do The Thundermans Defeat V-Team And The Villains League?
At the Thundermans household, the V-team quickly takes control of the situation by threatening the family members with the lives of Phoebe and Max and forcing Hank to give away the power plant. To ensure that they don’t get tailed, the V-team will encase Hiddenville in a power dome, cutting the town off from the rest of the world. Meanwhile, the Thunder Twins face a perilous situation as the torture device proceeds to launch an inescapable fatal trap. Considering their final moments are drawing closer, the twins acknowledge their mistakes.
The Thundermans find the blue seeds of the Power Plant, which turn humans into superheroes, and hatch a plan to use them in order to escape from the dome. The family asks for the townsfolk’s help in rescuing Phoebe and Max, and using the blue seed, they turn them into superheroes. Now, with the combined strength of multiple super beings, the Thundermans are able to break through the dome and fly off to rescue the Thunder twins. At the lair, the twins combine their wit and skill to break free from the trap, but a self-destruct mechanism countdown gets triggered as a result, which closes all the exits. The Thundermans, led by Hank and Barb, arrive just in time to rescue the duo, and finally the family reconciles.
The V-team and the Villains League plan to spread the red seeds of the Power Plant (which turn humans into supervillains) from the highest point of Metroburg, Mount Metroburg, for maximum impact, and gather around its peak. Thundermans arrive in the nick of time to foil their plan, and a prolonged fight ensues. Eventually, thanks to their awesome teamwork and the self-serving tendencies of the villains, the Thundermans emerge victorious. However, Dark Mayhem Jr. manages to launch the drone with the red seed at the final moment, almost rendering the effort of the heroes ineffectual. At the moment of crisis, little Chloe rises to the occasion and, with the help of Phoebe and Max, manages to separate the red seeds from the drone. As the family regroups at their home in Hiddenville, President Kickbutt gladly returns them to their former status, but this time, the Thunder Twins decide to prioritize their family and set up their headquarters in Hiddenville.
Will The Super Family Stick Around For More Adventures?
As the movie ends, a garbled voice from a laptop feed is seen communicating with Colosso and informing him about new assignments. Although it seems that the robotic despot Destructo is the one goading Colosso to go back to his supervillain roots, the true identity of the voice remains unknown. Does this tease hint at a potential relaunch of The Thundermans series? With the cast reunited once again, if the movie fares well among the audience, we might get to see a new season chronicling the mischiefs of the Super family. Although it’s too early to confirm, fans will keep their fingers crossed just in case.
