Anyone who knows me knows that I have a rather unhealthy obsession with Mega Man. I like to use my copium tank and label myself as a big fan to not make it sound so creepy… or worrisome to my peers. Nevertheless, once I found out that the Amazon Prime series Secret Level was going to feature Mega Man as one of the episodes, I was beyond ecstatic and decided that once it aired, I would do a review of that episode mainly because I don’t particularly care about any other episode except this one.
Hey… I warned you that I had an unhealthy obsession with the Blue Bomber, did I not?
Anyway, let’s begin!
The Story
Well, what can I say about the story here given that the episode was the shortest of them all so far; clocking in at a mere five minutes?
I can say a lot, actually because what they were able to put into five minutes’ worth of television was pretty well done! First off, we open with Dr. Light looking at a news report on a tablet about how Metal Man is attacking the city. He comments that Dr. Wily turned Metal Man and that something has to be done. Rock wants to help but Dr. Light programmed and built him to help out around the lab and nothing more. Instead, he calls in the heavy artillery and asks Rock to open Bay 6 which contains Bomb Man.
Just when Dr. Light thinks he outsmarts Dr. Wily by installing something that could help fight a reprogramming attempt, Wily breaks in by using a spider drone which does exactly what Dr. Light tried to prevent: reprograms Bomb Man. Rock takes it upon himself to modify a blow torch that he replaced his left hand with and turn it into a pseudo gun that shoots ice. He freezes Bomb Man’s arm right before he’s about to throw a bomb and it explodes, defeating him.
At that moment, Dr. Light realizes that Rock has the ability to fight and converts him into the Mega Man that we know and love today and the episode comes to an end.
Well, what can I say about the story here given that the episode was the shortest of them all so far; clocking in at a mere five minutes?
I can say a lot, actually because what they were able to put into five minutes’ worth of television was pretty well done! First off, we open with Dr. Light looking at a news report on a tablet about how Metal Man is attacking the city. He comments that Dr. Wily turned Metal Man and that something has to be done. Rock wants to help but Dr. Light programmed and built him to help out around the lab and nothing more. Instead, he calls in the heavy artillery and asks Rock to open Bay 6 which contains Bomb Man.
Just when Dr. Light thinks he outsmarts Dr. Wily by installing something that could help fight a reprogramming attempt, Wily breaks in by using a spider drone which does exactly what Dr. Light tried to prevent: reprograms Bomb Man. Rock takes it upon himself to modify a blow torch that he replaced his left hand with and turn it into a pseudo gun that shoots ice. He freezes Bomb Man’s arm right before he’s about to throw a bomb and it explodes, defeating him.
At that moment, Dr. Light realizes that Rock has the ability to fight and converts him into the Mega Man that we know and love today and the episode comes to an end.
Story Analysis
First off, I have to say that the English voice acting was top-notch. My only complaint is Rock’s delivery of “No!” after Bomb Man collapses and nearly crushes Dr. Light. I felt more emphasis and emotion could have been used there, but otherwise, it was a 9/10 performance.
One thing some people might find annoying is Rock constantly apologizing for going against Dr. Light’s orders to remain a helper around the shop and avoid fighting. On the surface, hearing Rock repeatedly say “I’m sorry” or “I’m so sorry” can get a bit taxing on the ears. However, there’s a much deeper meaning behind it that makes this repetition brilliant.
Think about Asimov’s laws of robotics. By fighting and defeating Bomb Man, Rock went against his creator’s will and wishes. While his actions aligned with the first law—preventing harm to humans through inaction—he broke the second law, which requires obedience to human orders. Dr. Light’s order was clear: don’t fight. By disobeying, Rock violated rule #2, even though it was to comply with rule #1. Rock wasn’t able to process that he had prioritized the greater good by following the first rule. Instead, he focused solely on breaking the second rule, which is why he apologized so much, fearing repercussions for his actions.
This transforms what might seem like excessive “I’m sorrys” into a moment with significant underlying weight, one that many viewers may not immediately pick up on—probably because they were too busy yelling, “YAY MEGA MAN!” in their heads (I was one of those people, too).
While I’m praising the nuanced storytelling and excellent voice acting, I do need to address some personal gripes. Before diving in, let me clarify: yes, I understand that Amazon took some liberties with the story, and yes, I’m about to do a bit of nerdsplaining. But I’m fine with all of that—after all, they’re telling their own version. Still, I wouldn’t be a true Mega Man fan if I didn’t point out a few things.
These might come off as criticisms, but my intent is simply to clarify for new fans. Someone who’s brand-new to Mega Man might assume this is a perfect adaptation of his story—which it isn’t. Instead, I see this adaptation as similar to watching Power Rangers and then going back to watch Super Sentai Zyuranger. You’d see the original story that inspired Power Rangers and think, “Ah, so that’s how the original was different. That’s cool.”
My intent is to point these out to encourage new fans to search the web and discover more about the original story of Mega Man so they can have their own “That’s cool” moment, too.
First off, the biggest inaccuracy is Dr. Light mentioning that Dr. Wily turned Metal Man. In the original story, Dr. Wily broke into Dr. Light’s lab and reprogrammed the original six robots that Dr. Light created: Bomb Man, Guts Man, Cut Man, Elec Man, Ice Man, and Fire Man. (Hey, I just gave you the weakness order—have fun with that!) As you can see, Metal Man is not among them. In fact, Metal Man is the first robot created by Dr. Wily in Mega Man II and is given the serial number DWN-009 (Dr. Wily Number 009). Prior to this, the robots had the serial numbers DLN-000 through DLN-008 (Dr. Light Number). As you might guess, DLN means they were made by Dr. Light, and DWN by Dr. Wily. Metal Man was never turned by Wily because he wasn’t built by Dr. Light.
I’m not sure why the series chose Metal Man for this, especially since he didn’t have any screen time. They could have picked any other robot master from the first game, adjusted the voice line, and it would have been perfect. The fact that they went with Metal Man tells me one of two things: either whoever wrote the script has no knowledge of the series, or they felt Metal Man is one of the more popular robot masters (which he is) and decided to roll (pun intended) with it. I’m guessing—and hoping—it’s the latter. Still, for something mentioned in under two seconds, it was enough to catch my attention.
Okay, this next one is a stretch, but seeing Mega Man freeze Bomb Man’s arm isn’t a big deal. He doesn’t have his arm cannon yet or his weapon copy program, so he had to use whatever he had available. However, Bomb Man is weak to Fire Man’s Fire Storm, so seeing Ice easily freeze him—and then have him defeated by his own weapon—felt a bit out of place. It’s a super small nitpick, but it’s forgivable.
Third, Mega Man’s helmet never had a visor in the original Japanese artwork. However, everyone remembers the Mega Man 2 box art here in the U.S., where Mega Man has a visor on his helmet. Granted, it wasn’t grafted into the front of his helmet, but it was there. I’m not sure if this was a nod to that box cover art or just a design choice. I’m guessing the latter, and I thought it looked pretty cool—especially with the teal LEDs on each side of it.
Fourth, the size of Bomb Man is MASSIVE. In the original games, the robot masters were the same size as Mega Man. With Dr. Light telling Rock that he shouldn’t throw his life away fighting something that big, it leads one to believe the other robot masters might be the same size—or even bigger—than Bomb Man. That makes me worry that if they do another episode in Season 2, we’ll see Mega Man going up against robots four to five times his size. This could lead to some disappointing fights. Personally, I would much rather see a faster-paced fight against an opponent closer to Mega Man’s size, but I shouldn’t judge something that hasn’t happened yet. It’s just a concern I have.
Lastly, Dr. Wily was nowhere to be seen. In the original story (as noted above), Dr. Wily broke into Dr. Light’s lab and reprogrammed the DLN numbers manually. However, in this version, the robots were already reprogrammed, with Bomb Man left behind. It also appears they were reprogrammed using spider drones rather than Wily doing it himself. This is just a new take on the story, with the essence of it remaining intact. Again, it’s forgivable, but the change was pretty noticeable.
Overall Thoughts
Gripes aside (can we call them gripes? They’re more like observations than complaints), I felt this was a really solid interpretation of Mega Man’s origins. Sure, Amazon took some liberties, but as I said with the Dr. Wily observation, the core essence of Mega Man’s origin story remained intact—even if the events and details were different—and that’s fine.
Mega Man needs a bit of a reboot. I’m not suggesting we remake every game that ever came out, mind you. I mean the story could use a retelling, and an animated series like Secret Level would be the perfect format. I’m already seeing fans asking for this to be turned into a full-length TV series, and I’m right there with them. I want to see the Blue Bomber come back into the spotlight and finally get the respect he’s deserved for years.
As for this episode… whether you’re brand new to Mega Man or a seasoned, grizzled veteran like myself, there’s a LOT to enjoy here. Just the pure joy of seeing Mega Man get any sort of attention like this in 2024 is a gift in and of itself. I think most people will be happy with this episode. The biggest complaint I’ve seen is the same one I have.
Seriously? ONLY FIVE MINUTES? Come on…
4.75 / 5
