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Young Justice S02E16: "Complications"

After grousing about the need to maintain his rep in the past (and continuing to do so this week), Sportsmaster finally made his move against Black Manta, with Cheshire tagging along to get her revenge on Kaldur. This is something that has been floating around the season for a bit, so it was nice to finally pay off this particular thread as we head into the homestretch of the series.

Given all the various cogs in the subterfuge aboard Manta's submarine, there was a lot of, "We need to disable this thing before we can do that thing so that we can finally do this one other thing, and we need to do all of it while maintaining our covers." As a result, "Complications" was pretty busy trying to handle all of those necessary elements, and to its credit, managed to integrate its action sequences around achieving those ends, from M'gann shooting the camera that Deathstroke was using to observe Kaldur's cabin to Artemis locating the power inhibitor's deactivation switch.

Of course, once the power inhibitor was removed, things became easier as M'gann was able to explain the whole plot to Sportsmaster and Cheshire, thus eliminating their grievances against Black Manta and Kaldur. Except for the fact that Sportsmaster knowing the plan shouldn't've made that much of a difference, since Sportsmaster is all about maintaining his rep, and his rep is a very public thing, so letting Black Manta off the hook will still make him look like something of a chump. Instead, he's going to wait for Artemis and Kaldur to take down Manta, and the Light, from the inside? Right.

And that's the big failing with having to knock out those cameras and get rid of those collars and maintain appearances: The character beats driving both Sportsmaster and Cheshire were lost in that shuffle. Probably the bit that I liked the most was Cheshire and Artemis having a brief exchange about why Cheshire would even want vengeance for the death of her sister. She can play it off as being annoyed that Artemis wasn't available to babysit Lian, but the two do care for one another, albeit in ways that come off as a little dysfunctional, and it was nice to see that element bleed through all the action. Even nicer of Cheshire to explain to their mother that Artemis is alive and well.

While all this was going on, Dick got around to investigating what'd happened to his missing team members. The story Blue Beetle told involved a boom tube and Mongul getting the better of everyone, and ended with them being held captive somewhere. It appeared, however, that the Reach are truly horrible at cleaning up crime scenes and crafting consistent stories for their agents. A ruined airlock is one thing, and given the evidence of a boom tube, it wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility that someone attempted to space whatever or whoever came out of the tube. But to leave Tim's birdarang on the scene, complete with little scarab microbes, was just careless.

It could've been rationalized away that Tim just didn't aim correctly (Batman would be furious) or that Blue Beetle somehow got in the way, but then the Reach held a press conference and touted Blue Beetle as the hero of Earth, and they overplayed their hand. Jaime appeared not only poised and press-ready—something he is very much not—but he also thanked the Reach for the scarab. Every single one of the heroes who's still on Earth, from Dick to Black Canary to the Atom, knows that the last thing Jaime wants is that scarab on his back. You'd think that given Green Beetle's access to Jaime's mind, the Reach would've had a more consistent presentation lined up. In any case, Dick's onto the whole scheme now, and he has to prioritize: His teammates, or dealing with the Beetles and the Reach?

– DC Nation Short: It was Level 5 of the "Amethyst" shorts, and probably the weakest since the very first installment. She had to sing a spell to the cursed Frog Prince. While it felt a little like a Zelda-esque boss battle, what with the musical aspect and all, it wasn't all that engaging. But Dark Opal emerged at the very end, signaling perhaps that the final showdown will happen next week.

– "So it would appear, Mr. Fakes A Mental Condition."

– Deathstroke's line about wanting to take a seat at the Light's table was a nice one, but it's too bad we're probably not going to see that happen.

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Young Justice S02E14: "Runaways"

So, what do you all want to discuss first? The Super Friends character homages or that Green Beetle was exactly what we suspected him of being all along? Let's do the runaway Super Friends characters first since, well, what more can we say about Green Beetle other than, "What a non-twist!"

For those of you who may not know, and it's reasonable if you don't, Super Friends was a Hanna-Barbera series about a Justice League-esque group (Superman, Batman and Robin, Aquaman, and Wonder Woman) that went through a couple of different iterations between 1973 and 1986. The show had different tones and goals across those iterations. The first season was big on the kid-friendly public service announcements ("Saving energy is important, children!") and barely had recognizable DC villains at all. The second season saw the introduction of Black Vulcan, Samurai, El Dorado, and Apache Chief to give the series a little diversity.

The Super Friends series is sort of maligned due to its overly earnest moralizing and silly adventuring, but it's an important part of DC media history, and "Runaways" paid homage to the characters I just mentioned. Virgil stood in for Black Vulcan, what with their similar uses of electricity-based powers; the Japanese girl, Sam (short for Asami), was our Samurai, and used an energy-projection ability to travel in a way that Samurai used a tornado to travel; Eduardo borrowed El Dorado's teleportation abilities; and Tye Longshadow's giant astral manifestations harkened back to Apache Chief's ability to grow in size. The coloring of the youngsters' clothes even mirrored that of their 1970s counterparts.

So I rather enjoyed both the character nods to an older piece of DC animated history and where they fit into the story. Virgil, Sam, Tye, and Eduardo have been background players since the Reach's abduction of them, and having them do something, even if it was a very half-assed runaway plot, provided a welcome change of pace from the larger plot of the show. Their characterization suffered due to our lack of experience with them, but that's pretty much par for the course for the second season of Young Justice.

As a result, their recruitment by Lex, foreshadowed in the most obvious way possible a couple of weeks ago, didn't fill me with worry or dread like it probably should have. It just feels like more plotting and conniving. That being said, I really want to buy into the idea that Lex is beginning to work against the Reach, since one of my biggest problems with the Light and the Reach's union has always been that I find it difficult to believe that villains with big agendas and egos—like Vandal Savage, Lex Luthor, and Ra's al Ghul—would sacrifice those things for the Reach's plans. So if the villains have turned against their alien masters, that's a bit interesting. If this is just some con to get the kids on board, I'm less engaged.

But I guess we should talk about the Blue Beetle thing, eh? Turned out that Green Beetle's little reconfiguring of the scarab last week is indeed spurring on the end of the world, as he actually allowed the scarab to take control of Jaime. It's for the best that we were let in on the cause of Jaime's overly violent behavior as opposed to having it strung out for a few episodes since, well, we all already saw this coming a mile away. A surprise of some sort would've been nice, but we'll just have to wait and see how this contributes to the show's endgame.

– DC Nation Short: Another installment of the Lightning and Thunder shorts. I liked the family vibe the short played up, particularly the "Black Lightning as a single parent" aspect, but it was also one of those shorts that felt like everything would play better even as an 11-minute version.

– Justice League Unlimited had a similar sort of plot with the Super Friends characters in the episode "Ultimatum," though they excluded El Dorado in favor of the more recognizable Wonder Twins. If you haven't seen the episode, I'd advise against it until Young Justice finishes. Their arc on this series may mirror the plot of that episode.

– I had completely forgotten about Red Volcano, and what Red Volcano even looked like. In my defense, he hasn't appeared on the show since Oct. 21, 2011.

– "Except you're flying around free as a... beetle."

– "Where's Amazo's head?!" I'm going to start shouting that at the office.

– I kept waiting for Green Beetle to transform into the Earth-16 Ma'alefa'ak, the big nemesis of the Martian Manhunter, in that last scene, but I'm starting to think he's just a Martian with a scarab. Ah, well.

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Welcome to Week 2 of our new Saturday animation round-up! You read last week's inaugural edition here.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars S05E02: "A War On Two Fronts"

One of the reasons why I like The Clone Wars is that it oftens offers more than just a sci-fi action extravaganza and new toys to buy. In the case of "A War On Two Fronts," the show offered a debate on large governmental forces (the Jedi and the Grand Republic Army) training rebel forces (Onderonians) that had similar aims (weakening the Separatist presence in the galaxy).

The real-world parallels—U.S. forces training and arming nascent al-Qaeda factions to battle Soviets and their allies in Afghanistan in the 1980s—weren't made explicit (and aren't likely to be known to the show's intended demographic). Instead we got a debate, argued between Obi-Wan and Anakin, about the values of the action, and whether or not the Jedi were encouraging terrorism or arming an insurgency against a dangerous and mutual threat.

It wasn't a terribly nuanced debate (and it was recognizable only in our real-world hindsight), but the fact that it happened at all demonstrates why The Clone Wars is a valuable show in the long run, putting these concerns in front of an audience early, and giving parents a chance to perhaps discuss them with their kids.

Of course, the episode fell fairly firmly on the side of "Yes, helping rebels/insurgents is perfectly okay." Certainly there could still be fallout (Saw does seem a bit aggressive), but the presence of Lux (last seen smooching on Ahsoka in Season 4) helped mediate any audience concerns that might have been present. It was an easy out for the show to take, but expecting a more fleshed-out argument about the issue is probably a bit much.

However, since it was a war on two fronts in the title, the interpersonal battles between Saw, Steela, Lux, and Ahsoka gave the episode some stronger character bits. Lux being in the episode immediately upped the story beyond the training of generic rebels to something more meaningful. It was a smart move in a smart episode.

Green Lantern: The Animated Series S01E15: "Reboot"

It didn't take long for Green Lantern to get us back into space, but I'm not going to complain too much. Where the first half of this season was stuck in generic sci-fi stories with our characters working through those conventions (never super-inventively), this half seems happy to kick off with lots of action and narrative momentum, two things I'm always happy to see.

Another thing I'm happy to see: Lots of other members of the Green Lantern Corp. Tomar-Re! Ch'p (the squirrel who hysterically beat up Hal)! Larvox! Chaselon! When the Red Lanterns were invading and the Guardians decided to mobilize the Corp, I figured we'd see some familiar faces, but we didn't. Their appearances erased that (admittedly fanboy-based) disappointment.

"Reboot" served the rather necessary plot beat of getting (most of) the original band back together. Both recruitment moments, getting Kilowog and then saving Aya, were well-staged and boasted a surprising amount of humor (something the show has improved on since the hiatus). I'll be curious to see how they bring Razer back into the fold since he, like Aya, has had stronger character arcs than Hal and Kilowog (Razer and Aya can have those arcs since they're original creations).

The re-activation of the Manhunters by the Anti-Monitor (the big blue-and-yellow bruiser) helped build on the established narratives about the less-than-stellar history of the Guardians and threw it back in their faces. This further complicates their goals in maintaining order in the galaxy, and whether or not they're all that qualified to do it.

DC Nation Short: A New Teen Titans short explored how Robin and Raven deal with being in love. It wasn't a terribly exciting short, or all that funny. I did like that both premises were based on character traits, Raven's stoicism and Robin's over-achieving, but there wasn't much in the way of laughter.

Young Justice S02E09: "Darkest"

After last week's likeable mixed bag, "Darkest" was a much tighter and stronger episode. It benefitted, unsurprisingly, by focusing on Kaldur's subterfuge of Black Manta and the demands it's placing on him. None of this can be easy, even if he is playing triple agent, as Wally suggested near the end of the episode. The fact that the show itself is willing to broach this idea suggests that it's an unlikely outcome, and that Kaldur is very dedicated to stopping the invasion, as Dick maintained.

The destruction of Mount Justice was one of those big moments that work. While it helped set up the destructive future of Bart's, it was also a far more effective stake-raising moment than the reveal about Bart's time. The nuclear winter-esque world that Bart is from is more of a narrative puzzle to be worked out—how did the world end up like that?—as opposed to an emotional punch made by the eradication of Mount Justice. Truly, this is the first time I feel like Young Justice has demonstrated the risks in these conspiracies and counter-conspiracies. (I don't understand how Happy Harbor wasn't wiped off the map as well.)

Since I made mention of the show's little narrative detours last week, it seems only fair to return to the Malcolm-and-Karen-in-Ivy-Town bit. The plot needed Malcolm out of Mount Justice so he could call it in when it was destroyed, but it at least served a narrative purpose compared to the detours last week. And while I can appreciate Malcolm's attempts to reconnect with Karen (he's sort of stuck in his life, and she's very much moving on), the emotional connection for the audience wasn't there. It was sad but lacked of the heavier character moments that the rest of the episode was able to achieve. Frigging time skip.

DC Nation Short: It was a DC's World's Funnest short, which tend to be really hit or miss for me. Here we had Robin, tied up by a giggling Joker. Catwoman had problems saying identity; Batman ran by, arrived to find Robin tied up, and began giggling as well. I liked the Catwoman portions, particularly her discussion of the fashion sense of heroes, but it was kind of flat.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles S01E03: "Turtle Temper"

If "Turtle Temper" will be the model for the episodes to come, I can get behind this series a bit more than I thought I would after last week's premiere, even if I do think there's still a good bit of work to be done in firming up the show.

Exploring Raph's temper is one of the hallmarks of the TMNT franchise, and how his actions put both him and his brothers in danger. The episode didn't tread much new ground in that regard (I wonder when that'll start happening...), but the episode mobilized Raph's personality to help deliver a moral about how kids can deal with insults and bullies. In a way, should the series continue in this sort of model, it could become a male-targeted version of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. (Feel free to flame me in the comments for even daring to suggest such a thing, but I think I'm right.)

What I did like about this episode, and how it handled Raph's inability to deal with insults, was the multiple ways it mobilized Vic, the cranky New Yorker, to get at these ideas. First, there was the casting of caustic and foul-mouthed comedian Lewis Black, a nice nod for older audiences who recognize him and can appreciate the cleverness in his casting for this particular role. But it was the transformation into Spider Bytez (eugh) that sold me on the concept. His acidic venom spit was a complement to his acidic verbal commentary, providing a consistent character trope through the transformation (one that was missing with Snake last week).

I appreciate small touches like these in a kid-targeted show. While I still have some problems with this new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (particularly how the Kraangs speak; they're worse than the B1 battle droids in The Clone Wars!), this episode was a positive step.

What'd you think of this week's episodes?

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Welcome to our new Saturday animation round-up! This inaugural edition covers Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Green Lantern: The Animated Series, and Young Justice, and starting next week we'll add Nickelodeon's new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (which today received its own standalone review, in honor of its series premiere). Let us know what you think—and which other shows you might like to see reviewed here—in the comments.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars S05E01: "Revival"

The Clone Wars has, despite its lackluster start (and really dull movie), grown into an entertaining series that often has more going for it than the movies it was birthed from. But I must admit that the resurrection of Darth Maul at the end of last season made me more than a bit wary.

So I'm glad that "Revival" arranged things so that Maul won't be this season's sole focus, and expanded his role from Obi-Wan antagonist to a potential unifier of crime families around the galaxy. It's a clever way to keep Maul and Savage in the mix, but not necessarily at the forefront of the action. Likewise, the shift from brothers against Kenobi to a new pair of Sith against the galaxy ups the threat level (and gives Palpatine an unexpected perk in his plans to wipe out the Jedi).

The episode also managed to keep that threat level feeling real. Adi's gruesome death (for a Saturday-morning show) showed what's at stake for everyone, and kept Maul and Savage from being—wait for it!—phantom menaces! (Had to, sorry.) If there were no sacrifice, no sense of risk, then the various plots facing the Jedi would be largely empty.

And that's an important thing for The Clone Wars to keep going. Asokha's fate is up in the air as this series enters its fifth, and potentially final, season, and the idea that anyone can die, including the show's audience surrogate, keeps The Clone Wars exciting.

Green Lantern: The Animated Series S01E14: "The New Guy"

Green Lantern proved itself a competent, if not terribly inventive, series during its first arc. After the heavy emphasis on space narratives, I was eager for this second arc to return to Earth (and for Earth to look better than it did in the first arc's finale). Thankfuily, I got exactly what I wanted. And Guy Gardner to boot!

This second arc seems primed to deal with the reactivation of decommissioned Manhunters, the robots that the Guardians used to maintain order in the galaxy before they started the Green Lantern Corp. But while that threat gets going, Hal has to deal with the fallout of being gone for months.

I really like this, that the series is giving ramifications for Hal's life as a Green Lantern. While I still don't think that Hal's relationship with Carol is fleshed out enough to earn the moments the series has given them, both here and in the Star Sapphire episode in the first arc, I can appreciate the series making gestures toward Hal's life outside of the ring.

Guy Gardner's presence, likewise, brings a different dynamic to the series. He's cocky, beloved by everyone (even Guardian Appa, and that guy doesn't like anyone!), and doesn't defer to Hal like Kilowog, Aya, and even Razer. Deidrich Balder's performance hits all the right notes here, and I hope Guy appears a few more times.

But I'm not holding my breath. Given Hal's promotion to the Green Lantern Honor Guard, I'm expecting more space stories. I'm hoping that these new ones will be less generic than the ones we got in the first arc, and if the writers decide to bring back the old team, that they continue to develop Razer and Aya, the only two characters with decent character arcs.

DC Nation Short: Teen Titans and a gamma ray PSA! This short was pretty well worth it for Starfire's inability to say it and subsequent cursing in native tongue. Everyone else was amusing, and the idea of even doing a gamma ray PSA is clever (even though I don't think anyone on the team got their powers from gamma rays...).

Young Justice S02E08: "Satisfaction"

Young Justice is one of the most frustrating series I watch. When it's good, it's pretty good, but when it's bad, it tends to be really bad. I know I seem to be in the minority on this based on other reviews and comments on my Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes piece from a couple months ago, but if it seems like I'm harsher on this series, it's because I think there's a lot of potential that the series just doesn't live up to.

I actually rather enjoyed this episode. Original Roy's anger at Ollie, his sense of neglect, provided a nice way to hit Roy's beats from the iconic heroin arc from the comics in the 1970s while still being appropriate for the timeslot and the plot so far. Original Roy's confrontation with Luthor and Mercy felt a tad dragged out (more on that in just a second), but I ultimately liked the result of Original Roy taking up the mantle as Arsenal. I'd like to see this develop a bit more, but, at the same time, Young Justice is already feeling a bit overstuffed sometimes, and I don't know if it can support more plots.

Which is why the small asides in this episode—first to Dakota City for Rocket's bridal show and Captain Cold's bank heist ("I'm completely doomed, aren't I?") and then to Ivy Town to start, I guess, a romance between Conner and Wendy—made the episode feel a little busy and all over the place. The only departure from the Original Roy's plot that even felt necessary was the visit to Artemis's empty grave to learn about Cheshire and Sportmaster's plans to go after Aqualad and Black Manta.

DC Nation Short: The Super Best Friends Forever fought Solomon Grundy, who "no fights girls." I've missed the SBFFs (I haven't been watching the DC Nation block since the hiatus), so having this particular segment back for the opening week was much appreciated. It was filled with bits, like their mocking of Grundy as a zombie, and I really enjoyed Supergirl's assertion of "We are equal-opportunity butt-kickers!" Grundy may have gender equality issues, but the girls don't!

What'd you think of this week's episodes?

Note: As I mentioned above, Nickelodeon's new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series will appear in the animation round-up starting next week. This week it received its own standalone review.

Are there any other series you'd like to see in the round-up? All suggestions are welcome, but to have a good chance at inclusion they need to be shows that: 1) lend themselves to this capsule review format, 2) do not air opposite the shows reviewed above, 3) I can catch up on easily if I need to, and 4) aren't on Hub or Disney XD (which aren't a part of my cable package).

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