Young Justice S02E15 – Review

By: Jon Weisman (story)

The Story: It stands to reason that a race which envisioned the Death Star wouldn’t fall for a massive planet-destroying spaceship.

The Review: For anyone experiencing early pangs of nostalgia and grief about the impending end of this show, the show doesn’t make it easier by continuing to stick to its high level of excellence despite the doom before it.  It especially doesn’t help when the show manages to deliver not only a respectable episode, but one of the best showings it’s ever made, one that puts all its sophistication, class, and appeal right in the forefront for everyone to see.

As much as I appreciate the show returning briefly to the “Wanted” Leaguers and their trial on Rimbor, the scene only serves as a catalyst for a much bigger and more important development for our heroes back on Earth.  The introduction of WarWorld, with its zooming dissolves and brisk exposition, feels truly epic, the stuff worthy of a blockbuster action-adventure film.  For anyone wondering, this is how you inform the audience of the episode’s premise without forcing them to slog through a long, excessively detailed briefing.

Young Justice Episode 22 – Review

By: Kevin Hopps (writer)

The Story: Joining the League is not unlike joining the Plastics in Mean Girls.

The Review: To the show’s credit, the writers have done a careful job focusing on the young team itself, despite the constant temptation of the Justice League appearing tantalizingly on the fringes of stories.  Still, we’re constantly reminded the League is the real aspiration here.  Sure, the YJers have tackled every mission before them with as much energy and professionalism as you could hope, but their eyes especially light up at anything to do with the big boys and girls.

This may be the first episode where we get a real in-depth glimpse into the actual workings of the League, and the timing can’t be better since now is the time they’ve chosen to reconsider their roster.  Among the many illustrious candidates for membership are our very own YJ kids—exciting, no doubt, though a bit odd considering it wasn’t all that long ago (in the time frame of the show) that full indoctrination was a no-no for these eager, teenaged heroes.

But the episode also informs us that bigger stakes motivate this sudden recruitment process.  We’ve seen the villains have become more organized and collaborative, and so the League must be pitch-perfect to handle that.  Hopps thus does an excellent job spelling out the thought process of evaluating each potential Leaguer.

Some of these discussions are just there for humorous effect.  Flash’s suggestion of Guy Gardner as a useful powerhouse receives a resounding chorus from fellow Lanterns Hal and John: “No!”  “But we could really—”  “No!”  Other issues receive more serious treatment, especially when they concern shake-ups within the current roster.  Now that Zatara has taken on the mantle of Dr. Fate, no one how wise it is to retain such an unpredictable force on the team, even if only to keep “a close watch on us,” as Zatara/Nabu claims.  Then, too, there is the recent discovery of Captain Marvel’s true age; though he insists he never lied, Wonder Woman accurately points out his omission was still a deception, proving that despite having the wisdom of Solomon, there’s still a kid’s brain in that big, brawny hero.