Young Justice Reviews: Episodes 9-12

I had enough time this weekend to watch four episodes of Young Justice, which brings us t nearly the halfway point of the first season.

What's interesing about the first half of the season is that it's setting the table for the main arc of the season -- we get additional clues about who is part of The Light while left wondering what some of the moves they make will lead to. Then it's the second half of the season when the bigger storyline starts to kick into gear.

Along the way, we watch as the young heroes who make up The Team mature and grow as heroes and as people.

But let's look at the next four episodes and see how they build to what's to come down the road.

Arrowverse 'Other World' Chapter 10 - Supergirl

Disclaimer: This is the tenth chapter in a story about an "other world" based on the Arrowverse, the CW shows that focus on DC superheroes. I am writing this as my way of paying homage to my fandom for the Arrowverse. The character names Supergirl, Green Arrow, The Flash, Canary and Brainiac are trademarks of DC Comics. These chapters are free to read, they will not be published in book format, nor will any revenue be generated from the chapters. If there are legal issues involved with the usage of these characters, please email me at bwmorris at mail dot com and I will cease with the writing. Critiquing of my writing is welcomed and may be left in the comments.

Young Justice Reviews: Episodes 7-8

Two more episodes of Young Justice reviewed -- at the rate I'm going, perhaps there is a chance that the reviews will be finished before the start of Season 3 in the fall. No pressure. though!

Arrowverse 'Other World' Chapter 9 - Canary

Disclaimer: This is the ninth chapter in a story about an "other world" based on the Arrowverse, the CW shows that focus on DC superheroes. I am writing this as my way of paying homage to my fandom for the Arrowverse. The character names Supergirl, Green Arrow, The Flash, Canary and Brainiac are trademarks of DC Comics. These chapters are free to read, they will not be published in book format, nor will any revenue be generated from the chapters. If there are legal issues involved with the usage of these characters, please email me at bwmorris at mail dot com and I will cease with the writing. Critiquing of my writing is welcomed and may be left in the comments.

Young Justice Reviews: Episodes 5-6

Only got to two episodes this week, so I doubt there will be any chance of me reviewing all episodes before the third season debuts later this year.

But it beats what I thought would be my original plan of reviewing one episode per week -- with any luck, I'll have more weeks in which I'll be able to review multiple episodes.

For those who have enjoyed the reviews so far and would like to learn more about the series, may I suggest visiting the Young Justice Wiki.

Now let's get to this week's episodes.

Arrowverse 'Other World' Chapter 8 - Green Arrow

Disclaimer: This is the first chapter in a story about an "other world" based on the  Arrowverse, the CW shows that focus on DC superheroes. I am writing this as my way of  paying homage to my fandom for the Arrowverse. The character names Supergirl, Green  Arrow, The Flash, Canary and Brainiac are trademarks of DC Comics. These chapters are  free to read, they will not be published in book format, nor will any revenue be  generated from the chapters. If there are legal issues involved with the usage of these  characters, please email me at bwmorris at mail dot com and I will cease with the  writing. Critiquing of my writing is welcomed and may be left in the comments.

Young Justice Reviews: Episodes 1-4

It turns out I was able to fit in the first four episodes of Young Justice into my viewing Saturday night, so I'll be reviewing them all this week.

With each episode, I will give a brief summary of the plot, key elements to the overarching season storyline or to what makes the characters tick, my favorite quote from each episode and my thoughts about the episode.

There may be minor spoilers given out, but I'll do my best to avoid talking too much about the details, in case you have never seen the show and want to check it out for yourself.

Without further ado, let's look at the first four episodes of Young Justice.

Arrowverse 'Other World' Chapter 7 - The Flash

Disclaimer: This is the seventh chapter in a story about an "other world" based on the Arrowverse, the CW shows that focus on DC superheroes. I am writing this as my way of paying homage to my fandom for the Arrowverse. The character names Supergirl, Green Arrow, The Flash, Canary and Brainiac are trademarks of DC Comics. These chapters are free to read, they will not be published in book format, nor will any revenue be generated from the chapters. If there are legal issues involved with the usage of these characters, please email me at bwmorris at mail dot com and I will cease with the writing. Critiquing of my writing is welcomed and may be left in the comments.

The Appeal Of Young Justice

One of the TV shows that inspired me to try my hand at novel writing was Young Justice, a series about the teenage superheroes in the DC Universe.

The show, created by Greg Weisman and Brandon Vietti, revolves mainly around six characters and gives the spotlight to some characters that people not as familiar with the DC Universe won't know as well, with one instance of the show's creators introducing a new character. The six characters the show centered on are:

• Robin, aka Dick Grayson, who most everyone will recognize as Batman's sidekick. He's eager at first to lead the group of teenage superheroes known as The Team, but learns over time he has a lot to learn about what leadership means.
• Aqualad, aka Kaldur'ahm, the character Weisman and Vietti created. He is calm and serene most of the time, but finds himself thrust into the leadership role and must learn how to handle it, along with struggling with his thoughts about what he left behind in Atlantis.
• Kid Flash, aka Wally West, a protege of The Flash. He is cocky, lighthearted and anxious to prove himself, but must learn what it means to take on greater responsibility and thus mature -- but as he does, he shows he can pass on good advice.
• Miss Martian, aka M'gann M'orzz, one of Martian Manhunter's nieces. She is friendly but sometimes too eager to please her friends, but keeps her true Martian form a secret.
• Superboy, aka Connor Kent, a teenaged clone of Superman. He struggles with the fact that Superman seems unwilling to accept him and lets his anger issues get the best of him at times.
• Artemis, aka Artemis Crock, who becomes the new protege of Green Arrow. She has a quick wit but struggles with her own secrets about the family ties she wants hidden from the rest of The Team.

A couple other characters are rolled out into the series and each gets their own arc, too. That Weisman and Vietti are able to balance multiple characters and give each an arc throughout the series is a testament to why the series works so well.

Unlike many animated superhero shows, Young Justice features an ongoing storyline throughout its first season, one that evolves into something bigger in the second series. It's different from other series in which there might be a storyline taking place during the course of the season, but it fades into the background at times, while taking a larger role at other times.

What I also enjoy about Young Justice is how there are important plot points dropped in during the season that, upon first glance, may not seem key to the larger storyline, but are later revealed to carry a greater importance.

That Weisman and Vietti are able to balance so much character development and weave together a storyline with bits of information that appear to be throwaway at one point, but are revealed to be key moments, explains a lot of its appeal. Another plus is that the show's creators took some characters that fewer people know about and gave them bigger roles -- in some cases, the creators came up with different interpretations of a character that makes the character more interesting.

The show aired 46 episodes on Cartoon Network and wasn't renewed, but will be revived on a planned DC digital service later this year. In the weeks to come, I will sit down and review the Young Justice episodes -- my plan is to do the reviews as my weekly Sunday blog post, though I may switch to another topic on a given week depending on how my own schedule works and my plans to talk about my second novel.

And even if I do one episode per week, I won't get to them all before the planned third season starts on the DC digital service. But I hope you'll enjoy learning more about the series and perhaps it will convince you to check it out for yourself on Netflix or track down the DVDs that are out there.