The one things that differentiates the Dick Grayson Batman visually from the Bruce Wayne Batman is the addition of that little punk. The kid should be a massive negative (c.f. the second incarnation of the Jason Todd Robin),  but there is just something about his attitude that works so well. That’s why I liked this piece by Richard Cox. Damian with all his attitude is bearing down on some unseen criminal whilst Dick it standing-by with a Batline ready to either join in or haul Damian back as necessary.

Episode Credits

Quotes

Desmond: Activate the cloning process.Robin: Pass! The Batcave’s crowded enough as it is.

Kid Flash: Are you here to help us or fry us?Superboy: <squints> Huh, I don’t seem to have heat vision so I suppose helping is my only option.

Superboy: Superman can fly. Why can’t I fly?Kid Flash: I don’t know, but you can still leap tall buildings in a single bound.

Synopsis “Independence Day Part Two”

Previously in “Independence Day Part One”: Today was meant to be the day that the teen sidekicks were given access to the Hall of Justice, but what they got was less than they expected. Speedy, Green Arrow’s sidekick, stormed off in disgust and the League were called away on another matter. Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad decided to prove themselves to the Justice League by infiltrating Project Cadmus – a place Batman had voiced his suspicions about. They discovered a vast underground facility beneath Washington where Chief Scientist Doctor Marc Desmond has assembled an army of genetically engineered creatures. In its deepest caverns they discovered a teenaged clone of Superman. They woke the “Superboy”, but he was being telepathically controlled by Desmond’s gene-gnomes and attacked his liberators.

July 4th - Marc Desmond convenes an electronic audience with the Light – the faceless board of directors behind Project Cadmus – to inform them of the current situation. The sidekicks are contained and Desmond believes that the Justice League does not know of their mission. The Light tells Desmond to clone the sidekicks, to create willing mind-controlled duplicates, and to dispose of the originals. The Guardian doesn’t understand why Desmond is so upset that Superboy has not returned to his pod. Desmond is then forced to use his gene-gnome’s telepathy to once again enforce his will on his increasingly vocal Head of Security.

Aqualad, Kid Flash, and Robin are unconscious in the Cadmus cloning chamber when they hear a voice in their heads telling them that they must wake up. They wake to discover that the Superboy is staring at them. He confesses to knowing “how to read and write, the names of things”, but to never having actually been allowed to experience those things first hand. They ask him if he knows what he is and he tells them “I am the Superboy. A geneomorph. A clone made from the DNA of the Superman. Created to replace him should he perish; to destroy him should he turn from the light.”

Kid Flash and co. offer to introduce Superboy to the real Superman, but Desmond interrupts them and orders Superboy back to his pod. He then starts the painful cloning procedure. As Superboy is walking back to his pod his superhearing hears Aqualad call out to him asking “What would Superman do?” Seconds later the door to the cloning room is ripped open and Superboy returns. He throws the scientists aside and angrily tells them not to order him around. He tells Robin the same thing when he suggests that he helps Aqualad. Robin then blows up the cloning machine to prevent their clones from being recreated.

A furious Desmond orders every geneomorph in Cadmus to be sent after the four teenagers. Massive gene-trolls block their path to the elevator whilst smaller geneomorphs close in behind. The sidekicks evade the gene-trolls, but Superboy knocks out two of them making it clear that he has anger issues. They have made it to sub-level 15 when Superboy hears a voice guiding him through the corridors to an air vent which they use to escape into the ductwork. Robin then hacks the security sensors to send Desmond on a wild goose chase. The four heroes eventually make it to the surface exit, but its proof against even their superstrength.

The escaping teens run straight into a legion of gene-trolls, -morphs, and -gnomes led by the Guardian. The combined telepathic power of so many gene-gnomes forces the teens to their knees. Dubbilex then steps forward and identifies himself as the telepathic voice that has been directing their escape. He was also set the fire that drew them to Cadmus in the first place. Dubbilex believes that Superboy is a geneomorph hero who will lead the other Cadmus geneomorphs to freedom. He then commands the gene-gnomes to release the teens and allows Superboy to choose between freedom or servitude. Superboy tells him that “I chose freedom.”

The Guardian’s mind is also clear again and he tells the boys to “go” and to leave Desmond to him. However, Desmond arrives and tells everybody that Project Blockbuster will give him the power to restore order to Cadmus. He then swallows a vile of blue liquid and is transformed into a hulking grey-skinned “Blockbuster” who is strong enough to withstand even Superboy’s punches. Aqualad and Superboy take on the Blockbuster while Robin pulls Kid Flash to one side. He has noticed the support columns that the Blockbuster keeps damaging and tells Kid Flash to lead him on a dance which further weakens them. The other heroes follow suit and bring the entire above-ground Cadmus building down on top of the Blockbuster.

The four teen heroes are just crawling from the wreckage as Superman and the rest of the Justice League descend out of the night sky. The full roster perches around the wreckage. They, and Superman, are stunned when Superboy steps forward and introduces himself as Superman’s clone. Batman tells then “Start talking”. Afterwards Batman bluntly tells them that they will not be working as a group again. However, Aqualad corrects him and tells their mentors that it is exactly what they will be doing it again. They, including Superboy, fought as a group and are unwilling to just let the Justice League break them up again. Superboy puts its more bluntly when he tells Batman to “get on board or get out-of-the-way!”

July 8th -Four days later at Mount Justice – the original Secret Sanctuary of the Justice League – the League are preparing a new headquarters. Batman tells Superboy, Kid Flash, Robin, and Aqualad that if they’ll be “fighting the good fight” they’ll be doing so “on League terms.” The Red Tornado will live in the new headquarters as their supervisor, Black Canary will train them, but it is Batman alone who will deploy them on missions. They will be his covert team, operating outside of the media spotlight that is focused on the very public Justice League. They will also be joined by Miss Martian, the Martian Manhunter’s niece.

Back at Cadmus, the Board has placed the Guardian in charge with Doctor Spence promoted to chief scientist. The Light, the true force behind Cadmus, are less concerned by the loss of Desmond than they are with the appearance of a new faction of the Justice League.

Continuity

• Setting: July 4th (Independence Day) and July 8th.

Commentary

The Young Justice/Teen Titans comics

This new series mixes up characters from several different generations of teen sidekicks. The original sidekicks appeared during the 1940s. They were brought in to humanize the violent vigilantes, to give young readers somebody to identify with, and to serve the Watson role (somebody for the detective to explain his thoughts to). Robin was the original and first appeared in Detective Comics #38 (April 1940). He was followed by Speedy who first appeared in More Fun Comics #73 (November 1941). This early period is generally called the Golden Age of comics.

Superhero comics then went into something of a lull until the later 1950s and 1960s when they were relaunched with new versions of old characters. This is the period that is generally refered to as the Silver Age. Kid Flash appeared in The Flash (Dec 1959) and Aqualad first appeared in Adventure Comics #269 (Feb 1960). The adult heroes were first brought together as the Justice League in the Brave and the Bold #28 (Feb/March 1960), but it wasn’t until Brave and the Bold #54 (July 1964) that Kid Flash, Aqualad, and Robin were brought together for a team-up.

The sidekicks’ team-up was considered a success so they were brought back as a proper team called the Teen Titans in Brave and the Bold #60 (June/July 1965). A significant addition to that appearance was the introduction of a female character called Wonder Girl. She was explained to be Wonder Woman’s sidekick, but she had never appeared in the Wonder Woman comics and was a completely new character. Speedy wouldn’t join the Teen Titans as a full member until 1969. The roster expanded and contracted over the years until the 1980s when their title was relaunched by Marv Wolfman and George Perez as the New Teen Titans with new members Starfire, Cyborg, and Beast Boy.

DC Comics characters aren’t entirely ageless. The sidekicks have been allowed to slowly age and today those first Teen Titans are young adults – Kid Flash and Robin have taken on new identities and have even succeeded their mentors in the Justice League. However, the idea of teen sidekicks persisted and a new generation of younger sidekicks were introduced to fill the void left by the now adult Titans. The first of these was Jason Todd, the second Robin, but he was something of a misfire and proved unpopular (his story is told in the Under The Red Hood DVD).

After Todd, a third Robin called Tim Drake was introduced. He proved really popular and other characters including Impulse (the Flash’s grandson), Superboy (Conner Kent as shown in the Young Justice cartoon), and others were introduced. These characters were less sidekicks than they were young heroes in their own right. They were brought together in 1998 as a new group, originally mooted as JLA Junior by Grant Morrison, in two stories (JLA: World Without Grown-Ups and Young Justice: The Secret) written by Todd DeZago and illustrated by Todd Nauck. However, the on-going Young Justice series was written by Peter David. He and Nauck created a deceptively cartoon-like book that hid a very dark under current.

The Young Justice series ran parallel to a Titans series which featured the adventures of the former Teen Titans. After 55 issues – nearly all written David and drawn Nauck – DC decided to stage a hideously plotted stunt called “Graduation Day” (avoid this book like the plague! – the books before and after it are quite good, but the GD mini-series itself is rubbish). The two teams were merged into a new iteration of the Teen Titans. The Young Justice members were joined by a couple of the original New Teen Titans who acted as mentors.

Despite it’s patchy genesis this new book, written by Geoff Johns, was popular and was broadly responsible for the creation of a Teen Titans cartoon. Johns introduced an entire generation of new teen heroes during his run including a teenage version of the Martian Manhunter called Miss Martian although in the comics they aren’t related by blood.

Superboy

• Alter Ego: To be established
• Age: 16 weeks as of “Independence Day”
• Abilities/Powers: Clone of Superman. Has inherited solar-powered speed, strength and endurance. Also super hearing.  However, he yet to develop Superman’s heat vision or flight.

This two-part episode is an adaptation of Superboy’s origin. The original Superboy was just Superman as a boy, but the modern Superboy didn’t appear until Superman was killed by the monster Doomsday. Project Cadmus saw an opening to create their own clone of Superman and to announce him to the world as the original returned to life. Their plans were discovered by a group called the Newsboy Legion (clones of the Guardian’s original 1940s sidekicks) who freed the clone before he was fully mature. Thus the new clone had the body of a  teenager, but he also lacked the mind control conditioning that Cadmus had wanted to insert.

The real Superman ultimately returned from the dead (that happens a lot in the DC Universe) and the cloned “Superboy” stuck around as a new character. Young Justice “Independence Day”  follows Superboy’s origin pretty closely, but substitutes Young Justice for the Newsboy Legion. In the comic books Young Justice formed after they helped a girl called the Secret escape from a government laboratory. So you can see how both origin stories have been woven together.

The comic-book Superboy was a half-clone of Superman – they couldn’t extrapolate his entire DNA sequence so grafted the half they could decipher onto a human base. This base was originally believed to be Director Westfield (Desmond’s analogue), but was eventually revealed to be Lex Luthor.

Both Superboy and Superman are voiced by Nolan North. He also pulled dual duty on Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths when he voiced Green Lantern and Power Ring. Superboy’s white solar collector suit is needed to power his abilities because he’s never been allowed to absorb direct solar radiation. Its colour references the glowing white costumes from the Krypton segment of Superman: The Movie.

The Light

The Light are the secret group behind Project Cadmus. The name could be another name for the Illuminati (the illuminated ones) which are a secret society beloved of conspiracy theorists. In the comics the Illuminati are led by the immortal Vandal Savage. Candidates for the Light have to include the (Secret) Society (of Super Villains) or the Agenda. The former are the old Brotherhood of Evil – a reverse Justice League of all the League’s baddest villains. The latter are a group of evil cloners who tried to set up their own version of Project Cadmus and clone an evil version of Superboy called Match.

Project Cadmus

Project Cadmus, or the DNA Project, was first introduced into Superman’s sidekick’s comic (Jimmy Olsen) by Jack Kirby as a federally funded wonderland that created all sorts of stage alien like genetic mutants. As public opinion – and real cloning science – has caught up with science fiction the Project’s portrayal has become more jaded. It should be familiar to fans of Justice League Unlimited as it was used as the secret agency behind much of the first two seasons stories. In the Young Justice universe the Project is based in Washington DC, but in the normal DC Universe it is buried in a vast underground facility beneath a mountain outside of Superman’s Metropolis.

• Dubbilex is a DNAlien created by Project Cadmus. He appears alien, but was always one of the more human characters with a genuine concern for the creatures that Cadmus created – he was after all one of them.
• Cadmus, as Aqualad describes, was originally a Greek legend. He was a prince responsible for bringing writing to the Greeks. He also slew a dragon and then planted its teeth as if they were seeds. Warriors sprouted out of the ground where they teeth had been planted.
• The YJ character of Marc Desmond is a combination of two comic book characters. The first is Paul Westfield, the Cadmus director who tried to clone Superman, the second is the Blockbuster,  a mindless brute who once fought that Batman. The look of this incarnation – grey skin, red eyes, bony protrusions - appears to be influenced by Doomsday (the monster that  killed Superman in the comics).
• The Guardian is Cadmus’s original security chief from the comics – he didn’t appear in JLU. He is the clone of James Harper, a 1940s police officer who also fought crime as the Guardian. He was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby and there are obvious parallels with Captain America (who the pair also created) when you see him use his shield.
• A gene-gnome – the little creature on the Guardian’s shoulder was originally a manipulative, mind controlling creature created by rogue Cadmus scientists. Here they appear to be a rank of more intelligent Cadmus workers and serve as the labs telepathic intercom system. They are also used by Desmond to control the Guardian.
• The comic book version of the scientist name checked at the end of this episode (Amanda Spence) was the daughter of Paul Westfield (the character Desmond replaced) and an agent for the Agenda (the agency that the Light might be). Her inclusion could be significant or it could be a tip of the hat. Time will tell.

Mount Justice

Mount Justice – nice name, a new one I think – is located is a placed called Happy Harbour, Rhode Island. It was a hollowed out mountain that held the Justice League’s original headquarters, a base called the Secret Sanctuary (which gets name checked in this episode). The League gave it up when they moved to the Satellite. It has since been used as a warehouse and hanger, and by a succession of groups including the Doom Patrol, the Justice Society, Young Justice, and various League factions – it tends to be the place they default back to when whatever current headquarters they are using gets destroyed (which invariably they do).

Misc. Notes

• “These aren’t your typical meddling Kids.” – Scooby dooby, doo!!!
• Desmond: “you’re not a real boy” is a reference to Pinocchio, the wooden puppet who wanted to be a real boy.
• Shown with the Justice League are Superman, Red Tornado, Captain Marvel, Zatara, and the Martian Manhunter, Captain Atom, Hawkman, Wonder Woman, Hawkwoman/girl, Green Lantern (Hal), Black Canary, Aquaman, Batman, Green Arrow, and Green Lantern (John).
• At one point Kid Flash calls Blockbuster the “incredible bulk” which is a reference to Marvel Comics’s Incredible Hulk who was also grey-skinned (originally).

Characters

Feature Characters

Young Justice

• Aqualad (Kaldur’ahm, appeared last episode)
• Kid Flash (Wally West, appeared last episode)
• Miss Martian (M’gann M’orzz, first Earth-16 appearance)
• Robin (Dick Grayson, appeared last episode)
• Superboy (appeared last episode)

Supporting Cast

The Justice League

• Aquaman (appeared last episode)
• Batman (appeared last episode)
• Black Canary (first Earth-16 appearance, does not speak)
• Captain Atom (first Earth-16 appearance, does not speak)
• Captain Marvel (first Earth-16 appearance, does not speak)
• Flash (appeared last episode)
• Green Arrow (appeared last episode, does not speak)
• Green Lantern Hal Jordan (first proper Earth-16 appearance, does not speak)
• Green Lantern John Stewart (first Earth-16 appearance, does not speak)
• Hawkgirl (first Earth-16 appearance, does not speak)
• Hawkman (first Earth-16 appearance, does not speak)
• Martian Manhunter (appeared last episode)
• Red Tornado (appeared last episode, does not speak)
• Superman (appeared last episode)
• Zatara (appeared last episode, does not speak)
• Wonder Woman (first proper Earth-16 appearance, does not speak)

Villains

• Mark Desmond (Mark Desmond, appeared last episode, first appearance in the full Blockbuster)

The Light

Only including characters that are referenced in the Credits – there are too many blank spaces otherwise:

• L-1 (identity disguised, first Earth-16 appearance )
• L-3 (identity disguised, first Earth-16 appearance )

Other Characters

• Dr Spence (appeared last episode, named in passing in next episode)
• Dubbilex (appeared last episode)
• Guardian (appeared last episode)

Opinion

Highlights

Seeing the Secret Sanctuary on screen.

Oddities

Are you seriously telling me that Robin carries around sticks of chalk in his utility belt?

First Impressions

The first episode was brilliant just for showing us all the glamour and fun of the hero/sidekick team-ups, the Hall of Justice, the descent into Cadmus, and a hundred other cool bits. This second episode arguably has the tougher sell as its all ready got past the cool bits and needs to really focus on story and plot. The pursuit from Cadmus has a number of set pieces which work really well, but you don’t quite get a sense of dire urgency or threat. They are in danger yes, but it all still feels like a romp. This, I believe, is a good thing as it prevents the show descending into mock teen angst (let’s leave that for the X-Men).

Almost this entire episode is set in the dark Cadmus caverns or at night so it’s quite jarring when the flip is made to the bright, daylight Mount Justice. They really get their money out of the claustrophobic Cadmus setting and it’s very atmospheric, but it’s getting a bit overused by the end. The Mount Justice reveal was a real surprise and shows that they’re sticking to the premise of Young Justice quite closely. Something has to be said about the manner of Miss Martian’s inclusion. Parachuting in a character to the new group isn’t such a bad thing, but did it really have to be the sole female character?

Changes

• 2010-12-06 – Added Ask Greg credits

Episode Credits

Quotes

Flash: Calm down Kid.Kid Flash: Oh please! You’ll chat it up with the cops, with bystanders, with Cold even. No, no way. Today’s the day!

Green Arrow: Roy, you just need to be patient.Speedy: What I need is respect. They’re treating us like kids. Worst, sidekicks! We deserve better than this.

Synopsis “Independence Day Part One”

July 4th – In a chain of seemingly unrelated incidents Batman and Robin defeat Mister Freeze in Gotham City, Green Arrow and Speedy knock out Icicle Jr. in Star City, Aquaman and Aqualad take down Killer Frost at Pearl Harbour, and the Flash and Kid Flash stop Captain Cold’s robbery in Central City. All the young heroes are all impatient as “Today’s the day”, July 4th Independence Day, the day they get official access to the Justice League’s Hall of Justice.

Crowds of tourist watch as the adult heroes lead their sidekicks into the inner sanctum. They are met by the Martian Manhunter who tells them they now have access to the “gym, fully stocked galley, and the library”. The adult heroes are about to discuss the coincidence of four ice villains attacking on the same day, but Speedy is angry – he expected more than a “glorified back stage pass” and objects to being shut out of the League’s discussions. He surprises the other sidekicks by telling them that the Hall of Justice isn’t even the League’s real headquarters – it’s a publicity front for the tourists which the League uses as a teleportation rely to reach their real headquarters, a satellite called the Watchtower. Speedy then storms off in disgust when Batman refuses to let them go any further.

The League then get two simultaneous calls for help. Superman tells the League that there has been an explosion at Project Cadmus and Zatara tells them that Wotan is using the Amulet of Aten to blot out the Sun. Zatara requests a full League response and Batman messages all Leaguers to converge on his location. Kid Flash, Robin, and Aqualad want to help, but Batman orders them to stay put. They then realise that Speedy may have been right. Robin hacks the Justice League’s computers – “same system as the Batcave” – to find out more about Project Cadmus, but it’s entry just records that it’s a genetic laboratory. Batman has told them to stay away from Zatara’s emergency, but he hadn’t said anything about the Cadmus mission. The three boys then decide to take it upon themselves to solve Batman’s suspicions about Cadmus before the League returns.

When the trio arrive at Cadmus building they find that it is still on fire. Kid Flash runs ahead to save two scientists, but he has to be pulled to safety by Robin. Aqualad then brings the scientists down to street level while Kid Flash and Robin head inside. Aqualad spots a strange inhuman figure disappear into an elevator and Robin recognises the make of elevator as the type of express elevator used in tall buildings – overkill for the two-story Cadmus building. Aqualad forces open the doors and they discover that the elevator shaft descends far underground – at least 27 stories before Robin’s grapple-wire runs out.

At sub-level 26 Robin overrides the security and they begin investigating. Kid Flash runs ahead and runs straight into a troop of elephant-sized creatures (“gene-trolls”). The creatures appear oblivious to the boys and continue on their way, but a smaller horned monkey-sized creature (a “gene-gnome”) does notice them. The Head of Cadmus, Doctor Desmond, is working on something called Project Blockbuster when his head of security, the Guardian, informs him that a gene-gnome sensed intruders. Desmond is dismissive as the alarms haven’t gone off, but agrees to Guardian’s request to investigate. Dubbilex, the horned figure earlier seen by Aqualad, suggests that the Guardian leave his own gene-gnome behind if he’s heading into danger, but Desmond objects and uses the creature’s telepathic link to sway the Guardian.

The boys find a collection of lightning creatures in jars and realise that Cadmus is using them to power their facility, keeping its existence hidden from the normal power grid. Robin hacks into their computers and discovers that Cadmus has created a virtual army of genetically engineered geneomorphs. He also discovers something called Project Kr, but they are interrupted by the Guardian and a squad of wolf-like geneomorphs whilst Robin downloads the Kr data. Both sides recognise each other, but the Guardian’s gene-gnome overrides his thoughts when Robin accuses him of breeding weapons. The Guardian then commands his geneomorphs to take them down.

Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad manage to escape to an elevator, but to the consternation of the others Robin takes them deeper into the facility – to Project Kr on sub-level 52. They find is a series of outlandish red caverns and Dubbilex waiting for them. His telekinetic attack keeps them on the run, but the teen heroes manage to make it into the Project Kr vault as an unwitting scientist leaves. Robin then locks the door behind them. Kid Flash brings up the lights and discovers Cadmus’s darkest secret – a sleeping teenage clone of Superman!

Robin hacks the Project Kr computers to discover that the boy is codenamed “Superboy” and that he has been force grown in sixteen weeks from DNA stolen from Superman. Cadmus intend to turn the boy into a weapon. Aqualad tries to signal the League for help, but they are too far underground for the signal to be received. Robin then sets Superboy free, but Desmond orders the gene-gnomes attached to Superboy’s pod to make him attack the teen heroes.  He proves to be stronger and faster than they are so even Aqualad’s constructs only put him down momentarily. Superboy forces the vault open and allows Desmond to enter.

[Continued in Part Two]

Continuity

• Setting: July 4th (“Independence Day”).
• The heroes are shown living in their classic fictional cities: Gotham City (Batman/Robin), Star City (Green Arrow/Speedy), Central City (Flash/Kid Flash). The time zones given for each city place Gotham on the east coast, Central City on central time (unsurprisingly), and Star City on the west coast.
• The Justice League have a public headquarters called the Hall of Justice in Washington DC which serves as a teleportation reply for their real secret headquarters which is an orbiting satellite called the Watchtower.

Commentary

Young Justice

Young Justice came about when Executive Vice-President for Creative Affairs at Warner Brothers Animation Sam Register paired Greg Weisman (Gargoyles, Spectacular Spiderman) and Brandon Vietti (Under the Red Hood) and asked them to come up with a new DC Universe show for Cartoon Network. They then had the unenviable task of charting a course between the phenomenally successful Justice League Unlimited franchise and the unique Teen Titans show. The end result was Young Justice, a show about younger heroes, but one set in and around a Justice League (YJ Press Announcement).

Weisman and Vietti collaborated with DC Entertainment Creative Affairs Officer Geoff Johns and DC Comics Co-Pubisher Dan Didio to establish their new show on Earth-16 in Universe-16 in the DC Multiverse proper. Earth-16 is a slightly younger version of the DC Universe. There were some superheroes in the 1940s, but Superman only appeared 10 years ago and the Justice League is only a few years old (SDCC 2010 Panel, Comic Book News Interview).

The adult Leaguers have become global megastars and their every action is closely watched and analysed by the media and badguys. Young Justice are their covert ops team – a group who can evade the media and operate outside of the spotlight that hampers the main Justice League. This is the first generation of the JLA’s apprentices so its Dick Grayson as Robin, Wally West as the Kid Flash, etc (Comic Book News Interview).

Robin, The Boy Wonder

• Alter Ego: Dick Grayson
• Age: 13 years
• Abilities/Powers: Trained by the Batman! Skills include stealth, computer hacking, and a natural gymnast.
• Weaponry: Explosive thowing discs. Utility belt. Wrist worn mini-computer.

It’s Dick Grayson. The laughter and happier demeanour it very much Dick, but the costume is based on the one designed by Neal Adam’s for Dick’s second successor (Tim Drake). It was Batman: The New Adventures which took that costume and removed the green to give the yellow/red/black version. Robin’s throwing discs are like those used by the Robin from Glen Murakami’s Teen Titans cartoon. The entire laughing from the shadows thing really reminds me of the Shadow.

At SDCC Greg Weisman described Robin as:

This is Dick Grayson, aged 13. He’s the youngest member of the group, but he’s also the guy with the most experience. He’s been doing this since he was 9-years old so he’s been doing it four years. He’s the guy with all the chops.

Robin is voiced by ex-boy band singer Jesse McCartney who described his character to CBR as a “prepubescent, cocky little kid” who ends up becoming the leader of the team.

Speedy

• Alter Ego: Roy Harper
• Age: 16+ ? years (probably older than Aqualad)
• Abilities/Powers: Master archer. Trained by Green Arrow.
• Weaponry: Composite longbow plus a variety of trick and explosive arrows.

This is the original Speedy – Roy Harper before he lost his arm, child, and any sense of reasonable character development. The use of the exploding arrows and Speedy’s serious personality harks back to his occasional appearances in the Teen Titans cartoon. This Roy is older than the other characters and that shows in his demands to be taken seriously as his own hero and not just as a side kick. His look is classic Golden/Silver Age.

Speedy is voiced by Crispin Freeman who voiced Superman in the Justice League Heroes videogame. The character is something of a red herring as he’s shown in the introduction and he’s part of the classic Teen Titans line-up, but he storms out during the second act. Production artwork teases that he’ll be back later in the series having become his own man.

Aqualad

• Alter Ego: Unrevealed
• Age: 16 years
• Abilities/Powers: Submarine adaptation (gill slits for underwater breathing, webbed hands for swimming, and enhanced strength/endurance for survival at depths). Trained by Aquaman.
• Weaponry: Backpack allows electrostatic manipulation of water.

This isn’t Garth – the original Aqualad. This Aquaboy was created specifically for this TV show. DC Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns was so taken with the character that he arranged to incorporate a version into the DC Universe proper.

Aqualad calls Aquaman “My King” which makes it seem that he’s more of a soldier than an equal. He is 16-years-old which makes him several years older than either Robin or Kid Flash. His costume more closely resembles Aquaman’s than the other comic book Aqualads/girls (green/orange and he’s even blond). You can clearly see gill slits (like a fish) on his neck showing how he can breathe underwater and webbing between his hands which presumably help him swim faster. Backpack isn’t explained, but it appears to electro-statically manipulate water to create limited Green Lantern like constructs.

Aqualad is voiced by Khary Payton who is best known as Cyborg from the earlier Teen Titans cartoon, he voices Cyborg in the upcoming DC Universe mmorpg. Khary has also voiced Tyr in Legion of Superheroes.

Kid Flash

• Alter Ego: Wally West
• Age: 14 years
• Abilities/Powers: Superspeed. Trained by the Flash.
• Weaponry: N/A

This is the Silver Age Flash and Kid Flash combo of Barry Allen and Wally West (green eyes, red hair). Very classic costumes. The Flash is shown with whited-out eyes which is a motif of the costume worn by Wally when he succeeded Barry as the Flash.

At SDCC Brandon Vietti described Kid Flash as

He is Wally West. He’s 15, he’s not as fast as the Flash. He has to accelerate and decelerate.

Kid Flash is voiced by Jason Spisak.

The Justice League

The Justice League is shown head-quartered at the Hall of Justice. The Hall originated in the Super Friends cartoon in the 1970/80s before being brought into the comics continuity by Brad Meltzer in Justice League of America (vol. 2) . It was also shown as the League’s headquarters during the last season of Justice League Unlimited.

The entrance to the Hall shows the statues of the seven heroes (Aquaman, Flash, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and the Martian Manhunter) who founded the League in the comics books. The numbers that the computer intones in its security scans are the order that the Leaguers joined the League in the comic books. Batman – 02, Aquaman – 06, Flash – 04, Martian Manhunter -07 were all founders. Green Arrow – 08 was the first non-founding member. Red Tornado – 16

• Aquaman – This is the classic Aquaman although he doesn’t do too much in the opener. His appearance – with the beard – does draw a parallel with the bombastic Aquaman who appears in Batman: The Brave and the Bold. Aquaman is voiced by Phil LaMarr who voiced Green Lantern in Justice League Unlimited and Static in Static Shock.
• Batman is well, he’s Batman. Classic hard-ass Bats. Batman is voiced by Bruce Greenwood who also voiced Batman for the recent Batman: The Red Hood DVD.
• Flash - The speedsters are the last ones to arrive at the Hall which is a pick up of a running joke from the comics – how Barry Allen was the slowest man alive in his secret identity whereas he was the fastest man alive in his costumed identity. The reason he was always late was that he was stopping off to fight some crime or other. The Flash is voiced by CSI’s George Eads (Nick Stokes). Eads voiced Captain Atom in the first episode of Justice League Unlimited.
• Green Arrow - A more contemporary look for Green Arrow with the cowl and jerkin from the 1990s than the classic Silver Age look used for Speedy. Roy clearly states that he isn’t GA’s son. Green Arrow is voiced by Alan Tudyk who voiced Barry Allen in Batman: The Brave and the Bold.
• Martian Manhunter - The Manhunter featured heavily in Justice League Unlimited and the designers have opted to use altered his post-Infinite Crisis look. Green Arrow hints that the Manhunter has his own sidekick. The Martian Manhunter is voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson who has something of career voicing DC characters. He gave voice to B’wana Beast in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Mister Tawky in The Return of Black Adam DVD, the Joker in The Batman, Trigon in Teen Titans, General Wells in Justice League, among others.
• Red Tornado - The android Red Tornado was the mentor of Young Justice in the Peter David written comic book. The look they’ve used for him here is the Air Elemental form that he had at that time. He pauses before leaving the young heroes – almost as if he’s sympathetic to their plight.
• Superman is, well, he’s Superman.
• Zatara is Giovanni Zatara, a stage magician turned real magician who uses reverse speak (“esrever kaeps”) to cast his spells. Zatara may be unfamiliar to many casual readers, but he’s actually one of DC’s older characters and made his first appearance in the same comic as Superman. He was also co-created by Gardner Fox, the co-creator of the Justice League. His more well known daughter, Zatanna, is normally shown as a contemporary of the Leaguers.

Cold villains

Four cold based villains are shown to showcase the four sidekicks, but the details of why they are attacking is not elaborated upon. They are all from the comics.

• Mister Freeze in Gotham City. “My family has other plans” could relate to his wife – Nora – who is in a cryogenic sleep after an unfortunate accident/disease. The processed voice makes me think of the Arnold Schwarzenegger Freeze from Batman and Robin.
• Icicle Jr. in Star City. Doesn’t identify himself, but he looks like the second Icicle (Cameron Mahkent, the son of the golden age villain). The original was an opponent of the Golden Age Green Lantern. Speedy calls him “junior” which may show that he is indeed the second Icicle on this Earth.
• Killer Frost in Pearl Harbor. Again she doesn’t identify herself, but this looks like the second Killer Frost (Louise Lincoln), but it’s hard to be sure because the comic book version changes her appearance so often. This particular look, with the darker blue hair, resembles the spunkier Frost from Justice League Unlimited.
• Captain Cold in Central City. A classic Flash villain from the Rogues Gallery. “Stealing ice.” – ice would be slang for diamonds. Is it my imagination of the villainous Captain putting on a little weight in this universe.

Misc

• One of the crowd makes the old quip about why isn’t the sidekick called Speedy the Flash’s sidekick.
• Speedy says the League used a Zeta-Beam transporter – this is the teleportation beam that Adam Strange uses to get back and forth to Rann.
• The Shozer of Water? I really can’t understand Zatara’s accent. Apparently it’s the “Sorcerer Wotan”. The Amulet of Aten – Aten was an Egyptian Sun God.
• The name of Project Cadmus’s above ground offices is “Cadmus Advanced Laborabory Research.
• Project Krypton is on sub-level 52. That number has taken on special meaning in the DC Universe since the year-long series 52. The meaning of the number was a mystery until the final issue revealed that it was the number of parallel-universes in the DC Multiverse. The Earth shown in this cartoon, Earth-16, is in one of those parallel-universes. That means that the version of the DC Universe shown in Young Justice is part of the canonical DC Multiverse – the system of parallel universes that make up DC’s core comic-book publishing platform.

I’ll leave all the Cadmus/Superboy stuff until part two.

Characters

Feature Characters

Young Justice

• Aqualad (Kaldur’ahm, first Earth-16 appearance)
• Kid Flash (Wally West, first Earth-16 appearance)
• Robin (Dick Grayson, first Earth-16 appearance)
• Superboy (first Earth-16 appearance )

Supporting Cast

The Justice League

• Aquaman (first Earth-16 appearance, Security Code 06 )
• Batman (first Earth-16 appearance, Security Code 02)
• Flash (first Earth-16 appearance, Security Code 04)
• Green Arrow (first Earth-16 appearance, Security Code 08)
• Green Lantern Hal Jordan (a statue in Hall of Justice entrance)
• Martian Manhunter (first Earth-16 appearance, Security Code 07)
• Red Tornado (first Earth-16 appearance, Security Code 16)
• Superman (first Earth-16 appearance, on monitor screen)
• Zatara (first Earth-16 appearance, on monitor screen)
• Wonder Woman (a statue in Hall of Justice entrance)

Villains

• Mark Desmond (first Earth-16 appearance )
• Wotan (first Earth-16 reference, behind-the-scenes, uses the Amulet of Aten to blot out the Sun and occupy the Justice League )

The Cold Villains

• Captain Cold (first Earth-16 appearance )
• Icicle Jr (first Earth-16 appearance )
• Killer Frost (first Earth-16 appearance )
• Mister Freeze (first Earth-16 appearance )

Guest Stars

• Speedy (first Earth-16 appearance, does not join Young Justice)

Other Characters

• Dr Spence (first Earth-16 appearance, the woman who accidentally lets YJ into Project-Kr, named in passing in next episode)
• Dubbilex (first Earth-16 appearance )
• Guardian (first Earth-16 appearance )

Opinion

Highlights

All of it.

Oddities

I have never understood tourists in superhero team’s headquarters.

First Impressions

The Justice League as presented in this cartoon is very recognisable to anybody who had been watching DC cartoons over the years. Aquaman has the beard, Green Arrow has the heart, Batman’s hardass, and the Flash is the one with the sense of humour. None of it is extreme enough to make any of them a central character, but it’s all deft enough that you don’t have to think about their characterisation. You know who they are and can focus your attention on the new characters.

The inclusion of these four sidekicks and the loss of one of them was an interesting red-herring that probably worked best if you hadn’t read too much about the line-up. I found the new Aqualad to be an interesting character. His relationship with Aquaman is far more formal, less familiar than the other sidekicks. He’s the one with something to prove, he’s also the one with the biggest claim to be leader. Nevertheless, it’s Robin who makes the running for most of this episode. He’s the inquisitive one and the one with the skills to drive the plot forward. This Robin is as cocky as the Teen Titans Robin, but is a bit more charming with it.

The animation is brilliant. The style is very familiar from the DC DVD series, but it appears richer here. The background in particular are rich and atmospheric.

Changes

• 2010-12-06 – Added Ask Greg credits.

Jerry Whitworth a sometime contributor and commenter to this site sent me a link to a Batman and Robin parody by Channel Flip (a UK based internet tv/video station for the 18-30 guy market) called The Very Real Adventures of Batman and Robin. In this version of reality Robin is the competent one and Batman, well let’s just say it’s the closest you’re ever going to see to Ricky Gervais playing the Caped Crusader. A very British Batman and Robin.

I’ve heard the Channelflip name before as their head co-founder Wil Harris is a sometime contributor to the This Week in Tech podcast, but I had no idea they were producing stuff like this. This is a series and there are over a dozen short episodes.

[Via: Geek Speak]

Dick Grayson

Dick Grayson is the original Robin, the archetypical sidekick. He first appeared in Detective Comics #38 (April 1940) in a story by Bob Kane, Bill Finger, and Jerry Robinson. Grayson was the orphaned son of murdered trapeze artists. Bruce Wayne identified with Grayson’s plight and offered to become his guardian. Grayson joined Wayne’s crime fighting Batman alter ego as Robin, the Boy Wonder. He possessed a natural acrobatic skill which carried over into his crime-fighting activities. He had a more easy-going and friendly demeanour than his mentor and made friends throughout the superhero community. However, his closest friends were the sidekicks of Batman’s Justice League allies and together they formed their own group, the Teen Titans, with Robin as their leader (The Brave & the Bold vol. 1 #54, July 1964).

Grayson’s relationship with his mentor became strained as he grew to adulthood. He aborted a university education and spent almost all his time with the Titans. A close encounter with the Joker prompted Batman to “announce” Robin’s retirement – Wayne’s attempt to force Grayson into a safer career. However, Dick was unwilling to quit and assumed another identity, the Nightwing (Tales of the Teen Titans #44, July 1984). It is telling that Grayson picked a character from the mythology of Superman’s homeworld and not from the bat/robin iconography of Batman’s world. Nightwing was successful, both as leader of the Titans and as an independent hero. In time the rift between Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson healed and Dick became an older brother to Tim Drake, his successful successor as Robin.

Batman was pivotal in Darkseid’s defeat during the Final Crisis. The New God’s last spiteful action was to throw Bruce Wayne through time with the Omega Effect. All of Wayne’s friends and allies (except for Tim Drake) believed him dead. Dick quit the Titans after Bruce died (Titans #11, May 200), closed down his secret identity as a museum curator in New York (Nightwing #152-153, March-April 2009) and devoted himself to the growing crisis in Gotham City. The power vacuüm created in Gotham City by Batman’s absence almost tore the city apart and Jason Todd – another ex-Robin – sought to fill that vacuum by becoming a new bloodthirsty Batman. Dick clung on to his Nightwing identity, until his confrontation with Todd finally forced him to accept that Batman was too deeply engrained into Gotham City’s psyche to let die (Batman: Battle for the Cowl #1-3, May-July 2009).

Grayson worked to make the world believe that Batman was still alive. He even warned the JLA about trying to honour Batman’s passing. He told them “The criminals [...] need to think he can’t die. They need to still think he’s out there. Batman lives. Always.” (Batman #687, Aug 2009). Not only did the world not know that Batman had died, but they also didn’t know that Bruce Wayne was dead. Just before Batman “died” the villain Hush had himself surgically altered to look like Wayne as part of a foiled scheme. With Wayne gone, Hush now found himself kept on a short leash by Alfred Pennyworth and Grayson. For the time being they have allowed Hush to continue posing as Bruce Wayne as it served their own purposes (Streets of Gotham #1-3, Aug-Oct 2009).

Grayson moved the Batman’s base of operations to the Bunker beneath the Wayne Foundation building and created a new Batmobile with flight capabilities. Grayson’s Batman was more visible that the original and was noted by commentators as being more vocal. He did adopt some of Wayne’s grimness, but that didn’t totally subdue his older persona. He confessed to Alfred,

I’ve always known what I’d do if.. if anything happened to Bruce. I just didn’t want to face it. That was my worst, worst nightmare when I was a kid. This is what kept we awake at 3.30 AM. As long as I was Nightwing I could pretend that I’d never have to take over as Batman. I could act as if he’d always be around.

Dick Grayson (Batman and Robin #1, Aug 2009, written by Grant Morrison).

Grayson’s Batman was going to take on Damian Wayne (Bruce’s son with Ra’s Al Ghul’s daughter) as the new Robin. This left Tim Drake (Bruce Wayne’s Robin) feeling alienated. Drake had refused to accept that Bruce was dead and, knowing that he would have to break some rules, assumed the identity of Red Robin (one of Jason Todd’s multitude of aliases) in order to stop any come back from causing problems for Dick and his allies. Tim then left Gotham City to search for clues to Bruce Wayne’s whereabouts and found that the only other person who believed in his crusade was Ra’s Al Ghul and his League of Assassins (Red Robin #1, Aug 2009). Coincidentally Damian Wayne had been trained by the League of Assassins and he had inherited his father and grandfather’s intensity and demeanour. The new Batman and Robin chaffed against each other’s personalities. Damian disobeyed Grayson’s orders while fighting Professor Pyg’s circus troop and was kidnapped. The experience of being saved only slightly softened Damian’s demeanour, but he at least started to obey Grayson’s orders (Batman and Robin #1-3, Aug-Oct 2009).

Dick had to prove himself during the weeks following “Batman”‘s return. Two-Face, the Penguin, and Black Mask each sought to control crime in Gotham, but Two-Face, who had tangled with Nightwing just before Batman’s death, thought he recognised the new Batman. He even managed to break into the old Batcave, but a ruse by Alfred and Grayson managed to convince him that Grayson was indeed the real Batman (Batman #688-691, Sept-Early Dec 2009). The other claimant to the Batman cowl, Jason Todd, returned as the Red Hood, an even more lethal vigilante with his own sidekick called Scarlet (one of the girls defaced by Pyg). Todd argued that Grayson’s Batman couldn’t replace Bruce, but he ended up having to save Todd from a legendary hitman called the Flamingo (Batman and Robin #4-6, Nov 2009-Jan 2010).

Why does Dick deserve to be in the Justice League? Because he deserves to be Batman. Because he’s been in the League before. Because he’s led the League when Batman has been dead before (Joe Kelly’s “Obsidian Age” storyline). Even before that he was part of one of the UN’s Justice League Task Forces. As Nightwing he has been on the League’s radar of potential members for quite some time, but he has declined at least three offers of membership. The first when the “Big Seven” were enlarging the League (JLA Secret Files #2, 1998) and then when there was an aborted attempt to rebuild the League immediately before the Infinite Crisis (JLA #121, Dec 2005). Most recently when Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman were building a list of potential members in “The Tornado Path” they considered offering Nightwing membership. Superman and other League founders were in favour, but Batman noted that he’d already asked Nightwing and that he had declined.

Everything changed with Bruce Wayne’s death. It has taken time for Dick to get use to his new role as Batman and everything attached to that (sidekick, Gotham, team-ups, etc). He’s already had his first team-up with Superman so Batman’s seat with the Justice League is the last part of his inheritance from Bruce Wayne. The unresolved question about Dick Grayson’s attachment to the League is whether he’s going to end up as its leader. He’s led practically every other group he’s been associated with and there isn’t another clear leader in the League’s new line-up.