Saturday, November 20, 2010

DCU Animated Series "Young Justice" coming Nov. 26th

Late Edit 11/30/2010 - I keep getting hits to this post, which I wrote before the show aired. I actually reviewed the show shortly after broadcast.

There hasn't honestly been much in the way of press release stuff to the usual comic outlets about this new show, but that's okay. I get the basic gist of what they're doing, and I like the design. A sort of post "The Batman", post "Bruce Timm-style JLU" look, but building on the sort of classic DCU that the cartoons have been doing better than the comics for all but a year or two in there since Waid left JLA.

While there was value to the recent animated adaptation of Teen Titans to cartoons, I think its smart of DC to tie this new show and the Young Justice team back to the Justice League. Its something adults will appreciate as a teacher/ learner experience, and it gives the younger audience an intro to the DCU with a team of kids on the learning curve (who will, undoubtedly, push back against the adult authority figures and do stuff their own way).

Robin, Aqualad and Superboy

Kid Flash

Miss Martian
Expect the first few episodes to be a bit shaky as the show finds its grounding and its voice.  As much as I love Timm's Batman series, and Justice League series, both of those shows grew in quality each season in animation and storytelling (that said, I think Superman: The Animated Series had a surprisingly good first season, and Batman Beyond, but you could argue BB rode the coattails of the success of other Timm series).

I'm not clear on which version of which characters are in the series.  Superboy is clearly Kon-El (Conner Kent), and Speedy is Roy Harper, but is Robin Tim or Dick Grayson?  Is that Wally or Bart as Kid Flash?  As I am trade waiting on Brightest Day, I don't know the new Aqualad at all, but I'm glad he and Miss Martian (Manhunter's recent new pal) are in the line up.  I'm not sure if we're getting a Wonder Girl, but it seems like I heard we were getting Arrowette, which seems odd.

Given that I haven't been able to stomach Teen Titans since Johns left the title, I'm glad to see someone affiliated with DC is doing something to support the next generation DC characters.  DC Comics certainly has been doing a terrible job of it.

So set your DVR now, people.  7:00 on Nov. 26th, a full hour of DCU.

Our heroes

6 comments:

Simon MacDonald said...

This really does look great. I have to check the PVR to see when it will be showing in Canada.

If I had to guess Wally = Flash, Bart = Kid Flash and Tim = Robin. This would also jive with the Geoff Johns Titans which also featured Ms Martian and Superboy. No idea why they are using Arrowette instead of Wonder Girl.

The League said...

Maybe she seemed line another slugfest superhero along the lines of Kon-El? I don't know. Its very odd, but I am more than willing to give the show a chance. I was always lukewarm on the original Young Justice comic. For some reason it always felt like it was flailing around a bit.

This, of course, already feels like a completely different idea. Sort of "Justice League New Mutants".

Anonymous said...

Young Justice is confirmed to be set on Earth 16 so the continuity is different. Hence, Robin is Dick Grayson and Kid Flash is Wally West. Miss Martian's origin will be different. That's Artemis instead of Arrowette. Supposedly the Justice League in this series is relatively recent and is not based on the JLU continuity. Hence, there is a Hawkman and Hawkwoman together as opposed to the JLU's Hawkwoman solo.

That being said, I can't wait!!!

-NTT

gammaraygus said...

man oh man if shayera hol and john stewart aren't together in young justice series i will scream. lol

The League said...

Well, I don't think its the same continuity, so you can likely expect Shayera to be with Carter Hall (or one of the variations on that name). So get a towel or something to scream into, 'cause I am afraid that continuing the John/ Shayera love story isn't going to happen here.

Frankly, I was bummed when I saw their choice of Lanterns was Hal (who I do like, but...), and then I saw John show up, too. So its the best option in a lot of ways. JLU made me a fan of John, and I really hope the new movie sets John up well for the sequel (he is in the film, from what I've read).

gammaraygus said...

well i'll be crying into said towel. lol. yeah i had the exact same reaction when i saw hal first as well. i know it sounds extreme, but i literally groaned outloud until i saw john. then i saw hawkgirl and cheered until i saw hawkman. would be sweet if she starts out with carter but still ends up with john. lol. oh well, i can dream...