Young Justice
I really enjoyed the first season of Young Justice. The characterization was well done, staying consistent from episode to episode and arc to arc. Character flaws revealed in one episode would become plot-relevant a few episodes later. Relationships grew and changed over time, always feeling like natural progressions. And although the A-plots were villain-of-the-week, there was a consistent B-plot about the Light's machinations that was delightfully twisty and underhanded.
Then the second season began. I wasn't initially thrilled about the jump in time from one season to the next; abruptly, the team had lost original members and gained new ones, and I wasn't sure who all the new people were. Beast Boy had been foreshadowed in season 1, and we got a lot of chances to get to know Blue Beetle and Lagoon Boy. The other new members (Batgirl, Tim Drake's Robin, Wondergirl, Bumblebee, and Mal Duncan) got less screentime, and I was left feeling that the team was too big for me to feel like a single cohesive family/friends unit, as the first season Young Justice crew had. Instead, the 2nd season team felt like a bunch of teenagers who worked together. Even though I felt the cast of characters got a little too big, I liked seeing so many familiar costumes, or cool new twists on old ones (like Apache Chief, El Dorado, and Samurai, who were icky stereotypes in earlier canon but given more dimension and realism in YJ).
And I loved, loved, LOVED the plots. Blue Beetle's struggle to maintain his identity and personality was handled well. And the twists and turns of the double-cross plot that Nightwing, Miss Martian, Artemis, and Kaldur were involved in have left me consistently breathless. The penultimate episode of the season/series, "Summit," was like one Xanatos Gambit atop another. I love how smart, ethical and controlled Kaldur has been throughout this series. He and Miss Martian have been revelations to me; Kaldur is far more consistently Good than I thought they'd ever let a superhero stay, while Miss Martian is so much more complicated and dark than I assumed from her chipper introduction. I cannot wait to see the season and series finale next week! My only regret is that it will be the last I get of these great characters and wonderful team.
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Then the second season began. I wasn't initially thrilled about the jump in time from one season to the next; abruptly, the team had lost original members and gained new ones, and I wasn't sure who all the new people were. Beast Boy had been foreshadowed in season 1, and we got a lot of chances to get to know Blue Beetle and Lagoon Boy. The other new members (Batgirl, Tim Drake's Robin, Wondergirl, Bumblebee, and Mal Duncan) got less screentime, and I was left feeling that the team was too big for me to feel like a single cohesive family/friends unit, as the first season Young Justice crew had. Instead, the 2nd season team felt like a bunch of teenagers who worked together. Even though I felt the cast of characters got a little too big, I liked seeing so many familiar costumes, or cool new twists on old ones (like Apache Chief, El Dorado, and Samurai, who were icky stereotypes in earlier canon but given more dimension and realism in YJ).
And I loved, loved, LOVED the plots. Blue Beetle's struggle to maintain his identity and personality was handled well. And the twists and turns of the double-cross plot that Nightwing, Miss Martian, Artemis, and Kaldur were involved in have left me consistently breathless. The penultimate episode of the season/series, "Summit," was like one Xanatos Gambit atop another. I love how smart, ethical and controlled Kaldur has been throughout this series. He and Miss Martian have been revelations to me; Kaldur is far more consistently Good than I thought they'd ever let a superhero stay, while Miss Martian is so much more complicated and dark than I assumed from her chipper introduction. I cannot wait to see the season and series finale next week! My only regret is that it will be the last I get of these great characters and wonderful team.
This entry was originally posted at http://wealhtheow.dreamwidth.org/13035.html. Please comment there using OpenID.