Justice League/Justice League Unlimited Animated Series

[Mania Pipe]

Hi everyone! I was watching an episode of Justice League "Tabula Rasa" and that put me in the mood to start this topic talking about not just the original Justice League animated series, but also Justice League Unlimited.

 

Justice League (2001 - 2004)

 

Created by the combined might of Bruce Timm and Paul Dini, these two were worked on   Batman: the Animated Series  ,  Superman: the Animated Series  and Batman Beyond. This band of superheroes travel around trying to stop super villains from wreck ing shit up both on Earth and across the galaxies. I remember seeing this show for the first time on Cartoon Network back in 2001 and This had me excited because it was a show that had Batman and Superman fighting together almost 24/7, along with other members; Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern (John Stewart), Martian Manhunter and Hawkgirl.

 

Oh, I can't forget about the intro theme:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQ-GAxE6RD4

 

Such a triumph intro theme, like the rise of a few superheroes...

 

But next up is the sequel to the original series:

 

Justice League Unlimited (2004 - 2006)

 

The sequel to Justice League, this show expands upon the members of the Justice League become a big crime fighting organization save the galaxies from trouble. I like to think of this as Super Friends, but with more a mature and modern version feel to it. It was even more of a blast to watch than the previous series as there are a majorly episodes that actually shift the focus on members that aren't Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern and Hawkgirl. Probably one of my favorite episode was with Booster Gold in "The Greatest Story Never Told." The reason why is becasue it's focusing a superhero who people don't seem to think he's that great, but when a huge problem arises and the other Justice League members are nowhere in sight, he's the only one to take the job and save the day. The show starts to get really serious down the line during latter half when the events from Justice League finally come into play.

 

Also, this opening theme is just pure awesome:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb5wZ7ZPXdA

 

Unlike the original's intro theme where it had a 'heroes rising to glory' feel to it, this one's intro theme is more like a 'new age of heroes is beginning!' feel.

 

Paul Dini and Bruce Timm's previous works, I really like how they still manage to handle the adult themes rather well while still remembering that it's a kids' show and also being something that both kids and older audiences can enjoy. These two, along with the other shows I just listed way above, were one of the main reasons why I love DC animated TV shows so much and like getting a kick out of them. God I love these shows so much...

 

Well anyway, what are your thoughts and feelings about the Justice League animated series? What were your experiences with them? You can post in detail if you like to.

[Tornado]

The only thing I didn't like about this show (aside from the awful 3D animation cheaped out on in early episodes) is the attempt to end it (and the DCAU as a whole) with a finale for Batman Beyond. Now, I (eventually) loved Batman Beyond, weakest entry in the canon or not. And the episode itself was fantastic as a standalone episode. A perfect ending to the Cadmus story even though it technically wasn't; and the best Amanda Waller episodes in a show that already wrote her better than anything else.

But Batman Beyond fit less and less with the rest of the DCAU as Justice League went on and fleshed out the overall character/story arcs of the DCAU more and more; unless you boil down Batman Beyond to the pilot, Return of the Joker and Epilogue. That's not entirely (though by design the show does shoulder most of the blame) a fault with Batman Beyond so much as the fact that Batman Beyond was a direct sequel to Batman: TAS and Justice League basically overwrote the implied bits between the two shows; but if I had to choose one I would certainly choose the latter. It was kind of like how Men in Black III completely threw out the implied backstory of the first two movies for a better written and explicit one that still... doesn't entirely fit. That's a middling complaint, though.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, fuck Static Shock.

[Ryannumber1gamer]

I didn't get to see much of Justice League Unlimited mostly due to the fact that when it came on, I was really young and wasn't really into superhero shows instead watching stuff like Dexter's Lab, Powerpuff Girls, HiHiPuffyAmiYumi, Codename KND, Courage, Foster's home for Imaginary Friends etc. In fact, I think the only two superhero shows I even watched at that time was Teen Titans (Because even then, Robin was one of my favourite characters), and one of the Spider-Man cartoons and Loonatics Unleashed if it counts.

 

Although I did manage to see the original Justice League due to it now being on Kix! along with some of the DVDs had come out here in the UK. Out of the episodes I've seen, My personal favourite has to be Starcrossed the Movie. I loved that movie so much, including the teamwork in it, the comedy, the romance and drama between GL and Hawkgirl and I think that ending with GL breaking down into tears as Hawkgirl flies off, believing she isn't good enough for the JL anymore is heartbreaking. While I won't go in depth here, It truly is one of the best DC movies and one that deserves a watch along side Batman of the Future/Beyond Return of the Joker and Batman Mask of the Phantasm.

[Da Blu Hedgie]

Oh yeah these shows were fantastic, still are actually, in txt the fact nearly every episode had 2 parts in the first arc kinda makes it like the straight to DVD DC movies we've been receiving now. I don't recall much from this series as I was quite young (well too young to care about plot) to bother with this series, but being reminded of it again, I gotta go watch this series on Netflix. PS the entire series and every season is on Netflix.

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

Also, fuck Static Shock.

ಠ_ಠ

 

Gilda, you motherfucker-

 

But anyway, what I really like of this show was how well balanced it was with the characters. Aside from special occasions that called in the whole League during the first two seasons, the dominant character of a story shifted and allowed everyone to shine while acknowledging their daily lives. Felt like an actual breathing world where the characters were more like people.

 

And the writing just seems absolutely timeless. I mean, ten years later and it's like the dialogue hasn't aged a bit when I go back to rewatch it. That's saying a lot compared to Justice League War which doesn't exactly hold up in the writing as well. Plus, Superman's "World of Cardboard" speech makes you really understand why Superman seems to be easily slapped around during fights, since he's holding back for good reason.

 

With Unlimited, I really love how they give even obscure characters were given screentime and prominence. There's like several dozen different heroes, and while some are still obscure they get more recognition here than would if they just remained in the comics.

 

This animated series is practically what I consider to be the standard for any DC verse when it comes to the characters and the writing. It's just that good, and it says a lot that I was never a fan of comic book superheroes at the time until this show came around and made them interesting enough for me to look back into. Supeman's animated series and the character were boring to me, but after watching this show I went back and found it interesting. It's a weird story.

[Chaos Incarnate]

This show was my childhood, man. Take basically everything that I love about what makes Comic Books and Animation so fun, blend them together, you get Justice League (or Unlimited, to be specific, as it's the high point of the show for me).

 

Looking back on it, it was just such an easy to show to get in to, with A grade writing, a phenomenal cast of characters consisting of favorites new and old (The Question and Huntress >3333), and a pitch perfect finale to the DC animated universe as a whole. This is one of the few animated superhero shows that knew how to balance tone and having a fun time with itself perfectly. I absolutely adore it, aside from one teensy little tid bit.

 

Look, I'm glad we got some closure on Batman Beyond and all, but am I the only person that absolutely hates what it did to Terry? The whole genetic clone of Batman arc felt frankly unneeded, it did nothing to enhance his character, and it kinda felt like it went against what made Batman Beyond so special: when a hero is out of commission, anyone can be Batman if they've got the heart to do it. It took away everything that made Terry so relatable, and I feel like it was added in so Cadmus could easily tie both shows together. 

[Mania Pipe]

Look, I'm glad we got some closure on Batman Beyond and all, but am I the only person that absolutely hates what it did to Terry? The whole genetic clone of Batman arc felt frankly unneeded, it did nothing to enhance his character, and it kinda felt like it went against what made Batman Beyond so special: when a hero is out of commission, anyone can be Batman if they've got the heart to do it. It took away everything that made Terry so relatable, and I feel like it was added in so Cadmus could easily tie both shows together. 

 

I found that boggling too, why would they decide to change Terry's origin to be a clone of Batman? There wasn't any other reason for them to do that except to tie the shows together, just like you said. The flashback in the episode should've been the actual episode itself and just left Batman Beyond out of it.

 

 

Also, fuck Static Shock.

 

Are you talking about the show or the character?