Young-Justice-Auld-Acquaintance Television 

Five Thoughts on Young Justice‘s “Auld Acquaintance”

By | November 8th, 2017
Posted in Television | % Comments

Here we are folks the end of the road. The team versus the Justice League as the first season ends and our Summer Binge comes to a close. Let’s dive in!

1. I was the mole

We pick up from last week with Roy on the run from the Justice League after he’s revealed to be the mole. As the team is self-congratulating themselves for all the work they accomplished at the end of last episode, Batman and Red Tornado reveal to them Roy was the mole and he was a Cadmus clone, and that the real Roy Harper is probably dead. It is really interesting that Batman is here in this interaction for the reasons experience in point 5 at the end, namely how could Batman be both at Mount Justice and also be in the missing group of Leaguers from the 16 hours, but I digress. The team splits. The battle begins. The suspense is building.

2. “Red built this body to party”

As half the team tries to find Roy, the other half transfers his conscious to his sex robot body from a few episodes ago. Rocket’s reaction to this is hilarious, especially since Zatanna is like I mean party and other stuff right (wink wink nudge nudge)? The battle begins as Black Canary shows up and Kaldur’s team finds Roy in a safe house and then everything goes to crap from there as the ragtag group makes it to The Watchtower to confront Vandal Savage. The interactions with Roy and his processing of being a clone here are really interesting, and makes him a sympathetic character for the first time in 26 episodes. It was about time. Also the idea that the tech is “Starro tech” is a fun Easter egg, and I wanna see the real Starro at some point.

3. The Battle of The Watchtower

First off, let me just say that the miraculous off screen cure the team comes up with by name dropping most of the scientists that have appeared on the show is really convenient. But comics. And the fight makes up for it.

It is awesome to see the team earn their keep and take down the League. From the stealth mode of the first few take downs of Plastic Man, Captain Atom, and the like, to the later fights it’s some really great stuff. The airlock bit is really cool. Zatanna trying to remove the Helm of Fate is really sad. All of the Batman v Robin, Superman v Superboy and Miss Martian v Martian Manhunter is handled really well and just showcases how much more powerful the team could be than the League, and why The Light felt them to be such a threat. Weird note, how does Wonder Woman get dispatched? We never come back to her and Rocket. She’s not the only Leaguer that we don’t see get cured, but it’s odd to me that Robin and Rocket are fighting her and then we switch to a different fight scene. Robin pulling Kryptonite on Superman was dope, and getting back to the puns is worth it. Whelmingly penetrable vaults. Priceless. All in all an epic fight, and while the team is seemingly OP in parts, it makes sense then can beat a mind controlled not fully functioning Justice League.

4. “Human customs still elude me

The fallout of the battle and the New Years kisses from everyone are adorable. Finally we get Wally and Artemis! Miss M and Superboy are still adorable. Robin and Zatanna is really funny, and even Rocket and Aqualad get in on the action. This is a very close group of teenagers it seems haha. The rest of the fallout with Superboy and Superman is a well-earned point as well, as Supes is finally no longer a dick and more like the real Clark Kent. The recognition the team gets is some great stuff before the season 2 plot set up.

5. The Light goes on

As Vandal and Klarion leave the Watchtower, Vandal remarks it’s time for phase 2. The mind controlling of the League was still only a cog in the larger plan for The Light. It is insane to me to think that that body of villains could continue to outsmart the Justice League and create something bigger and more awesome than what they set out to do in these 26 episodes. But they do, and it’s great.

Continued below

Most of this has to do with the missing 16 hours where Superman, Batman (who knows how), Wonder Woman, John Stewart, Martian Manhunter, and Hawkwoman go missing, Zeta tubed to some unknown location. We don’t know where are why, and this sets up the mystery of the next season as Batman questions what have we done? The other two bits, the ransacking of Cadmus and the making off with Project Match (the Bizarro Superboy) and the reveal that the real Roy is alive and the clone Roy plans to find him, are also cool things that need to be built on. This show does a great job building the suspense. The Light seems almost omnipotent. God this show does villains well.

Well folks we have come to the end of the Summer Binge, just in time for Thanksgiving. This whole season is something to behold as it built to something cool and is building out to something better, and while last episode peaked in terms of quality and this finale stumbled a little, the entire season taken together is some of the finest animated superhero television ever. And it only gets better.

Thank you everyone who tuned in for 26 weeks to hear me ramble. Sound off in the comments below as we wrap up, and come back in 2018 as the third season of this show kicks off on DC’s not-yet-named streaming service.


//TAGS | 2017 Summer TV Binge | Young Justice

Kevin Gregory

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