We get a good look at Atlantean life today in our look at the eighth episode of Young Justice as we get a much needed spotlight on Kaldur and the struggles of being Aqualad. This is one of the coolest looks at Atlantis and the underwater realm of the DCU I’ve ever encountered. Let’s dive in (pun intended)!
1. Batman’s best when he’s not a dick
So the episode opens with Batman having to bail the team out from a battle with Clayface in Gotham and of course he takes care of him in like 5 seconds even though the whole team is battered and beaten on the ground below. Batman rightly blames Aqualad for his poor leadership and his distractedness claiming that the whole team could’ve been killed. He then encourages him to visit Atlantis, to cool his head and to realize he can split his time between both. What this really showcases is a Batman who is blunt and direct, but not a dick. He comes from a place of warmth and caring and is the stern but loving mentor.
This same sense of caring comes again later as Batman realizes Dick is upset since he just chews Aquaman out and treats him like the leader rather than also including Dick in the discussion. When Batman sees this he pulls Dick away from training to challenge him to a one-on-one game of basketball. This really hits the tone of Batman well as the larger than life dark figure, but also a genuine one. It’s a tone I wish the DCU would pick up in more in the comics that I think James Tynion IV does well and is doing in “Detective” but tom King writes Batman like he injects pain into his body like heroin. Bruce can be both damaged and caring and it’s the best.
2. Aquaman and Mera
The other characters I think the show really nails down is Aquaman and Mera. Aquaman in this episode is regal and majestic and not a joke (as he should be). He is referred to in this episode many times as King Orin, which is a name I forgot was his Atlantean one since I think most people refer to him as Arthur rather than Orin. It’s nice to focus more on the regal aspect of the character rather than the human side which I think most writers cling to because it seems easier perhaps? Certainly there are good Aquaman stories of him as human and struggling with the tensions of the surface and Atlantis, but it’s refreshing to see him not have to constantly validate his authority.
Likewise, Mera gets significant treatment in this episode that I think is really cool. I like the idea that her powers are more magic based rather than different because she is an outsider from Xebel. This too is refreshing, like Aquaman above, because she is not treated with an animosity of otherness and gets the same level of distinction. Mera is amazing and I wish she’d get more treatment. If she had a solo series I’d be first in line. Also she’s pregnant! Which again this makes sense if you’re focusing on the royalty, furthering the lineage aspect of the two characters. Always nice to see married superheroes modeling healthy relationships. Not every couple experiences ridiculous conflict.
3. Central City Flashes
So every member of the team gets some downtime in this episode (hence the name) and we get a check up on Wally as he’s celebrating Jay Garrick’s birthday with Jay and Joan, Barry and Iris, and his parents. You get all three speedsters in the same place at the same time showing a Flash lineage. This is super cool and I think again like week after week highlights that this show does continuity and world-building so well, really creating these intimate character beats and episodes, but showing an earth that is so big, populated and lived-in. This season at least is the pinnacle of hope, and really I think does these continuity bits in a way that is not off-putting. Like if this was someone’s introduction to the DCU they would get the idea that Jay, Barry and Wally are all speedsters, mentors and friends, and perhaps this would urge them to take the inevitable Wikipedia continuity plunge to find out more and then perhaps go find comics of these characters. I point this out because this is exactly how I got into comics. I was rewatching this show a few years ago during the summer and realized I spent endless hours researching these characters. I finally just started reading the stories, and well here I am today. That’s what continuity is for, not to be a burden you have to explain a way, but a tool that is fun and calls people to want and crave more.
Continued below4. Don’t leave Miss Martian and Superboy alone…
So this is the most awkward scene perhaps in this whole show. Megan and Superboy are alone in Mount Justice for their downtime as neither have anywhere else to go. Megan starts to make dinner and telekinetically throws a bunch of ingredients at Superboy and then tries to clean him up before wiping his chest down and staring at him and then…cut to them not talking anymore him on the couch covered in egg and flour and her making dinner and Red Tornado having no idea what to make of this scene. It’s a little ambiguous what happens exactly, but based on how far you’re willing to take your mind, well, there’s a lot of subtext that’s all… I mean they are alone in the mountain literally all the time…
5. Poor Kaldur
Finally the crux of the episode is Kaldur’s return to Atlantis and to the king to decide whether or not he should return home full time or remain with the team. What we find out is that his decision to return is based very heavily on his feelings for Tula. Turns out though she’s been seeing Garth for the past two months, basically right since Kaldur left to join the team. You can almost hear Trey Songz’ “Mr. Steal Your Girl” in the background. As this information is made known to Kaldur Atlantis is attacked by Black Manta and Kaldur and Tula run off to defend Mera and the city. By the end of it he teams up with Garth, and pulls a Robin on him leaving him as bait for Manta’s soldiers at one point. That’s kind of vindictive, but perhaps not unwarranted. What I think this shows though is just how honorable Aqualad is. He has received the least amount of character development thus far, but this is really important because it shows him as someone not lacking in character, or character depth, but in fact has so much character and is rich in duty. This is a good first step in taking the camera off Wally and his desire to have sex with literally everything at Mach 3.
Additional thoughts:
– I have never encountered Atlantis being referred to as Poseidonis like it is here, did some research and apparently that is the capital of the Atlantean subcontinent. It’s interesting because I have always seen Atlantis as just one city. I’m sure there’s some older “Aquaman” that touches on this that I’m aware of.
– It’s cool that Garth “summons the power of the tempest,” it’s a nice little callback to the superhero name he’ll eventually take.
– More Gotham Academy references are always needed.
That’s it for this week folks. Sound off in the comments, and check back next week as the team takes that mission to Bialya and not all is as it seems with Megan…
