Static Shock 1.02

Aftershock

Virgil and Richie run into Francis, unexpectedly, and discover that he too has developed super powers. Francis' powers allow him to genereate and throw flames. Virgil changes into Static and takes on Francis, who doesn't have a uniform but calls himself Hot Streak. Static is losing the fight when some firemen step in and hose Hot Streak down.

Virgil and Richie go to a city council meeting with Mr. Hawkins, Virgil's father. Virgil and Richie suspect that the mayor knows more than she is letting on about the gas explosion that gave Virgil, Francis, and others super powers. They follow her that night and spy on her while she is meeting with Alva, a super rich business man.

Static follows Alva after his meeting with the mayor and overhears him ordering one of his henchmen to destroy their records after making a backup copy. Static gets to Alva's HQ, fights with one of Alva's henchmen, and escapes with the information that Alva wants destroyed.

Static runs into Francis one more time. This time around Static gets the upper hand and defeats Hot Streak.

Thoughts

There are a few terms thrown around in this episode. The first two (mutant and metahuman) I am familiar with. I associate mutant with Marvel Comics and metahuman with DC Comics. The other term that comes up without explanation is bang baby. According to my online research, the bang babies are metahumans who gained their powers from exposure to Quantum Vapor which was developed by Alva Technologies. Static and Hot Streak are bang babies. I can't blame Static for not liking the term and not wanting to believe that he is one.

There are some definite loose ends in this series. It isn't as tightly scripted as the later DCAU shows: Batman Beyond, Justice League, JLU. Unlike some of those shows it feels like it is geared mostly towards kids. I like it but I'm not crazy about these early episodes.

I know that this series was based on a comic book called Static, but I've never read it. My only exposure to the character is through the DCAU.

This series is considered to be part of the DCAU but it doesn't look like Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series or Justice League. I've seen a couple episodes from later seasons. I think the look of the show evolved to be more like the traditional DCAU look than it does in this episode.