Young Justice 1.26

Auld Acquaintance

Red Arrow is on the run from the Justice League who are all being controlled by Vandal Savage, Klarion the Witch Boy, and other villains using Starro Tech. Batman tells Young Justice to not go after Red Arrow. After Batman leaves Red Tornado stops functioning. The team of young heroes investigates and figure out that something is wrong with the League.

Young Justice 1.25

Usual Suspects

Act 1: The Justice League inducts 5 new members into their ranks: Plasticman, Icon, the Atom, Red Arrow, and Dr. Fate. The Heroes of Young Justice watch the public ceremony from a distance. There is one new member of their team, Rocket. They get an alert and depart before they get a chance to congratulate the new team members.

Young Justice 1.24

Performance

Most of the team goes undercover to find a thief. Led by Robin, the team (which also includes Miss Martian, Superboy, Red Arrow, and Artemis) joins Haly's Circus as it travels through Europe. Kid Flash shows up briefly but is not with them. Aqualad and Zatanna are completely absent from this episode.

Young Justice 1.23

Insecurity

Green Arrow and Artemis team up to catch Black Spider, a villain who reminds me a lot of Spider-Man. Red Arrow shows up after the fight is over. He sticks around to chat with Green Arrow, while Artemis heads back to the cave. She gets there via a teleportation box that looks a lot like the TARDIS. Green Arrow tells Red Arrow that it is just a matter of time before he will be offered membership in the Justice League but before that can happen they need him to join Young Justice.

Young Justice 1.22

Agendas

Superboy gets a summons from Lex Luthor. He secretly goes to meet him in Washington, DC. Luthor tells Conner that Project Cadmus has built another clone of Superman, a better clone. Conner goes to investigate and finds that it is true. He fights Match, the other clone, who seems very much like Conner was early on. He is full of rage. Conner tries to reason with him but Match just wants to destroy him. Conner eventually comes around to the idea that they need to keep him locked up.

Young Justice 1.21

Image

A subset of the team is sent to the border region of Bialya and Qurac. The leader of Qurac has announced that he is going to abdicate and hand over control of the country to Queen Bee, the ruler of Bialya. Robin leads the mission and is accompanied by Miss Martian, Kid Flash, and Superboy. The team arrives in Qurac just in time to see Bialyan troops cross the border into Qurac. The young heroes rescue Sandra Stanyon, a veterinarian and former actress. She and her son almost get trampled by a pack of wildebeests. She bears a striking resemblance to Miss Martian, minus the green skin.

Miss Martian recognizes Ms. Stanyon because she modeled herself after her. She watched her TV show, Hello Megan! before she came to Earth. Miss Martian doesn't actually look like she has presented herself. That is just a form she has assumed. Her true form is revealed later in the episode when she battles Psimon. This is their second battle. The first occurred in 1.09 (Bereft) when the team woke up in Bialya and couldn't remember who they were or how they got there.

The guys (Robin, Superboy, Kid Flash) hang out with Garfield, Sandra's son, while Megan helps Ms. Stanyon repair the damage to her property. Gar immediately points out how strange it is that Miss Martian looks just like a younger version of her mother with green skin. He shows them a video of Hello Megan! which shocks them. The girl on the show looks just like Miss Martian and her boyfriend's name is Conner, just like Superboy.

They don't have much time to think about it when Bialyan troops attack. Garfield is injured. Miss Martian is able to give him a blood transfusion by mimicking type O negative blood. Garfield recovers. There doesn't seem to be any side effects to the transfusion. In the credits Garfield's last name is revealed Logan. Garfield Logan in the comic books is the secret identity of the green skinned Beast Boy (aka Changeling).

The heroes go to the capital of Qurac and rescue the leader who is being held prisoner. The villains have technology from Apokolips. Miss Martian battles Psimon who gets into her head, finds out what she really looks like and what her greatest fears are. Her teammates show up in the middle of the fight. She brain blasts them for fear that Psimon will show them what she really looks like. Later she tells them that it was Psimon that brain blasted them. Once her teammates have been knocked out Miss Martain defeats Psimon and with her teammates restores the situation in Qurac. Queen Bee shows up at the end of the episode and reveals that before Miss Martian brain blasted Psimon he shared Miss Martian's secrets. She uses that and an implied threat of violence against young Garfield to keep M'Gann from attacking her.

After the fighting is over the guys ask Miss Martian what she really looks like. I thought that was a rude question. If she wanted to share with them it's one thing but she shouldn't have been pressured by her teammates to reveal more about herself than she is comfortable sharing. She doesn't feel comfortable enough with them and just changes into a bald version of the form she currently holds.

This is one of those episodes that I recall being a major turning point. The big reveal is Miss Martian's real form. There have been little hints and clues dropped up to this point but this episode lays a lot of cards on the table. It is now clear that Miss Martian has a secret that she doesn't feel comfortable sharing with her teammates. It gives her something in common with Artemis who also has a secret: the real identity of her father and sister. This makes the show that much more interesting to me and it will have an impact on the rest of the season.

This isn't a perfect episode. I think it can be picked apart but I love the way it unfolds and the groundwork it lays for future developments.

Young Justice 1.20

Coldhearted

It is Wally's birthday. There's a major snowstorm blanketing the United States. The team throws a surprise party for him. He's all excited about getting a kiss from M'Gann. She disappoints him by kissing him on the forehead. Artemis then points out to him how chummy M'Gann and Conner are and he is able to see what he didn't see before. It was just two episodes ago that Artemis had her hopes about Conner dashed when Zatanna pointed out the same thing to her.

The Justice League calls on the younger heroes to help out with a nationwide disaster. Five floating snow machines are dumping snow across the country. All the team members (including Zatanna) are teamed up with Leaguers, except Kid Flash. He is tasked with traveling cross-country to deliver a donor heart to a 10-year-old girl on the west coast.

Wally is fairly cocky and stops along the way to fight Vandal Savage. He doesn't have time to complete the fight and leaves once he realizes he is wasting precious time. He arrives at the hospital in Seattle, WA in time but then gets fooled into handing the donor heart over to a bad guy. He has to fight Count Vertigo in order to get it back.

All in all a very good, very Kid Flash focused episode. He isn't my favorite member of the team but he is ultimately shown to be more three dimensional than he often seems.

Young Justice 1.19

Misplaced

Klarion the Witch Boy leads a group of sorcerers in casting a spell that seems to get rid of all the adults in the world. It takes a little while for the young heroes (all the regulars plus Zatanna) to figure out what happened. Captain Marvel turns out to be the key. He is Billy Batson when the adults disappear. When turns into Captain Marvel he discovers himself in a world without kids. By changing back and forth he is able to relay messages between the two teams. In the case of the Justice League that means just Batman, Red Tornado, and Zatara because all other League members are off dealing with other emergencies.

The teams converge on Roanoke Island, where the evil sorcerers are casting their spell. The heroes, young and adult, throw what they can at the evil sorcerers but the tide doesn’t turn until Zatanna dons the helmet of Nabu. She defeats Klarion and the other evil doers but Nabu refuses to release her. It isn’t until Zatara promises to take her place that Nabu agrees to let Zatanna go.

The episode ends with Zatanna moving to Happy Harbor to live with the other young heroes. She would probably be happy with getting to live with them if it weren’t for the fact that she lost her father to Nabu.

The very end of the episode shows a meeting of villains, including Klarion, the Brain, Monsieur Mallah, and Sportsmaster. It is here that it is finally revealed that the sorcerers attack was merely a diversion. The real goal was to steal the remains of the of the giant starfish from 1.08 (Downtime).

Pretty good episode. I was confused until the very end as to what the end goal was for the villainous magic-users.

Young Justice 1.18

Secrets

Wally, M'Gann, and Conner go to a Halloween Dance at the school they go to. Most of the other students they have run into before are there: Wendy, Marvin, Karen, Mal. Artemis and Zatanna were all set to join them until Zatanna points out how M'Gann and Conner are an item now. Artemis loses all interest in going. Instead she and Zatanna ditch their Halloween costumes and go fight some crime.

Robin and Aqualad have a meeting with Batman, Red Arrow, and Red Tornado about who the potential mole on the team might be. Aqualad is ready to conclude that there is no mole. Red Arrow isn't so quick to reach that conclusion. He points out that Artemis isn't Green Arrow's niece like she claimed to be. Robin knows who she is but Batman keeps him from saying too much. Red Arrow also points out that Martian Manhunter may be related to M'Gann but they only met for the first time 5 months ago. Batman is wary of Superboy and what Cadmus might have put in his head.

Artemis and Zatanna ride around on motorcycles beating up armed robbers for a while until they come across a supernatural bad guy. His name is Harm. He stole a magic sword, the Sword of Beowulf, at the beginning of the episode. Neither Artemis' arrows nor Zatanna's magic seems to be capable of doing anything more than distracting him. They encounter a ghost while they are running and trying to figure out what to do about Harm.

The ghost eventually leads them to her grave. She turns out to be Harm's younger sister. He killed her in a ritual sacrifice to gain his powers. The ghost helps them defeat Harm and robs him of his supernatural abilities.

I recall when I first watched this episode I didn't really get interested until they got to the reveal at the end. It was just so creepy. The part at the dance was boring. The meeting with Aqualad and Robin and the Leaguers was good but a very small part of the episode. It was the Artemis and Zatanna story that gives this episode some heft. Not a great episode but a very good one.

Young Justice 1.17

Disordered

Black Canary plays counselor and talks to each of the team members one-on-one about the training sceario gone wrong, see 1.16 (Failsafe). Superboy is the first and last sit down with Black Canary. He stomps off the first time and goes on a trip with Wolf and Sphere. Sphere transforms into a flying cycle that is big enough to carry both Superboy and Wolf.

The Forever People, a group of young heroes from New Genesis, arrive on Earth looking for technology stolen from their planet. Sphere, unbeknownst to Superboy, is from New Genesis. The Forever People catch up to Superboy and thinking he stole the New Genisphere (as they call it) insist that he return it to them at once. Mother Box, the Forever People's hand held device, sees the situation for what it is and let's them know that they are making a mistake: Superboy did not steal Sphere.

Superboy and the Forever People then go on a mission to recover other stolen technology. Mother Box leads them to a construction site where they battle some criminals from Earth who are using a combination of technology from New Genesis and Apokolips. The criminals' benefactor is revealed to be DeSaad, chief torturer of Apokolips. The Forever People combine to create Infinity Man but Desaad counters by using a Father Box to bend Infinity Man to his will. Infinity Man turns on Superboy.

Sphere solves the problem by reshaping and attaching itself to Infinity Man's head. Superboy jumps on sphere are uses it to control Infinity Man to defeat Desaad and the other bad guys.

Throughout this episode, while Superboy is off having an adventure with the Forever People, Black Canary is shown meeting with the other members of the team, one by one. Artemis doesn't want to speak to Black Canary. Aqualad questions whether he should be leading the team. At first he thinks he should resign but then he reconsiders and withdraws his resignation because he doesn't think any of the others is up to the task. Robin admits that he has come to the realization that he no longer wants to be Batman. He isn’t about to give up being a superhero but he no longer looks up to Batman the way he used to. Miss Martian talks about no longer wanting to use her powers. Kid Flash spends his time with Black Canary acting as if nothing is wrong.

I like the balance between the counseling sessions and Superboy's adventure. It would have been nice if the Forever People could have been fleshed out a little more but in order to do that I think they would have needed another episode or two to get the job done. This is not my favorite episode but it I like it a lot.

Young Justice 1.16

Failsafe

This is one of those episodes. I mean that in a good way. It is one of those episodes that you have to give yourself over to. Sink in to it. It seems a little crazy but it in the end it works out.

The team watches as the Justice League are killed fighting off an alien invasion. The team heads to the Fortress of Solitude to intercept some of the aliens. They fight the aliens with more success than the League but Artemis is killed. They head back to the United States where they join forces with the troops led by General Wade Eiling. Aqualad is killed as they attempt to escape an alien attack on the Hall of Justice. Robin and Kid Flash make a discovery that hints that their dead friends may not be dead after all but prisoners who were teleported instead of vaporized.

The team launches an assault on the mother ship in the hopes that they will be able to liberate their friends and others. The mother ship is destroyed but Superboy, Kid Flash, and Robin are killed in the fight. This leaves just Miss Martian and Martian Manhunter, who appeared to have been killed earlier in the episode but then mysteriously showed up at the Hall of Justice. This part of the episode ends with J'onn killing M'Gann which causes her to wake up

Miss Martian discovers that the whole episode up to this point was a training scenario engineered by Martian Manhunter. It was done by mind-melding the team members together. It got out of hand when Artemis was "killed". Miss Martian forgot that it was all a training scenario at that point and really believed she had been killed. It wasn't until all the others had been eliminated from the scenario that Martian Manhunter was able to reassert control and end it.

This is crazy to watch for the first time without any knowledge of what's going on. My recollection is that I knew something was up but I didn't guess exactly what it was. I thought it was a dream. It is also cool because the stakes seem so high even though something seems off considering how quickly and easily the League is killed off.

There are some moments and transitions that didn't make sense to me. Everything was moving so fast that I just went with it. It is hard to say looking back if those moments are badly written or rushed because of time constraints.

An incidental character (Jason Bard) is introduced by name. The name sounded familiar so I looked him up. I don't recall reading any stories in which he appeared but he does have a history in the DC Universe. He seems to have been a recurring character in Detective Comics and Batman (1969-1984) and then later (1999-2009) in Birds of Prey, Batgirl: Year One, and Robin.

Overall this is a much watch episode for me. I don't recall what fallout or follow up there is in subsequent episodes.

I talked about this episode on episode 52 of Dave Talks Comics (11/02/14).

Young Justice 1.15

Humanity

Zatara vists the cave with Zatanna, his teenage age daughter. The team is still pissed at the League over what happened with Red Tornado in 1.12 (Home Front), mostly because the League doesn't want them to get involved despite their relationship with the android superhero. The team sneaks out behind the backs of the few League members (Zatara, Black Canary, Captain Marvel) who are at the cave at the time. They fly to Belle Reve and interrogate Professor Ivo who spills the beans (as to Red Tornado's likely whereabouts) thanks to a spell cast by Zatanna.

T.O. Morrow, the Red Tornado's inventor, is hard at work repairing his creation. He completes his work before the heroes arrive and then introduces him to his new brother Red Volcano. He reminds Red Tornado about the history of his androids. Red Torpedo and Red Inferno (originally named Firebrand), his two older siblings, were both heroes initially but neither was very successful. Morrow activates Red Volcano who quickly rips his "father" to shreds. It turns out that "father" was an android, too.

The heroes arrive and do battle with Red Tornado. It seemed like Red Tornado had switched sides, joined the bad guys, but Red Tornado was not brainwashed. He helps the young heroes battle Red Volcano and talks his other two siblings into joining his side. He reminds them that they too were heroes once. Together the trio of androids takes down their youngest brother. All but Red Tornado are destroyed in the process.

Not perfect but this episode had some moments that I really liked. The sequence where Morrow tells the story of Red Torpedo's and Red Inferno's origins brings in the Justice Society of America very briefly. The coloring for this sequence is faux black-and-white which makes sense considering that both of them were created during World War II when most movies were still in black-and-white. I was very surprised to see Firebrand (albeit an android version of the comic book character) make an appearance.

There was something about the music in this episode that I really liked. It helped to underscore some of the emotional or character moments that I thought worked quite effectively without overemphasizing them. The scene where Red Torpedo and Red Inferno drag Red Volcano down into the lava and they are slowly destroyed was surprisingly moving. I was also moved by the scene at the end where Red Toranado visits the real Morrow who is considerably older looking than the android version of himself.

There are lots of unanswered questions and jumps that I thought about as I watched this episode. It felt like it could have been longer. I'm not sure I would have liked how they filled in the missing parts but I can see how some might not like this episode or feel that it is weak. All in all not perfect but I found enough here to move me that I give it a thumbs up.

Young Justice 1.14

Revelation

The Super Society of Super-Villains makes its presence known by attacking 5 cities with giant tentacle-plants. While the boring old Justice League fight the plants the younger heroes attack the super-villains' headquarters, a swamp in Louisiana. The baddies (Joker, the Ultra-Humanite, Wotan, Count Vertifo, Black Adam, Poison Ivy, the Aromic Skull) prove to be formidable opponents. The young heroes destroy the master plant that is relaying instructions to the other plants but after that victory it seems like the heroes have bit off a little more than they can chew. Aqualad dons the helmet of Dr. Fate but even that isn't enough.

There is lots of action, fighting action, in this episode and not a whole lot of character moments but there is a nice one involving Artemis and Kid Flash. It happens during the briefing they get from Batman before they head to Louisiana.

I want to believe that the reason why the adults are so boring, including villains like the Joker, is because the stars of the show are teenagers. That said, I wouldn't mind it if the adults were played a little less stodgy. There were lots of cameo appearances by adult superheroes. I didn't recognize all of them. I think that at least a couple were Milestone characters.

The part at the end where Aqualad removed the Helmet of Fate seemed a little too quick and easy. There wasn't even so much as a warning of what might happen next time. There will be a next time, although I can't recall exactly which episode that will be.

The super-villains headquarters in the swamp reminded me of the Legion of Doom from Challenge of the Superfriends and the villains HQ from  season 3 of JLU.

This was a decent episode but not close to being a favorite of mine.

Young Justice 1.13

Alpha Male

The team is sent to northern India by Batman. They are there to investigate a report filed my Hamilton Hill, the mayor of Gotham City. While he was hunting in India he encountered a gun-toting ape. Before they leave, their leader unintentionally reveals the fact that he has been withholding information from them. Aqualad was talking to Batman, off to the side. Superboy eavesdropped on their conversation using his super hearing and got enraged when he heard Aqualad tell Batman that there may be a mole on the team.

The team splits up once they arrive in India, before Aqualad can issue any orders. The only one who sticks with him is Captain Marvel, who is there to chaperone the team of younger heroes. Robin and Kid Flash take off in one direction. Artemis and Miss Martian take off in another. Superboy wanted to hang with Miss Martian but she gets angry at him when he gets over protective and so he takes off on his own.

They all encounter wild beasts in the jungle that attack them. The beasts are under someone's control using a technology similar to what Superboy and Miss Martian encountered in Belle Reve in 1.11 (Terrors). Captain Marvel is captured and almost gets lobotomized by one of the two villains behind the animal attacks, the Brain. Monsieur Mallah and the Brain prove to not be ready for a fight with the young heroes. Instead they run away.

The heroes head for home after freeing all the animals from the control collars and hearing Aqualad out. He explains that the source of his information was Sportsmaster. He wasn't sure how reliable the source was. He doesn't know at this point that Sportsmaster is the father of Artemis. He also didn't want to let the mole, whoever it was, know that he knew. The rest of team decides that Aqualad should continue to be their leader. They head for home with one new companion: a giant white wolf that Superboy names Wolf.

This is not my favorite episode but the character moments in this one work quite well. I liked seeing how Aqualad dealt with the team coming apart at the seams.

Young Justice 1.12

Home Front

Robin and Artemis are attacked immediately after they arrive back at HQ. They quickly discover that the other members of the team (Kid Flash, Superboy, Miss Martian, Aqualad) have all been captured. Artemis and Robin evade their attckers by crawling through air ducts. After Robin plugs into the network they are able to see who attacked them: two androids that look like Red Tornado's siblings.

With a little help from Kid Flash, who is still a captive, Robin builds an electromagnetic pulse generator. He tries plugging it in but there's something missing. They need a piece of metal to complete the circuit and power the EMP generator. Robin is taken down. Artemis freaks out and almost gives up. In the end she pulls through and manages to use an arrow she finds to complete the circuit thus knocking the two androids out of commission.

Red Tornado returns and starts asking questions. When he reaches out to touch one of the comatose android he accidentally reactivates it. The team is quickly taken out again, this time by Red Tornado. When they come to Red Tornado and the other two androids are gone.

At the beginning of the episode, before Artemis and Robin return to the cave, there is a scene with them at Gotham Academy. She is new to the school. She briefly meets Dick Grayson but doesn't recognize him. He seems to recognize her. He is hanging out with a redhead named Barbara. In the credits she is identified as Barbara Gordon. She has a couple lines but that's it. Artemis gets some help from another classmate whose name in the credits is Bette Kane.

Bette Kane was the alter ego of the first Batgirl in the comic books. Barbara Gordon was the alter ego of the second Batgirl in the comic books. At this point there is no indication that either of these characters are superheroes in this cartoon series.

There are also a couple flashbacks to Artemis' past around the time that her older sister, Jade, ran away from home. Jade is now the villain known as Cheshire.

All members of the team are in this one but Robin and Artemis get the spotlight. I love how it is up to the only two members of the team without superpowers to defeat the bad guys after the others have been captured. There are some nice character moments in this one for Artemis that help to flesh her out and make her seem more 3-D. Damn good episode.

Young Justice 1.11

Terrors

Batman suspects that something is afoot at Belle Reve. Miss Martian and Superboy go undercover to the Louisiana prison, which is run by Amanda Waller. They impersonate the Terror Twins, Tommy and Tuppence. Their mission is to figure out what is up at Belle Reve.

This one was a little confusing. Most, if not all, of the villains at Belle Reve wear collars that neutralize their powers but some of them still seem to have powers. I'm not sure. I would have to watch this one a little more carefully to be sure but it seemed like there were a lot of villains who still had powers or weapons that they shouldn't have had. It was distracting.

In the end it seems that the bad guys big plan was to break all the supervillains out of Belle Reve. That doesn't quite work out but that doesn't seem to perturb the villains too much, as Amanda Waller is replaced by Prof. Hugo Strange who works for the Light.

There are some quality moments between Miss Martian and Superboy, including their first kiss and some double entendres. Every time they talk about their cover identities it sounds like they are talking about their real selves, but they are the only ones who know it. These moments and the closeness that comes from their shared experience of going undercover lead to them kissing, in front of someone who thinks they are brother and sister.

Aqualad is the only other member of the team to appear other than M'gann and Conner.

I liked the idea behind this one but I think something was missing in the execution of it. Possibly a few too many moving pieces. The real plus here isn't the plot or the way this episode ties into the larger story of the season as much as it is the changes in M'gann and Conner's relationship.

Young Justice 1.10

Targets

Red Arrow gets a bit of a spotlight as he battles Cheshire and Sportsmaster in Taipei. The rulers of North and South Rhelasia are in Taipei for a peace conference when Cheshire attacks. She is there to kill Lex Luthor. She is captured by the police (with some help from Red Arrow) but Sportsmaster breaks her out of jail. Red Arrow pursues and arrives just in time to see them meeting with Ra's Al Ghul. Red Arrow tries fighting them both but the two villains prove to be too much for him so he calls for backup.

M'gann and Superboy, who adopt the civilian identities of Megan Morris and Conner Kent, start school at a local high school. Their classmates include Wendy and Marvin (characters first seen on the original run of Superfriends) and Mal Duncan (who was briefly a member of the original incarnation of the Teen Titans, in the comic books). Snapper Carr is one of their teachers.

Aqualad arrives in Taipei just in time to help Red Arrow prevent Cheshire and Sportmaster from murdering anyone at the peace summit. Red Arrow questions whether saving Lex Luthor's life should be counted as a good thing. Luthor admitted in private to Red Arrow that he was there primarily for his own selfish reason: because he hopes to profit from the peace process. In the end it turns out that the assassination attempt on Luthor was just an act, and that the two men are part of the conspiracy of villains known as the Light.

Overall a fun episode with a number of Easter eggs. The Red Arrow story was by far my favorite of the two stories. I loved the way the fight scenes were animated and executed. Cheshire is a very capable villain. The first day of school story had its moments but was nowhere near as exciting as the peace conference story. Robin, Kid Flash, and Artemis do not appear in this episode.

Young Justice 1.09

Bereft

The team wakes up in the desert of Bialya. They cannot remember what they are doing there and that they are a team. Kid Flash and Robin recognize one another but they are the only two who do. After comparing notes it seems like they have lost the last 6 months of their memories. That's an inconvenience for most of them but for Superboy it is critical. He wasn't even conscious 6 months ago. Superboy attacks his teammates in a feral rage as they try to make sense of what's going on. They are also attacked by Bialyan soldiers.

In a moment alone, Miss Martian manages to restore some of her own memories and then later mind melds with Robin, Kid Flash and Artemis to help restore more of her own and their memories. Meanwhile, Superboy is captured by the Bialyan troops who have a supervillain ally: Psimon. Robin, Kid Flash, and Artemis take care of Aqualad, who is severely dehydrated. Miss Martian goes looking for Superboy who is being tortured by Bialyan scientists. Miss Martina goes to free him but has to deal Psimon.

I love the Wally and Artemis moments. They wake up together, unaware of who the other is. For once Wally makes passes at Artemis instead of Miss Martian. Artemis inadvertently lets drop some information about her father. She covers for it later on by acting like it was a joke. The banter between these two adds a lot of humor to the episode.

M'gann and Superboy's scenes are special but in a slightly different sort of way. She rescues him and then he steps in to help her in the battle with Psimon. This pair's relationship, unlike Wally and Artemis, is helped more by remembering the past. This story seems like a turning point for both couples. Hopefully Wally will stop hitting on M'gann now. I know that he does and becomes more serious about his relationship with Artemis at some point but I don't recall if this is where it all starts to change.

I really liked the psychic battle between Miss Martian and Psimon. It didn't end exactly how I remembered it but I may be thinking of another episode later in the season.

This episode really messed with my head the first time I saw it, as I tried to understand what I was seeing. This is at least the third time I've watched it. It doesn't hit me the same way it did the first time around but it is still a lot of fun. The structure, how the story begins partway through the story, the humor, and the relationship moments make this one of my favorite episodes of the season.

Young Justice 1.08

Downtime

The team splits up to take some time off. Dick plays basketball with Bruce. Wally visits with family including Jay Garrick and Barry Allen.

Artemis visits her mother who reveals that she has just been awarded a scholarship to Gotham Academy. Artemis isn't interested in attending the prestigious school but relents when her mother turns on the waterworks.

Superboy and Miss Martian stay back at the cave. Their relationship takes a tiny step forward when M'Gann tries making a meal for them, using her telekinetic ability. Instead of dinner she accidentally makes a mess, all over Superboy.

After having a chat with Batman, Aqualad returns to Atlantis. He is considering quitting the team and resuming his studies in Atlantis. Tula, his former girlfriend, has moved on during his absence. She is now dating Garth, another classmate from the Academy of Magic. This doesn't sit well with Kaldur'ahm but he doesn't have much time to consider the loss.

Black Manta attacks Atlantis with an army of men. They are there to take the giant frozen starfish seen earlier in the episode. Kaldur'ahm and Garth team up, despite their rival affections for Tula, to repel the invaders. Once it becomes clear to Black Manta that he won't be able to get away with the giant starfish, he blows it up.

After the battle Aqualad decides that there is more for him in the surface world. He returns to Happy Harbor and rejoins the team, taking with him the only surviving piece of the giant starfish.

This episode has all sorts of little things going on in it. Some, possibly most, of them will show up again. Most of these things help to fill in the stories behind the characters that make up the team. This is a good episode but I don't think I enjoyed it as much as the last three.

Young Justice 1.07

Denial

The team travels to Salem, MA to look for Kent Nelson. The 106-year-old man used to be Dr. Fate, he is still the guardian of the Helmet of Fate but he has gone missing. They find him but they also find a couple villains who had kidnapped Nelson. Abra Kadabra and Klarion want to get their hands on the Helmet of Fate.

In order to save the day Wally dons the Helmet of Fate. Nabu, the ancient sorcerer whose spirit inhabits the Helmet takes over his body and defeats the two villains. Nabu doesn't want to let Wally go, after the villains have been defeated. Kent Nelson cuts a deal with the sorcerer. The heroes return to Happy Harbor victorious. Wally puts the helmet in the trophy room.

A couple interesting omissions in this episode are Robin and uniforms. The Boy Wonder is missing because he off assisting Batman. The team takes off looking for Nelson without putting on their uniforms. It isn't an official mission, maybe that's why they don't bother to "suit up".

There is a fair amount of tension between Artemis and Wally throughout the episode. Wally continues to hit on M'gann. Although she hasn't said it, M'gann probably sees him as more of a brother then a potential lover. He tries to impress her by saying that he believes in magic, as does she. His little deception almost gets the team killed after they enter the tower. Artemis isn't shy about giving Wally grief for his lies and finally gets him to admit that he does not believe in magic. At one point M'gann suggests to Artemis that she and Wally would make a cute couple. Wally also gets some romantic advice but from Kent Nelson.

The insides of the tower in places looked like an M.C. Escher painting with stairways going in all sort of different directions. The tower also seems bigger on the inside than it is on the outside. It was hidden when the heroes arrived but thanks to some quick thinking by Kaldur'ahm they were able to find it and get in.

I really like how magic is used in this episode. It is more than just as a weapon or tool used by both heroes and villains. The concept of magic is also used to help flesh out Wally as he first refuses to accept it and then later as he tries to understand what he has seen.

This is a superior episode. It works on a number of levels. There is the story of the team protecting the Helmet of Fate. There is Wally's struggle to understand and accept magic. There is the continuing evolution of his relationship with Artemis. There is the story of Kent Nelson, who longs to be reunited with his wife who died years ago. It can work as a stand alone episode but it probably works better when seen after watching the previous six episodes.