Young Justice DVD assistance please

[megotoys]

Thank you for taking the time to review this topic.

Is the Young Justice cartoon good? I am aware that is a largely subjective question, but is it worth the coins to get the dvds? As a point of reference, I did like the Justice League series (both versions).

Also, as seems to be par for the course, there are what seem to be multiple releases of redundant material marketed to confuse the not too bright consumers like myself into purchasing the same episodes / product multiple times over.

That stated, what are the best releases to purchase of the Young Justice DVDs to get all the episodes released to date without buying the same episodes twice?

As a side note, is the series still active?

Oh yeah, regarding the series episodes released on dvd, do the Justice League make appearances in the episodes? Is Wonder Woman included?

I am aware this is quite a lot, and thank you for your time and assistance.

[B-Lister]

It is good.

The first season is available as three separate DVDs or together in one set (marked Three Pack Fun)
The second season is available on two separate DVDs (marked Season two part one, and season two part two).

The series is currently canceled but the fandom is trying to revive it.

Yes the league appear. Even Diana.

[Earth 2 Chris]

It is a good series, but I think the storylines were a bit too convoluted and dense for a show about a group of teenaged sidekicks. It didn't help that Cartoon Network constantly stopped the show from airing for months and months at a time, for apparently no reason. I imagine the show works better on DVD where the flow of the story from one episode to another can be interrupted far less.

A few months ago Target had the 1st season DVD 3-pack for the same price as the single DVD releases. Not sure if they still do. The last part of season 2 came out this week, so the whole series is out on DVD.

If you like the DC characters, I think you'll enjoy the series, overall.

Chris

[madmarva]

I enjoyed the first season more than the second, but as Chris suggests the spotty way the Cartoon Network programmed it hurt the tightly interconnected storyline of the second season.

To me the series had a ton of promise that it never truly realized. I think DC's marketing change to the New 52 also took some internal support away from the series which featured characters not even a part of DC's current core line. Aqualad was at the heart of the second season but the character didn't make the New 52 cut.

I really enjoyed the Dr Fate/kid Flash episode from season one. The series really touched on a lot of the DC Universe, but was shut down before it could payoff all that it set up. There was also an excellent Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne Scene in season one, and I really enjoyed the portrayal of Captain Marvel.

[B-Lister]

I personally enjoyed Season 2. Big fan of Impulse and Blue Beetle, and they stole the show in S2. There was a great episode with Impulse and Zatanna, that gave us a Blue Beetle history lesson.

But yeah, I think part of the reason it got canned was because it was doing DC better than DC was doing DC.

[Earth 2 Chris]

I definitely think DC pulled any support for YJ as soon as the directive came to scrap everything and start over. They were really pushing the series as being this connection between the books and the TV material, even telling us which "Earth" YJ occurred on. It just goes to show what a directionless train wreck DC is these days. Not saying it's all bad, but there is clearly no "plan" from one moment to the next.

Chris

[madmarva]

Chris, I think DC's direction is too focused right now to the exclusion of properties like young justice that fall outside its current world view. Now the direct-to-video animated films have been sucked into the New 52 with the Flashpoint adaptation coming soon and Johns and Lee's first Justice League arc being the next adaptation. Editor-driven story lines rather than creator-driven ones in the comics. I guess it's how you look at it.

To me, the only respite is the weekly digital-first comics, which I've enjoyed.

B-Lister, Season two of Young Justice was more ambitious and may actually tell a better story, but with the episodes being shown only sporadically it lost a lot of momentum for me. I enjoyed the intro of blue beetle, too, and don't understand why DC fails to use its best teen character in its Teen Titans comic.

[ctc]

Hmmmm....

If you like the other DC cartoons, and are okay with seeing one that has some detail to the designs you'll probably like it. Here's another opinion:

http://robynpaterson.com/?p=2921

Don C.

[megotoys]

Wow. Thank you all for taking the time to provide lots of great information, feedback, and insight.

I would like to state though that some of this is kind of sad for me.

I know I am an old school person that has somewhat antiquated ideas and should probably be put out to pasture or better yet put out of my animated misery.

But it makes me sad that the days of great superhero cartoons getting priority from companies has gone the way of the dodo bird.

It seems like most everything I read from the actual people that enjoy this stuff and that care about such properties, are given little consideration from the "powers that be". Again, this is the feeling I get from the reading other peoples posts. Though I tend to lean this way myself.

The Avengers cartoon that was out in the last couple of years was phenomenal in my feeble mind. One of the best superhero cartoons in recent memory and even beyond that. In fact, I don't remember hearing much searing criticism about it, just lavish praise for how great it was. And what happens?, it is mercilessly beheaded. How? I don't know. Man, that cartoon was just terrific.

But, I digress, again thank you all for your input to my topic. I think I will part with the few coins available for discretionary purchases and actually get this series. I especially like that Diana, and wow, even Zatanna makes an appearance.


Okay, that makes me think, back to digressing in this post. With such a rich universe and a plethora of characters, really an embarrassment of riches, I can't understand how DC can mismanage in the most awful way, their stable of characters. With the second installment of Justice League, and incorporating a tonage of characters it seemed like they actually cared about us folks out here who pay their salaries, then that gets axed, and what its been like 700 years since they come up with something solid that they really stand behind and support.

I find it ridiculous that a Wonder Woman series (live action or animated) and / or movie has taken DC almost 35 years (and counting!!!!) to bring to pass, and they STILL are sitting on their hands.

After all of these years, and the age in which we live, where technology, the sharing of ideas, resources abound, etc. it is amazing to me that some of this stuff can't be resolved.

How many trillions of dollars has DC made off of us working folk since 1938 anyhow?

Gee a little consideration from DC would be appreciated. I mean I seriously feel for those folks (some on this very board) whose enjoyment in life (some for decades) in the way of having a favorite superhero or superhero group is trounced with every whim of DC comics current policy of knee jerk decisions or arbitrary recklessness.

Okay, I am getting off of my soapbox, and I will stop whining.

Thank you again for the input and your time.

This board is really a terrific community of great people.

[ctc]

>How? I don't know

Cartoons are generally made to last one season. A show that lasts longer is an oddity; and it only happens if it's INSANELY popular, someone high-up pushes for it (hence the endless "Captain Planet" seasons) or if they stretch it into a fully syndicated run.... in which case it ends at 52 episodes. Period. It's been like that for a long time. (It's weird why....a friend who works in animation explained it to me once.) Most of the time if it's popular enough for a second season they'll actually rejigger it and market it as a different show. That's one reason old stuff like Transformers seemed so different every few months.

>I can't understand how DC can mismanage in the most awful way, their stable of characters

The DC cartoons have the BIG problem that they ALWAYS cram as many characters into them as possible, and it dilutes story quality. They rely WAAAAYYYY too much on their stable, and the liklihood of a fan going "Detective Chimp!?!? AWESOME!!!" So most of their shows feel real flat to anyone who's not a long time fan, or who doesn't have dad explaining everything. The WORST was the "Justice League: New Frontiers" film. You had the Blackhaws lurking in the background, with no explanation of who the little old guy was. You had the Challengers of the Unknown.... I THINK (they could have been the generic Joes from the background scenes of the first season of the 80's GI Joe cartoon).... in the background, and you had Adam Strange, who I don't think got so much as a line; and if you didn't know who he was your big question would be "why is that dude dressed like the waitresses at the casino? Is he their leader?"

That was Rob's problem with the second season of YJ.... and my problem with the first. They never really got into the characters, beyond the stereotypes 'cos they were constantly jostling for position.

>How many trillions of dollars has DC made off of us working folk since 1938 anyhow?

Yeah, but that wasn't out of any kind of moral perogative. We all ENJOYED the stuff we bought. We got what we paid for, nobody owes us. 'Course, we don't owe THEM, either; which is why it's okay to walk away from things when they aren't fun any more.

Don C.

[megotoys]

ctc stated in the above post:

"Cartoons are generally made to last one season."

This is news to me. Is this the way things are now? I wasn't aware of that. I guess I really am out of the loop. When I think back to the years of Super Friends cartoons to the Batman Animated cartoons that also lasted lots of years. Both spawned wave after wave of merchandise (especially the later).

Is it the policy of the powers that be now to only have a cartoon last one season?

What is the reasoning behind this? It seems somewhat counterproductive to establishing a "brand" that has the potential to spawn a merchandise line that can span a decade or more. Or perhaps this is antiquated thinking and whole game has changed.

As a side note, I was wondering why there wasn't (to my knowledge) a figure line or merchandise connected to the last Avengers cartoon. If there was, I would very much like to get the figures if they accurately represent the characters as portrayed in the cartoon.

If members here could provide insight and clarification on the above subjects, I would appreciate it.

[ctc]

>Is this the way things are now?

It's been like that for a LONG time. Part if it is 'cos cartoons.... especially Saturday morning ones were considered disposable. Come the 80's and they were seen as ads that'd sell a toy for a year then go away to make room for the next product. Not ALL of them were like that, but the majority were. Or ended up that way.

>When I think back to the years of Super Friends cartoons to the Batman Animated cartoons that also lasted lots of years.

They did, but look at Superfriends; how each season it'd change. New members, old members disappearing, new rosters for the bad guys, new openings, new titles.... it was the same show, but a different one. In a way it was the equivalent of the comics rebooting every few years. You'd take some of the old, and swish in what you thought would freshen it up. Scooby-Doo is another good example; the first season was insanely popular so they padded it out with a few new episdoes and rerun it ad infinum. A few years later when they made a new one, it wasn't "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?" it was "The New Scooby-Doo Movies," with a whole new direction. Then it was "The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries," then the damned Scrappy-Doo incident.... "13 Ghosts," "A Pup Named...." SORT OF the same show, but sort of a different one.

>Is it the policy of the powers that be now to only have a cartoon last one season?

It's not now. Most cartoons only last one season. We tend to rememer stuff like the 80's "GI Joe" that went on forever, but forget the zillion other cartoons of the day that didn't.

>What is the reasoning behind this?

I had it explained that part of it was that it's seen as cheaper to do a new series every year instead of developing an existing one. I don't get that part, but there's also a tendency to cut the budget of an existing show, so I suspect the first part is mumbo-jumbo to justify the second. The idea of the latter is that the popularity will carry it another year, so funding isn't neccessary.

>It seems somewhat counterproductive to establishing a "brand" that has the potential to spawn a merchandise line that can span a decade or more.

It DOES, but the companies don't care about long term. They go year by year. They also know that the branding bit works a little different. The "Batman" brand works regardless of the content; hence shows like the multicolour Filmation show of the 70's, the 90's serious one from WB, Jackie Chan IS "The Batman," and the current "my butler will straight up shoot you in the face" one. It's the name they want, the rest can be slapped on later. Same priniciple as the movies.

>Or perhaps this is antiquated thinking and whole game has changed.

Partly. You saw bits of this changing in the 90's.... there were shows with developing stories, added depth and multiple seasons but they tended to get squelched by the higher ups. Since the 00's most of the really successful shows here have been Japanese, so there's some of that thinking creeping in. Notably the idea of making each season it's own contained story, and if you get a second season it becomes it's own story too, but builds off the previous season. A lot of the DC stuff does this, even though they seldom get that second season. It works in Japan 'cos most cartoons (and comics) are written with an end in mind, so you have actual development, changes, etc. Over here studios still like stuff that you can rerun in any order so there's a tendency to downplay long term, or developmental stuff.

Don C.