Justice League Unlimited

 
   Damn. So here we are. The big one. Justice. League. Unlimited. The make-it-or-break-it for the DCAU. Woo, can't believe we're at the end of Superhero September already. I'm gonna miss this month.

   The animated television series Justice League aired for 5 seasons from 2001 to 2006 (not exactly a "90s cartoon" but close enough, especially considering its' predecessors) and for its' last 3 seasons was re-titled "Justice League Unlimited". It followed the adventures of a team of superheroes, who, after saving the world from an alien invasion, band together to keep humanity safe from all sorts of crime. (And they did it in a badass above-planetary watchtower too)

  It was part of the DC Animated Universe shared continuity, and like most of the DCAU, was the first time a lot of plots and characters from the comics were ever adapted. In fact, to this day, it remains the only TV show to have specifically focused on the League.

  The first half of the show was done in a unique, interesting format, every single episode of the series was a 2-part episode. The big season premieres and finales were three-parters. This really made sense for the show, considering it was the most serious, edgy, and dramatic Saturday-morning cartoon on the air for kids at the time. I really felt the decision to do this was creative and stylish. Unfortunately they changed this when they added "Unlimited" to the title. Another thing they changed was they went from a mid size cast to a full rotating ensemble. While, the first two seasons only followed the original 7 leaguers (Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash, Hawkgirl, and Martian Manhunter). They expanded to a team of over 30 members after the 2nd season, and we didn't really get to know them as well. While i'm not saying Justice League Unlimited was "bad", it certainly was a bit of a downgrade from the first two seasons.

   That withstanding, the entire series is very well paced, animated, and it was unique to have such an actiony show on the air for kids at the time. It's fitting we end Superhero September off with it as it ended the entire DCAU off with a bang, with the epic JLU finale which you'd have to see to believe. Only one phrase, Superman, Batman, and Lex Luthor vs Darkseid. Watch it. This show defined chiildhood and testosterone at the same time, 96/100

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And with that, we conclude Superhero September! Please do drop by and check us out next week as we continue with non-superhero cartoons from the 90s and 00s! 

Superman: TAS

  Superman is the most all-American, iconic, and genre-defining superhero there ever was and this was the most iconic adaptation he ever got (in my humble opinion). Superman: The Animated Series aired  for 4 seasons from 1996 to 2000. If you know the episode count, you'll know it had more seasons but less episodes than Batman:TAS; before you ask that was due to Batman:TAS having an extremely long first season.  On the topic of Batman:TAS it had a sort of circular relationship with this show; it inspired this show to even exist in the first place, while this show inspired Batman:TAS to be revived. Together, with their 3-part crossover episode "World's Finest" they inspired the entire shared continuity (and production team) of the DCAU, which produced great shows that I won't be getting to until later such as "Static Shock" and "Batman Beyond" and also the only ever Justice League adapation (where the team is the main focus). They also even inspired their rivals at Marvel Comics to (less successfully) try their hand at the same thing.

The series was a very dramatic outlook on the Superman mythos, their 3-part series premiere "the Last Son of Krypton" was an especially unique twist on the usual Superman origin story and if you see nothing else of the series, you've gotta see that. Animation wise, it was the first Superman animated adaptation to surpass the quality of the amazing Fleischer & Famous short films of the 1940s, which is a spectacular feat, in and of itself.

The storytelling was unique, mature, and detailed. The action was entertaining, fun, and spectacular. It had a little something for everyone and it's held up well with time. Even without my bias to Batman I wouldn't put it as an equal to Batman:TAS, but Superman:TAS is still damn good. 88/100

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Next week is the last in Superhero September and we'll be tackling the big one, Justice League Unlimited! Stay tuned!

Batman: TAS

 

 First of all, I must apologize on getting this to you so late. In the end I decided to just put out two posts this Friday and none last week because.....reasons.

  So, in our extremely late 2nd post (3rd week) of Superhero September we'll be talking about the 2nd most popular superhero of all time, Batman. Or specifically, his most critically acclaimed cartoon, Batman: The Animated Series. Batman TAS was the show that started off the DCAU, and it was thanks to it that we had the groundbreaking writing and shared continuity in comic book cartoons of the 90s. This is something that only makes sense considering Batman was (after Superman) the superhero that originally defined the genre back in the 30s. And I'm going to be honest here, Superman, especially when he's overpowered is extremely fun to watch, but he doesn't have as much of the same character depth as Batman. Where as Spider-Man was my favourite Marvel hero, Batman is my favourite DC which is why I'm more excited than ever to write this.

  Batman:TAS interestingly enough, went through a name change every season. season 1 was the only one actually called Batman:The Animated Series, season 2 was titled Adventures of Batman and Robin, and season 3 was entitled The New Batman Adventures. The season 2 name change was to signify they were including Robin more often (a decision I believe helped the show a lot) and the season 3 name change was to signify their return from hiatus (as well as a change in art style). The first two seasons aired from 1992 to 1995 before the show was cancelled. New episodes were made from 1997 to 1999 to air alongside Superman:TAS, before it was cancelled again. This version of Batman would live on for several more years however, in the Justice League series. Both of those series are for other articles however. 

  

  Batman:TAS was a groundbreaker among superhero cartoons as it was really the first to treat its' young audience as mature consumers; dealing with much darker and more serious storylines and character issues than any superhero cartoon had before. This was a big risk, but the show handled it well and has won four Emmy Awards for that. Like the many cartoons of the time that were entitled *insert superhero name here*:TAS, the show was the first of it'[s franchise to adapt plenty of comic book characters and plot ideas; as a matter of fact, it actually created a character that would be later adopted by the comics, Harley Quinn. Speaking of the many superhero cartoons of the 90s, Batman:TAS was the first, and it was its' success that inspired the shared continuity (and production staff) of the DCAU to begin with. 

Overall, this was a genius cartoon that crafted out a genre. A must-see if you haven't seen it already, and a must-rewatch if you have. 92/100. 

Spider Man: TAS

   Hey guys! I know this is only my second review so it's weird that I'm already doing themed months, but I've always wanted to do this so.....SUPERHERO SEPTEMBER!!!

  This first week of September, I'll be reviewing Spider Man: TAS, which I'll be open and just admit, is my hands-down favourite show ever.  It's the iconic best adaptation to my favourite iconic Marvel suuperhero, so it's fitting we begin with it.

  Spider Man: The Animated Series aired for 5 seasons from 1994 to 1998. The animation was good however the CGI they use in some of the backgrounds does not blend well. The opening theme song wasn't iconic like many others of its time, but it was good enough.

  Now, getting into the actual show it was the first time that a lot of Spider-Man's rogue gallery was adapted, including my favourite Spider-Man villain, Venom. This is an especially good thing considering that Spider-Man is renowned for fighting some of the deepest and most complex supervillains in comics. The storylines are always engaging and they fleshed out their characters (especially their main one) well enough to do justice to the comics. Spider-Man in particular showed how strong they were in making you relate to the characters, in fact I'd say it was their strongest suite, You really felt his pain in balancing his normal life as Peter Parker and his responsibilities to New York as Spider-Man. You understood where he was coming from when he was tempted to quit, and you were proud of him when he chose not to. In fact, you really understood the motivations and intentions of ALL the characters, including the antagonists, which is a hard feat to accomplish.

  The storylines were great, though they got confusing once the show had gathered up enough continuity. My favourite ones would be the Venom Saga, where Venom is introduced and taken out over the course of 3 episodes and then reintroudced alongside his son Carnage a season later, the Green Goblin saga which is too complex to even describe here and the "I Really Hate Clones" two-part series finale (A MUST SEE).

  Like the actual comics and all the other adaptations, we start off with Spider-Man already having been Spider-Man for some time. Unlike the comics and the very first, 1960s Spider-Man cartoon, we never get to see his origin story, even later on. That is one thing I always wished they'd do in more of the Spider-Man cartoons. Now, most fans believe the ending of the series to be lackluster as *SPOILER WARNING*SPOILER WARNING* Spidey's  love interest, Mary Jane, is still MIA in some alternate dimension by the end (even though he's actively searching for her *SPOILER OVER*SPOILER AVERTED* I however, in a minority that is perfectly satisfied by the ending. However.......there WAS a sequel series (which doesn't resolve the plot thread that annoys fans that I mentioned earlier in the spoiler)  that, though not up to the same standards, I personally am ok with. It's called Spider Man Unlimited. I'm not going to make the case that it was better, as good, or even nearly as good as the original, however it wasn't BAD. Except for the ending which is a TRUE cliffhanger that enrages me to no end.  *ANOTHER SPOILER WARNING*ANOTHER SPOILER WARNING* The series ended with a building that Spidey is in about to collapse, and an alien invasion about to begin all in the next 30 seconds. That is the ending. With no forseeable salvation.  *SPOILER OVER*SPOILER AVERTED*....again. And worse yet, Spider Man Unlimited was the last series to air in the MAU (Marvel Animated Universe), meaning that the entire 8 YEAR LONG SHARED CONTINUITY WITH OVER 7 SEPERATE ANIMATED SERIES ends on perhaps, the worst cliffhanger ever. However, that is not the fault of the original Spider-Man: TAS, thank goodness.

  Now, I understand I haven't really gone too in depth on the premise like I usually do, but that's mostly because the likes of Superman, Batman, and Spider-Man are so iconic that I don't think most people need me to. Nevertheless, I shall give a short summary. Peter Parker is a 16 year old (college-aged by the time this series starts though) who gets bitten by a radioactive spider and now has all its abilities. Web-shooting, wall-crawling, "Spidey-sense" that alerts him to danger, and enhanced agility and strength. He uses these to fight crime as a masked spider-themed vigilante. On his way he makes enemies out of many criminals, and more importantly, many super criminals.

  Overall, the series was good, but where it really shone through is where I said it did before, in it's characterization. For even just how maturely it handled its characters, it clearly was a show that respected its audience. And with that, I give Spider-Man: TAS a 98, woo-hoo. Thanks guys, next week i'll be reviewing Batman: TAS, please comment!