[7.5/10] I’m a big fan of the layers and metaphors here. Ostensibly, the show is about a group of sidekicks deciding they’re ready to work on their own, and trying to prove it. But it’s also a mirror of the teenage target audience who may feel capable of and ready for more than their parents give them license for just yet. The quest for independence on July 4th isn’t just about the Boy Wonders of the world to stepping out of the Dark Knight’s long shadow, but about young adults more generally asserting their independence, a bit of a power fantasy for the younger members of the audience.
But I especially like how that's filtered through Superboy. He’s declaring independence not just from parental-ish superheroes, but from a seemingly evil organization that made him and meant to control his every thought and action. There’s the sense that he’s a kid from a bad home trying to make a fresh start, a runaway almost, and that's a really interesting spin on a Man of Steel-like figure.
I particularly like the discomfort and even shades of anger between him and Superman. You get the sense that all Superboy wanted for a long time was to see the sun and meet the real Superman, with the sense that it would help him understand his place in the world and make him feel at home. Instead, Superman is understandably uncomfortable with a troubled young clone of him made surreptitiously without his consent, and it gets things off on the wrong foot for both of them.
There’s a truth in that too, less in the sci-fi insanity of it all, but more in the sense of people hoping to find long lost relatives or aspirational figures who’ll solve everything, only to realize that those relationships can be fraught and that most problems take a lot more to solve.
Apart from my highfalutin nonsense, this is also a solid nuts and bolts superhero story. The quartet of Superboy, Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash making their escape from the Project Cadmus building is a good story engine. It’s centered on Superboy making a choice to do good, to make his own decisions, which adds an emotional component to it. At the same time, we get a little more characterization for Aqualad, who’s a bit more empathetic and full of decency than we saw in the first half hour of the series.
There’s also cleverness in how they escape and defeat Blockbuster. It takes some setbacks and help to get our heroes out of trouble. And I particularly appreciate that they don’t just take turns punching their enemy, but rather have to pool their powers and use a specific plan bring the building down on their hulking foe. I’m very much here for heroes finding creative solutions and having to work together in specific ways to win the day.
At the same time, there’s a lot of good teases here. I like the twist that the Genomes were helping Superboy escape, even as they seemed to be sicced on him by Dr. Desmond, because they view him as their “brother” and savior. The mysterious council of “The Light” is a little cheesy, but a nice shadowy organization is always good fodder for superhero shows. And what else may be cooking at Project Cadmus will surely raise some eyebrows.
But it all amounts to the premise of the show kicking off, which works well too. I appreciate that despite a tongue-lashing from Batman on the flaws in their methods despite the good results, the young heroes assert themselves. They say that they’ve proven themselves ready to go on their own missions. The Justice League deciding that they’re right, and deciding to deploy them on covert ops, with adult supervision, makes enough sense for a superhero cartoon, and more to the point, works as a vindication of what they’ve accomplished.
There’s safeguards in the form of Red Tornado as a supervisor, and a little gender balance with the addition of Miss Martian to the team. There’s potential in the premise here, and situating the young heroes in the Justice League’s original headquarters gives them a nice sense of legitimacy in addition to a home base.
Overall, after watching the entire DCAU and Teen Titans in recent years, a lot of the block and tackle of this opening salvo is a bit familiar. But the execution is well done, and the way these first two episodes tie together the ideas of superheroic independence with young adult independence gives the show a thematic force which can carry it far.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2022-03-30T05:43:15Z
[7.5/10] I’m a big fan of the layers and metaphors here. Ostensibly, the show is about a group of sidekicks deciding they’re ready to work on their own, and trying to prove it. But it’s also a mirror of the teenage target audience who may feel capable of and ready for more than their parents give them license for just yet. The quest for independence on July 4th isn’t just about the Boy Wonders of the world to stepping out of the Dark Knight’s long shadow, but about young adults more generally asserting their independence, a bit of a power fantasy for the younger members of the audience.
But I especially like how that's filtered through Superboy. He’s declaring independence not just from parental-ish superheroes, but from a seemingly evil organization that made him and meant to control his every thought and action. There’s the sense that he’s a kid from a bad home trying to make a fresh start, a runaway almost, and that's a really interesting spin on a Man of Steel-like figure.
I particularly like the discomfort and even shades of anger between him and Superman. You get the sense that all Superboy wanted for a long time was to see the sun and meet the real Superman, with the sense that it would help him understand his place in the world and make him feel at home. Instead, Superman is understandably uncomfortable with a troubled young clone of him made surreptitiously without his consent, and it gets things off on the wrong foot for both of them.
There’s a truth in that too, less in the sci-fi insanity of it all, but more in the sense of people hoping to find long lost relatives or aspirational figures who’ll solve everything, only to realize that those relationships can be fraught and that most problems take a lot more to solve.
Apart from my highfalutin nonsense, this is also a solid nuts and bolts superhero story. The quartet of Superboy, Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash making their escape from the Project Cadmus building is a good story engine. It’s centered on Superboy making a choice to do good, to make his own decisions, which adds an emotional component to it. At the same time, we get a little more characterization for Aqualad, who’s a bit more empathetic and full of decency than we saw in the first half hour of the series.
There’s also cleverness in how they escape and defeat Blockbuster. It takes some setbacks and help to get our heroes out of trouble. And I particularly appreciate that they don’t just take turns punching their enemy, but rather have to pool their powers and use a specific plan bring the building down on their hulking foe. I’m very much here for heroes finding creative solutions and having to work together in specific ways to win the day.
At the same time, there’s a lot of good teases here. I like the twist that the Genomes were helping Superboy escape, even as they seemed to be sicced on him by Dr. Desmond, because they view him as their “brother” and savior. The mysterious council of “The Light” is a little cheesy, but a nice shadowy organization is always good fodder for superhero shows. And what else may be cooking at Project Cadmus will surely raise some eyebrows.
But it all amounts to the premise of the show kicking off, which works well too. I appreciate that despite a tongue-lashing from Batman on the flaws in their methods despite the good results, the young heroes assert themselves. They say that they’ve proven themselves ready to go on their own missions. The Justice League deciding that they’re right, and deciding to deploy them on covert ops, with adult supervision, makes enough sense for a superhero cartoon, and more to the point, works as a vindication of what they’ve accomplished.
There’s safeguards in the form of Red Tornado as a supervisor, and a little gender balance with the addition of Miss Martian to the team. There’s potential in the premise here, and situating the young heroes in the Justice League’s original headquarters gives them a nice sense of legitimacy in addition to a home base.
Overall, after watching the entire DCAU and Teen Titans in recent years, a lot of the block and tackle of this opening salvo is a bit familiar. But the execution is well done, and the way these first two episodes tie together the ideas of superheroic independence with young adult independence gives the show a thematic force which can carry it far.