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Top 10 Justice Leage Episodes?

Boss Doggie

all my loli wolf companions are so moe
Love the future episodes with GL and Batman. First got sent back to the old west and then got to see mah boi Static as an old man.

I hate how they handled killing off Terry there though. But I guess non-canon timeline so there's that.

Love the "I didn't know I used to be this green" line too.
 
I always liked 'The Return', where Amazo comes back and unleashes some whoopass on everyone.

Anything with The Question is also gold.
 
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My favorite moment on the show.

"Do you know how much power I'd have to give up to be President??"
 

Platy

Member
The one with the alternate dimension where flash died and the league went evil.

Amazing character study. Favorite parts include flash stopping his heart and Bats knowing everyone's secret identity
 
There was also Vixen and Stewart and Katma Tui and Stewart.
I don't recall them being as overt about them, though. Like you knew, but you didn't know. Ya feel me?

But you have Carter saying how much he liked Shayera's dress that she wore on their date compared to her outfit the day after their date, and she said something along the lines of "well you weren't complaining about it last night." Like damn, Hawkgirl puts out date one. And then there's Tala taking Wally (in Lex's body) into his quarters for "rest" and then you immediately hear Wally say "hey. That's not very restful." Then Tala later comments on how "enthusiastic" Lex was compared to how he usually is.

Like that shit is damn near saying "these characters fucked."
 

Renekton

Member
The one with the alternate dimension where flash died and the league went evil.

Amazing character study. Favorite parts include flash stopping his heart and Bats knowing everyone's secret identity
I always thought it was a flimsy catalyst for wholesale personality/value transplant simultaneous across 6 unique individuals 😗
 
It's been a while since I've watched Justice League but I really loved it. I never watched Superman TAS though so the episodes continuing on from that didn't have as much impact. Never watched Batman Beyond either. Maybe I should do a watch of the entire DCAU?
 

Loona

Member
It's hard for me to pick specific episodes when certain moment are memorable enough to trump the stories they were part of, but let's see if I can remember enough:

* "In Blackest Night" - the solution to "the lawyer problem"

* "Injustice for All" - Batman talking his way out of captivity, including seducing Cheetah, which was a nice nod to his Catwoman history

* "The Savage Time" - lots of great stuff here: nods to WW's Steve Trevor history, the wartime comics DC acquired like Sargeant Rock, Green Lantern having to manage with no powers - alround great package, only undermined by not actually identifying the WW2 antagonists

* "Hereafter" - pretty great to see Supes bearded and resourceful, as well as Vandal Savage coping with a post-humanity world

* "Wild Card" - Joker broadcasting his comments in Hawkgirl/Jon shipping

* "Comfort and Joy" - Hawkgirl's idea of a relaxing date being a space bar brawl, Clark feeling like a kid with his parent, and J'onn's appropriately alien singing at the end of the episode were all great

* "Ultimatum" - not quite a favorite, but it was nice to see the Super Friends concepts taken a bit more seriously

* "Task Force X" - Suicide Squad done right, really, and infiltrating the JL Watchtower to boot

* "Clash" - while it's annoying to see the one use of Captian Marvel in the whole show to consist of yet another excuse to have him fight Superman, his general presence and especially speech at the end did right by the character and the general meta of the his existence

* "Epilogue" - even not having watched Batman Beyond, just seeing an older Amanda Waller revisiting some hard decisions for a world as crazy as DC's made more some interesting moments.
 
I always thought it was a flimsy catalyst for wholesale personality/value transplant simultaneous across 6 unique individuals 😗
It's a pretty classic idea that, if you kill the heart and moral compass of the group, what happens? It's why Batman recruits Green Arrow: so he could keep them in check. That's basically Wally's role in the core seven, and if you kill him then there's no one to check the other six. Especially since it's pre-Unlimited, when they extended the League.

On top of that (while it's worn a bit with the Injustice franchise) having Superman as a pure beacon of morality, and then causing that beacon to corrupt itself and becoming irredeemable and going over the edge is not a new thing, and has always been an interesting character study.
 

Boss Doggie

all my loli wolf companions are so moe
With that said, they do make a point that non-mirror universe Supes is very much kind at heart. They revealed that he was supposed to be a tie-breaker for Hawkgirl's position, but he declined in giving a vote since she was part of the team.
 
It's been a while since I've watched Justice League but I really loved it. I never watched Superman TAS though so the episodes continuing on from that didn't have as much impact. Never watched Batman Beyond either. Maybe I should do a watch of the entire DCAU?
I haven't watched Superman since I was a child, but yes watch most of it. From what I remember the only one that was straight up bad was Zeta.
BTAS is phenom, I don't remember diggin Superman that much, but I think there were some good episodes in it. Static is good, Batman Beyond is good, and as we already know the Justice League shows are phenom status too.

* "Epilogue" - even not having watched Batman Beyond, just seeing an older Amanda Waller revisiting some hard decisions for a world as crazy as DC's made more some interesting moments.

Y'all done fucked up.
 

Boss Doggie

all my loli wolf companions are so moe
Superman TAS is really good. Fleshes out much of Clark's, Lois' and Lex's character. Batman Beyond too.
 

CazTGG

Member
If I remember right its like the only adaption of any of his work he whole-heartedly enjoyed.

Also more Flash and Substance love, because this scene alone makes the whole episode.

I had a lengthy post on that episode when I was working through Alan Moore adaptations but the short version is that Moore simply gave the DCAU team approval to adapt his story, which makes sense given his disdain for the previous two adaptations, From Hell and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen:

For The Man Who Has Everything/Superman Annual #11 (Comic: 1985. Episode Airing: 2004 (Justice League), 2016 (Supergirl))


In case you were wondering why this thread's title involved the word "mostly" when talking about Moore's various works being adapted to film, this is why. This particular adaptation is an episode of Bruce Timm & Paul Dini's Justice League TV series (and also the Supergirl TV series...kind of), this being one of the first episodes from the third season where they rebranded the show as "Justice League Unlimited" due to the expanding roster of the Justice League after the events of the second season's finale, "Starcrossed". Not counting the direct-to-DVD release of Tales of the Black Freighter, until The Killing Joke, this was the only adaptation of Alan Moore's work to be put to animation. But before we go any further, let's talk about the comic.


For The Man Who Has Everything sees Batman, Wonder Woman and then-not-dead Jason Todd as Robin visiting the Fortress of Solitude to celebrate Superman's birthday only to find him in a dream-like state due to a strange plant called the Black Mercy. It's soon revealed that it was brought to Earth by Mongul as a part of his plans to conquer the planet, who used the plant to remove the only person capable of stopping him from the picture, the plant itself causing its host to believe that their wildest dreams are real. So it's up to the three of them to stop Mongul, with Wonder Woman barely holding him off while Batman & Robin try to figure out how to remove the Black Mercy so Superman can save the day. Also, Mongul making a lot of sexist remarks to Wonder Woman.


Of all of the various works by Moore that i've read, this is my personal favorite, namely because it's a story that gets the character of Superman: A powerful, but not omnipotent being who will do the right thing, no matter how much it hurts him. Superman is an exceptionally difficult character to write properly (see Steel, Man of/Batman V Superman as a recent example of how easy it is to screw that up), so it's all the more impressive that Moore's portrayal in this and "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" both managed to present a familiar, yet fascinating take on the character. In For The Man Who Has Everything, Superman's greatest desire is revealed to be something uneventful, almost boring in how simple it is: Raise a family, live a normal life on Krypton and have nothing to do with the heroic acts he's performed for the past decades. Instead of Kryptonite, the comic has Superman's weakness be his heart, in that he had to leave his wife and son and the happiness he found with them, to save his real friends from an absolute monster. Regardless of whether or not they were real, it's made very clear when he's free from the Black Mercy that Superman's feelings for them are real due to the amount of pain it caused him to leave this new family behind. It's an altogether human and tragic tale where Superman has to give up his happiness in order to do what's necessary for the good of humanity that delivers a truly heart-wrenching blow to the reader, one as equally painful as the one laid that strikes the man of tomorrow. This is also the comic that gave us the infamous "clean thoughts Batman" panel, so it has another thing going for it.


Compared to the past two movies, the Unlimited episode follows most of the same beats and even quotes direct lines from the original comic, even featuring Superman telling Mongul to burn. There's a reason it's one of the most fondly remembered episode in all of Justice League and a high point of Unlimited's run, in large part due to the potent combination of the original source material coupled with George Newbern giving a spectacular performance as Superman that, if not his best performance for a single episode, is easily in the top 3. You really feel the heartbreak in his voice when he tells his son that he doesn't think he's real and has to go back to the real world. It's a testament both to how faithful Bruce Timm and crew were to the characters when they crafted the DCAU and how well the story they based this particular episode on still holds up to this day.


There are minor changes like Diana giving Clark a new breed rose called Krypton instead of a replica of the city of Kandor and Batman giving him money instead of the aforementioned rose like he did in the original that don't really affect the overall story while others were likely made for time constraints. There weren't many two-parters during the third through fifth seasons that make up Unlimited in comparison to the first two seasons that comprise the original Justice League run, as Unlimited preferred telling season-long arcs like Cadmus and Luthor's attempt to become president in the third and fourth season and the formation of the Secret Society of Super Villains in the fifth. Mongul had already been established in the wretched season one episode "War World", so his introduction in the episode having slightly different dialogue to acknowledge that Wondie and Bats had already met him makes sense within the animated universe.

The only notable omission is Jason Todd, as Jason was the one who stopped Mongul by tossing the Black Mercy at him after having removed it from Batman. However, seeing as how Todd had never appeared in Batman's animated series nor Justice League up to this point, it's not exactly that big a surprise nor does giving their role to Wonder Woman for some comeuppance after Mongul's massive beating and aforementioned sexism take away from the overall strong mood of the story. It's no surprise why there was a rumor floating around that this was the only adaptation that Alan Moore liked (he just gave Bruce Timm and team his approval to adapt it) after his disappointment with the two previous attempts: It's accentuates the story's very best qualities, the tragedy of abandoning a truly human desire that would be so easy to a place to find oneself content with and doing what's right in spite of how much it would hurt to do so.


The Supergirl TV show kind of had a take on this story in "For The Girl Who Has Everything" but it goes off in a completely different direction, to the point where it feels less like an adaptation and more an original story that played up the horror elements of the plant that the original only lightly touched upon, like having Kara forget the memory of her friends. While it's not a bad episode in of itself, it doesn't capture the same visceral emotion like the original or Justice League. Needless to say that Unlimited has the better take of the two, sticking closer to the source material and being all the better for it.
 

ryseing

Member
I remember really liking the Jason Blood episodes, and on rewatch, yeah, they're fucking amazing. There's a Hugh Hefner stand-in! Mordred is a little shit and it's the best.

Y'all, I forgot about baby Etrigan! The best.
 

Renekton

Member
It's a pretty classic idea that, if you kill the heart and moral compass of the group, what happens? It's why Batman recruits Green Arrow: so he could keep them in check. That's basically Wally's role in the core seven, and if you kill him then there's no one to check the other six.
Interestingly​ Wally didn't fulfill that role, he was mostly a light comedy relief who's just as fantastically powerful.

Contrast that with YJ Wally where he checked Grayson at least twice.
 
With that said, they do make a point that non-mirror universe Supes is very much kind at heart. They revealed that he was supposed to be a tie-breaker for Hawkgirl's position, but he declined in giving a vote since she was part of the team.
Untrue. He did give his vote to keep her, believing everyone should get a second chance. She declined and
Superman TAS is really good. Fleshes out much of Clark's, Lois' and Lex's character. Batman Beyond too.
S:TAS can also be incredibly dark. See "Identity Crisis" and "The Late Mr. Kent".
Interestingly​ Wally didn't fulfill that role, he was mostly a light comedy relief who's just as fantastically powerful.

Contrast that with YJ Wally where he checked Grayson at least twice.

He did, but it was rare. He was basically the little brother. While Clark was the moral beacon, Wally played the role of the innocent. He hadn't seen tragedy like the others. He wasn't the sole survivor of his family or race or species or planet. He's not a tragic character. Episodes like "Flash and Substance" and "The Ties That Bind"/"Miracles Happen" show that best. "Blackest Night" is another good one. I suppose he wasn't the one to keep them in check, but he was the one that openly questioned and was outraged at injustices, such as when Diana was kicked out of Themyscira or, again, "Blackest Night" when John was on trial. He was also incredibly forgiving, as he immediately refused to allow Shayera to be kicked out, even after everything that happened in "Starcrossed", and simply wanted people to be happy, willing to help at literally every opportunity.

Granted, that flaw is that he's innocent to the point of being naive. At one point, he simply asked J'onn, "don't you ever get lonely?" J'onn then responded with "more than you could ever imagine," because of course he's lonely. He also tended to be tone deaf at times with reading the mood and also got absorbed a bit in the fame (see: "Eclipsed") This innocence is what caused the League to question actions at points. All the rest are battle-hardened and/or tragic. But Wally? Wally just has powers and wants to help people and be loved.
 

thetrin

Hail, peons, for I have come as ambassador from the great and bountiful Blueberry Butt Explosion
How is Great Brain Robbery not in your list?! Dude, that episode is amazing!
 

Boss Doggie

all my loli wolf companions are so moe
Untrue. He did give his vote to keep her, believing everyone should get a second chance. She declined

wait wait wait I misremembered, but now I remember and I think you got some detail mixed

Superman was still the tiebreaker, and he voted for her to keep. However, she didn't know that since she immediately left. She only realized this in her Shayera debut (the one with Grundy coming back episode in Unlimited) where Jon told her about it.
 
wait wait wait I misremembered, but now I remember and I think you got some detail mixed

Superman was still the tiebreaker, and he voted for her to keep. However, she didn't know that since she immediately left. She only realized this in her Shayera debut (the one with Grundy coming back episode in Unlimited) where Jon told her about it.

Yeah that's what I meant. It wasn't that she declined, but she left. Initially because she assumed she would be kicked out, but later on (in "Wake the Dead", the Grundy episode), it's pushed that she also left because even if she had been voted in, the damage was done and she couldn't forgive herself. Diana was the one who was hurt by it the most. It's never made clear what all the votes were. If Clark was the tiebreaker, John and Wally voted for her to stay, Batman abstained, then J'onn and Diana voted against. It's never made clear, but that was my assumption.
 

ReiGun

Member
One thing Unlimited (and even og JL, but to a lesser extent) always gets major props from me for is making the most out of the little time most of the heroes have. "The Greatest Story Never Told" is obviously the biggest example, but they managed to introduce and use so many characters so well. Fire, Green Arrow, Vixen, Vigilante, Shining Knight, Capt. Marvel, Capt. Atom, The Question, Huntress, Wildcat, and Black Canary are obviously the more notable examples.

Not until "Batman: Brave and the Bold" would we get a portrayal of the DCU that truly captured its scope and made every character feel unique.
 

Oddish1

Member
Yeah that's what I meant. It wasn't that she declined, but she left. Initially because she assumed she would be kicked out, but later on (in "Wake the Dead", the Grundy episode), it's pushed that she also left because even if she had been voted in, the damage was done and she couldn't forgive herself. Diana was the one who was hurt by it the most. It's never made clear what all the votes were. If Clark was the tiebreaker, John and Wally voted for her to stay, Batman abstained, then J'onn and Diana voted against. It's never made clear, but that was my assumption.

I always assumed J'onn abstained and Batman and Wonder Woman voted against. But yeah, I don't think it's ever stated for sure either way.
 

ReiGun

Member
Superman TAS really picks up in its back half. Not that it wasn't good before, but once they get into the Intergang and Apokolips stuff and have most of the rogues established, it's really good.
 

Boss Doggie

all my loli wolf companions are so moe
Superman TAS really picks up in its back half. Not that it wasn't good before, but once they get into the Intergang and Apokolips stuff and have most of the rogues established, it's really good.

especially Darkseid's speech, that was really great



Yeah that's what I meant. It wasn't that she declined, but she left. Initially because she assumed she would be kicked out, but later on (in "Wake the Dead", the Grundy episode), it's pushed that she also left because even if she had been voted in, the damage was done and she couldn't forgive herself. Diana was the one who was hurt by it the most. It's never made clear what all the votes were. If Clark was the tiebreaker, John and Wally voted for her to stay, Batman abstained, then J'onn and Diana voted against. It's never made clear, but that was my assumption.

it did annoy me it took them awhile for Diana to obtain her "classic" powers, it took them Unlimited, that long lol
 
Watched a lot of these again. This show is still so good. I keep forgetting that the name Batman Beyond is actually a Cadmus Project. Epilogue is so damn warming.
 
I always assumed J'onn abstained and Batman and Wonder Woman voted against. But yeah, I don't think it's ever stated for sure either way.
I just looked it up again: John abstained due to personal feelings. We know for sure Diana voted against and Wally for. J'onn and Batman are the unknowns.
it did annoy me it took them awhile for Diana to obtain her "classic" powers, it took them Unlimited, that long lol
Yeah I feel that. Really, all the characters were super underpowered compared to pretty much any other incarnations of the characters.
 

MC Safety

Member
There was one with the Flash and Lex Luthor trading minds. I always loved that episode for its humor.

"Aren't you going to wash your hands?"
"No, because I'm evil."
 
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