State of the (Animation) Union

Right now there are four superhero animated series out there. Interestingly enough, they are evenly split between two DC-based series and two Marvel-based series. Well, that's a lot to get through in one blog post, so let's get to it.

Young Justice - Well, the first season just finished last Saturday, with season two immediately starting seven days later. For DC fans this is a very good show. Within twenty-six episodes, the first season established characters such as Superboy (a clone of Superman), Aqualad, Kid Flash, Miss Martian, Artemis, and of course Robin (Dick Grayson). The show isn't shy on showing off it's knowledge of DC superheroes, having dozens appear throughout the season. Unfortunately, too much of something can be bad and this show proves it. As the season goes on, not including the character-centric episodes, the main characters get brushed aside to show off all of these other heroes. It gets to the point that the emotions and actions of the teen heroes are glossed over to get to the main plot of The Light.
Regardless, the series is highly entertaining, and the action is superb. When it hits that sweet spot of action and character interaction, you'll wish it would never end. Hopefully, the showrunners have learned how to hit that sweet spot often so that this show becomes the hit it deserves to be.

Green Lantern - The Animated Series - It started off inauspiciously enough. Standard Hal Jordan character doing his thing on Earth. It quickly changes pace, becoming a space epic where Hal and his partner Kilowog are out patrolling the far reaches of space against the evil Red Lanterns. With only eight episodes released so far, it is hard to gauge how good this show will be. Like Young Justice, it has potential, especially since it is being helmed by Bruce Timm (for those that don't know, he was the helmer for Batman TAS, Superman, Justice League and their counterparts). The first DC series produced with CGI, it has a low-grade feel to it at times. When you pay attention, you realize that is intentional, as it looks like a 3D version of a Bruce Timm cartoon. The animation is fluid where it counts, and most of the episodes have a great story. Right now, the main plot revolves around the evil Red Lanterns, controlled by Atrocitus, and their attempts to destroy the Green Lantern Corps. For those not informed by the comics, the new colored Lantern Corps is a bit confusing since the show plays those characters very close to its chest. Little by little they reveal information about this group (including their basic origin), but it really isn't enough to convey the drama necessary for these characters. Hopefully the series will kick into high-gear now that the Red Lanterns' origin has been revealed and they begin their true plan to destroy the Green Lanterns. Until then, it is a decent show that will hopefully get better.

The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes! - The only superhero show on this list that is already into season two. The show started off interestingly enough with a half dozen or so mini-episodes that showcased the characters involved in the series. The series weaved a great story involving various superheroes from the Marvel universe. Each episode presented its own epic story that further peeled back the plans of Loki and his desire to rule the universe. The end of the first season was a doozy, providing an epic clash between the heroes and villains, with a few intergalactic surprises for season two. Now, the series is bringing a slow build based on the Kree-Skrull war, and including even more heroes from the Marvel universe such as the Fantastic Four. Out of all of the shows that I've talked about in this blog, this series is the most fully realized. There is a clear understanding of who these characters are, and what story the writers want to tell. I think the only real downside is the voice work for Iron Man, and the problem with the Wasp (if you look around the internets, a lot of people cry foul over what happens to her in the show i.e. she gets the crap beat out of her all the time and rarely comes out on top without one of the male heroes to save her). Season two is attempting to rectify that by including female powerhouses like Ms. Marvel. Here's hoping season two will be just as good as the second.

Ultimate Spider-Man - The latest Marvel cartoon helmed by Jeph Loeb and featuring writers that have worked on various hit animated shows like Batman TAS, and Ben 10. This show is a very strange beast, over-emphasizing the comedy over the main story that is Spider-Man. Interestingly enough, it is loosely tied to the Marvel movies, including Nick Fury and Agent Coulson as the acting principal of Peter Parker's school. The show brings a focus on a new teen team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents including Power Man, Nova, Iron Fist, and White Tiger with Spidey as their de facto leader. I am of two minds of this series; on one hand the show looks great and is presenting a strange and new Spidey story and the comedy is funny when it's done right/ on the other, the show misses way too often on the humor and it becomes groan-inducing. The latest episode is a perfect example of this problem. The story calls for Spidey to begin hanging around Iron Man, and thus he gets a new costume. Unfortunately, the show begins to spend the rest of the episode with Spidey comedy based on his mess ups due to said costume. You know what would have been cooler? Actually seeing Spidey interact with one of his idols in more than just a "Hi! You're awesome! *Random science thing*" "That's cool, here is a suit I whipped up for you in an hour, Spidey." Yeah. The show has a long way to go to find the right balance between comedy and story, and if the show continues to have this problem it will lose its audience fast.


It truly is interesting that it is a showdown between Marvel and DC with two series each, on two rival networks (Cartoon Network and DisneyXD). While I am not sure of the ratings (I do know Avengers rated so well that they fast-tracked season two way before the third episode of the first season aired), they are all fairly reviewed well save for Ultimate Spider-Man. Based on my opinion, Marvel barely edges the victory with its Avengers series, but if Green Lantern hastens the pace and Young Justice season two starts with a bang, DC may become the animation victor once again. History has shown that DC series tend to work better in animation, be it due to higher budgets or greater talent, somehow they are reviewed the best and end up lasting the longest. Will history repeat itself again? It doesn't look like that is the case, especially with Avengers hitting its stride and a new Hulk cartoon in the works. Either way, it is a great time for superhero fans that happen to like cartoons!

Want to check out these shows? Green Lantern and Young Justice air on the DC Nation block on Cartoon Network Saturdays @ 9AM Central Time.
Avengers and Ultimate Spider-man air on DisneyXD Sundays @ 10AM Central Time.