Arthur Jr. writes...

Hey Greg, I have been watching the recent episodes of "Young Justice."

* In "Image," the episode's twist ending had the Bialyan Queen Bee appearing in Garfield Logan's bedroom as Miss Martian appeared to check up on Garfield. Queen Bee stated that Psimon wasn't the only one who knows that Miss Martian is a White Martian and is now planning to use Miss Martian in a later plot. I am assuming that Psimon must've relayed his discovery of Miss Martian's true form to her before being knocked out. If that's not the case, then what is?

* In "Insecurity," the twist ending there revealed that Sportsmaster is Artemis' father (just like the comics) as well as being Cheshire's father on Earth-16. Outside of that, I did see the opening where Black Spider targets a reporter named Mr. Jones. I don't think you have mentioned which version of Black Spider you are using but some are assuming that it is not one of the three Black Spiders in DC Comics. Do you have any comment on that?

* In "Coldhearted," I was surprised that you got Ariel Winter to reprise her role of Princess Perdita (who last voiced her in "DC Showcase: Green Arrow" where Steven Blum voiced Count Vertigo). This is a coincidence since Jamie Thomason had voice directed her in that "DC Showcase" short.

* When it came to Clayface's animated appearance in "Downtime," Clayface's voice actor was uncredited. I thought it might've been Kevin Michael Richardson. Some others are claiming that Khary Payton or Nolan North voiced him. Do you have any comment on that? Outside of that, the comic spin-off stated that he was a member of the League of Shadows who was locked in the Lazarus Pit by Talia al Ghul when he tried to use it to cure his terminal cancer which led to him becoming Clayface.

Anonymous writes...

Do all the members of the Light blindly trust each other, or do they have contingencies to protect themselves from one another? For example, are the men impervious to Queen Bee's thrall?

Greg Bishansky writes...

Insecurity

Another week, another episode of "Young Justice." The focus returns to Artemis, and considering she is my favorite character on The Team, that focus is always welcome. Out of all the characters on the main cast, Artemis feels the most like an original creation while not being an original creation. I'll admit to being ignorant of her key ingredients, I am aware of Artemis Crock and Arrowette, but I know nothing about them. But this Artemis has always felt like an original Weisman character, and is someone I could easily imagine in a "Gargoyles" spin-off, especially "Gargoyles: Bad Guys." I've always liked her design, and I really want to give a shout out to Stephanie Lemelin for always turning in a wonderful performance as Artemis.

While none of the revelations about Artemis' family relations came as a surprise to me, that did not make the episode any less engaging. Sportsmaster and Cheshire are both breakout villains on this show, at least for me. The choreography during the action scenes was terrific, and Kelly Hu's Cheshire relishes twisting the knife on her little sister, and even Red Arrow a little. Or a lot. But the meat is the denouement at the end between her and Sportsmaster. Surprising? Hardly. Engaging? You betcha.

Likewise, it was fun to see Wally's attitude mature. The lessons he learned in "Coldhearted" stuck, and he now knows how to prioritize. There has been chemistry between him and Artemis since moment one, but this is a relationship that is requiring both of them to grow up a little bit. A nice contrast to Superboy and Miss Martian's where they were pretty much a couple from the first moment, even if it took them a little while to kiss. This is not a critique of either relationship, just that I think Wally and Artemis will develop something with more substance. Superboy was born almost yesterday, and seems like a weird prop in M'Gann's sitcom fantasy world, and she is still lying to him. One of these relationships is slowly building a strong foundation, while the other is a house of cards. Well, to be fair, both Artemis and Miss Martian are lying to the entire team, but Artemis is hiding her family history, M'Gann is hiding who she actually is entirely. Both have their reasons, but... even with her secrets, Artemis feels a lot more honest than M'Gann does... the Justice League knows who she is, can they say as much about M'Gann?

The plotline of the mole has really kicked into high gear. What do we know? Well, at this point Miss Martian, Superboy, and Artemis all seem to have been compromised. Queen Bee is blackmailing Miss Martian. Lex Luthor can make Superboy do things. And Artemis doesn't want The Team to know who her family is. Now, I doubt any of these three are the mole. I have my own speculations, but without more information, I don't feel like tossing them out there in this review.

What are The Light doing? Well, whatever it is, it involves a combination of science and sorcery... a favorite combo of Demona's back during the days of "Gargoyles." And anyone familiar with that series knows just how dangerous that combination is. Klarion and the Brain seem like a fun odd couple of villains if I ever saw one.

On another note, we had Peter MacNicol as Professor Ivo, Lacey Chabert as Zatanna, Crispin Freeman as Red Arrow, Kelly Hu as Cheshire, Thom Adcox as Klarion, and... Josh Keaton as Black Spider. A "Spectacular Spider-Man" family reunion if I ever saw one. I loved it. Very, very much.

We're at the final stretch, three more episodes to go. I'm on the edge of my seat. Next week cannot come soon enough.

Anonymous writes...

Who would could out the victor in these unarmed combat scenarios:
1) Cheshire or Black Canary
2) Sportsmaster or Green Arrow
3) Shimmer or Artemis
4) Joker or Robin

Eagle-Owl writes...

YJ Questions:

1. Are the members of The Light immune to telepathic control (or at least from members of their own ranks)?

2. Queen Bee has the power to enthrall most men and some women, so why hasn't she usurped control from Vandal Savage or turned other members of The Light against him?

3. Same as number two, but with Psimon instead of Queen Bee. Also, is Psimon catatonic after his recent battle with M'gann?

4. Why doesn't Klarion try to take control of The Light considering that he IS the embodiment of chaos?

5. If the Genomorphs want to be accepted, why don't they just use their telepathy to achieve their goals?

YMVM writes...

OK, I finished watching "Insecurity" about an hour ago and I absolutely loved it. I was a little disappointed that Robin didn't show up, but the rest was awesome, from Kid Flash and Artemis' interactions, to Red Arrow, to even Wolf asleep. Please keep up the wonderful job!

malini writes...

Did Garfield take his mother's maiden name? I couldn't help noticing that Marie's surname was Logan in her teenage days.

The Greenman writes...

Hi Mr. Greg Weisman,

I have been a fan of yours since Gargoyles. One of the things that interest me is the basic structure of the themes and world building in the series. One of the styles I see continue to pop up in your series is the relationship between science and sorcery. This is something I have been a fan of in comics like Iron Man and Fantastic Four (specifically Dr. Doom versus Reed Richards). I love the simple explanation that energy is energy.

1. Now I didn't see much of this argument come up in your Spectacular Spider-Man series, because Peter debunked Mysterio, but can you say that you ever planned to and who you would've used to explore that science versus mystic aspect?

2. I am upset that directors such as Jon Favreau and Shane Black have knocked down the very idea of Mandarin showing up as not to approach the so-called mystic aspect. Though, it could be be alien in origin or something, as they claim and prove that even super-science isn't allowed in the MCU. Have you read and understand the Iron Man comics specific to Mandarin and Tony's relationship to science versus sorcery? Was it influential at all in your writing?

Robin~BW writes...

Hello Greg!
I want you to know that Young Justice is an amazing show! My questions:
1) Is it true that Robin/Dick is bullied at school? Or unpopular?
2) I know you said that Dick has not skipped a grade, but you did say that he is a Mathelete; does he take advanced math?
Thanks!

Anonymous writes...

Can Queen Bee control animals and aliens or just human people?

Paul writes...

Why do you put the words 'Produced by Brandon Vietti & Greg Weisman' at the start of each episode (post theme song)? Why not just put them at the start of the end credits instead? The title, writer and director all change with each episode, so I understand why they have a place onscreen while the episode is unfolding, but the producer names are always the same and people don't really need reminding. I understand that you and Brandon Vietti most likely don't want your names to be overlooked, but I think viewers prefer there to be as little listed information onscreen as possible when the episode is playing (essentials like the episode title aside).

Anonymous writes...

Why does Sportsmater call his daughters as "little girls"?
Does he love them?

SDOHT writes...

When asked how Lexington homosexuality will be portrayed in the future you answered:

“Gargoyles is owned by Disney, and I'd be kidding you and myself if I didn't recognize that there are certain limits to what Disney will allow. My goal with Lex is to be honest and consistent in HIS portrayal. Not to be titillating (let alone pornographic). Frankly, I wish I had the freedom to be more forthright. Perhaps there's an element of cowardice in my middle ground position. I'll cop to that. But I'm just trying to tell stories honestly. I face restrictions. I live with those restrictions. What that means practically, is that few people beyond the hardcore fandom will see Lex's orientation as any kind of issue at all.”

I understand what you mean by that I truly do. I was just wondering if you face the same issues now. If any character were to appear gay to you in young justice could you accurately portray it now or are you faced with the same restraint?

Koronog writes...

Why couldnt Garth go to the dinner in the palace in Downtime? Is he not on good terms with Aquaman, after the refusal?

Jeremy writes...

First off let me start by saying that I love everything you're involved with. The top of the list being Gargoyles which I watched as a kid and have now rewatched with a MUCH better understanding of things. Anyways on to my question: Do you plan on doing a reboot of Gargoyles? My reasoning being that a lot of classic shows, such as Thundercats, are being(or have been) rebooted and I was wondering(hoping really) if there was any intention what so ever of rebooting gargoyles.

Real Roy writes...

Who are Garth's parents?

Kevin writes...

1. Is Vandal Savage a Cro-Magnon on Earth 16?
2. Are the sound effects for Doctor Fate based on the Dream Time in Gargoyles?
3. What field of science does the Atom specialize in on Earth 16?
4. Why does Artemis use a compound bow instead of a recurve bow?
5. Do Nabu and Klarion live in the same dimension when they are not in the physical world or did they live in separate dimensions?

The Batfan writes...

This series just keeps getting better and better. "Misplaced" finally gave us another episode where Klarion is the main villain, and brought back Doctor Fate for good - two things I'd certainly been waiting for. It also gave us a hint that each of the members of the Light has his own "crew", as it were - and that, as befits a lord of chaos, Klarion's bosts elemental power. The other side of this was really showing off Zatanna, and finally inducting her onto the team, albeit under circumstances no one would have guessed. All in all, one of my favorite episodes so far.
But even "Misplaced", with all its titanic magic - and I love that stuff, I'm a fantasy buff - can't beat the simple, paradoxically heart-warming beauty that was "Coldhearted". I know the crew was especially proud with this one; they have every reason to be.
It was great to get some more insight into the unfolding mystery that is M'gann, and "Image" really showed us some more of who M'gann really is - and I'm not talking about her "true" form. I had already suspected the White Martian bit, as had many; I am referring to the twist, that she actually hates her "true" form, and has adopted a new identity because that's who she wants to be. As she says to Superboy, "I do it for me." So the M'gann we've seen so far - in terms of personality - actually *is* the real M'gann. And I think that's great.
"Agendas" - well, this one was puzzling. The bit about the human DNA was a nice twist, which I did not foresee, even though others did (I honestly thought his Kryptonian powers were simply still developing). From there, the fact that Luther was the donor was foreseeable - and that he would try to butt-in as Superboy's father-figure, in Kal-El's absence, was the logical and expedient route for taking back Cadmus's super-weapon.
Those "shields" intrigue me, though. How is it possible that an electrical pulse or chemical mixture (I'm assuming it's not magic, since Lex said he developed them, and since magic generally does nothing good to Kryptonians) could "suppress" a good chunk of Superboy's genetic makeup - the delicate code that makes him look the way he does and forms part of the basis for who he is? I know, I'm supposed to suspend disbelief here - but this came so suddenly, so out of the blue, that I'm having trouble with that.
I know you don't really like this kind of question, and I'm sorry to bug you with it, but I really didn't get this and I would really like to. Where did the idea of the shields originate, and how do they work?
Thank you for your patience, and your amazing creativity that makes us love this series.