by Matt Sernaker, Managing Editor

Who do you call when Batman, Superman, and the rest of the Justice League aren’t available to save the day? Young Justice!

The sidekicks of the world’s greatest heroes have assembled. Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad are on a mission to prove they are ready for join the big leagues, and will quickly find that their world is about to get a lot larger. The complete first season of the hit Young Justice series from Greg Weisman (The Spectacular Spider-Man, Gargoyles) and Brandon Vietti (The Batman) is finally available to own on Blu-ray!

Episode Highlights:

Independence Day/Fireworks: The Justice League has determined that it is time for their sidekicks to become more included in their daily activities. Robin, Aqualad, Speedy, and Kid Flash are invited to see the Hall of Justice (the inner sanctum of the League), but learn that they are still being kept at a distance from the League itself. Speedy decides to strike out on his own and leave the nest, leaving his peers to determine their own fate. When the Justice League is called away to action, Robin and the gang respond to a mysterious alert originating at Cadmus Labs! When they discover a young clone of Superman, they will have to act quickly or risk being terminated by the Boy of Steel.

Denial: Kid Flash struggles to win over Miss Martian (Martian Manhunter’s Niece), and feigns belief in the mystic arts. When Kent Nelson is attacked, the team must travel to the Tower of Fate to prevent the Helmet of Fate from falling into the hands of Klarion the Witchboy. Will Wally be able to overcome his disbelief in order to save his friends?

Downtime: Aqualad returns to Atlantis to sort out his feelings about living in the surface world. When Black Manta attacks, Aqualad must defend his kingdom at all costs! This episode features appearances by Aquaman’s cast of characters, including Aquaman, Mera, Garth (the original Aqualad), Tula, and Black Manta. This episode also introduces Starro, and sets the stage for the evil plans of The Light for the remainder of the season.

Terrors: Superboy and Miss Martian go undercover as the Terror Twins in order to find out who is pulling the strings at Belle Rev penitentiary. This episode features some fantastic and heartwarming moments between the two super powered teens, and also reveals the reasons behind the attacks from the pilot episode.

Revelation: The Injustice League Strikes! In order to throw off the Justice League, The Light has unleashed The Joker, Poison Ivy, Wotan, Count Vertigo, Ultra-Humanite, and the Atomic Skull upon the world! Using Ivy’s plants and the Mystic Arts, the villains launch simultaneous attacks around the globe. The young heroes must find a way to stop this villainous team-up, and save the world from impending doom!

Agendas: The Justice League has decided to increase their roster! Who will be invited to join the League? Will any of the sidekicks make the cut? While the heroes vote on increasing their ranks, Superboy gets a mysterious call from Lex Luthor. Lex reveals that there is more going on at Project Cadmus, AND that is he is actually the human donor of Superboy’s DNA! Superboy must come to terms with his lineage, and stop another super-clone named Match.

Auld Acquaintance: The Light finally strikes! The traitor from amongst the sidekicks stands revealed, and no one could have seen it coming. Can Robin and his team stop the Light from taking over the world? Can they save their mentors and stop Vandal Savage in time? The entire season has been leading to this episode. The status quo has been changed forever, and now these young heroes must step up to the plate.

Special Features:

There are no special features on this release.

Overall:

Young Justice was a fantastic series that fell victim to bad time slots and bad planning from Cartoon Network. This specific incarnation of both the Justice League and the Young Justice team showed true promise, and allowed all of the characters to get a chance to shine. The relationships and developments between the characters were truly human, and it was extremely easy to connect and feel for their plight. It’s hard standing in someone else’s shadow. Growing up sucks. All of the angst and challenges of being a teenager are captured perfectly throughout this series, and everyone involved in the show should be proud of their interpretation. They truly did justice to all of the iconic DC characters.

From the Justice League to the Teen Titans, Young Justice was modern take on the DC Universe that really had it all. While it is disappointing that the Blu-ray release was not able to incorporate any special features, I am excited to have the Young Justice: Season One in my collection.

Rating:
ComicsOnline gives Young Justice: Season One 5 out of 5 shows that should still be on the air today.

Grab your costume and head out with ComicsOnline.com for more reviews, news, and everything geek pop culture!