Young Justice, many people likely know the name of the show from its TV time to streaming service. The show is about the teenage to young adult heroes of DC like the Robins and Kid Flash. Many of the heroes are sidekicks or offshoots of DC’s main heroes including the previous two. Part of the reasons these angsty teens get together is to get out of their constraints. That doesn’t mean that the show make use of influences; including the comic event that forms Young Justice, World Without Grown-Ups. Spoilers ahead for both series.
The Premise
Both versions have the same premise: a magic spell causes all of the adults to disappear. With the Justice League and other DC heroes unavailable, the super youths have to step up. Of course the adults aren’t really gone, they’re just in a world with no kids. A crucial piece of the plot comes in the form of Captain Marvel (aka Shazam). The story behind this is the boundary between appreciation and responsibility; the young heroes have a lot to live up to and become a better team. But before we get into what makes the show unique, let’s look at the comic.
Justice League of America: World Without Grown-Ups
As the above header will tell you, the teen heroes of the comics are still in their offshoot phase. By this point in time most focus goes to Robin (Tim Drake), Superboy (Kon-El), and Impulse. Other young heroes like the Shazam Family, the Teen Titans, or future Young Justice members are mainly for decoration. The villain is Matthew Stuart, a spoiled boy upset with his father’s archaeology career. So he creates a self-fulfilling prophecy as he uses what’s inside his artifact birthday present to become a supervillain. In Bedlam’s defense, his dad should’ve brought the Atlantean artifact up with Aquaman; Geoff Johns illustrates how dangerous these relics are.
But apparently, the only thing more dangerous than magic vials are unsupervised kids. First thing some of these kids do when the adults are gone is do a bunch of dangerous stuff. One kid even flies a jet for a while but loses control until Superboy helps him down. The super youths get a call from Billy Batson who is afraid if he becomes Shazam, he’ll vanish. So pre-Young Justice go to confront Bedlam, possessed by a genie who makes his fantasies real; in this case, it’s fifth-generation gaming. But the youths outsmart Bedlam by using his powers against him and making him comatose. Pretty basic villain defat, unfortunately the plot could’ve been better.
Misplacing The Potential
Some pieces of this comic really show their age for newbies. During the 90s, comics with heavy exposition are common. Some for the better like the originator Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, most for the worst. Some of the exposition isn’t to its detriment, but relying on accompanying images could’ve saved ink. One of the biggest gripes come from the designs of the youths. They don’t look like mini-adults but they do look very cartoony unlike the grown-ups. While the teens look expressive, putting them in the same place as the adults feel awkward. But perhaps the biggest flop is the wasted potential of Captain Marvel and how the conflict breaks its own rules.
Billy Batson could freely traverse from these two worlds between his base and Shazam form. However, some staff member probably thought this would make things too easy; so they make then Captain Marvel into the conduit of the adult world. So when Billy utters the Shazam transformation he actually goes to the adult world. I know Bedlam has games in mind, but is this supposed to be a glitch? And how does that entity even know about Shazam? He might claim to be a god but he can’t be omniscient. Otherwise, Bedlam would’ve beaten pre-Young Justice. Thankfully the show makes this idea more compelling.
Young Justice: Misplaced
The main conflict for the heroes in this point in time is whether they get a new member in Zatanna. The team (it doesn’t go by Young Justice) is a fitting place full of accepting new friends. However Zatanna’s overprotective father is against it. Zatara proves to be an obstacle as he is uncomfortable with her growing up. So much so that despite allowing her to train, he’s still reluctant to allow Zatanna to become as good as him. This makes Zatanna feel unconfident with her abilities. Which is what makes the situation she and the team faces more dire.
A magic spell causes every adult to vanish from youth’s sight. The antagonist here is not a character for the specific purpose but reoccurring villain Klarion the Witch Boy. Unlike the comic which establishes firsthand that there are two worlds, the show builds up the revelation. This way the audience shares the characters’ surprise when it comes up. But perhaps the most notable change is how youths and adults handle the crisis.
The youths for the most part are panicking on their parents’ disappearance unlike the comic; the panic phase is only implied there. The show also removes some of the juvenile delinquency, mainly to save time. Still unlike the more humorous comic, the show’s more serious tone is consistent. The initial phase also highlights kids’ preference to social media rather than traditional news. That might actually be where most of the panic goes. The adults meanwhile are the ones who cause more damage in their panic. This is actually a distraction to steal a piece of DC monster, Starro for series antagonist The Light’s plans. Now for where Shazam fits.
Say the Magic Word
Billy Batson unlike in the comics has not come out as Captain Marvel to much of the league. At that point only Batmen knew. This makes Billy’s decision not to immediately change into Captain Marvel a little more compelling. He can’t even count on League resources to help and he lacks the help of the Marvel Family. Afraid of disappearing, he goes to help with an older friend. Unfortunately, when that friend turns 18, she disappears. But Billy works up his own courage and becomes Shazam ending up in the adult world. This way, both the team and league formulate a plan to fight Klarion. It’s unknown if the Light knew about Billy’s situation but it doesn’t really matter to Klarion.
Because by all accounts, the team are no match for him. Desperate, Zatanna uses the Helmet of Fate to become Doctor Fate. While the team wins, the deity in the helmet Nabu refuses to give up Zatanna with Klarion around. So Zatara offers himself in her place which Nabu accepts. The episode ends with Zatanna joining the team upset that she can’t help her father.
Doing the Source Justice
The Young Justice comic is a little preachy about its message of appreciation and maturity. Bedlam’s only real role in the comics are just as foils to the team, an immature teen with a bad influence. Pre-Young Justice meanwhile have to deal with at times overbearing parental figures. But only because they don’t want their wards to get in bigger trouble. Tim almost got Batman’s Bane treatment which is why he wants Robin to back off a bit. Those lessons even come full circle when Impulse uses Max Mercury’s lessons on focus to outsmart Bedlam. The show however displays that despite the care, some of the parental figures aren’t perfect.
While the primary team members have their mentor’s approval to handle situations, Zatara keeps Zatanna’s progress slow. This proves to be a detriment when someone as powerful as Klarion appears. Zatara realizes he’s been holding his daughter back and giving himself up to Fate is his way to let Zatanna grow up. Some people also go through some personal growth. Billy now shares his secret with people he calls friends; despite debates on whether a kid should be in the league or the team. Then there’s Superboy; despite not getting Superman’s attention he is learning what it means to be the Man of Steel. It’s what gives him a greater appreciation and admiration of Superman.
As for the Light’s plan, since it’s carried out by a kid, it makes sense of the extremes taken. Even the Brain notes that. In fact, it’s that very piece that leads to a big push later in the season.
Thanks for coming to the end and as always remember to look between the panels.