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Laura 'ad astra' Sack writes...

Here I am- falling behind again. A few comments on the last few episodes, all of which I enjoyed. Unfortunaetly the memory for specifics is getting a bit dim as I go back....

Revelations-
In general I liked the episode. The superhero cameos made me nerd happy, and like in Terrors, it showed what was meant by using the group behind the scenes. (I was freeze framing to name all the superheroes. I had to go back and forth several times till I figured out it was Rocket. Then I let it play and saw Icon 5 seconds later. Serves me right for not having the patience to let a scene play out before going all nerd on it.)

1- Are Rocket and Icon based in Dakota City on Earth 16? (And if so, which state is that in?)
2- Asking about Lian Harper's existence, while tempting, is a little silly because it Roy and Cheshire have just met. But Rocket/Raquel was (though unaware) pregnant with Amistad in her first appearance. Does she have child on Earth 16?
3- Which brings to mind a side question- which superheroes have experience with kids? Batman has had Dick for a while. Zatara is obviously a father. J'onn is an uncle if not necessarily a father in this universe. But how many of others have a clue with kids? Roy's been with Ollie a while, but he's already the oldest of the group.
4- I seem to be in a distinct minority of people who do not hate Guy Gardner's traditional costume, but I thought the redesign for the cameo was clever.
5- Barely noticed one of the three firemen who collapsed when the Joker toxin was released was a woman. Thank you for keeping her uniform bulky and form hiding so it wasn't a magically tailored female uniform of the sorts we often see on tv.
6- Artimas and Wally's relationship continues to develop nicely.
7- Robin and Aqualad recognizing the couples was very amusing.
8- M'gann called her ship "She" and it didn't sound like the generic - ships/cars get called she way. Is it sentient?
9- I've noticed M’gann never wears a seatbelt in her ship. Everyone else does. Is it unnecessary as a by product of her psychic link to the ship that she is somehow held in place and never surprised? Is she joined to it?
10- Light revelation - clever.

Humanity-
I already asked some separate questions about Reddy's family. So I won't repeat those, but I was generally happy.
1- My closed captioning pegged the Zatarra/Zatanna spell casting as Latin:) Though I must say, speaking backwards is actually far less cheesy on screen than on paper.
2- Okay... I can't remember is I asked this in my Red Tornado family question- but was there any memorial for his brother and sister either public or private?
3- It's odd for me to think of Zatanna as something other than Batman’s contemporary. That said, I did read Zatanna’a Search, so I understand she was first introduced as a teen.
4- Funny as it was, Artimas's "Naked, not in a good way" quip about not having her arrows was a little jarring. It seemed a little open for a 15-6 year old who is keeping secrets. Then again, I'm a prude.

Failsafe-
Really liked this one. The trick to any imaginary episode is letting there be a reason for what happens and why it is important. The idea that a emotional reaction to a pretend death overwhelms a psychic link and turns it into a high stakes 'reality' is elegant. The emotional ramifications make it anything but a return to status quo at the end. And the revelation about M'gann's powers is good plotting.

1- I'm going to say again that I believe the mole is unaware of being a mole. M'gann was so far into everyone’s head it would have leaked through if someone was knowingly betraying them.
2- Seeing Iris and Barry interact during the new broadcast was nicely done (as was the anchor's reaction to Iris's on screen death). There were a lot of well done pieces like that in the episode. It does raise a bunch of questions, some I can suppose answers to...
a- Given the power of M'gann's mind I presume it is possible that she unconsciously had access to information that went into that scenario- for example there is no particular reason she would know the reporter and Flash were married, but J'onn and Wally do, so that was in the scene. Is that what happened and if not, how did that get in?
b- Also presuming she got Alfred, Babs and Bette's faces from Dick's mind, would it be fair to read into the lack of costumes that Babs and Bette have yet to don capes? (Actually asking that would be an obvious spoiler- I'm asking if it is a fair interpretation, not necessarily the one you are depicting.)
c- Even with taking images from the heads of the other participants, how would Eeling and Bard end into the scenario? Or...wait, I'll ask the next part of this question in a separate post.
d- How did, or will, Jason Bard wreck his knee in earth16?
3. The masks the superheroes used in space- where they for breathing or simply to allow or talking? (I was surprised they didn't include the eyes. Even if they can manage bare in space for a period of time, I gotta think they come home with wicked dry eye.
4. Was the 48 star flag a throwback to when M'gann first started watching earth tv?
5. Loved Artimas elbowing Wally after every stupid alien line. Then having Wally react to her death....
6. Robins speech and the next wave of teen heroes gathering was stirringly done.

Disordered-
Another great one- Failsafe may have been a dream, but the ramifications are real.
1- WhooHoo! Called the Supercycle. (Though I suppose MightyNDowd won't be showing in the series.)
2- It looked like we were going to get a 'heroes fight over a misunderstanding' scene but don't- like that.
3- Does Black Canary have any therapeutic training? As far as I recall she is a florist in her civilian life. If she doesn't have training, why was she one doing the sessions? (Not that she didn't seem very good at it.)
4- Odd that it didn't occur to me that whole League (or at least those working with the teens) would know Artimas's background until Black Canary brought it up. (Though it's not necessarily so considering that Dina is part of the Green Arrow family.)
5- Nice revelations on leadership from Aqualad and Robin. Not so much surprising as well stated and acknowledged.
6- M'gann's reaction to turning 'white' clearly means there is some connection to her White Martian status in the comics. I await to see exactly what kind. (Loved Dinah's comment about trying not to speak in 1rst grade.)
7- Wally being 'comfortable with denial' was fun. Not the unhealthiest way to approach life or at least the trauma he just faced. He'll have to deal with his feeling for Artimas trauma or none eventually, but to knowingly leave the rest aside might be better than dealing with it minutely.
8- Superboy's revelation managed to shock Dinah, though she quickly covered. There are so many ways to go from it- and many are equally valid if not equally healthy choices for him. He was after all designed to replace Superman should the need arise- that is programmed into him as his main purpose and serving a purpose is a very basic human need. Of course he may just see himself as selfish and soulless...a less healthy answer. Then there are answers of a less psychological nature- like Lex Luthor genes, and lingering programming from Cadmus/the Light. It's nice when someone has a valid reason to be potentially emo as opposed to general angst.

thanks.

Greg responds...

MIght I make a request: in the future, could you NOT start your question numbering over if you're going to comment on multiple things in one post? I'm going to alternate between roman and arabic numerals, to try to lend my responses some clarity, but it's awkward. (It's not a big deal, but it would be helpful in the future.)

1. Yes.

1a. Would rather not be pinned down on that point.

2. SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT.

3. Among the League, Bruce and Ollie are both foster-fathers. Zatara is a dad. Aquaman's wife is expecting. The rest, not so much.

4. We liked it.

5. You're welcome.

6. Cool.

7. Ditto.

8. Depends on your definition of sentient, I suppose. It's more like a pet.

9. She's a bit more one with it.

10. Glad you liked it.

I. Yeah, not latin.

II. SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT.

III. She's the daughter of an adult hero. And she was originally introduced as a teen long after Robin was introduced. The difference was that she was aged up to adulthood much more rapidly than Dick Grayson. So it seemed to us like it was missing a bet to not introduce her as a teen. Most direct parental relationship we have. Why not play it up?

IV. Seemed fun and in character, but to each his or her own.

1. NO COMMENT.

2a. Keep in mind that J'onn was controlling the scenario until Artemis died.

2b. Yes, she accessed stuff from the minds of others, including (still) J'onn.

2c. J'onn is acquainted with both.

2d. In combat.

3. Both.

4. I don't know. I hadn't noticed it.

5. I liked that too.

6. It wasn't just Robin.

i. SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT.

ii. I had to reread this one a couple times to get your meaning.

iii. Yes, she does.

iv. Mmmhmm.

v. Thanks.

vi. I liked BC's first grade thing too.

vii. It seemed in character.

viii. We aim to please!

Response recorded on February 10, 2012