Pumpkin Bomb writes...

Wow, the number of questions since the premiere of Young Justice has really exploded upward. I tried to read through all of them to see if any made reference to my question, and I didn't find any, but apologies if I missed it and this has been asked before you get to my question.

One thing I've always found a little frustrating in DC comics is that the fictional cities of specific heroes (Gotham, Star City, Central City, Metropolis) are never definitively placed anywhere in the United States, even when they use actual cities as locations (using Washington DC as Justice League headquarters, for example). It's not like I expect there to be a giant, meticulously drawn map of the US with all the fictional cities marked, but it would be nice to know what region of the country they're in, but it's never really confirmed in the comics. But knowing how specific your planning can be when taking real world matters in account, I was wondering if you had decided where these major cities were in the country.

If so, would you tell us which states/regions of the country the cities of our main heroes (Robin, Kid Flash, Speedy, etc) are? As we probably won't know where Superboy or Miss Martian are staying until you decide to show us, would you touch on some of the other fictional cities and their locations if that information isn't something that will be revealed in the show (Bludhaven, Metropolis, Gateway City, Opal City, Fawcett...?)

Thanks!

Quentin Beck writes...

Hey Greg. I was just wondering if you were a Blockbuster fan? Not of the rental store, but of the DC Comics villain. I ask this because the episodes you wrote featured him in it. For example, in the Batman episode Meltdown, which you wrote, I noticed Mark Desmond was the chief scientist working on trying to cure Ethan Bennett. Blockbuster also appeared on Batman: Brave and the Bold. He was in the teaser for Death Race to Oblivion, which you wrote. FInally, he appeared on Young Justice, great premier by the way, which you wrote and produced. I'm a bit of a Blockbuster fan to so I just wanted to know if you were? Thanks for taking the time to read this and keep up the good work.

Henry writes...

Am I wrong to think that people are reading to much in to the covert ops premise of the show? From what the Flash said it seemed that it meant that they would be taking side missions, and missions that the justice league wouldnt have been able to do because theyre always being watched.

But are they going to be staying out of the public eye completely?
Or are they trying to not let villans find out that theyre a team?

Joker writes...

Considering that you created a new Aqualad, can we expect to see new villains also ?

Roy writes...

This may be premature as the series is only just getting started, but has there been any consideration to creating some additional outlets down the line to showcase the rest of the Earth 16 universe you are building in the background behind Young Justice?

For example a comic miniseries, direct-to-DVD movies, or potential spin-offs focused on the Earth 16 Justice League (or Captain Atom or Wonder Woman, etc.)?

Joker writes...

1) Will Aquagirl apear in Young Justice ? And if you can't answer that : Will any other characters from Atlantis apear in the show besides Aquaman amd the Two Aqualads ?
2)Who is your favourite sidekick from Young Justice ?
3)Who is your favourite DC Ice villain ?

Joker writes...

Have you guys made any intro/theme song for Young Justice ?

Anonymous writes...

Are we going to expect more Disney voice actors to be working on Young Justice like Jim Cummings for example?

BTW did you know that is really Ron Stoppable voicing Blue Beetle (Jaime Reyes) on B:TBTB. Best portrayal of the third and current Blue Beetle EVER!

Grant writes...

Do the Atlanteans and their stigma for blond hair exist in the YJ universe like they do in the comics? Does that extend to Aqualad?

Grant writes...

1)So if the original Black Canary was born in 1943, whats years was she operating from? Did she still have any connection to the original JSA?

2)Were there any heroes besides her that you have transplanted to the interim era between the Golden Age and the Modern Age?

Tyler writes...

According to the Wikipedia, in the Young Justice article you chose the characters from a list of around 50. I was wondering just which of these characters you were looking at but didn't make the spot. Do you have a list of characters you could post here you were looking at for us to peruse, and if not can you post the most prominent ones that were the closest (but did not make the six) to getting on the show?

Billybob writes...

Soo... did the group dynamics of young justice resemble gargoyles by accident like maybe you didn't realize you were writing them that way. I mean robin is cleary the lexington of the group the smallest and the smartest, and aqualad has goliaths role as the mature leader. And the boys reaction to seeing miss martian for the first time was pretty much the same as the trios to meeting Angela. (who was also new to the city the same way miss martian is new to the planet.)

Anonymous writes...

I heard that Young Justice's premiere was viewed by over 2.5 million people which apparently is very good. I dont know what numbers for channels like Cartoon Network are usually like, can you kinda explain how good that number is?

Edward writes...

The animation on young justice looks amazing. I was wondering would you be aloud to show LGBT characters on a show like young justice in this day and age?

Laura 'ad astra' Sack writes...

Greatly enjoyed the premier of Young Justice.

Minor to medium sized Spoilers:

Oddly enough I wasn't in love with the trailer - it seemed a little juvenile to be so excited about forming a kids group...nice misdirection. It makes perfect sense in context. Speaking of what was already in the trailer...WOW you aren't shy about killing - unless there is away all those flash frozen families were flash unfrozen? Alot to love, but one ting in particular that stood out for me was the meeting between Superman and Superboy. I'm so used to Supes being the big blue boy scout it's nice to see him fall short of expectations, and beautifully expressed in the process.

Paul writes...

When Young Justice starts airing in January, will there be a theme song at the beginning of each episode (or a minute or so in, like in The Spectacular Spider-Man)?

Anonymous writes...

Hi, I want to say how much I enjoyed the Debut of Young Justice. I know this is going to mainly focus on the kids but will we be seeing some stuff amongst the adults too? Specifically for me Superman and Wonder Woman. I loved that little silent interaction between her and Superman at the end of Independence Day. So while I know this isn't about the adults, I would love to see some of the shared friendship /tension/chemistry that the comics have with them that DCAU always ignore. The super/wonder fans have had very little in animation to cheer about other than one awesome Ruby Spears Episode.

Algernon writes...

Not a question but I wanted to let you know that the "Young Justice" review a couple of posts back was me. I just forgot to sign my name, sorry.

kon-el writes...

Is it pronounced gene-gnomes or g-gnomes?

Anonymous writes...

"Indepedence Day" Review

S
P
O
I
L
E
R
S

I really enjoyed this, it’s one of the tightest animated pilots I’ve seen in… well ever. Admittedly, I’m a life long member of the Church of Weisman but I’ll try to keep the fanboyish squeals of delight down to a somewhat dignified level.

First thing I’ll note is that the animation is drop dead gorgeous, I remember when I first saw to five minute preview featuring the ice villains and thinking that is seriously high quality stuff. It looks more like a theatrical feature then the kind of thing you’d see even on a typical tv budget. I don’t know if that’s because Brandon Vietti and the rest of the visual team are just that darn good or because WB are pouring truckloads of money into the animation budget, but I suspect it’s mainly the former with a little of the latter.

Story and character wise, well it’s a Weisman show so it goes without saying that they’re going to be top notch. I particularly enjoyed the very whedonesque banter between are four heroes. I’m also liking the new Aqualad, he has a very eldest sibling vibe. He’s thrust into the role of the mature responsible one trying to keep a handle on Wally’s impulsiveness, Dick’s devil may care attitude and Superboy’s anger issues.

Fans of JLU will probably see a lot of Michael Rosenbaum’s Flash in this incarnation of Wally right down to his hokey attempts at being a ladies man. Dick gets plenty of opportunities to show off his skills, he seems to have a natural talent for tactics and strategy but doesn’t quite have the maturity to take on a proper leadership role… yet.

Of course the big stand out character is Superboy. This is his story more then anyone else and the first step on his journey from pawn of Cadmus to master of his own fate is a nice parallel with the sidekicks’ own desire to step out of their mentors’ shadows. We also get a lot of nice tidbits from a lot of the supporting characters, from Clark and Conner’s original reactions to each other (which are magnificently portrayed purely through animation, without a single word of dialogue) to the downright icy glare Bruce gives Ollie when he finds out Roy knows about the Justice League’s REAL headquarters.

Plot wise there’s a lot of really cool twists and pipe laying for future stories. Greg and Brandon once said that the main theme for season one would be “secrets and lies” and boy they weren’t kidding. Both Cadmus and the League are hiding behind false fronts, their respective public HQ’s being little more then elaborate decoys for their real bases of operation.

We’re also introduced to what looks to be the series’ main villains, a shadowy cabal calling themselves “the Light” ironically enough. I’m very intrigued by these guys and a strongly suspect we’d recognise a lot of them if their faces weren’t being obscured. With Young Justice being organised as the League’s covert-ops team to combat the Light’s behind the scenes manipulations, I’m expecting a lot of more secrets, lies and plot twists in addition to straight up super heroic punch-ups.

All in all, I was very impressed. If the pilot is anything to go by, this may end up being the best thing to come out of DC animation since Batman: The Animated Series.

John Derrick writes...

I hate to say it, but I was extremely disappointed in the Young Justice premiere. Don't get me wrong--the animation was gorgeous, the dialogue entertaining, the story intriguing. But the gender imbalance was a huge turn-off for me.

Why was it that the women of the Justice League were only shown in the last five minutes of a two-part pilot? Why did the male sidekicks get to go on a rebellious adventure and force the League to accept them as a team of their own, while the first girl is only added to "Young Justice" at the very end, introduced by her uncle and guardian like some sort of token?

I expect that the women will have a lot more to do in the episodes to come, but I still find it profoundly problematic to introduce the characters in such an unequal manner. I believe there are too many men in the world as it is who see women as mere supporting players in their stories. Why reinforce this stereotype for a whole new generation of superhero cartoon fans?

kon-el writes...

1.Does Superboy have super hearing? I mean he was able to hear Aqualad from far away.
2.Why couldn't Superboy fly?

Anonymous writes...

I really dont know how your gonna respond to this you might wanna keep it to yourself so people dont read to much into it, but could you tell us the ages of some of the people on Earth-16?

These are the ones I'd like to know
Black Canary
Zatanna
Jamie Reyes
Static
Zachary Zatara
Supergirl

Yeah those arre the main ones Im curious about

Greg Bishansky writes...

I originally wrote this for my blog, and decided to paste it in here.

Young Justice

Well, what do you know? This is my one hundredth entry. Appropriate that it is about Greg Weisman's newest TV series.

Anyone who knows me knows I am a huge fan of Greg Weisman's work. "Gargoyles" is my all time favorite TV series; I adored "The Spectacular Spider-Man;" I was quite fond of the second season of "W.I.T.C.H.;" and the freelance scripts he wrote for shows like "Men In Black" and "Buzz Lightyear of Star Command" were always fun.

Okay, I really hated "Max Steel" and couldn't watch more than one episode, but that show had all sorts of behind the scenes problems that were not his fault. And sadly, "Roughnecks: Star Ship Troopers Chronicles" never aired in my area, so I've never really seen it. But, overall, Greg Weisman is responsible for high quality television. So, I was greatly anticipating his newest series, "Young Justice."

"Young Justice" is loosely based on a DC Comics title by the same name, but draws from many other sources. It focuses on a group of sidekicks (but don't call them that) who band together to become a covert ops team connected to the Justice League. The stars of the show are Robin, Kid Flash, Aqualad, Superboy, Miss Martian, and Artemis. Although, we have yet to meet Artemis and only briefly met Miss Martian.

The theme of the first season is "secrets and lies" and this is very apparent within the pilot already. The Justice League is keeping secrets from the members of Young Justice... which was enough to piss off Speedy, and get him to storm off. And Project Cadmus was keeping secrets from the rest of the world.

I love a good mystery, and we've got one set up with a shadowy organization called The Light, who were behind Project Cadmus. Although, I am somewhat reminded of the Illuminati from "Gargoyles" (Hmm... Light - illuminated - Illuminati) and the Council of Thirteen of the Guild of Calamitous Intent in "The Venture Bros." although, I highly doubt Davie Bowie is L-1.

The writing and dialogue are very sharp, and considering the pilot was penned by Mr. Weisman himself, that was to be expected. The animation is very strong, and I kept wondering what their budget was, because it looks great. The voice acting was also phenomenal, which is to be expected from any series voice directed by Jamie Thomason.

This series has just about everything going for it, and already, in my mind, blew the competition out of the water. Yes, I enjoy "The Avengers - Earth's Mightiest Heroes" quite a bit, but the quality of that show just doesn't compare to the quality of "Young Justice." The funny thing about that is that outside of Batman, and some Vertigo comics, I have no attachment to DC Comics at all. I've always been a Marvel reader. But Marvel has never had animated series as good as DC's, with the exception of "The Spectacular Spider-Man" which was just as great as "Batman the Animated Series." But then, look at who the mastermind behind Spidey was.

I give the pilot of "Young Justice" a solid five stars. It also left me intrigued enough to come back for more when the series really gets going in January.

Anonymous writes...

If there was enough related media, and tie-in's what would you like the universe your creating to be called?

Anonymous writes...

Hey Greg,
I was wondering did Blockbuster die in the end or was he imprisoned? And did Ms. Martian change the color of her shirt to match Superboys? How would you describe Superman's reaction to Superboy? When they're first walking into the Hall Of Justice Kid Flash says "Have all 4 sidekicks ever been in the same place at once" or something along those lines does that mean that there are only 4 sidekicks on Earth-16 currently? (which doesnt mean there arent other teen superheroes they'd just be solo right)

Jack-Pumpkinhead writes...

Hey Greg, congratulations on Young Justice! I watched the two-hour premiere and I was thoroughly impressed. I liked the way you handled the characters and the world. I mean, getting Blockbuster in like that? Very nicely done. You put together a very formidable JLA there, and I liked ... oh hell, I loved everything! Please give my kudos to the animators and voice actor if possible (Jesse McCartney was awesome as Robin). My only two questions on the show come from having a poor quality tape to record it on;
1-Did they say Aqualad's first name in the show? Cause if they did, I missed it.
2- Was That Cripsin Freeman voicing Speedy? I know he was Guardian, but I didn't know about Roy.

Again, awesome job, and the series premiere cant start soon enough!

Anonymous writes...

Will you make a Dark Ages comic books spin off??? I would like to know more about the lives of the Gargoyle characters. And by the way, I watched young justice and I enjoyed it! I can't wait till the series comes out in January!

Anonymous writes...

That premiere was amazing!! One question though one that Im not even sure your allowed to anwser. When Blockbuster tells the scientist to clone Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad, Robin replies bys saying "Pass Batcaves Crowded Enough" can you elaborate on what he meant by this? Is their a Batgirl or Batwoman running around Gotham in this universe or maybe Bathound?

Anonymous writes...

Greeat Premiere, and though I know you cant tell me if they'll appear on the show I was wondering if Static Shock and and the new Blue Beetle currently exist in the Earth-16 universe? Even if they'll never show up I just want to know if they're floating around somewhere out there doing their thing.

Henry writes...

I saw the Young Justice pilot, and I LOVEEED it. I mean amazing I loved the whelmed running joke, and when Kid Flash was like "We're in to deep...literally." I loled. Well to my question though this wasnt something that came up in the pilot I was wondering if the Young Justice Team was going to be going up against a lot of teen villans? That happened a lot in Teen Titans, and it wasnt really something that made a lot of sense to me. Oh and this one is completely hypothetical lets that Young Justice turned out to be the most successful Cartoon Network show EVER like of ALL TIME would there be a possibility of spin-off shows maybe like a new DCAU? Or maybe some direct to video movies that take place on Earth 16, but dont necessarily involve the Young Justice Team?

SoundForSound writes...

Any reason for Disney to not just do a digital only release of Gargoyles via iTunes? Would not that be cheaper to release than DVD, or who knows? Any word on if YJ will be available on iTunes? Keep up the great work. Spidey was amazing, so am looking forward to YJ.

Anonymous writes...

Would it make any differences if you didn't used a Futurama voice actor to voice Aquaman in Young Justice?

Pumpkin Bomb writes...

Hi Greg,

Absolutely loved the premiere of Young Justice! Dragged along a friend to see it, and now she can't wait for the rest either. As I saw a Tivo'd version at a relative's house, it's possible I might have accidentally missed it, but I didn't notice a TV theme opening with music or credits for the first two episodes. Is this because it is the pilot and you're saving the opening theme for the rest of the episodes? Or because it was cut as a TV movie? Can you confirm if we going to get an opening themesong, or sequence at all?

If so, can't wait to see it.

Masterdramon writes...

Hey Greg! So I managed to catch "Independence Day," and...

Well, to be honest, it was so incredibly awesome that it may have melted my brain a little bit. XD

So, now to jump into my comments...

- Mr. Freeze, Icicle, Killer Frost, and Captain Cold launch nearly simultaneous attacks across the country, and to the League's credit they immediately figure out something's up with that. My guess is that the first iteration of the Secret Society of Super Villains/Injustic League/Legion of Doom/pick your poison has been covertly set up fairly recently in this Universe, which will give Young Justice an organized enemy to fight in addition (or possibly in tamdem) to this mysterious "Light." Me likey so far.

- I...freaking...love...this...Aqualad. The cool delivery from Khary Payton (remarkably distinct from Cyborg from "Teen Titans," though their battle cries and impact grunts are nigh-identical), the badass power set, and the little verbal tics like constantly referring to Aquaman as "my King" (now that should make for some interesting drama once poor Kaldur'ahm learns of his true parentage) all combine for easily the coolest "Aqua-" related character ever to exist outside of the comics (although the OUTRAGEOUS! Aquaman from "Brave and the Bold" comes close).

- Speedy getting the Hell outta dodge after learning what their true reward on their "big day" was definitely had my sympathy (Kid Flash emphasizes this beautifully in the next scene by describing the Watchtower as "a secret HQ...IN SPACE!"). Looks like this both explains why Artemis will end up joining the team instead, and (presumably) fortells the coming of Red Arrow rather earlier than usual in this continuity.

- I like how you guys decided to turn "side-kick" into a dirty word amongst the prospective Young Justice members. Speedy prefers "partner" (which, like his aforementioned storm-out, is perfectly in line with his character), while the others just seem to find the term generally degrading. And I got a real kick (pardon the pun, LOL) out of all the little jokes at the beginning over the characters' anonymity; no one in the general public seems to be able to remember poor Kid Flash's name, with one person in the crowd mistaking him as Speedy and decrying that name going to the archer instead "makes no sense" (now THAT made me laugh).

- The Genomorphs, particularly the "dwarf" psychic ones, had me in chills. As did Mark Desmond (recognized him immediately, mostly by the rather conspicuous "Blockbuster" vials shown in his first scene), sporting a rather twisted version of the voice the same actor used for the Mechanist in "Avatar: The Last Airbender" and using said dwarf Genomorphs to keep Guardian's mind under lock and key. On the other hand, this notion of them achieving sentience as a hive mind - and proclaiming Superboy as their possible savior - has me heavily intrigued.

- Superboy himself is an excellent take on the often cliche-ridden clone concept. He's been taught to hold Superman up as a perfect ideal (sensical, given that he was designed to replace him in role and function), leading to an in-universe dropping of the phrase "What Would Superman Do?" being the catalyst for his change of heart. But now that Superman (who, of course, knows nothing about dealing with kids, as Supergirl is conspicuously absent from this Universe) has tried to dodge the semi-parental responsibility he really should have to him, it looks like the proto-Connor Kent is stuck in permanent teen rebellion mode...up to 11. This is obviously going to lead to some real problems down the line; hopefully, however, not nearly as severe as his Earth-Prime counterpart.

- Tons and tons and tons of mythology gags riddled throughout these two episodes, to the point where I can't even remember half of them. I love it when writers show their work and their research, and you never fail to deliver on both counts. Particular highlights included Superboy's immature powers not including flight and heat vision - in other words, being at the level of the Golden Age Superman, whereas the adult powers of the original Kal-El are at his more well-known Silver Age levels - and Kid Flash's reference to Flash always taking his time at crime scenes to get chummy with everyone, the villain included...which, of course, has always been Barry Allen's trademark to a "T." Though be warned, Wally; if your character development proceeds anything like your mainstream counterpart, you'll eventually end up doing the exact same thing.

- As has been noted many times before and surely will be noted far more times in the future, the voice acting, scoring, and animation quality is absolutely superb throughout. The entirety of both episodes appear to be produced at roughly the same level as the recent DC Animated films, which is just tremendous. Here's hoping that the series remains comparable to the standards set here once in resumes in January.

So I just want to say, on behalf of my fellow DC Comics geeks everywhere, thank you for lending your hand to bringing forth this wonderful addition to our rich animated mythos. I wait with bated breath for the story of these young heroes to truly reach their new beginning next year. So until next time...

"Eventually...everyone sees the light."

>shivers, but in a good way<

Harlequinn writes...

When Miss Martian's shirt morphed to match Superboy's colors, did she do that on purpose? Or did it just happen cause she had a crush?

SLG writes...

Hey Greg,

Really liked the Young Justice pilot, very solid stuff. I especially like the line Robin had about how Batman would "have his head" for taking so long to get out of those shackles. Robin seemed pretty capable, and I'm sure he'll get closer to Batman's level as time goes on, but I do hope we'll get to see the master at work every once in a while.

I also really have to say that I loved the action sequences (and the writing, of course). They had a great flow to them and a great sense of pace. I was also a bit surprised at how hard hitting some of the fights were, by which I mean they seemed to be fairly violent, even compared to something as recent as SpecSpidey, though that's just my take on it.

So anyway, you say that your brother, Jon Weisman, is writing for Young Justice, which got me thinking about how that was also the case during your time on WITCH. Since someone was nice enough to upload the entire series onto YouTube it has been easy enough to go back to. One of my favorites of that show was "S for Self", mainly because of the songs "Demon in Me" and "Will to Love" that played during it, for which you and Jon wrote the lyrics.

So this is a bit out there, but do you suppose that original songs, like those produced for WITCH, are something that would ever have a place in Young Justice?

How about an entire episode in the form of a musical? Buffy style, you know you want to.

Grant writes...

1) Aqualad appears to have a measure of super strength, is he also bullet proof?

2) Is Mount Justice suppose to be Happy Harbor like in the comic?

Clark Cradic writes...

Great job on the premiere! XD I can't wait to see more. Especially Miss Martian!

Ian Whitcombe writes...

Do you think you could post a complete credit list for "Independence Day"?

Logan writes...

thanks for the trailers... looks insane.
this question may seem spoiled and a little greedy/impatient. But, i gotta ask. I remember hearing about a tempest apearence. Would his presence on the show be similar o red arrow's (multiple episodes supporting character) or can we expect to see him in a one shot atlantis aqualad episode?

keep up the great adapting. when i saw the designs and details from NYCC it felt like bruce timm on steroids.

Anonymous writes...

Will Jason Marsden and Will Friedle reprise their roles from Batman: Brave and the Bold onto Young Justice (I understand Speedy has already been taken) or do I have to wait and see?
They did a very perfect job at voicing those lesser known DC characters from that show and they really deserved to voice them again in future DC cartoons and movies.

Jack writes...

Hey Greg, I love your work and I am excited for Young Justice, but I do have a just one small concern.

Looking back at episodes of "Justice League" and “Justice League Unlimited” it's pretty clear to see how writers have diminished the character of Superman by making him ether less superior then the rest of the League or by just turning him into the little “whipping boy” just to show how bad things were getting. Will this trend continue in Young Justice?

I apologize if this question has been answered before; I scrolled through the archives and didn’t see it.

Yoop writes...

YJ: When it comes closer to the January air date, will you give us the upcoming episode Description and titles?

Superboy writes...

I noticed that in some San Diego Comic-Con preview footage, Aqualad had no armpit hair. Does he shave it off? Do other male heroes have it? Excuse mah weird questions o.O

Rawrgle writes...

I saw a little interview on Robin that described him as "prepubescent." Does this mean we'll see him go through it on the show?

Anonymous writes...

I just read that, after issue #6, you and Kevin Hopps will be taking over the writing of the Young Justice comic book series full time. I'm sure you'll do great with the comics, but won't it interfere with your work on future seasons of the cartoon, should you get a pick-up?

Anonymous writes...

Hello, Greg

Ok, two questions in mind:

1. Is Artemis Cissie King? I only ask this because one of the press releases on Toon Zone named her true identity as Cissie King. Also, does Conner take the last name "Smith"?

2. Is the scientist in the Comic-Con video Dr. Mark Desmund? I noticed the "Project: Blockbuster" vials, and Desmund has showed in two of your previous scripts have included him. Not to mention he kinda looks like him.

Michael writes...

In regards to this answer re: Earth-16...

We asked DC for one of their unused 52 Earths, and they assigned us Earth-16 . I wasn't aware at the time that pieces of it had been explored already. So we're ignoring that stuff.

....Wouldn't it have made more sense to check back with DC and change the universe the show is set in to Earth-Something-Else, some number that really hadn't been assigned yet, then to just ignore the previous Earth-16 stuff?

Harlequinn writes...

Young Justice: Okay so, when Artemis' identity is revealed on the show, will it be some big epic reveal to a long mystery of her identity, or will it be something just there like "Oh hey, ______ what's up?"

Albert writes...

Hey, Greg!

I'm very excited about the new Young Justice cartoon. In many respects, I want this Earth-16 universe to be the main DCU because all continuity has been distilled, rebooted, and made fresh. I'm looking forward to the comic book in January as well.

Pleasantries aside, on to brass tacks...

You've mentioned on several interviews and panels that realism has played a crucial role in fleshing out this series. This was evident on your detailed explanation on costumes, the choosing of characters, etc. How about in respect to the timeline of Earth-16? It would not seem "realistic" that the children of characters like the original Icicle and Black Canary would be, by the looks of it, in their mid-20s while their parents had their adventures during WWII in relation to the current timeline, which is 2010. Will there be an adequate explanation for that? Sorry if this seemed too heavy-duty.

Thanks for making questions like these available!

Nell and Francis writes...

Hi! Were really excited about Young Justice! Here are a few questions.

1. You mentioned that Robin was the only member without super powers. So does this mean that Artemis has super powers when Green Arrow doesnt?

2. You chose Wally West and Dick Grayson. In the comic books they are the best of friends. Are they in this series?

3. Is the Young Justice Premiere going to air in Europe the same time as USA? I live in Europe...

4. Do each Young Justice team member know each others identities?

5. What is the title of the two part premiere episode?

THANKS!!!

Ashton writes...

Hey Greg,

1. Is Zatanna going to be a teen or an adult in Young Justice? If you can't say because it would give something away. I dont want to know.

2. Are they all located in different places? Such as Robin in Gotham, Aqualad in Atlantis, Kid Flash in Star City etc.

3. Now you probably can't answer. But I'll ask it just in case, Can Aqualad survive on land for long periods of time without needing water?

4. Were there any villians you couldn't use in Young Justice?

5. How many episodes have guys completed so far?

Thanks for taking the time out to answer my questions.

Ashton writes...

1. Were you amazed by any of your voice actors for Young Justice? Because I read somewhere online that you were pretty impressed with Khary Payton and Jesse McCartney's voice.

2. I noticed in various footage and images of Young Justice that Kid Flash had the original spandex outfit when fighting Captain Cold with his mentor, But in another image he had shoulder pads and protective gear. Does Kid Flash end making changes to his outfit later on in the series?

3. I know you probably won't or can't answer this but I just have to ask, Can Kaldur'ahm manipulate water without using those swords? I just called them swords because I don't know what to call them.

4. Does Aqualad have a home of his own? You don't have to spoil it by saying names, Since his father's a villian, but if you can't say I'm okay with that.

5. Will you reveal who the Artemis character is before the show officially starts in January 2011 or will we have to wait to til then?

8. Does any of the team members know Aqualad or Artemis's secret identities?

7. Is Aqualad best friends with somebody on the team or is he more of a loner? Such as Robin and Kid Flash's best friend relationship.

8. I wish you, Brandon Vietti, Phil Bourassa and everyone working on Young Justice a Happy Thanksgiving, and Us fan's appreciate what hard work you guys put into your projects.

Anonymous writes...

In Young Justice, are we going to see police and some villians use real guns like in Batman: Brave and the Bold?

If yes, do you actually take your time and effort to draw them in great detail similar to the ones from Batman: Gotham Knight?

Kaz writes...

Hey, Greg love your work and I was wondering if you could spell Aqualad's name which I believe is suppose to be Atlantean.

Logan writes...

know when we'll get a trailer? will we finally see some commercials airing on cartoon network now that we're less than a month away from the airing of the pilot?

Cory writes...

Hi Greg. I'm happy to hear you found a project after Spectacular Spider-Man (excellent show), and I'm even happier to learn it's DC. Two questions, though I understand if you can't answer them:

1.) Do you know whether you guys are locked into the same "65 and done" episode format that action cartoons have dealt with since the early 90's, or are you just focusing on this first season right now?

I ask because I believe this has the potential to be people's gateway into the DCU--but it would suck if the series were canceled after just over two seasons.

2.) I notice there are a lot of references about Young Justice trying to include as much of the DCU as possible. Plus I noticed DC even gave you guys an Earth (yay...they get some use now). I can't help wondering...is this by any chance the start of a new DC animated universe? Or is Young Justice just set in E16 and that's it?

Again, I understand if you choose not to answer these questions because they would give away something or you just don't know the answer to them. Thanks for your time.

Sage writes...

Okay, I'm fairly certain I've gotten all of my nerd rage about Young Justice out of my system, so I'll actually be more hyped to watch YJ than I was to watch Avengers, and I'm fairly certain it'll be great. Still, two questions are bugging me. Just a bit:

1.) I keep hearing that this is a "young DC Universe", but the proof of that is always that Clark Kent only became Superman ten years ago, and Bruce became Batman nine years ago. Doesn't that place this universe as fairly "old", since that would put the both of them near their 30's? This is probably kind of difficult to answer, I'm just curious as to how your timeline works--"New Earth" Superman and Batman are pretty much perpetually 35, but I'm guessing your Superman and Batman (and DCU) won't have that problem?

2.) Does it bug you at all that your premiere is next month, but the actual series doesn't start for (at best) two months? I was kinda happy the show was premiering on my birthday, but it bummed me out when I learned we wouldn't see anymore until 2011.

Javier writes...

Hi Greg, first of all i want to say that Spectacular Spiderman was the best incarnation of the character i have seen outside of the comic books, and its a shame that it lasted only two seasons. i have a couple of questions if you dont mind, hopefully you will be able to answer them, if not i understand, you are a very busy man after all.

1) I was really amazed by the quality of the animation and the character designs, it looks even better than the other DC movies that i have seen. How do you maintain that standard of quality in a weekly series? All tha animation is done in the US?

2) Is Josh Keaton voicing Barry Allen? It sounded like him but maybe im wrong, he did an outstanding job as Peter Parker, hopefully he will have a role in the series

Thank you for your time, as a fellow animator im really glad that we can still have some classic 2D animation to look foward to, Best of luck Mr Weisman

Gold writes...

How does magic work in the Young Justice cartoon? Is it similar to how it worked in Gargoyles?

Red writes...

You and Brandon Vietti have said a couple times at conventions that since Miss. Martian is 16 Martian years old that means she is about 48 years old in Earth years (or older). Now, is this really her Earth age that will be used in the show or is this just you guys describing her age as generally being much older than the other kids because of the Martian time difference?

If the former, using the real year difference of Mars and Earth, she would have to be 25 Martian years old in order to be 48 in Earth years and the real equivalent of 16 Martian years is about 30 Earth years. Unless for some reason the Mars in this universe is slightly farther away than our Mars.

Everything on the show so far seems so well thought out, I want to believe you guys didn't over look a seemingly important detail like this.

Clark Cradic writes...

Did you like the original Legion of Doom?

Anonymous writes...

Is there any recurring voice talents from Batman: The Brave and the Bold on Young Justice, or is it too early to confirm it?

Tako writes...

I understand that the Yong Justice show is using Earth-16 of the DC Universe, and I'm fine with that. However, there are a few inconsistencies. Earth-16 was previously stated to be the Home of the "Super-Sons" storyline, and the home of Earth-16's Superman, Chris Kent, who appeared in Countdown: Arena as a monk-like Superman.
Could you play clarify or explain the inconsistencies and contradictions, please?

Bill writes...

Hey Greg. Big fan of your work. Super-excite about the upcoming JOUNG JUSTICE series. I also run the titanstower.com site so I hope some of my info has been useful in researching characters. I recently attended your panel at the NYCC and had a few (hopefully non-spoilery) questions.

1-- You and Brandon referred to Aqualad by his civilian/given name, which sounded like "Calderon" or "Calder" for short. Is that the correct spelling? Can you clarify his name?

2-- You mentioned a desire to use Captain Atom. Have you considered a story around Bombshell from the Teen Titans? She's connected to Captain Atom by power source and through some government ties.

3-- You mentioned pulling from different eras of YOUNG JUSTICE and TEEN TITANS of the 60s, 70s and the NEW TEEN TITANS of the 80s. Is this more in just building the characters? Or do you plan to adapt some of the comic stories into animated form (for example, as the TT series adapted "Judas Contract")?

thanks Greg!

Becca writes...

Sorry to bother you, I know you're busy. As much as people are excited abou the ny comic con clip, I don't think it's right that someone so obvously sneaked it up on YouTube illegally. I haven't watched it, and I only know its up because of a forum I go on. Again, sorry to bug you, but I just thought you should know it was leaked.
Sincerely, Becca

Andres writes...

I loved Teen Titans is the Robin characterized in Teen Titans different or in the same vein in Young Justice? Does it follow closely the Young Justice version? Im guessing the fact that Batman plays a larger role in Young Justice than in Teen Titans that Robin is develop differently?

Andres writes...

I wish you well on Young Justice! I must say while it seems there is so much comic/ superhero material from animation to movies to so many comics that is almost hard to get into anything if your a little bit more than a casual fan but I am excited and anticipating Young Justice and the reboot of Thundercats. I wanted to ask you if you saw and what you thought about The Secret of Kells? if you thought that it deserved to win the Oscar? Lastly what impact you think small indie animation and European animation will have on the larger animation industry?
P.S Loved the inclusion of St.Columcille/ St. Columbia in Secret of the Kells made me re reread the Gargoyles comic

Grant writes...

How old chronologically and biologically is the jay garrick set to appear in YJ?

What is his relationship with Barry Allen?

Livy writes...

Hey Greg,

Could you give us the proper spelling of Aqualad's Atlantean name on Young Justice?

Looking for ward to the show. Keep up the good work.

Anononon writes...

http://speedforce.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/YJKidFlash5.jpg In this pic it looks like Robin is pretty tall and has big hands for a 13-year-old. Any comment?

Jordan writes...

Hi Greg! I just wanted to say that it was an absolute honor meeting you at the Young Justice panel today at comic con, and I was the guy who asked you if a character on the show will say "Jalapana!" at some point. Thank you for indulging me.

The show looks absolutely fantastic. Honestly, me and my friends were blown away by the creativity and originality of the premise, and the animation too. I am so excited. Please god let this run many seasons!

Grant writes...

From NYCC, the Black Canary is suppose to be the combat trainer for YJ, is this modelled after Gail Simone's take on the character in the Bird of Prey comic of her being one of the most elite martial artist in the DCU on par with Batman?

GA FAN writes...

First off congrats on the new series...
Secondly, I would like to comment on the Green Arrow featurette... It was brilliant, it perfectly showed Green Arrow for what he is... Human (probably the most human of any costumed hero, no powers, not an expert martial artist, or worlds greatest detective, just a guy trying to make a difference) I sincerely thank you for your interpretation. If you were the writer on GA/BC it probably wouldnt have needed a reboot, you seem to really get him, and his relationship to Dinah.
Okay, first question... will the Shorts DVD in November have a longer version on it?

2) Are you personally a fan of either Green Arrow or Black Canary...?

3) How much experience do you have with Green Arrow and Black Canary?

4) I am looking forward to Young Justice, and from reports (here and on other sites)GA & BC seem to have somewhat prominent roles in the young teams mentoring process... Is it too early for you to confirm or deny these reports? If you can please do...

5) and finally, is there a possibility of a sequel to the Green Arrow featurette?
or you writing a featurette for another DC character for future Direct to video release?

Thank you for your time... and best of luck with the new series... me and my kids will be watching...

TwEaKz writes...

Hey Greg,
I am really looking forward to Young Justice. My question is more of a personal one. Basically, how happy are you truly to be working on YJ? Yes, you're happy to have a gig again but are you really passionate about this show as you were for your past stuff? And do you feel YJ will have enough legs to get past 26 episodes? I know I can't wait to see it and I feel this has the makings of being something very special.

One final thing I want to touch on is that I want to applaud you on the script you did for Batman: The Brave and the Bold. I thought "Requiem for a Scarlet Speedster!" was FANTASTIC! I really enjoyed it.

Thanks so much for all you do.

Later.

Mike P. writes...

First off, really excited to see Young Justice! I've had a gaping void in my soul since JLU ended and am glad to see that one of my favorite writers/directors/creators is getting to work his magic on the DCU.
Now my question. In regards to the Young Justice series If the Green Lantern movie proves to be popular/succesful do you think you would be more inclined to include more characters from that franchise(perhaps on the team?) or give those already involved in the show more prominent roles or do you already have the future of the show mapped out to the extent that this would be a non-issue?

Anonymous writes...

i've heard that young justice is premiering in november. yay!! when will we find out the exact date that it's coming?

Anonymous writes...

YJ Production Questions:

1. While Character designs were being made, did you have anything in particular you wanted to happen?
2. If you had to make another YJ show however you were forbidden to use the characters you are know, who would be in?
3. Have the voice actors met one another?
4.When will the pics on the walls at Comic-Con be scanned and online? It isn't really a spoiler anymore seeing as how us fans have spotted everything. Such as Cheshire :)
5. Who will be the characters of the team appearing in ep 1? (Not a spoiler, but a promotional statement now)

Anonymous writes...

Hello! Can't wait for the premiere of YJ! Just a quick question or too.

I know that you said YJ will be showing the team not only fighting crime, but at school and at home as well. How much of their home lives will we see? Just little bits here and there, or a lot?

Also, it makes sense that miss martain, superboy and robin's gaurdains will know about the super-heroing. will the others parents know? or will it be a secret?

How long are the episodes? I've heard the premiere is an hour long. Will each episode be an hour or is it just longer because it's the premiere?

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer so many questions!

Emily writes...

I know there are going to be alot of characters in Young Justice and that you won't tell us in detials who will be in it. But I have a question why DC let you have so many choices to pick from. I think you said once that the number of characters you couldn't use you could count on one hand. I have heard stories 0f DC not letting characters being used for some copy right reasons in other shows. So how come you got such a wide of range to choose from?

Emily writes...

According to you announcement, Young Justice premiere will be in November 2010, but the series will began in 2011. Why is that? Why not have the show start in Novemeber instead of just a premiere then having to wait later to see the rest. Don't get me wrong, I'm not asking like I'm mad about or anything. It just seems really weird to me to do that.

Anon. writes...

When in 2011 will YJ start? Will it be like Jan 2011, or like May 2011? Which one are we leaning towards here.

Gothic-Cowboy writes...

Mr. Weisman, in Young Justice, would I be correct if I assumed that Artemis has no superhuman abilities?

Anonymous writes...

So my last question apparently didn't get approved. I'm a tad dissappointed, but I read the terms about a post being removed if it had just one idea-thingy in it, so I'd like to repost it minus the questions I think it got disapproved for:

1. Would you ever consider doing crossovers with other dc shows, if the opportunity came?

2. Was it a conscious decision not to make Robin the leader to avoid a huge similarity between Young Justice and Teen Titans? I know such a notion might be a little offending, but I think it's a fair question.

3. Are you in any way for or against the idea of using voice actors for a part that they have played earlier in other DC shows?

4. I'm not an expert on the DC comics, but I heard that, some time ago, it was revealed in one of them that Bruce Wayne has a son who eventually becomes the new batman. This is in opposition to the JLU and Batman Beyond continuety, where Terry McGinnis becomes Batman. If it comes to it, which continuety do you think you would use in Young Justice, if any?

5. Have there been, or do you expect there will be, any problems with censoring, where you
want to show something, but you're not allowed to?

6. Will you have story arcs, or maybe just returning villains, that will focus on developing one of the six main characters more so than the others?

7. Would you consider making other DC shows in the Earth-16 continuety, in the style of this show, after Young Justice ends, if it is possible?

I really hope this makes it through to you. I'm really hyped about Young justice and I got more than half a dozen other questions that I left out this time. There are things in the trailer I thought looked weird, but I thought the same about Spectacular Spider-Man and it turned out fantastic. And lastly, I don't want you to answer any questions if it means spoiling the show of course.

Laura 'ad astra' Sack writes...

Hi,

Not actually a question- Someone mentioned hearing an interview with you at comicon- I heard it too and thought it might be helpful to post the link-
http://content.libsyn.com/1/5/4/1545c1d0e3a460de/OneShot291-WBToons.mp3?nvb=20100929164902&nva=20100930165902&sid=73393720addb82db8902f843616afa33&l_sid=18877&l_eid=&l_mid=1987581&t=07bf25a0ee09ff0e50192

It's Comics News Insider ep291 http://www.jimmyaquino.typepad.com/comicnewsinsider/ .

Tangentially the longer Andrea Romano interview mentioned in 291, does actually happen 293-294. I found it fascinating. Mmm... one small question - I think you said Jamie Thomason is voice director on YJ, and that he and Andrea Romano are tops in the field. IIRC Romano has done most DCU cartoons on the past, have there been any double takes when people see it isn't her? (I still do little double takes when Batman doesn't sound like Kevin Conroy no matter how excellent the actor is.)

Anonymous writes...

So sorry if you've answered this, but I just had a question. Black Canary is going to be on the show, correct?

Wikipedia says something about her playing a sizable role on the show, but the article it references for the statement is a 15 minute long interview with you, so I haven't heard the whole thing.

So will Black Canary have a speaking role, or will she be just one of the wallpaper heroes you mentioned, like Captain Atom?

Jess writes...

Heya Greg! I have a quick question RE a fairly obscure adaption of the Arthurian mythos and your knowledge there-of.

Have you ever seen the episode of the '80s Twilight Zone series called "The Last Defender of Camelot"? If you haven't, to give an explanation without spoiling too much, it involves Lancelot, Morgan La Fay, Merlin and a modern boy named Tom *cough cough*. I was a little surprised to see many of the key themes that show up in Gargoyles, such as immortality, and how power and good intentions can lead one astray.

If you haven't seen it, and it wasn't an influence, I'd recommend checking it out if you should get the chance. Despite a certain cheestasticness and pretty bad special effects, there's some really solid and interesting writing.

It just struck me as an odd coincidence how the tone reminded me so much of Gargoyles at times (in the best possible way. It brought a smile to my face.) Though working from the same source material, not to mention pretty universal themes, some similarities would be inevitable. I guess I'm just curious as to whether it was kismet, or a case of one work having an influence, however small, on the other.

I wish you all the best and am waiting with bated breath for Young Justice's premiere!

ananymous writes...

hey greg let me say im very excited for young justice i currently have one question you said the show takes place in earth 16 in the dc multiverse
i did a searched on the internet and it said that earth 16 is home to the "super sons"which is not connected to young justice. so im wondering they you know this before or did you ignored it.

Grant writes...

Did you have Darth Vader in mind when you made Manta, the father of Aqualad?

Steven D. writes...

Hello again, Mr. Weisman.

I've had a question in the back of my mind for some time, and now seems like a good time to ask it.
Recently, you released the writer's rotation for the first 24 episodes of YJ.
I've always been fascinated with television writing,as there seems to be no one way to do it, so I wanted to ask a few questions on how you approach it.

1. Back when i first wanted to ask this, I checked the SpecSpiderman archives to see what you mentioned about writing for that show. When going over writing duties, you mentioned that some of the episodes that you "reserved" some of the episodes you wrote. Since Young Justice finds you in a similar position of being both a producer and staff writer, I'm curious to know, what factors do you use when picking episodes to reserve for yourself (and confirming that reserve wasn't just a metaphor you were using)?

2. While I'm here, I was hoping you could also shed some light on how much freedom your freelance writers are given. Do they ever get the chance to write an episode completely from scratch, or because the shows you work on are so arc based, are they always given a firm foundation to start with, and if so, how rigid is this foundation (generally)?

Thanks!