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Young Justice: Phantoms
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Amelie writes...
Hello Mr. Weisman! I hope you and the team working on YJ are doing well!
1. In episode 6 of season 2 "Bloodlines" where Bart first appears we see that in almost nothing in the future has changed after his departure (except for Neutron). Does this imply that the future is going to look that moded?
2. At the end of a Young Justice comic collection you wrote that you made a list of about 100 young heroes as potential main characters for the series. Are you ever going to publish this list?
3. If you were allowed to publish Young Justice comics again, when would the play? Before, during oder after season 3? (Assuming you already know what you want to publish).
4. Will you and your team keep on making these entertaining (and well-written) credits for following seasons when YJ gets a go from HBO Max? (I will riot if HBO Max cancels this show #keepbingingyj)
5. What do you keep from your interactions with your fans?
You heard that probably a lot, but I just want to let you know that your show got me through 2020 and I am really thankful for you, your team and the fanbase not giving up on this amazing show!
Greg responds...
1. You should look again. The ash has stopped falling. Mount Justice is still destroyed, but that's about as far as you can see. So you don't know from the visual what has and hasn't changed.
2. Probably not.
3. No Spoilers.
4. Our goal is to continue to stuff as much entertainment value and content in as possible.
5. Mostly good stuff.
Thanks. I'm not sure how much help we were in 2020, but I'm hoping we've helped with the back quarter of 2021!
Miraphosa writes...
Did M'gann choose to be an ethnic majoriy on earth purposefully?
Like, was she aware being a white woman on earth would grant her a racial privilege she didn't have on mars? If that wasn't something she thought about before coming to earth, did she realize it after? What would that thought process be like for her?
Basically, how did M'gann identity as a white martian factor into her choice to present as a white woman on earth (if at all)
Greg responds...
I don't think that was in the forefront of her mind. I think she specifically chose to identify with Megan Wheeler. By the time she had the brain space to think about how she should or should not be presenting herself racially on Earth, she had already established her Megan Morse identity. So many people that WE get to see on the show know she's a shape-shifter, that it's easy to forget that the vast majority of humans that Megan interacts with do not. So in order to maintain her secret identity, she maintains her current racial status.
In order to honor her racial background, she stopped presenting herself as G'arrunn some time ago when in super-hero mode.
And just to be clear, M'gann doesn't equate being A'ashenn with being Caucasian.
Young Justice Statistics
Well, as I tweeted today, YOUNG JUSTICE: PHANTOMS is complete, with all 26 episodes in the can. I've also updated all my various reference documents to include everything from Season Four (not to mention Seasons 1-3, our various comic books, the AudioPlay and the video game). And since statistics kinda fascinate me - and since maybe they might fascinate you as well - here are a few.
The Young Justice Timeline is currently 718 pages long. In the past, I've reported that the length of the timeline mysteriously differed between my laptop and my desktop computers, but during the pandemic, my (relatively) ancient desktop finally bit the dust. So now the laptop page count triumphs.
There are 759 characters confirmed - one way or another - to be in the Earth-16 Universe. Some have only been mentioned or referenced briefly. Others, obviously, have had entire arcs dedicated to them. Calling some of them "characters" might also be a bit of a stretch, but I have reasons for including every single one. And - anal individual that I am - I have actually ranked them all in order of their importance to the series. This is something I once did as a hobby for the Buffyverse (which you can find in the ASK GREG archives under the heading of "Buffyverse Geek-Out"), and I've been perfecting my ranking system ever since. The idea is to attempt to make an incredibly subjective thing as objective as possible, based on things like screen time and amount of dialogue and the amount of times other characters reference them, etc. It's still not perfect because I do wind up with point scores, and especially with the lower ranking characters, I wind up with a number of ties. Thus, in order to break any tie, I'm forced to apply more subjective criteria.I was thinking about listing them a few per week, starting with 759 and working my way backwards toward number one. But some of the names haven't been intro'd yet. So it occurs to me that I need to wait until the Phantoms' season finishes airing.
Across four seasons (98 episodes) an AudioPlay and a video game, we've used 128 actors, a phenomenally talented group if ever there was one. Some have only voiced one character. Others have voiced over a dozen. I'm honored to be included among them - even if hiring myself is a rather dubious way to earn this distinction.
There's probably more, but this will do for now.
Just a little peek into my weird brain. Hope you enjoyed it. And I hope you enjoy the show.
M. writes...
I dare say that Jade and Will's relationship is one of the best in the entire show. You, Brandon and the writers have managed to develop something that feels so true and pure without showing much on screen. But If ever you had the chance, would you write a story about their relationship?
Greg responds...
I feel like we have. But if you're asking if we'd be interested in exploring it further, the answer is clearly yes.
Condottieri writes...
Hello there, Mr. Greg and the Team, The season 4 have a wonderful start, can't wait for the next episode
I have questions,
1. where do Zatanna train Traci and her other proteges? Is it on the Tower of Fate? Would Dr. Fate join Zatanna on training them?
2. If there are specialized problems that can only be dealt with magic, are the proteges will follow and join the fight?
Thank You
Greg responds...
1. No spoilers.
2. No spoilers.
But, seriously, just wait a couple weeks, okay?
Verdragon writes...
Does Black Canary have formal training in psychology?
Greg responds...
Yes. (Or, at least, the Earth-16 version does.)
M. writes...
Hi Greg! A few years ago I asked "Did Will actually believe what Jade said about being a soccer mom and all that?". What I meant was "Doesn't he suspect that Jade left them for another reason?" I mean, WE know something else is going on but, does he?
Greg responds...
Do we know that?
Lenine writes...
Maybe that's a question to the deisgners, but how is seasons 3 and 4 Tigress's hair tied? Is it some sort of Arya Stark hair style?
Greg responds...
Yeah, I'd ask the designers.
Anonymous writes...
Hi Greg :)
I hope you`re doing great.
A few months ago you`ve stated in an answer that you were not allowed to openly depict a certain character in YJ Outsiders as LGBT+.
Did you had the same problem for this...or any other character in YJ Phantoms?
Greg responds...
Only that same one character.
CHAD writes...
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO END GARFIED LOGAN AND QUEEN PERDITIA RELATIONSHIP ?
Greg responds...
Who said we ended it? Certainly nothing that aired.
Priscilla writes...
I'd previously asked this:
"So, it's established in Season 1 that M'gann has twelve sisters. The tie-in comics (issue 6, if I remember correctly) state that she had seventeen brothers. So, including M'gann herself, that would make thirty kids, right?
M'comm essentially says in season 3 that their parents had 29 children. Was the figure stated in the comics incorrect?"
There's an error- M'comm stated that in Season 4, actually (in "Needful"). Sorry for the hassle, Greg.
Greg responds...
J'ann and M'aatt have 29 children. Twelve sisters, including Em'ree and M'gann. Seventeen brothers, including M'comm. I thought we'd been consistent about this. I know I tried very hard to be consistent about this. But apparently, I blew it. OR... Miss Martian messed up when she said she had twelve sisters. She MEANT to say she has eleven sisters, but there were twelve sisters total, including herself.
So it's not so much that I'm bad at addition. It's that M'gann mispoke once. I think we can forgive her.
Anonymous writes...
Since hindsight is 20/20, if you could change ANYTHING about Young Justice, what would that be?
Greg responds...
Lots of little stuff, I suppose. The only big thing that I can think of (off the top of my head) is that I wish we had made the A'ashenn GRAY MARTIANS instead of WHITE MARTIANS. The use of the word "WHITE" with its connotations of so-called "Caucasians" is problematic and, frankly, messes with our metaphor. But we followed the comic books, when I wished we had followed alien mythology.
Jake writes...
I have a question about Martian eyes. In earlier seasons, Martians seemed to have blank red eyes, with no iris or pupils. M'gann's martian form had these in S1. In S4, however, they seem to have pupils and iris, and appear to be different colors based on race. M'gann's, for example, are now amber. Is this their natural form? If so, what prompted the change?
Greg responds...
The different light qualities from one planet to another.
Bob writes...
Has Conner considered changing his name to something other than Superboy? I understand he perpetually looks like a 16 year old, but now that he's about to be married and has established himself as his own hero, has he thought about taking on a new name?
Greg responds...
Generally, I think he was fine being Superboy in the Outsiders, with Superman in the Justice League.
Taylor writes...
You've said there is a character you in YJ you see as gay, but are not allowed to show as such by the powers that be. I think you know there are many people who are pretty sure of who this character is.
Why is it still so hard to get stuff like this approved? What is the reasoning behind not showing this in the year 2021? I don't get it.
Greg responds...
I don't either. Particularly since this is the only character that we're not allowed to be objective about. Obviously, we have no issue showing Kaldur and Wyynde in a relationship. And others, as well, met with no objection. But this one character became an issue. It's a mystery to me. But I don't own the character; it's not my call.
Karrin Blue writes...
Did J'ann and M'aatt get married before or after J'onn got stranded on Earth?
Greg responds...
No spoilers.
Karren Toplik writes...
What criteria made you settle on Saturn Girl, Phantom Girl and Chameleon Boy as the three Legionnaires to follow Superboy and Miss Martian? Was it a coincidence that individually they had three of the Martians' stable powers (telepathy, intangibility, shape shifting)? Because I love that!
Greg responds...
We're a spy show, so we're always looking to reinforce that focus, and these seemed like three great spy-oriented Legionnaires. Plus, Phantom Girl got a free pass because of the subtitle of the show this season.
Anonymous writes...
Can you explain the naming system of the Martians? What is considers a proper “Green Martian's Name†and so forth? Please and Thank you!
Greg responds...
We literally just extrapolated from J'onn J'onzz and M'gann M'orzz's names, with the former being a G'arrunn name, and the latter being an A'ashenn name. So you can see there isn't much to distinguish them in our canon that we, as humans, would notice.
Beyond that, we're adapting other DC Martian (and Saturnian) characters to that naming system, i.e. with only a few exceptions. So that's first letter + apostrophe + the rest of the name, with the last letter repeated. For animals, I tried to double vowels with an apostrophe between them, such as Ma'alefa'ak.
Further intricacies, such as why Em'ree J'onzz is considered a G'arrunn name while M'ree M'orzz is considered an A'ashenn name, we're kinda taking on faith. Miss Martian tells us that's the case, and no one - including Em'ree denies it - so we're just going to buy it. M'arzz is a big planet. It's a very intricate system. There would be hundreds of subtleties in naming that we just didn't have the bandwidth to break down any further.
I do wish I had a better answer, but I don't.
Anderson writes...
Hi, Greg. I'm really loving Phantoms so far.
I had a question about the Team's B-designations.
Obviously, the Zeta-Tubes and designations are a very integral part of the show. Prior to Season 1, Dick, Will, Kaldur, and Wally all knew and have fought beside each other.
I find it difficult to imagine they didn't use Zeta-Tubes during that time period, since even Roy knew how to use one (which would seem odd otherwise, considering his brief time as Speedy).
But the B-series was clearly created following the founding of the Team, considering Will's designation is B06, despite him/Roy becoming a hero before Kaldur and Wally.
Since none of them have A-designations, how did the four proteges utilize the tubes during that time, if at all?
Greg responds...
They didn't.
Anonymous writes...
Young Justice Questions for Greg Weisman:
1. Are Superman and Lois Lane currently married, and if so, for how long?
2. When Orm's identity as Ocean-Master, how did Arthur Curry and Mera react to this revelation?
3. After Lady Shiva killed Ocean-Master, where was his body taken to after she quickly cleaned out the house?
4. As of Young Justice Season 4, who is the current leader of the Justice League?
5. Within The Light, what are the designation numbers for Ultra-Humanite and Zviad Baazovi?
Greg responds...
1. Yes.
1a. No spoilers.
2. How do you think?
3. No spoilers.
4. It's still Black Lightning. He offered to continue on to follow through on some initiatives he had started. And the membership of the League voted him a second term.
5. The Light doesn't really have in-universe designation numbers. But I guess their out of universe designations are L-11 and L-12, respectively.
Verdragon writes...
Is there a particular reason that Atlantean and Martian magic look more similar to one another than to most of the magic we've seen being used by humans?
Greg responds...
Do they? I hadn't noticed that.
Anonymous writes...
Hello Mr. Weisman,
I was shocked by the third episode of "Young Justice: Phantoms" because the Bio-Ship is retiring so that it can live out its final years on Mars, and that was truly heart-breaking. Just exactly how old is the Bio-Ship anyway and what will happen to it once it dies?
Greg responds...
Bio-Ship was "born" in Team Year Zero, so she's about ten years old. I think you can imagine what happens when she dies, and if you can't... no spoilers. But to be clear, no one said she was dying. Just retiring.
Anonymous writes...
Mr. Weisman,
In the third season of Young Justice, the first letters of each episode title ended up spelling out the message, "Prepare the Anti-Life Equation." For the current fourth season, is it safe to assume that you've come up with something similar and you expect us to figure out what the message is?
Greg responds...
It's not UN-safe to assume that.
Jesse writes...
I know YJ is available in the US via hbo max. I would like to know how on earth are we going to watch it in the gloomy UK? I’ll really appreciate an answer because you guys have fans worldwide who are missing out.
Greg responds...
Again, I simply don't know. I truly, sincerely wish I had that information. But TPTB do not keep us folks in the trenches informed on international viewing options. I'm really sorry. It's just way above my pay grade.
Anonymous writes...
1. How old is S'yraa S'mitt?
2. How old is Bio-Ship?
3. How old is Fury?
4. How old is Everyman?
5. How old is Chameleon Boy?
Greg responds...
1. S'yraa was born in 1972.
2. Bio-Ship was, um, "born" in 2010.
3. Fury was born in 2003.
4. Everyman was born in 2000.
5. Chameleon Boy is fifteen by the end of Team Year Nine.
Anonymous writes...
1. Green Martian are the majority and Whites are the minority. How many Red Martian exist among the population?
2. What makes the Red Martian the ruling class exactly? Or is it one of those “that’s how it always been†type of situation?
Greg responds...
1. There are fewer B'lahdenns than A'ashenns.
2. Historically, the B'lahdenn conquered to rule. (Centuries ago.)
B writes...
Em'ree's last name being spelled J'onnz instead of J'onzz in the credits is a typo, right? In the captions, it's spelled correctly as J'onzz, like her uncle.
Greg responds...
Yes. I'm embarrassed that got by me. It's J'onzz. Definitely J'onzz.
Hana writes...
Hello, Mr. Greg! So happy that Young Justice Season finally is airing! So exciting to see what’s in store! I love the YJ’s take on Martian society! I have some questions as well.
1. Is there any real distinction that set Red Martian apart from the Green and Whites? Like being stronger or having certain powers?
2. Will we see M’gann’s other siblings in upcoming episodes?
3. Although he only appeared in a few scenes so far, I deeply intrigued by Red Martian Prince J’emm! I think he’s beautiful and his blue eyes piercing! He’s seems like good soul too and displays having a good wit! I have few questions concerning him!
3A. How many siblings does J’emm has?
3B. How old is J’emm, in Martian years and the human equivalent of it? R’ess called him a “boy†and belittles him his youth, so he must be young.
3C. Martian Manhunter is well-trusted by Mars, including J’emm? Does J’emm look up to him?
3E. R’ess mentioned in “Needful†that J’emm was almost married at one point. Will we learn more about that?
Thank you for your time!
Greg responds...
1. Nope. Just pigmentation.
2. No spoilers.
3A. No spoilers.
3B. See my recent answer, and then divide by three to get his human equivalent age.
3C. It seems so.
3D. There was no question 3D.
3E. By now, I would think you have.
Anonymous writes...
1. How old is M'aatt M'orzz?
2. How old is M'comm M'orzz?
3. How old is R'ess E'dda?
4. How old is R'ohh K'arr?
5. How old is S'turnn J'axx?
Greg responds...
1. M'aatt M'orzz was born in 1885.
2. M'comm M'orzz was born in 1968.
3. R'ess E'dda was born in 1935.
4. R'ohh K'arr was born in 1896.
5. S'turnn J'axx was born in 1858.
Anonymous writes...
1. How old is Em'ree J'onnz?
2. How old is J'ann M'orzz?
3. How old is J'arlia J'axx?
4. How old is J'emm J'axx?
5. How old is K'omm B'lanxx?
Greg responds...
1. M'ree M'orzz was born in 1956.
2. J'ann J'onzz was born in 1885.
3. J'arlia was born in 1885.
4. J'emm J'axx was born in 1972.
5. K'omm B'lanxx was born in 1963.
Anonymous writes...
This is a question about the writer's room and your relationship with the writers.
Do you and Brandon develop all of the premises for the episodes yourselves? What if a writer comes to you and says: "I have my own really cool idea for an episode. Can I pitch it to you?" or "I don't know if you guys are planning to bring back Wally or not, but, if you are, I have a really cool scene in mind for Wally's return."
Would this be inappropriate? Is he or she crossing some kind of line? Is he in danger of being fired? Is a writer's job strictly to develop the premises you give her? Or, is there some flexibility to parameters of his job description?
Greg responds...
For the last two seasons, Brandon and I skipped the premise stage entirely, and we broke every episode together on index cards, and I took those cards to outline. Then Brandon, myself and the freelance writers are handed a completed outline. (We have no staff writers on the show, and haven't after season one, for budgetary reasons.) So, no, a writer can't come in and say "I have my own really cool idea for an episode." Freelancers are not in danger of being fired; they simply don't have that opportunity on this series. It's too intricately plotted. They do come on at the outline stage, and we talk through everything and try to stay very open to their ideas for the episode they've been assigned and to the other episodes in the writers room that day. But the story is the story. If they decide to bring Wally back in an episode where we didn't previously plan to bring Wally back, it's simply not going to happen.
But no one ever suggests going that far off book, anyway. That's just not this gig, and that's made clear up front.
Marvelman writes...
Young Justice: Phantoms didn't seem prominent to me at Fandome. In fact, I haven't seen much marketing for the show. I get the impression that the show isn't that important for the folks at DC or HBO. Am I wrong? Am I jumping to conclusions?
Greg responds...
They'd say otherwise.
Will writes...
1. Is Dreamer the New God a more powerful psychic that can get information that normal telepaths can't at least without harming them like she did in her first appearance?
2. What were the Light’s traditions that Ultra Humanite was referring too?
3. Why didn’t the Light dispose of Speedy when they were okay with it for the other sidekicks when they were captured in Cadmus?
4. What was the official reason/cover story that Lex Luthor had held Speedy captive for so long?
5. Could martians have children with humans or atlanteans or
even other aliens?
Greg responds...
1. "More powerful" than whom? I'm not too big on power comparisons. Her powers are different but overlap with other psychics we have in the series.
2. I think he states it fairly clearly in the episode.
3. They thought he might be useful, and by that time there was no fear that his existence would out their clone.
4. I don't understand this question. Cover story for whom?
5. It's a good question... that I'm not going to answer, as any answer could constitute a potential spoiler.
Impetuous_77 writes...
1. How old is Saturn girl?
2. How old is Phantom Girl?
Greg responds...
Assuming they survive to the end of Team Year Ten, they will be...
1. 18
2. 15
Verdragon writes...
What is your favorite episode of each (complete) season of Young Justice so far? Which ones do you think are objectively the best of each season?
Greg responds...
I don't have conclusive or definitive feelings about them in the way you seem to be implying.
I am very fond of Independence Day, Misplaced, Summit, Endgame, Evolution and Overwhelmed. But I honestly love every episode (like a proud papa).
Nick writes...
Hi Greg, I'm glad that Phantoms has premiered now. Almost flipped when hearing we can watch them on HBO Max after the DC Fandome was done. I like how the heroes are not given a big issue to deal with like in the last two seasons. Feels like going back to the first season roots.
Anyway I enjoyed the first two episodes and I have a few questions from them and I can promise that none of them involve spoilers.
1. What's with the iris-change in the Martian eyes? How come J'onn didn't have them when he was on Earth? They look better.
2. Are Harper Row and her brother adopted by Snapper and Beth?
3. One scene I didn't get in "Schooled" was when M'gann formed multiple arms to fight the Monqis and then freaks out after Wally freaks out seeing her with the arms. I don't get it?
4. Is Phil Bourassa not working on the show anymore? I noticed someone else is in charge of character design. Did Dou Hong work under him?
Thank you and till next time.
Greg responds...
1. The iris change allowed them to take in more light on Mars, I believe.
2. Fostered.
3. His reaction startled her.
4. Dou worked as a character designer on Season Three under Phil. Phil moved on after Season Three, and Dou was promoted to Model Supervisor. We also brought back Jerome Moore, who did characters for us during Seasons One and Two, and brought in Austin Reinkins to design with Dou and Rome.
Big Fan writes...
Hi Greg, I love Young Justice so much and I’m so glad that you guys are back for Season 4 and hopefully more. Thank you and your team for all the hard work you have done.
A few questions,
1. I’m a little confused on how the Outsiders work with the Team. I know in season 3 it was said that they are the public squad of the team and report to Miss Martian but it seems like Beast Boy does most of the leading. So are Outsiders members of the Team or are the Outsiders a separate entity?
2. Can members of the Outsiders return to the team and do covert missions or are the not allowed to since they have become public heroes?
3. In Season 4 does the public know the Outsiders are affiliated with the League or is that still a secret?
Thanks so much for taking the time read and answer my question
Greg responds...
1. Well, both, I guess. The Outsiders are autonomous, reporting in Season Three - and until the first few minutes of Season Four - to Beast Boy. But Beast Boy initially reported to Team Leader Miss Martian (and later Tigress), who in turn reported to League Chairperson Aquaman (and later Black Lightning).
2. The two groups tend to stay separate, but overlap can happen situationally, as when Geo-Force joined the Team for their mission to the Orphanage.
3. Secret. Though they know the two groups are friendly.
LoboGuara5bruxaria writes...
Hey Greg, on more than one occassion someone have asked you how strong an average Martian is when compared to a average Atlantean, but you had responded that it is hard to give an straight answer since martians can augment their strength with their shape/denseshifting abilities and telekinesis. So allow me to ask you this:
1) How strong to you think an average Martian is in their... "Biologically Natural*" form without any telekinesis involved when compared to the average Atlantean? I am NOT asking exact numbers of "Y Character is X times stronger/weaker than Z character", but more on a "I think X is a bit stronger/weaker than Z" kind of way.
2) How strong to you think an Average Gargoyle from Gargoyles is when compared to Young Justice's Average Atlantean and "Biologically natural" Martian?
*I say "Biologically Natural" form of Martians (That one of large bipedals with narrow waists and exposed gums) than True Form, since for a species of shapeshifters "true form" would likely be the one they are personally most confortable to stay in. Am I right or wrong on that regard?
Greg responds...
1. These kinds of questions are not really of much interest to me. You're trying to remove all situational criteria, but life is entirely situational. I guess by the terms you're using that Atlanteans are stronger than Martians. But the terms only exist in a vacuum of circumstance, which can never occur - not even in a vacuum.
2. Now, you're crossing shows? No. I'm not going there. Watch the two series. See what you see. Make your own evaluations.
3. Every Martian is different.
emmy the vampire slayer writes...
seeing "his, her or their" on the first episode of Phantoms made me happy. i even hugged my dog and told him: THEY SUPPORT ME! THEY SUPPORT ME! (simon's such a good friend :D)
this may sound a little cringe, but that's what i felt about the scene.
i'm a fan of YJ for 10 years now (i'm 15 - almost 16) and i found out that i'm a trans girl a couple of years ago. it wasn't easy, of course. i spent years rejecting myself, so seeing you guys saying trans rights(!!!!) is super special to me.
ps: i know halo is non-binary, but she's a mother box, she's not really a person. as much as i love halo (LOVE!!!), she isn't a good representation. but, hey, you're trying :)
and sorry for any mistake. i'm from brazil.
Greg responds...
Hi emmy,
I'm glad you liked the scene. But I take issue with you saying that Halo is not a real person. She's as real as Miss Martian or Tigress or any of the others. What difference does her origin make? Now, she's a living, breathing person - with super-powers, sure - but in every other way, she's currently a human being.
Aziraphale writes...
After watching the season premiere of YJ, I have an additional question:
In your reinterpretation of the White Martians, I was confused by their new portrayal as an oppressed underclass compared to the Green Martians, in contrast to their depiction in the comics and other media as hatemongering conquerors. And that led to a confusing racial allegory that I already didn't think worked well, but then I noticed Ma’alefa’ak's birth name is "M'Comm", something original to this show and not the comics, and he was imprisoned in a jail with a giant X on the building. M'Comm X? If this was an intentional reference to real life civil rights leaders, what was the thought process in turning a character who had murdered innocent teenagers the previous season into a Malcolm X analogy?
Greg responds...
I see where you're coming from, but that's not where we were coming from.
The X on the building comes from the X on Martian Manhunter's chest. In our mind, that was the symbol of the M'huntrrs, i.e the Martian police, that J'onn J'onzz was a member of before coming to Earth. I totally see how you got there, but I promise you it literally never occurred to us to associate that X with M'comm to create any kind of Malcolm X reference or analogy.
The name M'comm was, for us, just following in the tradition of most Martian naming, i.e. you take a relatively average human name and Martian it up a bit. Hence John becomes J'onn, Megan becomes M'gann, etc. M'ree, M'aatt, J'ann and M'comm follow along those lines. So, yes, M'comm is a Martianing up of Malcolm, but I never specifically thought of associating him with Malcolm X, any more than I think of J'onn being associated with some specific Jon or John.
Way back when we were developing Season One, Brandon and I rejected the idea of there being an evil race on M'arzz. I find that notion from the comics very troubling. But we did think that the MYTH of an evil race would be useful for the ruling castes to justify their caste system. Scapegoating, in essence, creates a self-justifying belief: "Oh, so the A'ashenn are angry about the way we treat them? They don't like how we keep them in their place? Well, that's because they're hate-mongering would-be conquerors! Thank C'eridyall we DO keep them in their place!"
I've said before that I regret having used White Martians at all. We were following in the footsteps of the comics, but I do wish we had thought to use Grays instead of Whites. For one thing, the idea of Martians being either "little green men" or "Grays" feels right to me, in terms of alien-mythology. But mostly, it's because here in the real world, the word "white" is obviously associated with people of European descent (such as myself) - i.e. so-called Caucasian - and not with the actual color white, i.e. the snow white or chalk white of our A'ashenn. In essence, we were distracted by the visual look of the White Martians and didn't have the sensitivity to focus on the actual and very real connotation of the WORD "white".
That's one of the main reasons why, this season, we made a conscious choice to largely stop referring to the Martians as White, Green, Red and Yellow, in favor of A'ashenn, G'arrunn, B'lahdenn and Y'ellonn. We actively wanted to create some mental distance between the A'ashenn and Caucasians by avoiding the common word "white". We don't want the oppressed A'ashenn associated with the decidedly NOT oppressed Caucasians in any way, shape or form. It's not a perfect solution, but after consulting with our multiple sensitivity readers, it felt like the best we could do, given our failure of imagination and sensitivity way back in Season One.
Caleb writes...
I've been sitting on this question for a while, so it's not strictly related to the season 4 premiere (which I really enjoyed), but here we go:
Agendas is one of my favorite episodes of Young Justice. I love seeing superheroes interact in decidedly not-super ways. Anyway, I was looking at the membership timeline of the Justice League on the YJ Wiki and noticed that (as a rule) there seem to be no new members for years, and then a huge jump in membership around the same time. What was really odd was the (at least) 10 season 3 additions (from Aquaman II to Steel) all joining around 6 months before the season began. This is contrasted with the Team, where members come and go much more frequently. So…
1. Is the meeting/discussion/vote format depicted in Agendas the primary way that new members are added to the Justice League?
2. Are there any outliers besides Doctor Fate (who was then legitimized by the vote in Agendas)?
3. When multiple members are added in a single day (like Atom, Plastic Man, Icon, and Red Arrow in Usual Suspects or the aforementioned season 3 batch), how are their Zeta-designations assigned? When they debuted as heroes? How many votes they got? Whatever order Batman dictates?
4. Whose arm do I have to twist at DC to get a comic miniseries of Earth-16 Justice League Election Specials?
Greg responds...
1. Yes.
2. On occasion, a hero may be drafted into the League on a probationary basis, during an emergency or for other reasons. But then he, she or they would have to be confirmed in a League vote, as with - as you noted - Doctor Fate.
3. Batman has nothing to do with it. He doesn't run the League. He was chairman during Season One. But since then, we've had multiple chairpersons, including Captain Atom, Black Canary, Wonder Woman & Aquaman (II), and Black Lightning. Generally speaking, if members join at the same time - without having first joined on a probationary basis (as Doctor Fate did) - they are in essence inducted in the order they debuted publicly as heroes.
4. I wish I knew...
Gigliovaljr writes...
Hey Greg,
It has been a delightful surprise for the sudden premiere of YJ Phantoms and I hope there's more episodes soon.
Looking back at when YJ returned, you had a lot less restrictions, allowing you to tell the story more to your choosing, but I can't help but wonder how different season 3 would have been if Young Justice had never been cancelled to begin with and still had those restrictions.
Could you tell us more of how different season 3 would have been if the show had continued back in 2013? What would have changed in regards to characters and story? What plans for season 3 did you come up after the original cancellation and what plans were scrapped?
Greg responds...
I can't answer that. It's hypothetical to a wild degree. Our general plans for the first four seasons haven't changed from back when we first developed the series. But we didn't break Season Three in any detail until DC Universe picked us up for a third season. And we didn't begin breaking Season Four until DC Universe picked a fourth season up - months before DC Universe became DC Universe Infinite, and we moved over to HBO Max.
Marvelman writes...
In "Needful", why did Gar's telepathic plugs (or whatever they are) fall off during the cave-in? They had always seemed to adapt to whatever form Beast Boy took regardless of size.
Greg responds...
No, they didn't. His speakers never changed size. They stayed on his collar but maintained a consistent size, whether he was a green elephant or a green mouse. So, in essence, if he and his collar becomes too small to hold the speakers, they fall off. This happened last season when he became a green hornet, and this season when he became a green cockroach.
Liam writes...
Before I ask any questions, I just wanted to say I love Young Justice Phantoms so much so far and I can't wait to see the rest! I'm a big fan of you and Brandon's work on Young Justice and I just wanted to say thank you to both of you for it. It's such a fantastic show that has become such a big part of my life and I am forever thankful. 1) You've said before that important real life events have happened in the YJ universe. Are the people who acted in these events the same people or a fictional character who is not them? (So basically, if Person A carried out an event in our world, could it be assumed the character who did the same was an alternate version of Person A, or a different character who's only similarity to person A is carrying out the action?) 2) Was Hello Megan a popular earth show on Mars, or was it just popular amongst M'gann's family? If it was only popular amongst all martians, what about it made them so interested while earthlings didn't seem to like it all that much considering it was cancelled due to low ratings? 3) What were the cultures you pulled from in order to create martian culture? With mention of a caste system, I assume hinduism is one of them but I assume there are others 4) In season 3, Artemis had mentioned that they know the soul exists because of Secret, does this mean Artemis developed an interest/exploration of the concept of spirituality after meeting Spirit, or was it a belief she had prior? 5) This is an add on to the last question, but I assume it would count as a second question anyways. Does Artemis have any spiritual practices that she has developed or is it more of just a recognition? This last part isn't a question, but thank you, Brandon, and the entire YJ team again. I know some fans dislike it or even wish it wasn't part of the show, but personally I love the way the character's personal lives are incorporated into the show because it adds in a sense of realism that really helps build character
Greg responds...
1. If I understand your question correctly - and I'm not sure I do - then there is an Earth-16 version of real life people doing real life things.
2. It wasn't necessarily a huge M'arzz hit. But there's no Nielson ratings to confirm.
3. As you noted, the Indian caste system was an influence. Racism, in general, is an influence. But I don't want to imply any one to one relationship between Mars and any specific culture or nationality.
4. I don't think Artemis' knowing about the soul implies anything more than that, so your either/or question doesn't follow.
5. This, in essence, is a spoiler request.
Thanks for all your kinds words.
Claire writes...
Was M'gann close to any of her green martian siblings growing up? Obviously not close currently since none were going to her wedding.
Greg responds...
Not particularly - or consistently.
Emory writes...
a) What is Ollie’s relationship with Roy and Will like right now?
b) Did Roy join school after he left the team?
c) Is Roy Native American in YJ as well?
Greg responds...
a. Pretty solid.
b. You're the second person today to ask me that. I haven't thought about it, strangely.
c. He might have some Native American ancestry, but generally, he's a white guy.
Dean Paterson writes...
How Old is Harper Row In Young Justice: Phantoms
Greg responds...
By the END of Team Year Ten, Harper Row is 18.
Anonymous writes...
Is it a coincidence that Megan and Harper both have the exact same number of freckles? Is it a conspiracy?
Greg responds...
A freak of nature. Or, you know, an art conceit.
Paco Cruz writes...
First at all, I gotta say thank you for creating this show, it’s amazing. I discovered this show pretty recently. It help a lot, I was diagnostic with cancer and since I had extra time in my hands, I decide to watch it. And let me tell you it help a lot. Now I cancer free. So mostly it’s a thank you note. Although I just have a question (I’m pretty sure that I hasn’t been asked before, I read like 300 question in the search for Zatanna. But then again, it might slipped) Is there any chance for Dick and Zee get back together? I really love their chemistry. Currently I have watched the first 2 episode of season 4. Sorry for my bad English. And thanks again. Hope you doing great.
Greg responds...
I'm very glad you're cancer-free. But I can't answer your question. It easily qualifies as a spoiler request, and I don't give out spoilers.
Verdragon writes...
Two questions, both on the overly specific subject of Martians stealing Earth TV.
1: Is J'onn basically pirating Earth television to send back to Mars? Like, are the execs running Space Trek seeing a large spike in their ratings from no discernable source?
2: J'onn says he's been bringing Earth TV to Mars for 60 years, has he been active on Earth as a superhero for that long?
Greg responds...
1. Technically, I suppose Martians are pirating the signal.
2. Since 1960, yes.
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