#not sidekicks

And that’s the premise of the show, that these teenagers, with some mentoring and direction from the Justice League, can take on cases that the main League either doesn’t have time for or can’t take because of their fame.  In other words, these guys are the B-team, but that doesn’t mean the missions they go on are any less important. 

In fact, over the course of the show, The Team, as they come to call themselves, takes on missions that are arguably more important than those of the Justice League.  Because they’re working more at the ground level, dealing with problems on Earth—regardless of whether those problems come from Earth or somewhere else—The Team is the first to encounter the Light and uncover their plans for an alien invasion and the eventual overthrow of Earth.  And while this is all well and good (it certainly isn’t bad, by any means), The Team isn’t doing all of this just to impress or help out their mentors.  For Robin and the rest, the formation of The Team is meant to free them from the shadow of their teachers and further them on the path to becoming full-fledged superheroes.

It’s an interesting story to play out, even though it’s not necessarily unique.  Any student wants to become as great as the one they learn from, and working on their own or on a team of their peers allows them to learn new lessons, make mistakes, and grow as a person in ways that continuing to work directly under their teacher could never allow.  The difference here is that these students are superheroes, so when they mess up, lives are at stake, and that means that their mistakes are much costlier than the average person’s.

That doesn’t stop them from trying, though, and in trying, the Team learns to work together to achieve their goals.  They don’t quite start off as a team, though.  It takes a while to learn how to handle their newfound independence from their mentors, and in that time, it becomes clear that independence means different things to the different team members.

For Robin, being out from under the watchful eye of Batman means he can indulge a bit more in his clever antics.  While I get the sense that Batman forgives Robin for a lot of things, I also feel like he forgets that Robin is still practically a kid.  Of The Team, Robin has the most experience, but he’s the youngest—not counting Superboy and the technicalities of cloning—and being part of his own team makes him realize he doesn’t want to grow up and be just like his mentor.  Robin is more free-spirited than Batman, and this really starts to show once he’s part of his own team.  There are a number of missions when Robin goes against the plan and disappears to wreak havoc on his own. 

Yes, it’s generally effective, but his tactics show the downside of independence, that sometimes too much freedom causes its own problems, especially when you’re meant to be working as part of a team.  Batman can take care of himself with or without Robin’s help, so it’s as if Robin doesn’t truly realize how much his new teammates rely on him to have their backs.  That’s not to say that he deliberately puts them in danger, but his playful antics frequently put The Team at a disadvantage in terms of sticking to the plan. It’s something that Batman would certainly frown upon—or frown harder upon, since he’s always frowning anyway—but Robin is no longer directly under Batman’s command, and so it’s something his team has to confront him about instead. 

And they do, when Robin’s usual independent fighting style puts his team at risk, leading the boy wonder to question his skills as the leader.  He hands the reins over to Aqualad with the concession that he’ll return them to Robin when the younger hero decides he’s ready to lead. From there on out, Robin works hard to make the most of his independence from Batman while still realizing that he’s not independent from his team, who truly rely upon his experience and his expert skills to get them out of many tight places.

Aqualad himself clearly appreciates his independence from his mentor and king, Aquaman, but he’s more mature and more used to working directly with someone than his batty friend.  As such, he sees the transition from sidekick to hero-in-training as a personal responsibility.  Even before he’s officially made leader of the team, Aqualad shoulders the failures and sacrifices of the Team.  To him, being independent means that he and the rest of the Team are free to make their own calls in how missions are run, but it also means that there’s no one on hand to save them.  If things go wrong—and when you’re trying to save the world, things have a tendency to go very, very wrong—the only people they can blame are themselves, and while they learn from those mistakes, they aren’t free from the consequences.  It’s a much different view of the Team’s freedom, and it demonstrates how a different teacher and a few more years of maturity can change a person’s outlook on autonomy.

For M’gann, her excitement isn’t so much for being out from under her uncle as it is to finally be on Earth.  She makes the most of her free time to explore and learn more about her new home, and it’s with a childlike joy that she embraces her freedom to be the Earth girl she’s always wanted to be.  She thinks being part of The Team is wonderful, and she gets along well with everyone.  M’gann still makes mistakes as a hero, but her screw-ups are almost always the result of her failure to clearly understand Earth culture rather than abuse of her newfound independence.  But there are occasionally instances where M’gann abuses her independence and uses her Martian powers unchecked, with disastrous consequences that M’gann struggles to fix.

Connor, AKA Superboy, has never had any life before the team, his implanted knowledge aside, and so everything is new for him, including his freedom.  Never having known anything else, it’s clear that Connor often isn’t quite sure what to do with himself and his newfound independence; luckily he has M’gann and the rest of his friends to help him learn to live.

Artemis’s presence on the team is originally under a shroud of dishonesty; although she’s introduced as Green Arrow’s niece, her true training came from her father, Sportsmaster, and her mother, the retired Huntress.  Along with her sister, Cheshire, all of Artemis’s family are villains, and although she was brought up and trained in their world, she wanted out. For Artemis, her new independence means getting to be one of the good guys, getting to use the skills her father taught her to take down villains just like him. 

It’s a nice twist and a fine taste of justice, and Artemis certainly makes the most of it.  And although she enjoys being on the right side of the battle, being a good guy doesn’t come without its problems or its annoyances, the latter mainly in the form of Wally, who is using his freedom to flirt and show off his self-gained speed. It’s not that Wally’s immature, he’s just a free spirit, but when it comes to the mission, he knows how to be serious.  It’s only on his own time that he likes to pester Artemis and keep the rest of the team on their toes, and his levity brings humor to most any situation.  Even more, when things seem dire, Wally can be depended on to look at the bright side, which is something the Team needs from time to time.

Young Justice manages to bring together a number of DC heroes, each with their own complex story and past, into a strong team.  The fact that these guys were the sidekicks just now starting out on their own is a great premise for younger kids and teenagers who are just beginning to take on more responsibility and to learn what it means to be at least somewhat independent from their parents.  The Team’s actions both in and out of the field show how different people react when they’re allowed to stretch their wings, and the lessons that they learn about choices, consequences, and what it truly means to be a team are applicable to everyone, whether they’re a superhero or just wish they were one.

And these lessons aren’t just for kids; adults sometimes need reminders that all their choices have consequences and that the easiest choice isn’t always the right one.  On top of that, Young Justice manages to incorporate many fan favorites, and the action, the jokes, and the characters themselves will entertain anyone even if they aren’t looking for a deeper meaning.  Robin, Aqualad, and the rest of The Team are heroes worth admiring, and even though they aren’t perfect, they always take the initiative to do whatever it takes to get the job done, not just on their own but as a team.

“He called me over and introduced me as his partner,” Sam continues. Jim can see him framed in the top corner of the HUD, harrying a Serpent Society member wielding some kind of grappling apparatus. “But still, it’s annoying.”

Jim rolls his eyes and turns just in time to dodge the projectile one of the Serpents launches at him. The short javelin hits the wall next to him, sparking, and Jim knocks his attacker back with a repulser blast. “At least he’ll call you his partner. Tony made the mistake of calling me a sidekick once.”

“Oh, ouch,” Sam says, and Jim can practically hear the wince in his voice. “That’s harsh, man. What did you do?”

“I beaned him in the head with a barbell.” Jim laughs. “Wow, it sounds bad when I say it like that. He was in the suit at the time.”

“I’d say that still sounds bad, but I saw you ram each other into that canyon wall the other day, and you were just racing.”

“But anyway, at least they recognise you,” Jim says. “I can’t count the amount of times I’ve been called Iron Man.”

“Yeah, but I’m starting to get a complex here. I’m an Avenger in my own right. My name isn’t ‘and the Falcon’.”

Jim laughs, and sends a rubber bullet straight into the solar plexus of the Serpent who’d thought he could sneak up on a suit of armour with 360° scanners. He steps back to survey the scene and let his HUD scan for more movement, his eyes on Sam’s fight with the grappling guy. Sam swoops one more time, dodging the ridiculous Inspector Gadget arms, and kicks his assailant in the back of the head. The man drops like a sack of potatoes.

“I think that’s all of them,” Jim says. He retracts the armour gauntlets and fumbles a handful of zip ties out of an external compartment. Sam lands next to him and grabs a handful of zip ties of his own, and they make short work of stripping the weapons off the stunned and unconscious goons and tying them up. Sam carefully manoeuvres the two unconscious Serpents into a modified recovery position and makes the call to Hill to mobilise the retrieval team.

“So, shall we go tell the real heroes how we cleaned up another mess without them?” Sam asks.

Jim laughs. “And interrupt their media circus? No, we—”

She comes out of nowhere, the HUD shrieking an alarm only two seconds before her foot connects with the side of Jim’s helmet, rattling his head and sending him reeling. Jim stumbles, lets the suit’s gyros keep him upright, and turns to face his attacker. 

She’s wearing a skin tight cat suit similar to what Black Widow favours, and aiming a small handgun at Sam’s face.

“Don’t move a muscle,” she says. “Where is Captain America?”

Sam’s face twitches, like he’s started to roll his eyes and then decided it’s a bad idea. “Sorry ma’am, it’s just us today.”

Her lip curls in a snarl. “I didn’t go through all this trouble to catch a pair of sidekicks.”

“You’ve hardly caught us,” Jim sneers. He flexes his hands, calling the gauntlets back up and over his fingers. It works, the movement draws the gunwoman’s attention and she takes her eyes off of Sam.

Sam lunges, knocking the gun out and up. It goes off, harmlessly, and Sam grapples the gun out of her hand.

“We are not sidekicks,” Sam grunts. Jim trains all his weapons on the woman as she retaliates, punching Sam in the chest and springing away quickly, following with a roundhouse kick to his head. Sam’s almost as fast, though, and has the advantage of weight and reach, and lands a few blows of his own. With them grappling so close together, Jim can’t get a clear shot. He lunges for her instead, quicker than anyone usually expects from the suit, and manages to grab her roughly by the shoulder.

“Let me go!” she shrieks, but Jim keeps his grip firm.

“Stop struggling,” Sam says. He catches her free hand and forces it behind her back. “It’s all over. You messed up.”

“I will not be captured by a pair of sidekicks!” she yells.