"Young Justice: Targets (2022 Mini-Series)" Talkback (Spoilers)

[Yojimbo]

Issue One of a six issue DC Universe Infinite digital first comic! Based on the acclaimed animated series from Warner Bros. Animation!

YOUNG JUSTICE: TARGETS #1 (of 6)





Written by: Greg Weisman
Art by: Christopher Jones
Colors by: Jason Wright
Variant Covers by: Meghan Hetrick (Red Arrow Variant), Travis Mercer (1:25 Variant)
Queen Perdita has been kidnapped! Mysterious armored assailants have snatched the Vlatavan royal out from beneath Bowhunter Security, leaving Green Arrow and Black Canary poisoned and comatose in the process! Now a rallying cry echoes around the globe, and across super-teams, to band together and rescue Perdita!
Release Date: June 14, 2022 (DC Universe Infinite, Comixology), July 26, 2022 (Print)

Comments?

Related Links:
-Young Justice News & Discussion Thread Part 35
-Young Justice: Phantoms Talkback Thread Part I | Part II
-Young Justice: The Prize Talkback Thread
-Young Justice: Outsiders Talkback Thread Part 1 | Part II | Part III
-Young Justice "Coldhearted" Talkback Thread
-Young Justice "Targets" Talkback Thread
-DC Showcase: Green Arrow Talkback Thread
External Links:
-Young Justice: Targets #1 at DC Universe Infinite
-Young Justice comics at DC Universe
-Young Justice: Targets comics on Comixology
-Young Justice: Outsiders comics on DC Universe

 

[Yojimbo]

CHERRY GIG

Chris Jones and Jason Wright make a killer team. Best look for the comic ever.

November 9 and 11. So almost 2 months after Phantoms. Garfield is not over Perdita as expected and his first mission back with the Outsiders is to rescue her. Hoo boy.

Perdita's bodyguard is named! Denny. Must be a hat tip to the late Dennis O'Neil.

Perdita mentions she hates the Star City airport, ha! Alluding to the Earth-16 version of DC Showcase: Green Arrow no doubt. A story we almost got to see in the tie-in comic. lol, Will concerned the balance is off on his new clipboard. Yup, Jim and Clayface jinxed it.

Figures the mystery armored villains work for Vertigo and bust him out of Markovian prison along with Simon Ecks, Piotor, and Johann from season 3. Still no clue who they are, if they are from the comic originally but could be original characters or villains we know but hidden in the armor from us. Could also imply why King Brion and the Infinitors get involved - to retrieve the four escapees (and probably some nice PR saving the Vlatavan queen).

Re-elect Brandon Vietti sign. Cute. But shouldn't it be Greg Vietti? Sunglass Igloo and Chicken Whizee nods as well, heh.

Ah, the early previews make sense. Perdita visited the Star City S.T.A.R. Labs because they wanted to open a branch in Vlatavastok. And Dr. Roquette works at the Star City branch. Ha, Forever Sixteen callback -- in the comics, that's where Superboy got his black Superman shirts from and the same mall where he and Wally encountered the Terror Twins for the first time. Maneuver Seven callback!

Hmm, wonder if Cheshire will be called on considering her knowledge of poisons, to help save Oliver, Dinah, Roquette, and Denny from whatever they got darted with.

Idk, I kinda eyerolled at another Vertigo scheme involving Perdita but we'll see how this plays out.

HOT MESS: MEMORY ONE

Ok, so looks like the back up story will be 5 pages.

A Team Year Zero/Season 1 flashback. So Sportsmaster turned out to be the one who assassinated Perdita's father Josef. Even used the Broken Arrow programming to neutralize Red Arrow. Explains why the present day story is personal to Will. Late September... so probably at the same time, the Team was dealing with the Brain's operation in the #18-19 comic arc in Bwunda/Gorilla City.

 

[Frontier]

I hope we see some growing pains with Beast Boy being back in the field because I think it was definitely a legitimate complaint of the last season that they made his mental health arc such a slow-burn only to seem to rush through his recovery process like it was no big deal, and now he's back in the field .

It's also nice to see the Outsiders again even if I'm starting to think Beast Boy is holding the team back despite the fact that it seems like the Outsiders are only really relevant to the story through Beast Boy .

I like the nods to DC Showcase Green Arrow. Did Perdita not recognize Ollie or Dinah? At least until he brought the bow out, obviously, or was she just playing coy? Maybe GA's secret identity is more successful than I expected .

Does this count as an Arrow Family comic? Feels like it .

Nice to see more Clayface .

Are Ollie and Dinah really back together? I was hoping for confirmation of that. But it's nice to see Ollie and his old protege's fighting together .

Count Vertigo breaks out of prison...again. Probably planning to kidnap/kill Perdita...again. I guess the main change in this is who the green Rocket Reds are and what they're planning. Will it turn out to be a Light plot? Probably .

I thought Vertigo straight up killed Perdita's dad but it was Sportsmaster (probably for Vertigo, in fact). Honestly getting really tired of the Light and their goons getting away with murder and a whole host of other things .

Ironic that Will ended up failing Perdita only for Ollie (and I guess Wally) to end up saving her...

 

[Medinnus]

FYI, no backup story in the Comixology edition.

 

[M.O.D.O.K.]

I admit, I'm a bit mixed on this issue.

I love the art. Christopher Jones has only improved his craft over the course of his YJ work. Not that I thought his previous art was bad or anything, but the characters feel more "in-model" and closer to the show than before. Jason Wright does a wonderful job with the colors, particularly during Will's memory sequence. It's just nice to see a show tie-in that tries to stick to the show's art style as much as possible.

The story's just fine so far. It's basically an introduction to the story arc, setting up Perdita's kidnapping, Bowhunter Security's attempt to save her, and the Outsiders going in to find her, including a still-heartbroken Beast Boy. It was nice to see what Dr. Roquette has been up to, and I loved that we got to see a heroic Clayface in action after being a victim in "The Prize" and a photo cameo in the fourth season. Nothing huge or exciting, however.

We sure learned a lot about Will in the backup story, primarily that Sportsmaster took advantage of his clone programming to knock him out fast while he killed Perdita's father. That's pretty dark. While I don't mind this story being brief, I am disappointed that it's part of a regular issue's page count instead of being an ACTUAL bonus story. It makes the main story feel lightweight, which I can imagine is worse for the regular editions of the story.

Other thoughts: So, Count Vertigo is behind this plot? Not an exciting choice, but I'm also not surprised by his involvement. His attempts to kill Perdita does make him feel like this world's version of Sideshow Bob. It makes me wonder if The Light has considered more effective methods to conquering Vlatava and cutting off Vertigo.

 

[ShadowStar]

I'm guessing that Wally's birthday will be alluded to somehow because it's been 10 years in-universe since he saved Perdita's life (on his 16th birthday).

 

[Yojimbo]

FYI, no backup story in the Comixology edition.

Yes, only DC Universe Infinite has the full digital version which is referred to as "Director's Cut." You will see on other digital vendors like Comixology that their Director's Cut is set for July 14. DC Universe Infinite is exercising its Digital First credo so the full digital version of each issue will be exclusive to them for 1 month.

EDIT: Ha! Yup, that first photo Gar looks at was seen at the 1 minute mark of season 3's "Eminent Threat" when he's being interviewed by Courtney on her show.

 

[Yojimbo]

Issue two of a six issue DC Universe Infinite digital first comic! Based on the upcoming DC Universe animated series from Warner Bros. Animation!

YOUNG JUSTICE: TARGETS #2 (of 6)



Written by: Greg Weisman
Art by: Christopher Jones
Colors by: Jason Wright
Variant Covers by: Meghan Hetrick

Title Pending
With Queen Perdita nowhere to be found, an APB has been sent across the planet! Now, in Markovia, the Infinitors have been assembled to track her down, but are the Infinitors to be trusted? How deep does this evil conspiracy run, and who will be able to unravel the web of deception in time?
Digital Release Date: July 12, 2022 (DC Universe Infinite), August 11, 2022 (Full version, all digital retailers)
Print Release Date: August 23, 2022 (Local comic book shops)

Comments?

Related Links:
-Young Justice: Targets comics on DC Universe Infinite
-Young Justice: Targets comics on Comixology
-Young Justice: Targets #2 at DC Universe

 

[M.O.D.O.K.]

Just like the first issue, it's mostly set-up for the rest of the story arc. However, this one's a bit more exciting as Will and Artemis make some good questions about the kidnapping. This is clearly a scheme backed by The Light and it has a different goal than Count Vertigo attempting to get the crown again (which he legally can't anyway) or simple revenge. We also get some action at the end when Geo-Force and his Infinitors seemingly rescue Perdita, only for it to be a set-up by Baazovi to kidnap a Perdita who is either brainwashed or an impostor.

It's nice to see the Infinitors again after their spotlight in "Ego and Superego", but I hope Brion actually has something up his sleeve against Baazovi. Otherwise, the implied talk to Fury would seem like it went nowhere. Speaking of her, it seems she and Kobold are completely out of the loop for the scheme. The Outsiders and Team..err, teams set up have interesting line-up, but I'm a bit disappointed Cassandra seems to be Orphan still. I like Mist's costume, at least.

The back-up story focuses on Oliver's motivation for helping Perdita, with him flashing back to the show's events of the short DC Showcase: Green Arrow, which Greg Weisman also wrote. I feel like the rest of the flashbacks are just going to focus on that. I get Weisman wanted to do this story for a long time, but I was hoping they would be bonus stories from throughout the show rather than a singular story from different POVs. We do get some interesting appearances. We get our first glimpse at the Earth-16 version of Merlyn, a long-time Green Arrow nemesis, as well as what looks like Athena and Angel O'Day, alongside their dad Theo O'Day. We met Angel briefly in season 3. The newscasters seem to be Sylvester "The Skyman" Pemberton and Pat Dugan. So, I guess Stargirl isn't the only one who has an entertainment career.

The most surprising cameo occurs in the main story with Robin's team in Paris. While it may feel like a simple Gargoyles Easter egg, I think it could actually be appearances from the gargoyles in the story "The Flashback of Notre Dame" from JLA Showcase 80-Page Giant. Weisman and Christopher Jones worked on that story. I wonder if they'll actually awaken and play a role in the story or if they're just cameos.

Overall, a more exciting issue than before. I hope the story really kicks off now that Perdita has been "rescued".

 

[Medinnus]

The most surprising cameo occurs in the main story with Robin's team in Paris. While it may feel like a simple Gargoyles Easter egg.

Yay! Gargoyles cameo appearance!

 

[Frontier]

The story is moving at a breakneck pace with so many active teams and characters...but I wish we could get more character interaction or characters showing off their...well, characters more. Like, I dunno, playing off the drama between Brion and his former teammates more, or seeing the dynamic between the separate teams. Or the Infinitors, I didn't really feel like we learned anything new about them since their one episode in Phantoms. Maybe we'll get more of what I want next issue with Dick, Steph, Cass, and Tim's team. I wish Tim was with Steph's team so we could see more of their relationship (or like explicit confirmation of it) .

It's nice to see Cassie actually leading. I wish we had gotten more of that in season 4 .

Cissie holding Ollie's hand was a nice moment...I feel like this is probably the closest Cissie and Ollie have been in, like, any scenario. I don't think they ever even met in the comics (I think Ollie might've been dead by that point though). Their relationship kind of begins and ends with the fact that she's Bonnie King's daughter and Bonnie's previous infatuation with Ollie. Although it can't help but make me think that this version of Cissie is more like Mia Dearden than Cissie, which makes me wonder how they'd handle Cissie. Although it is kind of funny that Ollie's female sidekicks are all blonde, other than Emiko .

I know they're running with the idea that the Light know everybody's secret identity, but having Artemis and Babs video conferencing with their faces plastered on the screen was kind of weird to me. Like, at least Oracle should be hiding her identity. She has a "face" in the comics she always used and I think this would've been a good spot for it .

To the surprise of probably no one, this is a Light plot. It seems like the plan was to replace Perdita and prioritize her so they could finally get Vlatava...probably because they can't use Vertigo anymore .

The backup was basically just a retread of DC Showcase Green Arrow. Greg Weisman wanted to do that in the comics so badly now he's basically dedicating the backups too it. I mean, it's a good story, but it feels like there are more these backups could be doing .

Perdita deliberately called Ollie...did she know someone was after her ?

Well, I'm glad for confirmation that Ollie and Dinah are back together, seemingly. Also if the story played out the same, will Ollie still propose? Have they been married this whole time? Or did the marriage end up not happening but they're still together ?

What is it with the Whitmore/Duggan family being media personalities? That's like so weird. How does this tie into the Cosmic Staff or that whole legacy aspect? Was Sylvester ever the Star-Spangled Kid or a Superhero? Pat was his radio sidekick instead of his legit sidekick? I just have so many questions .

Will Angel O'Day ever meet Sam Simeon ?

 

[M.O.D.O.K.]

To the surprise of probably no one, this is a Light plot. It seems like the plan was to replace Perdita and prioritize her so they could finally get Vlatava...probably because they can't use Vertigo anymore .

Pretty good speculation at the overall plan. And now that I'm thinking about it, that's probably Everyman posing as Perdita.

Well, I'm glad for confirmation that Ollie and Dinah are back together, seemingly. Also if the story played out the same, will Ollie still propose? Have they been married this whole time? Or did the marriage end up not happening but they're still together ?

They do have their ups and downs, whether they're married or not. But they still seem solid.

 

[Yojimbo]

I remembered back to Phantoms when Zviad reported to the Light that things were going very well with meta-humans coming to Markovia and willingly being activated while Vlatava was facing a refugee crisis. What if the Light needs Vlatava to be close off their borders for whatever reason and use either a Zviad-influenced Perdita or Everyman posing as Perdita to enact new policies that will benefit their agenda. Pretty sure Beast Boy will be the one to snuff out something's up since he was the closest to the real deal. The idea that Vertigo wasn't at the camp this issue is suspicious as well whether he's guarding the real Perdita or executing some other task.

Some nice little follow ups from Phantoms - Catco show which was teased in Planet Circle in the finale, more of the Infinitors - and callbacks like Royal Memorial where Roy was taken to in Invasion when he was liberated, Sportmaster's concotion presumably the same he used on Bruno and Whisper, Coldhearted.

Nice seeing a glimpse of the Earth-16 version of the Green Arrow DC Showcase short. Adding in presumably Pat Dugan and the O'Day family as well as Platz and Mintz. Denny was actually in the short as was Sylvester. Don't recall if Pat did the intro. And added in the Chicken Whizees, too, I think. lol.

Weisman did confirm the first back up was on September 28 and this back up was on September 29. So I'm going to guess the third will be September 30, then October 1 then October 2 and October 3. I'll guess the third will be Artemis-centric and should doubly be interesting to see what she did between the Gorilla City mission and the events of Revelation. October 1 and 2 will be tricky as Revelation spans those days. Maybe one will be from Cissie King's POV and she's rescued by some of the Arrow Family within the scope of the episode and the last from Black Canary's. Roy can't have one cuz... on ice still.

 

[M.O.D.O.K.]

I'm actually wondering if the following issue's back-up will continue to retell the airport incident. It would be odd to have a Merlyn cameo if he doesn't outright fight Ollie. They could even include the flashback to him training Ollie in his youth that didn't make to the final cut of the short.

Nice seeing a glimpse of the Earth-16 version of the Green Arrow DC Showcase short. Adding in presumably Pat Dugan and the O'Day family as well as Platz and Mintz. Denny was actually in the short as was Sylvester. Don't recall if Pat did the intro. And added in the Chicken Whizees, too, I think. lol.

Pat's still in the short, but the voice is female. It makes me wonder if the YJ version of Pat will be Courtney's step-mother instead.

 

[Yojimbo]

I'm actually wondering if the following issue's back-up will continue to retell the airport incident. It would be odd to have a Merlyn cameo if he doesn't outright fight Ollie. They could even include the flashback to him training Ollie in his youth that didn't make to the final cut of the short.

Hm, possibly. But I remember Weisman said his Arrow Family arc in the comics that he's using for these back ups included Green Arrow, Black Canary, Red Arrow, and Artemis hence my theory about Artemis being Memory Three.

Pat's still in the short, but the voice is female. It makes me wonder if the YJ version of Pat will be Courtney's step-mother instead.

I double checked and yes, it is a woman named "Pat." Maybe that was Courtney's step-sister Patricia Dugan all grown up already in that short's canon.

 

[Frontier]

Earth-16 seems to have a very interesting take on the Star Spangled Kid/Stargirl mythos .

 

[ShadowStar]

Hm, possibly. But I remember Weisman said his Arrow Family arc in the comics that he's using for these back ups included Green Arrow, Black Canary, Red Arrow, and Artemis hence my theory about Artemis being Memory Three.

This is an interesting idea. I thought that the solicitation for issue 3 strongly implied that the back-up story would be narrated by Oliver, but looking at it again, it only states that it stars him. So I think you could be right!

 

[Yojimbo]

This is an interesting idea. I thought that the solicitation for issue 3 strongly implied that the back-up story would be narrated by Oliver, but looking at it again, it only states that it stars him. So I think you could be right!

Dang, I forgot about that part of the logline. I guess M.O.D.O.K.'s theory may pan out.

 

[Yojimbo]

Issue Three of a six issue DC Universe Infinite digital first comic! Based on the upcoming DC Universe animated series from Warner Bros. Animation!

YOUNG JUSTICE: TARGETS #3 (of 6)




Written by: Greg Weisman
Art by: Christopher Jones
Colors by: Jason Wright
Variant Covers by: Meghan Hetrick

Title Pending
Queen Perdita has been rescued! Or has she? Beast Boy has his doubts, and soon his suspicions turn terrifyingly real. Nightwing and Robin, working across the globe from one another, come upon information that leads them to uncover the identity of the villain who's been pulling the strings behind this kidnapping all along! Plus, take a trip into the past with another action-packed backup, starring Green Arrow!
Digital Release Date: August 9, 2022 (DC Universe Infinite), September 8, 2022 (Full version, all digital retailers)
Print Release Date: September 27, 2022 (Local comic book shops)

Comments?

Related Links:
-Young Justice: Targets #3 comics at DC Universe

 

[Frontier]

Seems like Everyman is posing as Perdita and just slipped out to rejoin the team. Will Brion ever become the wiser to the reality of the people under his command ?

Steph, Cass, and Mist in their civilian outfits .

It's nice to see that Cass can use ASL now. It's kind of sad we'll never get to hear her voice now, or how roughed up her face looks .

It still annoys the heck out of me that Cass just carries around swords like it's the most normal thing in the world. Like, this isn't a "kids show" any more but they're working with a character who fights like Wolverine in X-Men: TAS where she can only really fight robots or stuff she can actually slice through. How is that practical for a Batfamily member? Okay, I know Animated Movie Damian had a sword too, but still .

There's my patented Stephanie Brown wisecracks .

People comment on Nightwing's butt so much but here's a panel with Spoiler's butt on display .

Okay, the backups being a comic rendition of DC Showcase Green Arrow is starting to get a little boring. Like, could they start differentiating it a little more? Show more unique POV's? As it is it feels like they're wasting these backups .

So it was Lex Luthor and his robots behind it all along...