'Young Justice/Green Lantern Animated Series: CANCELLED' Rant

Even though both of the series have ended last week and the flame from fans of both series have died down a bit, its rather important to talk about them as a means to show what kind of direction future animated series might go towards.

Both 'Green Lantern' and 'Young Justice' were part of the 'DC Nation'. a TV program on Cartoon Network dedicated to all things DC comics. They've been tossed around in terms of broadcasting, often taking months at a time to release a new episode (even though said episode has been done for quite some time at that point). Despite being very popular among younger and older fans, with Young Justice even winning an award for an episode, it was still canceled with new shows in its place 'Beware the Batman' and 'Teen Titans Go!'.

So really, what caused this cancellation? Best to look at the heads of Cartoon Network for that information, as they have the say so on what shows to continue or cancel. For one thing or another, certain series tend to get the axe and cut down before their time (these shows for instance) and others continue even though they are complete garbage ( Johnny Test ) or well past their welcome point ( Ben 10 ). There is also concern when it comes to making a profit, which some animated series get by getting companies to make toys of their characters and such.

Any way its sliced, it seems like really crappy management. Canceling a TV show due to poor toy sales is about as logical as closing down a burger joint because the local butcher can barely sell any cow meat. Odd analogy notwithstanding, its clear that the heads of Cartoon Network have their heads up their asses for such a decision, especially since this could've extended the popular 'DC Nation' programming by another hour or so and just have 'Beware the Batman' and 'Teen Titans Go!' air along with the others. Still, what do I know? Its not like I learn from other people's mistakes as well as my own.

Still, this isn't the first time good animated series have been canceled. 'Spectacular Spider-Man' and 'Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes' have been very good successes for Marvel (though Spider-Man was owned by Sony at the time due to animated rights). Like their DC counterparts, these shows had a rather fleshed out cast of characters and engaging storyline, even if a few episodes weren't up to par as much as others. Still, they were at least enjoyable, but still got canned.

When Marvel got the rights back for Spider-Man, the 'Spectacular Spider-Man' was discontinued and replaced with 'Ultimate Spider-Man' which can barely hold a candle to its predecessor. Honestly, after seeing the entire first season, its easy to see which series can deliver more. As for 'Avengers', that was canceled so Marvel Animation can do 'Avengers Assemble', which is rather stupid in the long run.

Lets face it: cancelling very good series due to bad toy sales or replacing it with a bad knockoff is a slap in the face for viewers, myself included. Making decisions based purely on greed will no doubt bite you in the ass. There are honest-to-goodness people who put in a lot of effort to make animated shows and it feels insulting just to cancel them after a very good run.

Its rather a cautionary tale for those hoping to make an animated series. The network heads are the ones with the final say and there is always that chance where even if it gets to air, it'll be screwed around with. This primarily deals with behind-the-scenes dealings, like scheduling, executive meddling, or cancellation for some stupid reasoning. Course, that doesn't mean you should give up on the subject and push on it the best you can until something comes up that won't let you continue.

Review: Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes

Hello and welcome to another review on 'Stories of Entertainment'!

Felt like I should continue something I left off awhile back with the Lego Batman review. A sequel to the game came out last year under the title of Lego Batman 2: Dc Super Heroes. You'll never guess who'll be featured in this game:

(A team-up of DC's greatest heroes...in a Lego video game. At least its something.)

Simply put, its a step up from its predecessar. The gameplay, graphics, and story have improved, with the inclusion of actually voice actors (rather than just the grunts and groans we got in previous Lego games). Time to see if they got a good story to start.

The game starts with Gotham City holding a 'Man of the Year' award between two moguls: the evil Lex Luthor and the sophisticated Bruce Wayne. No surprise to Bruce Wayne being the winner of the whole even, but even less of a shock is the Joker making a surprise appearance to steal a whole lot of stuff from people. The fact that he came with the likes of Two-Face, Riddler, and Penguin can get you a bit surprised. Anyway, most of the people flee, except for Luthor, who just sits and watches with interest, and Bruce Wayne, who actually hid out to change suits. When Joke gives a speech on how much of a cool guy he is, Batman and Robin arrive to foil his schemes.

Naturally, the Dynamic Duo manage to beat the other villains and give chase to Joker, who has taken to using a boat to get away with the goods. Eventually, the Joker is caught and defeated, with Superman soon making an appearance right after the villain is caught ('faster than a speeding bullet', my ass). They try to make small talk, but Batman keeps brushing Superman off before the Man of Steel leaves to help other people.

After awhile, Joker is back in his cell in Arkham Asylum, but gets broken out by Luthor thanks to a new device called the Deconstructor. It allows Luthor to take apart indestructible black bricks from each other, enabling Joker's escape. The two partner up, since Luthor needs Joker's gas to help him run for president. Joker agrees and even uses the Deconstructor to free several other Arkham inmates to distract Batman and Robin. They manage to round up a few of the inmates, but get news of a break-in at Ace Chemicals.

At the Ace Chemicals factory, Batman and Robin notice different chemicals have been stolen for some reason. Before they can contemplate what the combined chemicals can create, some canisters explode and start a massive fire. As the Dynamic Duo try to escape, Superman comes and puts out the fire. Batman doesn't enjoy Superman's company too much and brushes him off once the big guy saves their behinds. Batman goes through the Batcomputer to find out the chemicals would make something very similar to Kryptonite. Batman tracks down where Kryptonite might be stored and finds a moving source in Gotham City, which he and Robin promptly track down.

On a moving, heavily-fortified truck, Luthor and Joker manage to make the synthetic Kryptonite. Batman and Robin soon catch up and jump onboard, collecting said Kryptonite for themselves. However, both get knocked off by the Joker's Joy Buzzer and the Batmobile gets taken out by the Deconstructor in the process. Still, the Dynamic Duo has the Kryptonite and manage to bring to the Batcave. Oddly enough, the Kryptonite wouldn't be able to affect Kryptonians like Superman, but Batman doesn't take any chances and stores it with the rest of the Kryptonite.

It turned out to be a trick, as Luthor and Joker had the Kryptonite designed as a decoy and led them to the Batcave and the real Kryptonite. They start tearing apart the Batcave as they recover the Kryptonite, forcing Batman and Robin to flee. Its funny to see Luthor and Joker leaving, commenting on the fact that the Batcave was under Wayne Manor, with Luthor only stating, "I really despite that man." Superman appears to save the day (of course or we would have a shorter game) and helps clean up, even though Batman resents the Man of Steel with great passion. He decides to ask Superman for help and the Man of Steel agrees, eager to help the Dark Knight.

The pair manage to track down Luthor and Joker in a flying ship, but one trap forces Superman to rescue Batman from falling several stories. However, they both know they should be able to find them both at the LexCorp tower. They fight through several robot guards before reaching the villains, who have now appeared in a giant, Joker-esque robot. Both of the heroes are quickly defeated, with Superman exposed to Kryptonite and Batman squashed under a heavy weight. As the villains leave, its revealed that Superman and Batman switched costumes and give pursuit.

The superheroes try to fight off Luthor and Joker, but the mech is too much for Batman and Superman, with the Kryptonite significantly hurting Superman and Batman's gadgets aren't doing as much as he thought. Robin soon appears on the scene, with some vehicles that are unaffected by the Deconstructor. Batman joins his partner and manages to put the Joker-mech on a merry chase in Gotham City. With the Kryptonite exposed and leaking out of the mech, Batman manages to make a giant Joker portrait in the city streets, bright enough that it can be seen from space. This gets the attention of the Justice League (though as members of the team, why didn't Batman and Superman call them earlier) and with their help, thwart the plans of Luthor and Joker. The mech is destroyed and the city is safe once more.

...or for now at least, with the Braniac cameo at the end.

Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes was definitely a step in the right direction for the Lego video games, both in game-play, visuals, and story. Here's hoping to some bright future for the game series.

Until next time...

Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes was developed by Traveler's Tales and published by Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment.