Search - Justice League Unlimited - Season Two (DC Comics Classic Collection) on DVD

The ride, though wonderful, had to end sometime...

H. Bala | Carson - hey, we have an IKEA store! - CA USA | 12/27/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Several SPOILERS here.



Well, the ride had to end sometime. JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED: THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON is the culminating season to this excellent animated series and serves to put a capper on the DC Animated Universe, which consists of BATMAN: T.A.S., SUPERMAN: T.A.S., BATMAN BEYOND, STATIC SHOCK, and ZETA PROJECT. While the current THE BATMAN and LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES continue the tradition somewhat, these new shows do not follow the same continuity.



This "second" season is, technically, the third season of JLU (or, even more comprehensively, the fifth season of JUSTICE LEAGUE) as JLU's "first" season dvd set actually contains Seasons 1 and 2. Hopefully, that wasn't too confusing to follow. Anyway, this dvd set offers the final 13 episodes in glorious wide screen and continues to showcase lesser lights from its expanded superhero roster (Hawkman in two episodes, the Warlord, Deadman, Green Arrow, the Huntress, etc.) as they are teamed up with several of the original seven founders.



Several episodes pay homage to CHALLENGE OF THE SUPERFRIENDS by updating the Legion of Doom, a haphazard collection of supervillains put together to combat the JLU, which then becomes the season's major story arc. Yes, there's even a Hall of Doom here. And, when we aren't privy to Gorilla Grodd and Lex Luthor engaging in power plays as they vie for the leadership of the Legion, we get to see highly diverting, self-contained episodes such as "Chaos at the Earth's Core" (I used to collect the Warlord), "Flash and Substance" (featuring a Bats/Flash team-up), "Patriot Act" (which salutes the Seven Soldiers of Victory and, in a way, resuscitates the defunct Cadmus Project), and "Far from Home" (on her 21st birthday, Supergirl, with GL and Green Arrow are transported to the 31st Century and meet the Legion of Super-Heroes).



Meanwhile, the superb "The Great Brain Robbery" (which has Luthor and Wally swapping minds) is a favorite Legion of Doom episode of mine. The Legion of Doom storyline, by the way, climaxes with the last two episodes, "Alive" and "Destroyer," as the writers throw out all the stops and bring back powerhouse villains Brainiac and Darkseid. By the way, the monumental clash between Superman and Darkseid is a must-see.



In my opinion, there isn't a lot of bad moments in this season (or in the entire series, come to think of it). Like a reviewer already mentioned, the disappearance of the Martian Manhunter for a significant portion of the season and the somewhat inconclusive resolution to Shayera and GL's often turbulent relationship are two which fall more in the negative category. And whatever happened with Batman and Wonder Woman's flirtations? Also, I wish the Blue Devil or Blue Beetle had been featured in a show (after all, Ted Kord's best bud, Booster Gold, starred in his own episode). On the positive side, the stories and the animation continue to be amazing. The stellar voice actors maintain their high quality work as they consistently add depth and resonance to their characters. Much as the Batman, as voiced by the iconic Kevin Conroy, and the Joker, by the versatile Mark Hamill, have been firmly embedded in my brain, so, too, now, are Michael Rosenbaum's Flash, Phil LaMarr's Jon Stewart, Maria Canal's Hawkgirl, Carl Lumbly's J'onn J'onzz, Susan Eisenberg's Wonder Woman, and Clancy Brown's Lex Luthor. George Newbern ends up being pretty good as the Man of Steel, but I still prefer Tim Daly. Sorry.



What started out, innocently enough, in 1992's definitive BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES has, over the course of 14 years, expanded into an animated universe in which so many significant DC costumed players have made an appearance. It's been such a sweet ride. I just want to state that never in my wildest dreams did I expect the JUSTICE LEAGUE (UNLIMITED) to be this good and this addictive. Thinking back, I probably was basing my expectations on the fun but ultimately shallow and juvenile Hanna-Barbera's SUPERFRIENDS. This current reincarnation offers so much more in terms of depth, emotion, story, scope, and creativity. The characters in JL and JLU are multi-layered, have inter-personal exchanges and conflicts, and do change and grow like real people (Hawkgirl being a prime example); the writers (Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, etc.) did such a fantastic job of making the viewers care for their product, the sum of 91 sincerely produced episodes. I'll miss the Justice League on television very, very much. Just thank goodness for dvds, huh?

"

Super Series

Sky | New York | 12/23/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I tell my wife that I buy the Justice League season-releases for myself AND the kids. But it is me who sits most captivated in front of the TV with the kids as the episodes roll.



Shushing the kids so I can hear "cartoons" on TV is the joke my wife likes to make. I quickly correct her, "Justice League is NOT 'cartoons.' It's an 'animated series.'" This clarification for some reason always seems to bring on even more chuckles over a bottle of wine with friends than it does clarify the matter.



Anyway, indeed the kids sit captivated too. The Justice League stories are very well put together with a lot of detail. I'm not sure that my kids (age 3 - 7) appreciate or understand all of the emotion (sometimes pretty deep), heroism (of course), betrayal and just great story telling that goes into these Justice League productions. But rest assured, Justice League Unlimited is definitely for kids too.



First there are Seasons 1 & 2 of Justice League. Then came 26 episodes of Justice League Unlimited in Season 1. Season 2 is perhaps the final compilation of Justice League Unlimited that contains the last 13 episodes that started last fall and ended in spring of 2006. You get:



1 - "I Am Legion" Say hello to the Legion of Doom.

2 - "Shadow of the Hawk" Friends with Hawkgirl...what's not to trust?

3 - "Chaos at the Earth's Core" Warlord of the rings.

4 - "To Another Shore" Wonder Woman and The Viking Prince.

5 - "Flash and Substance" A night at the museum.

6 - "Dead Reckoning" Carnival of souls.

7 - "Patriot Act" General Eiling goes AWOL.

8 - "The Great Brain Robbery" The great role reversal.

9 - "Grudge Match" Ultimate Fighting championship.

10 - "Far From Home" There's no time like the future.

11 - "Ancient History" The Hawkgirl soap opera continues.

12 - "Alive!" Houston, we have a problem.

13 - "Destroyer" Our heroes ride off into the sunset.



It is not necessary to have viewed the previous Justice League Seasons to fully comprehend and enjoy Justice League Unlimited Season 2...but I highly recommend it.



There are hours of entertainment on all of the Justice League releases...and no dang gong Cartoon Network commercials! Well worth the purchase price.

"

Here's to Justice and beyond.....

A. C. Martinez | NY, NY USA | 01/12/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I'm REALLY gonna miss this show......The final episode "EPILOGUE" from the last JLU collection (supposedly the original JLU series finale) gave an already excellent closure connecting JLU's Cadmus plotline with the whole Batman/Batman Beyond mythos......Fanboys all over were rejoicing at the production of one more JLU season collected here (which is actually Season 3 - how did Warner's marketing get so confused about this?)....

Everybody loves to hate the bad guys, or at least we're always curious about how they think & live so dangerously! The formation of the Legion of Doom was a real treat, as we see evil geniuses Grodd and Luthor butt heads to claim leadership. I just can't get over how Clancy Brown's delivery of Luthor gets more deliciously devious - both he and Powers Boothe's Grodd had arrogantly witty lines - ultimately revealing their individual hubris' as the most exploitable shared flaw among all great villains. Just recall Grodd's expression before being blown out of the airlock, or Lex's horror when he sees a reconstituted Darkseid instead of Brainiac - all too precious moments of comeuppance, indeed!

The voice casting / direction / performances in these shows have been near-perfect, so much so that I'll miss hearing them on air after years of familiarity. The great Kevin Conroy IS the Batman of all eras, absolutely as irreplacable as Clancy Brown. And Michael Ironside's Darkseid can really cast a shadow on anyone's day- albeit I thought he needed just a wee bit more volume / reverb to exude more of the biggest bully in the Universe! I wonder who else from the STARSHIP TROOPERS movie they can cast in these episodes (Mr.Brown & Mr.Ironside were in it!)?

I honestly didn't really care too much about the Hawkgirl / Hawkman soap opera - I thought Hro Talak in the Starcrossed movie was a much more compelling character delivered onscreen. I also agree that J'on J'onzz

was lacking in appearances, but I guess that was all set up for the finale. I wish Captain Marvel had at least one last cameo during Darkseid's invasion - if Supes & Luthor could put aside their differences for an episode or two, why not Billy Batson? Two hilarious Flash episodes, Grudge Match, and Far From Home were definite payoffs for the fanboys......I'm gonna miss all the ups-&-downs, laughter & some tears (again, anybody recall the ending of Starcrossed??), and all the heroics that these shows brought out in the last 5 years......

I only have this final JLU season recorded in DVD-R, so I cannot be overly technical on their quality.....But in terms of great storytelling, action & characterizations in the superhero genre, this is as fleshed-out as it can be for all audiences to enjoy, much better than most live-action movies of any kind nowadays! Now, maybe Bruce Timm & Co. can do an origin movie about the JLU in the Batman Beyond era (prequel to The Call episodes, I guess?) ?? I can never wait for Justice to be served in the here & now.....and hopefully beyond!"

It's About Time!!

Jeff, Young Old-Timer | Lakeland, Florida United States | 12/14/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Yesss, it's about dad-blasted, dag-nabbin' time WB got off its fat bum and completed this awesome series on DVD. These are the final 13 rip-roarin' episodes, including some of the best ones of the series. At long last, this overgrown kid will have at least one complete series in his DVD collection.



I can't say I have a single favorite episode. Two of the saddest ones to me are "Far From Home", which involves an unexpected twist with one of my favorite characters, and "Destroyer", simply because it is the very last episode. It's also one of the best because of the incredible fight between Superman and Darkseid. Supes finally gets to throw down all of his restraints and let it all out. Don't you know he's wanted to do that for a looo--ong time. "Grudge Match" is a great one, too. Talk about the ultimate chick-fight -- oh yeah! I kinda thought the ending might have come out similar to the race between Superman and the Flash in an episode of Superman TAS. That one was a tie. Canary vs. Huntress - ehh - flip a coin.



Overall, I give the series itself five stars for its great story lines, dialogue, and animation. Obviously, I can't rate the packaging and features until next March. I've already pre-ordered it. I can hardly wait. I'll consider it a very late Christmas gift to myself."