Customer Reviews

Justice League - Season One (DC Comics Classic Collection)

5 star:		(72)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

High above the Earth in the great Watchtower of the Justice League, there are assembled the world's seven greatest heroes created from the cosmic legends of the universe - Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Martian Manhunter, Hawkgirl. Their mission: To fight injustice, to right that which is wrong, and to serve all mankind.

It was planetary pandemonium for animation fans when the creators of "Batman: The Animated Series" unveiled the monster hit series "Justice League" back in 2001. Taking the premise of Hanna-Barbera's classic "Superfriends" [of uniting heroes to fight evil on a global scale as originally done in the comic books] and giving it a 21st century upgrade, the show's producers boldly took the time to flesh out the members of the League, adding a depth to what motivates them as heroes. This was never done with the Justice League of the 60s, 70s & 80s. Justice League featured Emmy-worthy production values in animated storytelling and brilliant thought and care in voice casting. Not to mention a magnificent main title theme by Lolita Ritmanis. Given the show's mature tone, fans were dumbfounded that DVDs of Justice League were only released as single disc "DC Comics Kids Collection" volumes with no more than 3-4 eps instead of season sets. (Note: If you own all of the original JL volumes then you already have Justice League - Season One episodes 1-15, and should consider the remaining 11 episodes plus the exclusive EXTRAS on this set before deciding.)

It only took 'em FOUR years (since the first JL volume released), but Warner Home Video will finally release the LONG-AWAITED Justice League - Season One DVD on March 21st! This 4-disc (575 min.) set features all 26 episodes (multi-part arcs); Full-Frame (1.33:1) video (fans campaigned to WHV for this format with following seasons to be in widescreen as originally animated); English audio; and English, Spanish, French subtitles. Here are the contents of this extraordinary set:

Disc 1:
Secret Origins Part 1
Secret Origins Part 2
Secret Origins Part 3
In Blackest Night Part 1
In Blackest Night Part 2
The Enemy Below Part 1
The Enemy Below Part 2

Disc 2:
Injustice for All Part 1
Injustice for All Part 2
Paradise Lost Part 1
Paradise Lost Part 2
War World Part 1
War World Part 2

Disc 3:
The Brave and the Bold Part 1
The Brave and the Bold Part 2
Fury Part 1
Fury Part 2
Legends Part 1
Legends Part 2

Disc 4:
A Knight of Shadows Part 1
A Knight of Shadows Part 2
Metamorphosis Part 1
Metamorphosis Part 2
The Savage Time Part 1
The Savage Time Part 2
The Savage Time Part 3

Special Features:
Commentary: "The Enemy Below Part 2" by Bruce Timm (Producer/Character Design), James Tucker (Producer/Character Design), Glen Murakami (Producer/Art Director), Rich Fogel (Producer) & Dan Riba (Director)

Commentary: "Legends Part 2" by Bruce Timm (Producer/Character Design), James Tucker (Producer/Character Design), Glen Murakami (Producer/Art Director), Rich Fogel (Producer) & Dan Riba (Director)

Commentary: "The Savage Time Part 2" by Bruce Timm (Producer/Character Design), James Tucker (Producer/Character Design), Glen Murakami (Producer/Art Director), Rich Fogel (Producer) & Dan Riba (Director)

Featurette: "Inside Justice League": A private panel discussion takes place between Bruce Timm and his team of creators about Justice League with some special surprises

Featurette: "The Look of The League": Bruce Timm explains character design of Justice League

Storyboards: "The Blueprint For Justice": The creative team of Justice League discuss storyboarding process

Bonus: "Justice League - The First Mission": Exciting "Never Seen Before" promo which helped Justice League leap into action


Well worth the wait, and Highly Recommended!!!

Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash, Hawkgirl & Martian Manhunter! Seven DC Comics legends who normally work alone but are brought together out of necessity to form a team of heroes to protect earth from threats both on and above it. They form The Justice League!

After several one disc releases with one or two episodes, Justice League finally gets its own DVD set! While I agree with many reviewers about the packaging and the format of the DVD's not being quite up to snuff, the set is STILL worth purchasing! Here are the eppys with the bonus features:

Disc 1

Secret Origins, Pt. 1 - Superman & Batman run across a new threat to mankind that's too big for even them to handle! They run across a new ally in J'hon Jonz, The Maratian Manhunter. But this new alien threat catch on to them and try to take them out!

Secret Origins, Pt. 2 - The trio of Superman, Batman and Maratian Manhunter receive help in the form of Hawkgirl, The Green Lantern (John Stewart) and The Flash. They also get unexpected help from Wonder Woman (I believe JL is the first time Wonder Woman, Hawkgirl and this version of Green Lantern has appeared in any DC animated series/The Flash appeared once in Superman: The Animated Series).

Secret Origins, Pt. 3 - The seven heroes band together to make a final stand against the alien threat to earth!

In Blackest Night, Pt. 1 - A tragic incident from Green Lantern's past comes back to haunt him as The Manhunters come to earth to bring him back for trial.......for destroying an entire planet!

In Blackest Night, Pt. 2 - Superman, Martian Manhunter, Hawkgirl and The Flash travel to Green Lantern's trial only to discover that Lantern's "crime" might be connected to the men that once gave him his powers!

The Enemy Below, Pt. 1 - Aquaman makes his first appearance in the JL series (He made a previous appearance during the Superman series) as he continues his fight with the surface world over pollution of the oceans, not knowing that mutiny is brewing among his own subjects in Atlantis.

*The Enemy Below, Pt. 2 - The Justice League suspect a plot on Aquaman's own life. Meanwhile, Aquaman makes a strong sacrifice to save his infant son as his own brother attempts to assasinate him!

*This episode has commentary by Bruce Timm, James Tucker, Glen Murakami, Rich Fogel and Dan Riba.

Disc 2

Injustice For All, Pt. 1 - Lex Luthor makes his first appearance in the series as he finds out that he has Kryptonite poisioning! Out of revenge, he forms the Injustice Gang which includes Copperhead, Shade, Solomon Grundy and an unwelcome ally in The Joker himself!

Injustice For All, Pt. 2 - The Joker helps The Injustice Gang capture Batman but The Dark Knight has his own way of leading the Justice League to them AND taking them down!

Paradise Lost, Pt. 1 - Feeling homesick, Wonder Woman returns to Themescara only to find that everyone (including her mother) has been turned to stone! A villian named Faust forces Wonder Woman to commit crimes to free them.

Paradise Lost, Pt. 2 - Superman, The Flash, Batman and Martian Manhunter follow Wonder Woman to help her combat this new threat. The ending is both joyous and sad.

War World, Pt. 1 - Superman is captured and taken to a planet called War World. He is forced to fight in their barbaric games while Martian Manhunter, The Green Lantern and Hawkgirl try to rescue him.

War World, Pt. 2 - Having been defeated by Superman, Dragga seeks redemption for himself but the true enemy lies with War World's dictator, Mongol! We also see the first signs of attraction between Hawkgirl and Green Lantern.

Special Features:
- Inside Justice League: Creators' Panel Discussion
- Storyboards: The Blueprint For Justice
- The Look Of The League: Character Design

Disc 3

The Brave And The Bold, Pt. 1 - Flash is framed for a crime he didn't actually commit under his own will! Green Lantern tries to clear his name but discovers a more sinister plot.

The Brave And The Bold, Pt. 2 - Batman, Hawkgirl and Wonder Woman join in the investigation and discover a plot by Grod, a intelligent gorilla bent on rule! We also see the first glimpse into the flirting between Batman and Wonder Woman!

Fury, Pt. 1 - A human woman who was raised and trained by the Amazons since childhood turns against them and wages war on all men!

Fury, Pt. 2 - With all the other male members down, Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl go to take down this rogue amazon with the help of WW's own mother!

Legends, Pt. 1 - A mishap during a battle with Lex Luthor takes Flash, Martian Manhunter, Hawkgirl and Green Lantern to another time line where they meet up with The Justice Guild!

*Legends, Pt. 2 - The Justice League discover there is more to the world of the Justice Guild than meets the eye!

*Commentary by Bruce Timm, James Tucker, Glen Murakami, Rich Fogel and Dan Riba

Disc 4

A Knight With Shadows, Pt. 1 - Etrigen, from The New Adventures Of Batman, teams with Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash and Martian Manhunter to stop Morgan Le Fey and her spoiled son Mordred!

A Knight With Shadows, Pt. 2 - Morgan Le Fey, sensing weakness with Martian Manhunter, exploits it to cause desension among the JL with Etrigen!

Metamorphasis, Pt. 1 - Green Lantern meets up with old friend Rex Mason, who unwittingly is duped into an experiement which will change his life forever.

Metamorphasis, Pt. 2 - Thinking that Green Lantern was putting the moves on his fiance, Saphire. Rex Mason, now Metamorpho, goes after the JL only to discover that is accident was NO accident and takes on the man responsible....Saphire's own father!

The Savage Time, Pt. 1 - While coming home on a mission, a time flux engulfs the JL (except Batman). The remaining members discover that a man named Savage has taken over using a time travel device to change the result of World War II!

*The Savage Time, Pt. 2 - The JL go back in time to World War II to correct history! Guest starring The Blackhawks, Sgt. Rock and his Commandos and Steve Trevor (a prominent character from both the Wonder Woman comic book and the TV show in the 1970's).

*Commentary by Bruce Timm, James Tucker, Glen Murakami, Rich Fogel and Dan Riba.

The Savage Time, Pt. 3 - The climactic conclusion of this thrilling tale which features a touching ending.

SPECIAL FEATURE:
Justice League: The First Mission. Never before seen promo!

While the format wasn't the best, these eppys are still worth the money purchasing! Highly recommended and I can't wait for Season Two this summer!

I'm thrilled. After multiple single-disc releases, Warner Home Video has finally decided to collect all the Justice League season 1 episodes in one set. This is the original series with the main 7 heroes, not the "Unlimited" incarnation it became last year. The stories are all two-part adventures, with two three-part epics book-ending the season. We get the following:

Secret Origins (3 parts)
In Blackest Night (2 parts)
The Enemy Below (2 parts)
Injustice For All (2 parts)
Paradise Lost (2 parts)
War World (2 parts)
Brave and the Bold (2 parts)
Fury (2 parts)
Legends (2 parts)
A Knight of Shadows (2 parts)
Metamorphosis (2 parts)
The Savage Time (3 parts)

In retrospect, most of the first season stories are pretty bland compared to what we're getting today. The writing is cliche, the stories are basic, and the animation is stiff and questionable in places. However once you account for the growing pains of any series, there's some fun material here. J'onn J'onzz, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman get spotlighted and developed this season. Etrigan, Aquaman, and Metamorpho guest star, and tons of new enemies from all over the DC universe make their appearance. The first season is if anything, a homage to the simpler story telling of the comic book silver age. The stories get more dramatic and powerful as the season progresses, and the love and respect the creators have for their material really shines through. Plus even at its worst, Justice League is still better than most of the shows kids are subjected to these days.

This set will come with 3 commentaries, interviews, and *possibly* rehash some of the featurettes from the single disc releases. It will be the only fullscreen release of the series, as that is the way it was actually animated. Future seasons have been confirmed for widescreen. Start saving up, and prepare to relive the Justice League's earliest adventures.

March 2006 is starting to become my favorite month. Already I've learned there's going to be DBZ movie 12, Kingdom Hearts 2, Zelda: Twilight Princess, Batman Beyond season 1, and Robot Chicken season 1. Now that I've learned that season 1 of Justice League is slated for this month as well, I've become one incredibly happy person.

Batman is once again voiced by the excellent Kevin Conroy, who to this day is still doing the dark knight's voice for a total of 13 years since Batman: TAS(and counting). What can I say? He IS Batman. Conroy, as expected, once again shines, capturing the perfect, dark, raspy, and sometimes sarcastic voice you'd expect Batman to use. The others, which include Carl Lumby as the Martian Manhunter, Phil LaMaar as Green Lantern, Micheal Rosenbaum as Flash, Maria Canals as Hawkgirl, and Susan Eisenberg as Wonder Woman, are also excellent and pefect as their respective characters. However, George Newbern starts off a bit weak taking over the Superman reign from Tim Daly, though thankfully he gets better at it as the season progresses.

My personal favorites include In Blackest Night, which is a good Green Lantern-centered storyarc and really turned me into a fan of him. Another is Paradise Lost, where Wonder Woman returns to her home, only to find everyone turned to stone by a sorceror(voiced by Freddy Kruger himself, Robert Englund), who wishes to free the demented Lord Hades(voiced by John Rhys-Daves, aka Gimli of the LOTR trilogy). Another known as a Knight of Shadows features the return of Etrigan from the New Batman Adventures, wishing to stop Morgan Le Fey from taking over the world. The only prolem is she has taken over the Martian Manhunter's mind, and tricked him into thinking that she can reunite him with his fellow Martians. Uh oh.

My personal favorite though is Injustice for All, which is where a dying Lex Luthor, who has finally been exposed for the criminal he really is, escapes prison and forms a gang of criminals, such as Cheetah, the Joker, Soloman Grundy, and the Shade, to destroy the Justice League. The highlight in this is of course seeing(hearing?) Clancy Brown and Mark Hamill once again take up the reigns of Luthor and the Joker, respectively, from the previous DC shows.

If there is one complaint, it's that the writing doesn't reach its peak until the next season, but that is a minor qualm. This season is still a very fun watch, and the 12 storyarcs and 26 episodes that the DVD set contains are more than enough to keep me satisfied.

PS to Warner Bros.: You're doing great with your Hanna-Barbera and DCAU DVD sets. Now just release the Steven Spielberg toons(Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs, Freakazoid) and I will be forever grateful.

I wish I could rate this DVD higher than five stars, because a show like `Justice League' goes far beyond any television show and I am not just referring to cartoons. The masters of comic book animation, Bruce Timm and company put their heads together and said..."Hey Batman and Superman worked, lets make a new show with more heroes in it." `Justice League is nothing like The Superfriends of the `70's. It is a dramatic action packed masterpiece.

The high point of this DVD is that expands the DC universe. For me, being mostly a Marvel comic reader, this show really got me familiar with the DC universe and I love it. There are some loyal fans that are disappointed with the fact this animated team is not composed of the original seven:
Superman
Batman
Wonder Woman
Aqua Man
The Flash
Martian Man-hunter
Green Lantern
Please, when has Bruce Timm and company disappointed us? The first season fills all the gaps with a great Aqua Man story. Hawkgirl is great for the show because she has a wild side that really gives Wonder Woman a run for her money. And what does more heroes mean?...Why more villains of course! The episode `Injustice for All' is my favorite episode of this first season, because it really sets the stage for what is yet to come in the next few seasons. I am not going to reveal anything, but all I can say is you will not be disappointed.

Justice League is a must have for hard-core comic readers to fans of `Batman: The Animated series. It has surely stood the test of time being that it is in the middle of its 5th season and it just might be the best show on Television.

For those who may be disappointed that the dvd set for Justice League of America season 1 is in full frame I have good news... I had tivo'd several episodes from season 1 in widescreen and recently thought to compare it with the full frame version. Apparently, all they did to make it widescreen was crop the top and bottom of the full frame version!!! Therefore, if you've got a widescreen tv, all you have to do is adjust the frame size (or whatever it is your tv does, which generally results in zooming in and cropping the top and bottom of the screen, as opposed to that undesirable stretch-to-fit mode). The argument may be that there's a quality loss in zooming, but I'm watching it right now at it looks awesome! Besides, we're talking about animated 2-d line art here, not Return Of The King high angle sweeping landscape shots of the Victory at Minas Tirith.

And oh yeah, this is essentially the best superhero stuff I've ever seen in my life, and the good news is they get better and better each season- with the JLU material being TOP NOTCH!

JLU is airing its final episodes here in April/May 2006, unfortunately. I was at a panel with Bruce Timm and the series writers, and part of the reason they're ending the show is it's literally getting too difficult to write and they don't want to risk having a season that doesn't live up to the expectations at this point.

I grew up during the 70s when cartoons were not supposed to violent. You never saw punches being thrown unless it was Bugs Bunny hitting Elmer over the head with a wooden mallet. In fact, Japanese animations, such as Battle of the Planets, edited out the violent portions of the cartoon and replaced it with a robot (7-Zark-7). I actually do have fond memories of watching the Superfriends, and for their time, it was a decent show. But, the Superfriends lived off the campiness that existed in comics at the time.

I must admit that I had my reservations about the Justice League. Even the Spider-Man cartoon of the 90s didn't show much violence. Finally, animation has reached a point that, to please it's large adult audience, violence is now acceptable, especially since Justice League was a prime-time show and not a Saturday morning cartoon.

What can be said except that all of the characters are done to near perfection. The personalities are intact, and cast of regulars who supply the voices are dead-on. You can hardly mention good voice-work without mentioning Kevin Conroy's Batman. He gives Batman the attitude and intelligence that Batman has. Batman may be a guy without superpowers, but then again, Superman was once quoted in a Justice League comic, "he's the most dangerous man on the planet." Batman's brains and deductive reasoning are virtually second-to-none in entire comic book industry. He can spot weaknesses like a hound dog sniffing out a steak.

George Newbern is very good as Superman. Superman is clearly the powerhouse of the team, despite possible exceptions from Green Lantern and Martian Manhunter. As always, Superman is the iconic comic book character who embodies all that is good and just. While this personality occasionally clashes with Batman's, the two, nevertheless, highly respect each other.

Michael Rosenbaum (Lex Luthor on Smallville) gives the Flash a comedic charge that balances out the team of more serious players. As the youngest member, he's a bit reckless, and always quick with the one-liners. Rosenbaum is often stated that he loves doing comedy, and he certainly got his wish in developing the Flash.

The rest of the cast, Susan Eisenberg (Wonder Woman), Maria Canals (Hawkgirl), Carl Lumbly (Martian Manhunter), and Phil LaMarr (Green Lantern) are all great. They help to make each character distinct with personalities that are consistent throughout the series.

Marvel's Avengers usually deal with problems on Earth. One could easily argue that the Justice League is the most powerful superhero team in any comic book. Even though they deal with problems on Earth as well, they also need more challenges, and therefore, they are often called away to help deal with crisis on other planets. Their base of operations is on board the Watchtower, a large satellite (in the comic, the watchtower is on the moon) from where they can take off in one of their speedy transports (Javelin) to deal with problems.

The best part of the show is the action. Finally, we're granted great fist-ta-cuffs when there is a fight. We see buildings being crashed into and brought down as well as punches thrown that will rattle your teeth. The Secret Origins episodes deal with the formation of the seven members, as a crisis proves too challenging for any one member to deal with. Batman proclaims himself a part-timer, "I'm not much of a team player. But if you need me, and you will, call me."

Once more, not all of the episodes has the entire line-up. There are adventures with only three or four members. This helps to create different looks as well as not overwhelming a situation that might easily be dealt with if the entire line-up were available.

I also enjoy the long list of guest-star voices. After each episodes, I enjoy looking at who supplied voices. You will recognize some, and others might surprise you.

This first season is great, and the funny part is that the Justice League only got better with each subsequent season. It was a true shame that they stopped after four seasons. This is one of the best animated shows I've ever seen because they finally did a comic book superhero team correctly, and who better to start with than the Justice League?

So, why give Justice League the full 5 stars? Because it appeals to every generation in my family. I bought this for my 4 year old son who is enamored with superheros. As we hung out together watching the shows, I was as engrossed in the story as my son. Then I noticed that my wife was intrigued; and so were the grandparents! The characters and plots are very well developed for a "cartoon", so it is more like watching a dramatic series. Watching the series allows you to pick up on sub-plots too; like the attraction between Batman and WonderWoman - Jean Jone's struggle to find a place as the last of his people - and the entire groups struggle to work together as a cohesive team. Another excellent buy to consider would be the Spiderman the New Animated Series.

Flash asks, "What do we call ourselves? A bunch of SuperFriends?"
Superman says, "No. How about The Justice League."

Banded together are 7 of the all-star cast from the JLA books, The Justice League! Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Hawkgirl, and Martian Manhunter. Not since "Challenge of the SuperFriends," aired on 1978, this new series appeared on Cartoon Network from 2001 after showing reruns of the 'Challenge' series. I was overjoyed with fond memories of those Saturday Morning days when I saw Justice League beginning 3-part 'Secret Origins,' with Batman snooping around in a laboratory and finding out that we are not alone in the universe! (Note: Batman creator, Bob Kane, was one of the writers for the Superfriends series.) And things begin to pick up when Superman arrived. The JL series is based on the stories from the Silver and Modern-Age comic books that gives a fresh and accurate account of what the DC readers know. G.L. John Stewart and Flash Wally West add a new spin on 'The Brave and The Bold' storyline against Gorilla Grodd. (Warning to DC fans: Rumors on Wally West's demise and soon to be replaced by Kid Flash Bart Allen are springing up.) Along with other 2-part episodes;
War World
Paradise Lost
In Blackest Day
Injustice For All (Reminds me of the best animated series from 1978!)
The Enemy Below
Fury
Legends
A Knight Of Shadows
Metamorphosis
3-part The Savage Time

The new series is updated with more drama and character depth than the 1978 series had to offer. Especially, adding guest star origins of Aquaman, Demon, Metamorph, the Green Lantern Corp, and Major Steve Trevor. Included are in-depth documentary on the Justice League series with Bruce Timm and commentaries. Justice League is not as campy and feel good as 'Challenge' but, the JL heroes are throwing their punches in this 4-DVD disc box set! And I haven't bought any of the separate DVD episodes. Highly recommend worth getting this box set!!!

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 is definitely for kids too.

As far as I know, there are no single episodes in Seasons 1 & 2 with the exception of the Christmas episode, Comfort & Joy; all the rest in Seasons 1 & 2 are two and three parters. This means on DVD you have the opportunity to watch a 3 parter in one sitting, which is as good as sitting down with a full length feature. I'll take Secret Origins (Season 1) and Starcrossed (Season 2) over Tom Cruise in War Of The Worlds any day. (And are the alien war machines in War of the Worlds deliberate imitations of those in Secret Origins or is that just too much of a coincidence?!)

There are hours of entertainment on the Justice League Season 1 & 2 releases...and no dang gong Cartoon Network commercials! Well worth the purchase price.