‘Young Justice: Phantoms’ Complete Season Review

Young Justice has been one of my favorite animated DC shows for a very long time. I will freely admit that I was one of those people clambering for a return for nearly a decade after it was initially cancelled. When the third season, Young Justice: Outsiders, was announced for, the now dissolved streaming service, DCUniverse, I was SO PUMPED. Outsiders proved very quickly to have grown up with its audience as the blood, violence, and sexuality were all cranked up from their much softer previous seasons, but it was decidedly still Young Justice. I couldn’t have been happier to see the old Team and all of its colorful new members as the Cold War against Darkseid and the Light continued to wage on.

With DCUniverse being absorbed in HBOMax there was a brief worry that Young Justice was done again, but thankfully a fourth season was announced not long after and all that was left to do was try to be patient. That time has come and gone, and now we can examine the entirety of the fourth season, Young Justice: Phantoms, for itself.

Young Justice: Phantoms took us on a galaxy-hopping tour of the DC Universe’s Earth-16 to weave a tale of separation and reconnection with mystery; a tale of being haunted by the phantoms of our past. Split into six distinct arcs, we get to see each of the main members of the Team, the original group of sidekicks assembled Teen Titans-style in the first season, as they try to overcome their past demons and eventually work toward thwarting a powerful, new, time-travelling enemy before he can plunge the galaxy into darkness.

Arc 1: the Wedding on Mars

photo credit: Warner Bros/DC

For a full recap on the first arc, check out our in-depth examinations for episodes 1-3 and episode 4.

These first four episodes set the tone and establish what will be the driving force for the season. Lor-Zod is attempting to assassinate Superboy so that he can’t inspire the creation of Legion of Superheroes in the distant future. He seemingly succeeds, sending all of our heroes into an emotional pitfall as they attempt to reconcile.

Seeing M’gann’s relationship to her parents, her sister, and her estranged terrorist brother all added character to the world of Mars. We can see why Ma’alefa’ak would want to take the A’ashenn away from Mars to settle elsewhere, away from the injustices of their red and green counterparts.

We also see some of the fallout from the previous season and how those events connect into the story arcs for individual characters like Gar (Beast Boy) and Violet (Halo). While Gar’s story gets to sit up front and ride along as the B-story for a good while, Violet’s story is contained in very few episodes, often only appearing for the credits sequence.

Visually, Mars is a treat from start to finish. It genuinely looks and feels alien. Their architecture was unique and made sense for the environment the Martians existed in. Four episodes was also just enough time for the setting to not get old or overstay its welcome.

Arc 2: Artemis, Jade, and the League of Assassins

photo credit: Warner Bros/DC

For a full recap on the second arc, check out our in-depth examinations for episode 5, episode 6, episode 7, and episode 8.

The second arc of the season doesn’t hit quite the same highs as the previous. Artemis is told of Superboy’s death, and it makes her examine her relationship with her estranged sister, Jade. We’re shown several instances of their early home life before Jade left and what it was like growing up under the thumb of Sportsmaster. It was interesting to see what the adoptive sisters had when they were young and why Artemis would try so hard to bring her back.

The main story of the arc sees Artemis (Tigress), Jade (Cheshire), and Barbara Gordon in her debut appearance for the series as both Batgirl and Oracle, dealing with two possible defectors from the League of Assassins: Cassandra Savage (the daughter of Vandal Savage) and Onyx (an elite assassin). Tigress and the Team don’t really trust either of them, but they are forced into an uneasy alliance. Eventually Lady Shiva and several others come after the “traitors” and we learn the truth forcing the heroines to all band together and escape the prison island of Santa Prisca.

The action is solid in these episodes and everything that’s happening feels organic, but I don’t really see what these episodes added to the season as a whole. I love Artemis, but I can’t help but feel that this could have all been a tie-in comic like Young Justice: Targets and it would be exactly the same.

Arc 3: Zatanna and the Sentinels of Magic

photo credit: Warner Bros/DC

For a full recap on the third arc, check out our in-depth examinations for episode 9, episode 10, and episode 11, 12, and the midseason finale.

I’ve always loved the dark corner of the DC universe. The magic users and the stories around them are always a treat, and this arc was no exception. Zatanna and her students of magic are all very interesting and they play off of each other well. Seeing one of the SHAZAM kids for the first time, and experiencing her journey was particularly powerful.

Klarion and the Child were both very cleverly written. Using them to add lore and backstory to the universe as a whole really worked for me. Learning how Klarion had been convinced to make a deal with Vandal Savage eons ago and how it all played out was fascinating, and the Child proved to be a threat that tied together most of the rest of the season in her own way. She was also shown, very effectively, to be much more sinister than Klarion, and equally more devastating.

This also finally gave us a glimpse of how the Team was going to find and rescue Conner and Phantom Girl from the strange ethereal space they found themselves trapped in. After a few meandering episodes where Superboy was falling further and further into his own depression, we finally see something that could be cause for hope.

Arc 4: Atlantis

photo credit: Warner Bros/DC

For a full recap on the fourth arc, check out our in-depth examination for episodes 14-17.

We return from our midseason hiatus and dive deep beneath the waves for a few episodes as we explore the politics and goings on in Atlantis’ various city-states. Visually, each of the different areas we see of Atlantis are all unique to themselves and look genuinely interesting. Poseidonis, especially, gets a shout out for how amazingly vibrant and beautiful it looks. And this even ties into other characters’ motivations.

The heads of each city-state are gathered to discuss issues of inequity and strife between them when suddenly an ancient prophecy seemingly begins to unfold. The first king of Atlantis, Vandal Savage’s grandson, returns and his original crown is found, but it is discovered that he is actually Orm, revived by Savage and made to look like the former king, and he is abruptly killed by the Lords of Order. Arthur reclaims his title of Aquaman, before saying he will share it with Kaldur and Lagoon Boy, and his wife Mera becomes the true “King” of Atlantis.

I’m going to be brutally honest; I did not like this arc. From start to finish I didn’t really understand why we were here or what any of these characters or events had to do with the main story, apart from Superboy’s C-story in the Phantom Zone. Similarly to Tigress’ arc, this could easily have been cut or made a tie-in comic and had the same amount of impact. There are even several references to previous tie-in comics in this arc, so I really think this would have been the best way to go.

Arc 5: New Genesis

photo credit: Warner Bros/DC

For a full recap on the fifth arc, check out our in-depth examination for episodes 18-21.

The visuals were cranked up to 11 as we left the oceans of Earth for the ultra-saturated and nebula-filled skies of New Genesis. I said in my initial recap that Jack Kirby would’ve been proud, and I stand by that statement. The home of the New Gods is immensely colorful, vibrant, and alive. The characters all have charisma and a vibe that just works with where they are.

The main story revolves around Rocket, Jay Garrick, and Forager negotiating with the New Gods and the Green Lantern Corps for a combined treaty to help combat their various issues. Meanwhile Lor-Zod, Ma’alefa’ak, and Mantis are trying to break into Metron’s Infinity Vault to steal the Phantom Zone Projector and free his parents from their perpetual prison in the alternate dimension.

We finally start to get answers and we see people actively working towards solutions. We see our heroes truly be heroes, and we see them overcome the previously insurmountable. Orion and Rocket’s slow-burn friendship was a treat to watch develop over these few episodes, and I’ll never not be happy to see Jay Garrick. The Foragers, though it gets a little confusing to write about, are wonderful. I loved everything to do with them from their first meeting to them reciting Shakespeare to each other.

Seeing Zod slowly develop his mentor/leader role with Superboy was also particularly interesting. Conner is broken and Zod can clearly see that, but he also sees another Kryptonian that needs his help, his guidance, his leadership. He sees something in Superboy that the others do not.

Arc 6: the Finale

photo credit: Warner Bros/DC

For a full recap on the sixth arc, check out our in-depth examination for episodes 22-26.

At long last we come to the action-packed finale. Zatanna, dead set on Superboy being alive, gets Dick to investigate all the strangeness and they eventually start putting things together. Superboy being in the Phantom Zone, Superman and the Legion of Superheroes, Lor-Zod, all of it. Dick is a pretty stellar detective after all.

Once they know where he is, everyone has their own plan to get him out and everything goes awry. Lor helps his parents escape the Phantom Zone with Superboy and they try to take over the planet. Eventually M’gann and Conner are reunited and his brain is fixed allowing for the heroes to overcome the Kryptonian tyrants and banish, alsmost, all of them back to the Phantom Zone.

We also see Violet address her feelings for Harper Row and get closure with Brion. Brion and his team the Infinitors get, part of, an episode and we see what he’s been up to for the last year. And of course we see the wedding that we waited all season for. It’s heartfelt and loving, and all that good stuff.

There are so many characters that have almost no interaction over the course of the season that have to have their stories wrapped up semi-separately and the finale episode starts to feel almost Return of the King in how many endings it has. The bow is tied off with a few threads left open to show us how dire the stakes are going to be in future seasons. For now though, we’ll have to wait and see where the writers plan to take us next.

The Final Word: 8-8.5/10

Visually each arc is distinct and uses its setting to its advantage. The writers know what environments to put each set of characters in to utilize them to the best, mostly. Whether it’s the deep caves with luminous stones on Mars, the red-light tunnels of Santa Prisca’s prison, the undersea opulence of Poseidonis, or the otherworldliness of New Genesis, the art team was putting their all into everything this season, and it shows.

I really enjoyed the slower and more emotional moments with some of the characters throughout the season, like Gar, but it did start to drag on after a while. Connecting his journey, seemingly at random, to Violet and their journey was odd. Gar’s story gets wrapped up and pushed aside very quickly to make way for Violet’s episode in the finale that comes out of nowhere and feels like it was supposed to happen earlier in the season. Maybe that’s just me.

M’gann, Conner, and the Zods all have interesting full-story arcs that I loved watching. Every time I started to get bored with Superboy walking around aimlessly in the Phantom Zone, the writers found a way to make it interesting again, right up to the finale. Seeing M’gann try to cope with the loss of her husband-to-be while still trying to be a help to the Team and the Justice League made for an emotional viewing experience to be sure. And the Zods. All of them. They were all uniquely driven, but I love villains like that. A villain that is willing to go to any lengths to achieve his goals is terrifying and makes for a compelling watch-through.

Splitting this season up into six distinct arcs was a gamble, and I’d say it mostly paid off. Aside from Tigress and Kaldur’s arcs not really fitting into the main storyline all that well, everyone that was involved had something to do and brought something unique and interesting to the table. I’d love to see more of Zatanna and the other magic users as the show progresses, and I’m very interested to see what Darkseid and Vandal Savage have planned as they move into what have to be their Endgames.

photo credit: Warner Bros/DC

For now, check out the entire season of Young Justice: Phantoms on HBOMax and check back here for announcements, news, recaps, and reviews on Geek Vibes Nation!