[7.6/10] I can appreciate the continuation of the literary homages in the Tigress arc. Telling the tale of The Lady and the Tiger is a good fit for Tigress trying to decide whether to trust Cassandra Savage, Onyx, both, or neither, as she infiltrates the Shadows’ base. The ways they try to realize that idea with narration voiceover as one or both candidates saves Tigress’ neck is a bit clunky, but it’s a good concept.
I like the reveal too. Cassandra being the mole makes sense given her devotion to her father, and vindicates Onyx. I’ll say that it’s not an especially satisfying reveal because the possibilities were so ambiguous that it’s not much of a surprise either way. When even Cheshire can’t tell, it’s not like the audience has reason to trust one over the other. So while I buy it, it doesn’t really move me.
That said, I appreciate Tigress and Oracle taking the right precautions, Jade showing up to save the day when Cassandra turns and the shadows try an ambush, and the heroes making the rescue when needed. Granted, Cassandra Savage somehow trapping “infiltrators” in the form of a big dust cloud, the Shadows trying to get Justice League data all along, and Oracle being able to stop it all by sound-waving those particles before they reach a big receptacle came off clumsy and tacked on.
I was much more on board with M’gaan going all Phoenix fury on her brother after Conner’s death. I still don’t buy that Superboy’s gone for good, but I appreciate the show taking the time to show the reactions of those closest to him, which makes the loss meaningful, even if it’s temporary. We’ve never seen Miss Martian this furious before, and it’s both scary and understandable given what’s happened. At the same time, her finding out that M’comm wasn’t behind the kryptonite part of the bomb, and thus there’s no one to bllame, no one to take revenge on, has power in the way it makes her anger directionless. The numbness she displays later when choosing to return to Earth, all but admitting she has no plans to return to the place where her fiance died, is sad, even as it comes with her sister tagging along in the hopes of being there to support her.
But my favorite storyline in the episode is the Orphan/Oracle origin story. I gotta say, I found it odd how much focus this arc put on Orphan, considering she was a character who’d been barely developed and couldn’t even speak. Sure, she’s Lady Shiva’s daughter, but Lady Shiva’s barely been a character on the show, so it’s not like that’s such a big deal.
This episode changed that completely. The flashback to Orphan’s involvement in an assassination attempt gone wrong elevates both her and Barbara. I’m pleased to see Young Justice change the source of Oracle’s injury from The Killing Joke, instead having it happen because she was trying to save Orphan from having more blood on her hands. That choice makes the hard consequence the result of a deliberate sacrifice, one made all the more meaningful because it helped an abused child see that there’s another path and find a better family. Understanding more about what Orphan went through, and why the Bat Family and Barbara in particular, are so meaningful to her, makes this one much better.
Plus hey, Brent Spiner goes full ham as Joker, and it’s pretty stellar. The setup with him holding the U.N. hostage after feeling used by The Light makes this feel like a pull from Batman: The Animated Series. The dialogue and performance are well-tuned to vacillate between goofballery and menace, and the situation is legitimately tense and scary.
Overall, the actual lady and tiger dilemma here falls a little flat to me, but exploring M’Gaan’s grief and where the bond between Oracle and Orphan was forged buoys it considerably.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2022-08-18T04:59:56Z
[7.6/10] I can appreciate the continuation of the literary homages in the Tigress arc. Telling the tale of The Lady and the Tiger is a good fit for Tigress trying to decide whether to trust Cassandra Savage, Onyx, both, or neither, as she infiltrates the Shadows’ base. The ways they try to realize that idea with narration voiceover as one or both candidates saves Tigress’ neck is a bit clunky, but it’s a good concept.
I like the reveal too. Cassandra being the mole makes sense given her devotion to her father, and vindicates Onyx. I’ll say that it’s not an especially satisfying reveal because the possibilities were so ambiguous that it’s not much of a surprise either way. When even Cheshire can’t tell, it’s not like the audience has reason to trust one over the other. So while I buy it, it doesn’t really move me.
That said, I appreciate Tigress and Oracle taking the right precautions, Jade showing up to save the day when Cassandra turns and the shadows try an ambush, and the heroes making the rescue when needed. Granted, Cassandra Savage somehow trapping “infiltrators” in the form of a big dust cloud, the Shadows trying to get Justice League data all along, and Oracle being able to stop it all by sound-waving those particles before they reach a big receptacle came off clumsy and tacked on.
I was much more on board with M’gaan going all Phoenix fury on her brother after Conner’s death. I still don’t buy that Superboy’s gone for good, but I appreciate the show taking the time to show the reactions of those closest to him, which makes the loss meaningful, even if it’s temporary. We’ve never seen Miss Martian this furious before, and it’s both scary and understandable given what’s happened. At the same time, her finding out that M’comm wasn’t behind the kryptonite part of the bomb, and thus there’s no one to bllame, no one to take revenge on, has power in the way it makes her anger directionless. The numbness she displays later when choosing to return to Earth, all but admitting she has no plans to return to the place where her fiance died, is sad, even as it comes with her sister tagging along in the hopes of being there to support her.
But my favorite storyline in the episode is the Orphan/Oracle origin story. I gotta say, I found it odd how much focus this arc put on Orphan, considering she was a character who’d been barely developed and couldn’t even speak. Sure, she’s Lady Shiva’s daughter, but Lady Shiva’s barely been a character on the show, so it’s not like that’s such a big deal.
This episode changed that completely. The flashback to Orphan’s involvement in an assassination attempt gone wrong elevates both her and Barbara. I’m pleased to see Young Justice change the source of Oracle’s injury from The Killing Joke, instead having it happen because she was trying to save Orphan from having more blood on her hands. That choice makes the hard consequence the result of a deliberate sacrifice, one made all the more meaningful because it helped an abused child see that there’s another path and find a better family. Understanding more about what Orphan went through, and why the Bat Family and Barbara in particular, are so meaningful to her, makes this one much better.
Plus hey, Brent Spiner goes full ham as Joker, and it’s pretty stellar. The setup with him holding the U.N. hostage after feeling used by The Light makes this feel like a pull from Batman: The Animated Series. The dialogue and performance are well-tuned to vacillate between goofballery and menace, and the situation is legitimately tense and scary.
Overall, the actual lady and tiger dilemma here falls a little flat to me, but exploring M’Gaan’s grief and where the bond between Oracle and Orphan was forged buoys it considerably.