DVR Weekly: 6-11-12

Life can get pretty busy, so the invention of the Digital Video Recorder, aka DVR, has been a godsend for those of us who love television programming. Well, I’m one of those people. In this weekly article, I’m going to talk about some of the shows I am keeping up with on my DVR. Pretty straight forward, right? Keep in mind this means spoilers. Well let’s get started.

Young Justice – Ep. 2.07 “Depths”

Considering last episode’s flash into the future at the beginning of the episode, I knew there was more to the glimpse of the future we got this episode. Wait, I’m getting ahead of myself. The episode starts with Wally letting Artemis know he’s uncomfortable with Artemis returning to a mission with the team. Cut to Nightwing performing CPR on Artemis before pronouncing her dead. And back to the actual mission. Ferris Air is readying the launch of a sat-com link to Mars, which means it is not devoid of life like in the comics. Gamma Team (Nightwing, Artemis, Miss Martian, Superboy, and Lagoon Boy) are tasked with overwatch. Following a scene with the ever-present G. Gordon Godfrey, the team faces down an attack from Black Manta troops led by Kaldur/Aqualad. Lagoon Boy is captured. Miss Martian and Superboy protect the Ferris rocket. Nightwing and Artemis face the ground forces. Aqualad decides to join the fight and kills Artemis. Despite the team’s efforts, the rocket explodes. Aqualad returns to Black Manta, aka Daddy Dearest, and discovers Manta had sabotaged the rocket days prior and Kaldur’s mission was a test. Kaldur passed. But wait… like I said, there’s more. Aqualad, Nightwing, and Wally gather together to reveal they’ve faked Artemis’ death. Kaldur is undercover and Artemis is joining him utilizing a charm created by Zatanna.

Whoa… a lot happened this episode. We also got the reason for Miss Martian and Superboy’s breakup. There’s so much story in their scene alone. Lagoon Boy is a lot cockier and less enjoyable in this show than his comic counterpart. But the big question is what’s the plan for the founders? Wally, Kaldur, and Dick have a plot going that is unknown to all members of the Team and the Justice League. It will be interesting to see what kind of backlash will result from their deception.

Extra note: How long til we learn more about G. Gordon Godfrey and his motivations? Knowing his background in the comics, I wonder how much longer Apokolips and New Genesis will remain on the fringes of this show.

The Legend of Korra: Ep. 10 “Out of the Past”

I’ve been following The Legend of Korra, but have been behind on the episodes. Let me touch on the series so far. Korra is the new Avatar after Aand from the previous series. The series is set 70 years after the events of the original, and it shows. Aang and Katara have had a brood of airbenders including Tenzin, Korra’s mentor. Toph’s metal bending has been passed along to daughter Lin Beifong and head of Republic City. And then there’s Republic City itself. A 1920s New York/Shanghai analog developed by Aang and Zuko to unite the nations and now ruled by bending crime families. The big antagonist of the series is the mysterious Amon, the leader of the Equalist movement. He is able to remove the bending abilities of benders. The Equalists are also full of soldiers who are trained as chi-blockers and utilize weapons that can simulate bending. My problem with the show so far has been the scale doesn’t feel as broad, but the story-telling definitely maintains the mix of serious and fun. I hope the series continues to expand beyond Republic City in future seasons, but only time will tell.

In this episode, Korra meditates and learns the conniving politician Tarrlok is the son of a blood-bending criminal from Aang’s time. Aang is only able to defeat the blood-bender by entering the Avatar state. Meanwhile, Tenzin, Lin and Team Avatar (Bolin, Mako, Asami) are on the search for the captured Korra. They find an underground Equalist base where they are able to save the captured officers. Team Avatar realizes Tarlokk’s false story and confront him where it is revealed to the Team that he took Korra. Tarlokk escapes to the cabin where he is holding Korra, but he is confronted by Amon and his soldiers. Tarlokk bends the soldiers into unconciousness but is unable to stop Amon. Amon removes Tarlokk’s bending, and Korra is left to Amon’s mercy. She manages to escape, and with some help from her polar bear-dog, Naga, she returns to Republic City.

I am going to reiterate that I wish the scale of the story was more grandiose like the first series, but the mystery of Amon is definitely the most intersting aspect of the series. We’ll see what happens in the hour-long finale next week.

I’ll see you all next week… same DVR channel… same DVR time (hopefully on time)…