Line #25 WesternAnimation/DCNation


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/DCN_3650.png]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:More humorous shorts about DC Comics characters than you can shake a stick at!]]
3
4	''DC Nation'' was a [[UsefulNotes/BlockProgramming programming block]] aired on Creator/CartoonNetwork between 2012-2014. As the name implies, the block consisted exclusively of material based on properties owned by Creator/DCComics, Cartoon Network's sister company under Time Warner.
5
6	The block first consisted of:
7
8	[[index]]
9	* ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010''
10	* ''WesternAnimation/GreenLanternTheAnimatedSeries''
11	[[/index]]
12
13	Replacing them in summer 2013:
14
15	[[index]]
16	* ''WesternAnimation/BewareTheBatman''
17	* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'' (reruns, new episodes premiered Tuesday night in prime time)
18	[[/index]]
19
20	In fall 2013, ''Beware the Batman'' was replaced by a second rerun of ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo''
21
22	In addition to the television programs, the block also showed numerous animated shorts, often showcasing lesser known properties. All the shorts are officially available on the official DC Comic's [=YouTube=] channel on a playlist located [[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYq7H1T5SzMc2YVDZoN1twpNgJfMYZy81 here]] and include:
23
24	* ''WesternAnimation/SuperBestFriendsForever'': A Creator/LaurenFaust-helmed series showcasing ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}, ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} and ComicBook/WonderGirl.
25	* ''New Teen Titans'': Comedic shorts based off the popular ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' animated series, and the basis of the ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'' series.
26	* ''WesternAnimation/PlasticMan'': A series of skits involving the titular member of the Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica.
27	* ''WesternAnimation/AmethystPrincessOfGemworld'': A MagicalGirlWarrior TrappedInAnotherWorld version of the comic.
28	* ''ComicBook/BlackLightning'': A series of shorts about the middle-aged superhero and his two young daughters, Thunder and Lightning.
29	* ''Sword of the Atom'': A series following ComicBook/TheAtom as he finds himself trapped at six inches tall in a jungle.
30	* ''World's Funnest'': Shorts about {{Franchise/Batman}} and {{Franchise/Superman}} created by Creator/AardmanAnimations.
31	* ''ComicBook/AnimalMan'': shorts about the titular hero, voiced by Music/WeirdAlYankovic.
32	* ''Bat Man of Shanghai'': Shorts by Wolf Smoke studios showing Batman, ComicBook/{{Catwoman}}, and ComicBook/{{Bane}} in a {{Wuxia}}-inspired setting.
33	* ''Baby Superman'': Shorts about a Japanese infant that gains the powers of Superman.
34	* ''Vibe'': 80's-inspired shorts about the D-list Justice League Detroit member.
35	* ''MAD Presents...'': Shorts parodying DC Superheroes produced by the team of the ''WesternAnimation/{{MAD}}'' animated series.
36	* ''Farm League'': Comedic series featuring FunnyAnimal versions of the Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica. (Has little to do with ''ComicBook/CaptainCarrotAndHisAmazingZooCrew'', believe it or not.)
37	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Wonder Woman\|2013}}'': A series retelling the story of how Diana and ComicBook/SteveTrevor first met, with a ''Film/JamesBond''-by-way-of-Malibu [[TheSixties 1960s]] bent.
38	* ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'': A series based on the original 1960s lineup that are direct adaptations of creator Creator/ArnoldDrake's original stories. After guest appearances on ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' and ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'', this is the first time the team headlines their own AnimatedAdaptation.
39	* ''Tales of Metropolis'': Shorts depicting a day in the life of one of Superman's friends or foes.
40	* ''Metal Men'': A series based on [[ComicBook/MetalMen the comic of the same name]].
41	* ''Green Arrow'': Shorts depicting Green Arrow and Black Canary fighting crime, with the duo wearing ''Film/{{Tron}}'' inspired costumes and GA carrying around a bow with a talking ArtificialIntelligence.
42	* ''Shazam'': A series of shorts showing Billy Baston becoming ComicBook/{{Shazam}}.
43
44	Compare with WesternAnimation/{{Marvel Universe\|DisneyXD}}, a similar block on Creator/DisneyXD that features content based off Creator/MarvelComics properties.
45
46	The block was discontinued in 2014 with some of the shorts occasionally airing around ''Teen Titans Go!'' That show was moved to the regular rotation with CN's other current shows, where it presently runs. ''Beware the Batman'' was put on the ''Creator/{{Toonami}}'' block before Cartoon Network wrote off the broadcast rights to the series. Toonami managed to premiere every episode by running a marathon of the episodes they had yet to get to when the write-off was announced.
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48	----
49	!!Tropes:
50	* AccidentalTruth: In the Plastic Man short "Superheroes Wear Pajamas", Plastic Man finds himself sleepwalking with his teddy bear Mr. Tinklebottoms and is laughed at by everyone for it. To save face, Plastic Man claims that the teddy bear is actually a captured demonic supervillain in disguise and proceeds to beat the teddy up and eat it for good measure. At the end of the short, after apologizing to his patched-up teddy bear, Plastic Man goes to sleep while the bear's face briefly becomes terrifying.
51	* AdaptationDyeJob: Prosthetic Lass from the ''ComicBook/TitansScissorsPaperStone'' one-shot is the only one ''not'' to undergo this in the ''New Teen Titans'' short "Turn Back The Clock", as Captain Thug went from having red hair to magenta, and both Dead Pretty Boy and Witchie-Poo were changed from having black hair and brown hair respectively to red hair.
52	* AdaptationalUgliness: Cupid in the ''Green Arrow'' short [[https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZGQ5NDRiM2QtZDc0Yi00MjM3LTlhZjYtZjg2ODAzNjcxZmIxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyODQ1MDYzOTg@._V1_FMjpg_UX1000_.jpg isn't as conventionally attractive]] as [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/villains/images/b/bb/Cupid_dc_comics.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20181007050818 she is in the comics]], having more of a nerdier appearance, complete with buck teeth and GirlishPigtails.
53	* AffectionateParody: In general, most of the shorts are lighthearted and comedic takes on several DC Comics characters, but one specific example is the ''New Teen Titans'' short "Kidz Korner 4 Kidz", which parodies educational shows for young children like ''Series/SesameStreet'' and ''Series/MisterRogersNeighborhood''.
54	* AnimalWrongsGroup: When Animal Man defeats a villain, it's not for whatever crime they were committing at the time, but because they were accidentally endangering some random animal. Once he ignored an invasion by Darkseid to chew out a guy for leaving his dog tied up on the sidewalk.
55	* {{Animesque}}: Many of the shorts, particularly ''Amethyst'', ''New Teen Titans'' and ''Baby Superman'' (The first and last ones were actually animated in Japan by Creator/DavidProduction).
56	* BattleCouple: Two of the three ''Green Arrow'' shorts depict Green Arrow and Black Canary fighting together.
57	* CarFu: In the third ''Wonder Woman'' short, Diana rams her Charger into Giganta's head.
58	* CastingGag:
59	** In the ''Farm League'' shorts, Batmongoose is voiced by Creator/{{Diedrich\|Bader}} [[WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold Bader]]. In the same short series sees [[ComicBook/TheJoker the Croaker]] and Green Lamprey voiced by Creator/{{Kevin\|MichaelRichardson}} [[WesternAnimation/TheBatman Michael]] [[WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010 Richardson]] and Supermantee voiced by {{Creator/David\|Kaye}} [[WesternAnimation/DCSuperFriends Kaye]].
60	** The ''Vibe'' short sees Creator/CarlosAlazraqui as the title character after voicing his MirrorUniverse counterpart, Breakdance, in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueCrisisOnTwoEarths''.
61	* TheCatCameBack: In ''Tales of Metropolis'', Lois Lane manages to pull this on Batman, of all people.
62	* CoolCar: Diana drives one in the ''Wonder Woman'' shorts. And yes, it turns invisible.
63	* ClothesMakeTheSuperman: Very literally in "Baby Superman", in which Superman gives his cape to a baby to use as a diaper, transforming the baby into Superman himself.
64	* DecoyProtagonist: In ''Batman of Shanghai'', there's a skilled martial artist who chases after Catwoman initially after her theft of the scroll and seems to be doing well against her in a fight. While it might be tempting to think of him as being the Chinese version of Bruce Wayne, it actually turns out he's not, as Bane takes him out relatively easily and the real Batman himself shows up later on.
65	* TheDeterminator: Lois Lane in the "Tales of Metropolis" short featuring her and Batman. In a few of the stunts she pulls to try and interview him, she clings onto the Bat Plane, gets dunked off and ''swims to Gotham''...
66	* DisneyVillainDeath: Hugo Strange apparently falls to his death from a cliff at the end of "Strange Days", one of two DC Nation shorts made to celebrate Batman's 75th anniversary.
67	* DistressedDude: Steve Trevor in the ''Wonder Woman'' shorts.
68	* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: In the third ''Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld'' short, Amethyst fights a goo monster and gets covered in slime. She turns her outfit into a makeshift swimsuit and takes a swim in a lake. The enchanted forest makes itself known and makes it sound like they were watching her skinny dip. She covers her (clothed) chest a few times in their presence.
69	* FunSize[=/=]SuperDeformed: ''New Teen Titans'' uses {{Chibi}} versions of the Titans.
70	* FunnyBackgroundEvent: During the part of the third ''Tales of Metropolis'' short in which Jimmy rants about times he regrets becoming Superman's pal, Bizarro (in his "secret" identity of Not-Bizarro) pulls a brown lunch bag out of the fridge, eats it up, and leaves by flying through the ceiling.
71	* FurryConfusion:
72	** In the ''Farm League'' shorts, Aquamandrill apparently has [[ComicBook/{{Aquaman}} his human counterpart's]] powers over sea life... So he tries to force the Flish (Franchise/TheFlash, but as a fish) to do his chores for him. It doesn't work, but it greatly annoys the Flish.
73	** Also, Wonderwombat has no idea what she's supposed to eat as a wombat, which doesn't stop her from loudly claiming that she wants to eat "whatever it is that wombats eat!"
74	* GilliganCut: From Tales of Metropolis: Featuring Jimmy Olsen
75	-->'''Jimmy:''' It would be easier if I never saw Superman again!
76	-->''(cut to title card reading "Literally four seconds Later")''
77	-->'''Jimmy,''' ''(being attacked by a giant octopus)'': Save me, Superman!
78	* MythologyGag:
79	** Black Lightning's old costume seen in the first short is Black Vulcan's costume from ''WesternAnimation/SuperFriends''.
80	** In the Black Lightning short "Clothes Make The Hero", Thunder is seen texting someone. A brief shot of her cell phone display reveals that it's "Grace", referring to Grace Choi, who is her girlfriend in the comics.
81	** The ''New Teen Titans'' short "Turn Back The Clock" briefly has the team wear their embarrassing 90's costumes. Beast Boy makes sure to diss ComicBook/{{Robin}}'s mullet before being horrified to see he has one as well. The same skit also has them wearing their 80's costumes. Upon seeing her [[{{Stripperific}} revealing outfit]], Starfire becomes mortified and tries to cover herself, which is much easier with the incredibly long hair she had at the time. At the end of that episode when Robin knocks the time machine into fast forward, we meet the Titans lineup from Adam Warren's one-shot Prestige issue ''ComicBook/TitansScissorsPaperStone'' and the robot Robin from ''ComicBook/DCOneMillion''.
82	** The ''New Teen Titans'' short "Red X Unmasked" features one of Red X's identities being revealed to be Jason Todd, a nod to Beast Boy's chart in "[[Recap/TeenTitansS3E2X X]]" that speculated on who he was. Beast Boy is also the biggest proponent of the theory in the short, and still hasn't given up on the theory by the time the short ends.
83	** In at least one of the ''Shazam!'' shorts, the hero [[Series/Shazam1974 consults the "Elders" in a cavern (presumably within the Rock of Eternity).]]
84	** The ''Metal Men'' short "Identity Crisis" has Dr. Magnus mistakenly swap the Metal Men's heads. One of the resulting mash-ups is Tin's head on Gold's body. An episode of ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'' had Tin borrow Gold's body to save the day.
85	** Bizarro's "Tales of Metropolis" short concludes with him wanting to give Lois Lane a kiss that would erase her memories, a nod to Superman himself doing this in ''Film/SupermanII''.
86	* PaperThinDisguise: In ''Tales of Metropolis: featuring Bizarro'', Bizarro tries to enter the Daily Planet disguised as mild mannered reporter, Not-Bizarro. Lois Lane is not fooled, but Jimmy Olsen is.
87	* ParanoiaFuel: In-Universe and Parodied in the Plastic Man short "Untouchable", a mob realizes that Plastic Man could be anywhere, and then end up going stir-crazy when the room they're in has his color scheme everywhere, with everyone wearing the color scheme to some extent as well. [[spoiler:Turns out they went crazy for nothing, as Plastic Man slept too long and completely forgot he was supposed to go to the stakeout with said mob.]]
88	* PunnyName: ''Farm League'' features such heroes as [[ComicBook/{{Superman}} Supermanatee]], [[ComicBook/TheFlash The Flish]] and [[ComicBook/GreenLantern The Green Lamprey]].
89	* RaceLift: The ''Bat Man of Shanghai'' shorts have Batman, ComicBook/{{Catwoman}}, and Bane reimagined as Chinese martial artists in the 1930's.
90	* RealityBreakingParadox: One Teen Titans short had Cyborg and Robin get into an escalating war of ThisIsMySide, which ends when they start a fight over the tape they were dividing things with, which blows up the whole planet.
91	-->'''Cyborg:''' You can't divide tape with tape! You created a paradox!
92	* {{Retraux}}: Dear God is ''Vibe'' [[TheEighties '80s]].
93	* SaturdayMorningCartoon: DC Nation was something of a throwback to this type of format, despite airing on network that primary airs cartoons. During its duration, the block would come on Saturday mornings at 10am.
94	* ShoutOut: In the ''New Teen Titans'' short "Turn Back The Clock", Mad Mod uses [[Series/DoctorWho a British phone booth to control time]].
95	* TakeThat: In the first ''ComicBook/CreatureCommandos'' short, when Lt. Matthew Shrieve brings Elliot "Lucky" Taylor to life, the settings on the machine are labelled "Misguided", "Dangerous", and "Creator/LindsayLohan".
96	* ThisIsMySide: The ''New Teen Titans'' short "Taped Before a Live Studio Audience" had Robin and Cyborg get into a major escalating war of this after the two want to do something different on TV, taping everything in half - the tower, a donut, the Titans themselves, The Brain... before they get to another roll of tape and...
97	-->'''Cyborg:''' You can't [[RealityBreakingParadox divide tape with tape!]] You created a paradox!
98	-->'''Robin:''' YOU did!
99	* ThreeLawsCompliant: In one ''Metal Men'' short, Prof. Magnus tries to teach the Men the three laws of robotics. After they fight each other and make a mess, he adds a fourth law: "Don't be a lunkhead."
100	* ToBeContinued: Parodied; every ''Doom Patrol'' short ends with a stinger promising a follow-up (the origin of the Doom Patrol; Negative Man's terrible secret; their fight with Madame Rouge) that's deliberately never paid off, and the next short always takes place several "chapters" later.
101	* TrappedInTVLand: ''ComicBook/PlasticMan'' short "Boob Tube".
102	* TransformationSequence: Parodied in the ''Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld'' short. Amy's transformation sequence is entirely reflexive, and even she is surprised when she poses at the end of it.
103	* TheVoiceless: Robin never talks in the ''DC's World's Funnest'' shorts.
104	* VoxPops: Much like WesternAnimation/CreatureComforts, ''World's Funnest'' is styled like this but with kid versions of Franchise/{{Batman}}, Franchise/{{Superman}}, ComicBook/{{Catwoman}}, ComicBook/TheJoker and ComicBook/{{Robin}}.
105	* {{Wuxia}}: The setting and style for ''Batman of Shanghai'' along with being {{Animesque}}.

Context WesternAnimation / DCNation