Episode 5: Schooled
Takes place on August 3 - 4
The superheroine Black Canary begins training the kids in combat, but is rejected by Superboy, who is already irritated that Superman refuses to acknowledge any relationship to him.
After the League defeats Amazo, an android that duplicated all of their powers, they dismantle it and ship the remains off to a laboratory to be studied. The Team is charged with watching over the transport convoys. However, Amazo's creator, Professor Ivo, manages to recover its parts (due in part to Superboy's overconfidence) and reassembles the android. Superboy tries to fight it, but gets a beating, even with Robin and Kid Flash's help, until they outsmart him by threatening its creator, confusing it to the point that it telefrags itself onto Superboy's fist. Even though Dr. Ivo escapes, Batman congratulates the team on a job well done.
There is also a scene in the episode featuring Bruce and Clark having a short meeting in a diner to discuss Superboy, when Batman suggests that in a way, Superboy is Superman's son, Clark storms out angrily.
In the end, Amazo is disassembled again, and Superboy accepts Canary's mentorship.
Tropes:
- Berserk Button: All Superboy wants is for Superman to accept him. When the beloved hero continues to avoid and ignore him, Broken Pedestal occurs and he starts to hate any mention of Superman or how inferior he is to the Kryptonian.
- Break the Haughty: Superboy is forced to learn that super strength and all that he can do with it is only one ability needed in the life of a hero when he loses to Black Canary in training, when he is outnumbered and wounded by the robot monkeys, and when he receives an epic beatdown from Amazo.
- Calling Your Attacks: Amazo switches between the abilities belonging to a respective superhero in this manner.
- The Cavalry Arrives Late: Aqualad and M'gann come to aid their friends in the final battle mere moments after Amazo's defeat.
- Contrived Coincidence: The fight against Amazo takes place in Robin's school, apparently by accident.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Kid Flash and Superboy both get a serve of this from Black Canary in training.
- Deadpan Snarker: When asked what Kid Flash did wrong in the spar between him and Black Canary, Robin puts up his hand.Robin: Oh, he hit on teacher and got served.Kid Flash: Dude!
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: Bruce and Clark's conversation regarding Superboy comes off as though Clark had unknowingly fathered a child with someone and he is reluctant at forming a bond with said child. Given what Bruce was aiming for, this could have been intentional.
- Early-Bird Cameo: An arrow shot by an unseen person helps during the battle; while Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad assume this to be Speedy's handiwork, it's actually the first action by Artemis in the series.
- Eye Scream: Superboy gets a laser blast this way.
- Gory Discretion Shot: Averted with Superboy when he is temporarily blinded by a laser blast.
- I Have No Son!: Superman furiously claims this when Batman tells him Superboy needs him to be a father.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: As Batman, Bruce has to be cold, hard and stern with the team. Outside of this however, he can see that Superboy needs a father figure in his life and tries to steer Superman towards filling that role.Bruce: Look, I know he troubles you, but he's here. You have to get over the how and why. Trust me on this. This boy needs his father.
- Later on, he congratulates the team for a job well done, commending that the League is impressed with them. Superboy asks if he meant all the League.Batman: Given time, yes. Kryptonians, as you know, have very hard heads.
- Later on, he congratulates the team for a job well done, commending that the League is impressed with them. Superboy asks if he meant all the League.
- Mythology Gag: At the beginning of the episode, Bruce Wayne opens up a desk drawer containing his Batman gear via a button hidden in a bust of William Shakespeare.
- Oh, Crap!: The driver of the truck M'gann, Aqualad and Kid Flash are protecting panics when the robot monkeys start crowding around the windshield.
- He and Kid Flash both get terrified of M'gann when she summons multiple arms to sprout up all over her body to fend off the robots.
- Selective Obliviousness: In the premiere episode, it was strongly implied that the existence of Superboy had left Superman uncharacteristically disturbed but the situation was left ambiguous as to how he would truly react afterwards. This episode proves he went by this trope.
- Shout-Out: The flying robot monkeys are obviously a The Wizard of Oz reference.
- Take a Third Option: When Superboy, Robin and Kid Flash prove to be outmatched by Amazo with no hope of any of them winning individually or as a team, Superboy turns his attacks towards Ivo instead.
- Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Superman doesn't think much of Superboy's help in resolving the bridge disaster. Superboy, in turn, does not respond well to this or Superman's criticisms and ignorance of him.
- Tempting Fate: During the mission, M'gann displays concern for Superboy's anger issues. Aqualad convinces her to give their teammate space, advising that the mission should be quiet enough to calm him. Cue Ivo's monkey robots starting their attack.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: Superboy, in spite of his anger issues, clearly wants to be this to Superman, but the hero chooses to explicitly avoid him.
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?:Superboy: I hate monkeys!
- Your Head Asplode: How the team eventually gets the better of Amazo.
