History YMMV / YoungJustice

* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: There is a very clear cut message about playing shadow politics throughout the season. Keeping secrets and manipulating others is ''not'' acceptable and should not be done, regardless of intentions or motives. You may move your goals forward and may even come out ahead for a bit, but using illicit methods to make gains ''will'' catch up with you and sooner or later you ''will'' be made to answer for your actions. The heroes barely avoid self-destructing because of their chosen methods and the villains start taking heavy hits like never before because of theirs.

** The Newsboy Legion being not only {{genderflip}}ped, but also being {{Composite Character}}s[=/=]{{Expy}}s with ''Franchise/ScoobyDoo'' characters (including of Mayor Jones and Sheriff Stone from ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooMysteryIncorporated'').

** Klarion is a powerful and entertaining villain, but by season two he gets no speaking roles and appears only to shuttle Vandal Savage around. He finally gets a major appearance again in season 3, even speaking once more, due to his role in Project Rutabaga. But alas, Zatanna and the Outsiders trap him in Doctor Fate's tower and he is reduced again to silent cameos (with it ambiguous if he even escaped the tower or not).

** It was a very common complaint among fans that The Light in the first two seasons often bordered on, or were, {{Invincible Villain}}s, with even the hardest fought victories ultimately resulting in them gaining some kind of benefit that negated whatever the loss they incurred. The second half of the season has [[spoiler: Zatanna cleverly trap Klarion in Fate's Tower (though this is later somewhat undermined by him seemingly escaping off-screen, if his appearances in the Light's view screens in some of the last episodes of the season, including the season 3 finale, are to be believed)]] and in the next episode has [[spoiler: the Outsiders outmaneuver Lex Luthor, resulting in him being humiliated on live television and leaves him raging, as well as establishing that Luthor does, in fact, share some of his comic counterpart's pettiness and greed, and despite previous statements to the contrary, isn't above getting revenge when someone actually manages to hurt him. This continues when Superboy, Superman, Cyborg, and Black Lightning also force him to resign from the position of Secretary-General due to evidence found via Terra's earpiece, although possibly due to JokerImmunity, he isn't removed from the Light because of this.]]

* CrazyEnoughToWork:

* CrazyAwesome:

** Many were upset at the end of season 2 with M'gann and Connor getting back together [[DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale while the issue of her brainwashing him being remained unresolved.]] The prequel comic for ''Outsiders'' has her feeling guilty over it and asks him forgiveness.
%%* BrokenBase: Please do not add any examples from Season 3 until at least six months after the release date. Remember that BrokenBase and BaseBreakingCharacter are for prolonged conflicts.

** Some fans have taken issue with the very unsubtle attempts in Season 3 to create similarities between Lex Luthor and Donald Trump. While it doesn't necessarily make it better, this is not the first time Lex Luthor has been modeled after Donald Trump. John Byrne modeled Post-Crisis Lex Luthor after Donald Trump and Ted Turner (“evil corporate executives”, as he said). There was even a one-shot comic called Lex Luthor: The Unauthorized Biography, which was very clearly modeled off The Art of the Deal. Granted, that was always based off him as a businessman (that time Lex Luthor was President was a jab at the Bush Administration).

* ArcFatigue: By the conclusion of season 3, very little progress is seemingly made on the overall series arc. [[spoiler: Luthor loses his position as Secretary-General, but [[KarmaHoudini remains free]] and retains his position in the Light. Granny is being punished by Darkseid as a scapegoat, but will undoubtedly be free to continue as before. Despite everything that happened, the alliance between Darkseid and the Light remains firmly intact. There's talk of a great galactic war coming, but it's kept so [[VaguenessIsComing vague]] that it's near-impossible to guess what the threat could be.]] The plot of this entire season can be considered just setup for the actual central conflict that may or may not finally happen in Season 4. Either way, the arc of the series is moving a lot more slowly than many had expected. Most took as practically ''given'' after the Season 2 stinger that Apokolips would invade Earth in Season 3, which [[spoiler: doesn't happen. The Earth is arguably never under direct threat in Season 3, unless you count the very few minutes it appeared Granny had won.]]
** This can also apply to the [[KudzuPlot many subplots]] started or continued in Season 3. Even more so than previous seasons, the writers very clearly did not write the season with any aim to be conclusive. Plot threads are laid all across the season that are never touched upon but are clearly meant to be continued at some point. Anything involving [[spoiler:Jason Todd and Ra's al Ghul, Cheshire, or the potential for giving non-metahumans the metagene]] is left unresolved.

* CompleteMonster:
** Season 1 (debut):
*** [[TheEvilPrince Orm the Ocean Master]] is the [[CainAndAbel treacherous younger brother]] of Aquaman, King of Atlantis. Masquerading as a loyal brother and supporter of the crown, Orm participates in the evil activities of the council known as [[Characters/YoungJusticeTheLight the Light]], while attempting to seize Atlantis. Using a racist group of Atlanteans known as the Purifiers against the "impure" Atlanteans, Orm attempts to inspire them to wipe out anyone they deem as impure, knowing it will cause a civil war, after which he will take over what’s left. He also kidnaps his sister-in-law Mera and tries to drain her powers, slowly killing her, despite knowing well that she is pregnant. After the attempted genocide and civil war fail, Orm is eventually exposed and imprisoned for six years until he escapes. [[Recap/YoungJusticeS3E9HomeFires Seeking revenge]], Orm intends to enact the "nuclear option": finding where the heroes' loved ones have their play dates, Orm waits until 18 of them have arrived, including [[WouldHurtAChild babies and children]] alike, before planning to blow the house up and kill them all solely out of spite for being deservedly punished for his crimes.
*** [[AristocratsAreEvil Count Werner Vertigo]] is always second in line to the throne of Vlatava. Having [[SiblingMurder murdered his brother]], Vertigo also assists the Injustice League in destruction to gain a hefty ransom with no regard for the lives of the innocents in the cities he would see leveled. [[WouldHurtAChild Trying to murder]] his 10-year-old [[EvilUncle niece]] Queen Perdita, Vertigo is eventually bested, only to later return as a major figure in the [[SuperhumanTrafficking Bedlam Syndicate]]. Vertigo happily captures teenagers with the metagene, subjecting them to experimentation with a massive fatality rate, all to eventually take the throne of Vlatava, whoever he needs to murder along the way.
** Season 2: [[AliensAreBastards Black Beetle]], a member of [[Characters/YoungJusticeTheReach the Reach]]'s Warrior class in their invasion of Earth, is a thuggish brute who [[AxCrazy revels in the destruction of those he terms as "meat"]]. Black Beetle assists in the abduction and safeguarding of Metahumans for the Reach's experiments; gleefully attempts to murder any hero he comes across; and helps to rig a bomb to wipe out the Team and numerous Kroloteans. When he decides the Ambassador in charge has [[YouHaveFailedMe failed too many times]], Black Beetle usurps his schemes with the singular goal of the [[EarthShatteringKaboom total annihilation of the Earth]] to hide any evidence of the Reach's illegal activities.
** [[WesternAnimation/YoungJusticeRevivalSeries Season 3]]:
*** [[KnightOfCerebus Frederick DeLamb]], is the security chief and brother to the Queen of Markovia; he is also secretly [[AristocratsAreEvil Baron Bedlam]], leader of the heinous Bedlam Syndicate. Bedlam masterminds the capture and [[SuperhumanTrafficking trafficking]] of countless young metahuman children and teenagers, having them tortuously experimented on and drowning them in a thick tar of his own creation to awaken their metagene. Killing enough of them to warrant regular mass burials of failed experiments, those who do survive are mutated and auctioned off as living weapons to the highest bidder. In his own grab for power in Markovia, Bedlam has his own sister and the King assassinated before killing the Quraci assassin himself, throwing pressure onto the Quraci populace as a convenient excuse to screen for more metagenes. [[EvilUncle Bedlam even has his own niece and nephew]], Tara and Brion Markov, subjected to the experiments, mocking them later for how he's orphaned them. Bedlam attempts a coup in the season 3 finale, attempting to have his nephew Gregor's loyalists killed while snidely vowing never to stop trying to kill his family and take Markovia's throne-—a sentiment that prompts Brion to kill him.
*** [[FauxAffablyEvil Granny Goodness]], aka Gretchen Goode, is one of ComicBook/{{Darkseid}}'s most powerful followers and a savage sadist underneath her kindly, grandmotherly facade. With a love of "discipline," Granny [[BadBoss abuses and tortures her followers]], conditioning them by forcing them to bear the conditions of her agonizing X-Pits, while operating a massive [[SuperhumanTrafficking trafficking]] business that steals hundreds of young metahumans across the universe to be twisted into slaves for Darkseid. Gretchen uses her persona as Gretchen Goode to further this agenda on Earth by peddling a series of VR goggles that scan wearers for the metagene, repeatedly attempting to torture and break the heroes with a pleasant, cheery smile. Granny, upon discovering Halo is the living personification of the Anti-Life equation, attempts to use her to spread Anti-Life all across the universe, horribly killing off all non-meta life and utterly enslaving the metahuman survivors to Darkseid's will.

* ShockingSwerve: Many fans guessed that [[spoiler: Jace was secretly a mole.]] Few guessed the [[spoiler: sheer [[EvilAllAlong extent]] [[BitchInSheepsClothing of]] [[HoneyTrap it]] though, or how [[MadScientist crazy]] [[DisproportionateRetribution her]] [[FantasticRacism motives]] were.]]

* MagnificentBastard:
** ComicBook/VandalSavage is the leader and founder of the Light. Intending on creating a secret group to counter the ComicBook/JusticeLeague, Savage directs most of its greatest moves, such as forming alliances with various villain factions, continuously using fronts and proxies so when the League defeats them, the Light remains undetected. Making alliances with alien groups like the Reach and Apokolips, Vandal engineers the near downfall of the world and at one point completely enslaving the Justice League and sending them off-world to fulfill the Light's purposes, framing them as criminals on another planet. Bent on creating a world of conflict where humans will be forced to evolve and adapt, Vandal constantly shows why he is worthy of being the head of the Light.
** ComicBook/LexLuthor is as charming and intelligent as ever. Forming Project Cadmus to create Superboy with his own DNA, Lex constantly stays a step of the heroes, even filling Superboy himself with doubt over his true place. Organizing a peace treaty between the countries of North and South Rhelasia, Lex manipulates events so both will [[GenghisGambit unite under the Light's guidance]] and constantly proves invaluable in assisting Vandal with the best of the Light's schemes. Upon realizing the danger of the Reach, he and Vandal help to form counter measures against them, ending the second season by [[KarmaHoudini escaping completely free of their own crimes]] and proving why Lex is always a match for any adversary.

-->I remember watching one of the DCU animated cartoons a couple years ago where they put together a team of female heroines to go fight a villainess. I think it was Dick Grayson who was talking to them on screen and he was saying something like they couldn’t send any male heroes to fight this villainess because she can control the minds of men. I believe it was Batgirl who sassed him back and essentially said, “Why are you trying to justify having a team of only women? No one would ever try to validate sending a team of only men.”

*** [[TheEvilPrince Orm the Ocean Master]], debuting in season 1, is the [[CainAndAbel treacherous younger brother]] of Aquaman, King of Atlantis. Masquerading as a loyal brother and supporter of the crown, Orm participates in the evil activities of the council known as [[Characters/YoungJusticeTheLight the Light]], while attempting to seize Atlantis. Using a racist group of Atlanteans known as the Purifiers against the "impure" Atlanteans, Orm attempts to inspire them to wipe out anyone they deem as impure, knowing it will cause a civil war, after which he will take over what’s left. He also kidnaps his sister-in-law Mera and tries to drain her powers, slowly killing her, despite knowing well that she is pregnant. After the attempted genocide and civil war fail, Orm is eventually exposed and imprisoned for six years until he escapes. [[Recap/YoungJusticeS3E9HomeFires Seeking revenge]], Orm intends to enact the "nuclear option": finding where the heroes' loved ones have their play dates, Orm waits until 18 of them have arrived, including [[WouldHurtAChild babies and children]] alike, before planning to blow the house up and kill them all solely out of spite for being deservedly punished for his crimes.
*** [[AristocratsAreEvil Count Werner Vertigo]], also debuting in season 1, is always second in line to the throne of Vlatava. Having [[SiblingMurder murdered his brother]], Vertigo also assists the Injustice League in destruction to gain a hefty ransom with no regard for the lives of the innocents in the cities he would see leveled. [[WouldHurtAChild Trying to murder]] his 10-year-old [[EvilUncle niece]] Queen Perdita, Vertigo is eventually bested, only to later return as a major figure in the [[SuperhumanTrafficking Bedlam Syndicate]]. Vertigo happily captures teenagers with the metagene, subjecting them to experimentation with a massive fatality rate, all to eventually take the throne of Vlatava, whoever he needs to murder along the way.

* CompleteMonster: [[EvilOrphan William "Billy" Hayes]], better known as [[NamesToRunAwayFrom Harm]], was a [[TeensAreMonsters teenage supervillain]] and a complete sociopath. Adopted by loving parents, Harm initially terrified his adoptive younger sister Greta, her fears proven right when Harm [[ElectrifiedBathtub murdered her in her bathtub]] to seal a demonic pact and give himself superpowers. His goal was to become the world's greatest murderer, and he decided to hunt down and destroy all the kid heroes before moving on to the big leagues. He captured Red Tornado and reprogrammed him as a suicide bomber against Pope John Paul II to make a name for himself in the supervillain community. When his father, realizing what he was, killed Harm with a gunshot to the back, Harm's spirit later returned. He [[DemonicPossession possessed his father]] and used his body to enact more evil deeds, none more enjoyable to him than screwing with Greta, now the ghostly heroine Secret, by making her think her father never truly loved her. When defeated, Harm, for sheer spite, forced his father to throw himself into one of the fire-pits of Apokolips while Harm possessed him to kill them both.

* CompleteMonster: William "Billy" Hayes, better known as Harm from this [[KnightOfCerebus initially light-hearted]] comic series, was a [[TeensAreMonsters teenage supervillain]] who was also a complete sociopath. Adopted by loving parents, Harm initially terrified his adoptive younger sister Greta and her fears were proven right when Harm murdered her in her bathtub to seal a demonic pact and give himself super powers. His goal was to become the world's greatest murderer and he decided to hunt down and destroy all the kid heroes before moving on to the big leagues. He captured Red Tornado and reprogrammed him as a suicide bomber against Pope John Paul II to make a name for himself in the supervillain community. When his father, realizing what he was, killed Harm with a gunshot to the back, Harm's spirit later returned. He [[DemonicPossession possessed his father]] and used his body to enact more evil deeds, none more enjoyable to him than screwing with Greta, now the ghostly heroine Secret, by making her think her father never truly loved her. When defeated, Harm, for sheer spite, forced his father to throw himself into one of the fire-pits of Apokolips while Harm possessed him to kill them both.

** [[TheEvilPrince Orm the Ocean Master]], debuting in season 1, is the [[CainAndAbel treacherous younger brother]] of Aquaman, King of Atlantis. Masquerading as a loyal brother and supporter of the crown, Orm participates in the evil activities of the council known as [[Characters/YoungJusticeTheLight the Light]], while attempting to seize Atlantis. Using a racist group of Atlanteans known as the Purifiers against the "impure" Atlanteans, Orm attempts to inspire them to wipe out anyone they deem as impure, knowing it will cause a civil war, after which he will take over what’s left. He also kidnaps his sister-in-law Mera and tries to drain her powers, slowly killing her, despite knowing well that she is pregnant. After the attempted genocide and civil war fail, Orm is eventually exposed and imprisoned for six years until he escapes. [[Recap/YoungJusticeS3E9HomeFires Seeking revenge]], Orm intends to enact the "nuclear option": finding where the heroes' loved ones have their play dates, Orm waits until 18 of them have arrived, including [[WouldHurtAChild babies and children]] alike, before planning to blow the house up and kill them all solely out of spite for being deservedly punished for his crimes.
** [[AristocratsAreEvil Count Werner Vertigo]], also debuting in season 1, is always second in line to the throne of Vlatava. Having [[SiblingMurder murdered his brother]], Vertigo also assists the Injustice League in destruction to gain a hefty ransom with no regard for the lives of the innocents in the cities he would see leveled. [[WouldHurtAChild Trying to murder]] his 10-year-old [[EvilUncle niece]] Queen Perdita, Vertigo is eventually bested, only to later return as a major figure in the [[SuperhumanTrafficking Bedlam Syndicate]]. Vertigo happily captures teenagers with the metagene, subjecting them to experimentation with a massive fatality rate, all to eventually take the throne of Vlatava, whoever he needs to murder along the way.

*** [[FauxAffablyEvil Granny Goodness]], aka Gretchen Goode is one of ComicBook/{{Darkseid}}'s most powerful followers and a savage sadist underneath her kindly, grandmotherly facade. With a love of "discipline," Granny [[BadBoss abuses and tortures her followers]], conditioning them by forcing them to bear the conditions of her agonizing X-Pits, while operating a massive [[SuperhumanTrafficking trafficking]] business that steals hundreds of young metahumans across the universe to be twisted into slaves for Darkseid. Gretchen uses her persona as Gretchen Goode to further this agenda on Earth by peddling a series of VR goggles that scan wearers for the metagene, repeatedly attempting to torture and break the heroes with a pleasant, cheery smile. Granny, upon discovering Halo is the living personification of the Anti-Life equation, attempts to use her to spread Anti-Life all across the universe, horribly killing off all non-meta life and utterly enslaving the metahuman survivors to Darkseid's will.

** [[TheEvilPrince Orm the Ocean Master]], debuting in season 1, is the [[CainAndAbel treacherous younger brother]] of Aquaman, King of Atlantis. Masquerading as a loyal brother and supporter of the crown, Orm participates in the evil activities of the council known as the Light, while attempting to seize Atlantis. Using a racist group of Atlanteans known as [[FantasticRacism the Purifiers]] against the "impure" Atlanteans, Orm attempts to inspire them to wipe out anyone they deem as impure, knowing it will cause a civil war, after which he will take over what’s left. He also kidnaps his sister-in-law Mera and tries to drain her powers, slowly killing her, despite knowing well that she is pregnant. After the attempted genocide and civil war fail, Orm is eventually exposed and imprisoned for six years until he escapes. [[Recap/YoungJusticeS3E9HomeFires Seeking revenge]], Orm intends to enact the "nuclear option": finding where the heroes' loved ones have their play dates, Orm waits until 18 of them have arrived, including [[WouldHurtAChild babies and children]] alike, before planning to blow the house up and kill them all solely out of spite for being deservedly punished for his crimes.

** Season 3 begins with fan-favorite characters Spoiler, Arrowette, and Thirteen already on the Team, and Cassandra Cain on Batman's team. Not only does this rob fans of seeing an origin story for any of them, it also means they're severely OutOfFocus. Also, Cass appears as her less-liked later (New 52) identity Orphan rather than Batgirl, which she was created and gained a following for until Spoiler replaced her in the role before the New 52 hit. Meanwhile, Barbara is Oracle, meaning that Batgirl's shoes are currently empty. Though in the case of Cass not being Batgirl, it's entirely possible, if not likely, she or Stephanie could take up the mantle in the future. The fact Barbara could only have been crippled less than two years ago (at most) is sound justification for someone else not immediately taking up the mantle, as in Kid Flash's case, Wally had already given his blessing to Bart to take the name before he died, and it's never made clear how much time passed between Jason dying and Tim becoming Robin (and the Robin mantle predates Jason, unlike Batgirl). So less a wasted plot and more a not-yet-done plot.

* AcceptablePoliticalTargets: Season 3's depiction of Lex Luthor is seen by many to a TakeThat against {{Obstructive Bureaucrat}}s and self-serving politicians, especially in regards to a certain [[UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump American president]].

** Season 3 reveals that [[spoiler: Darkseid once tried to invade Earth in the distant past and was met by an army of humans with bows and arrows working with superhuman beings]]. This lines up fairly well with parts of the ''[[Film/JusticeLeague2017 Justice League]]'' film. It's all the more amusing if Greg Weisman and Brandon Vietti already planned this out years before, since ''Young Justice'' predates the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse that ''Justice League'' is part of.

** In "Downtime" (aired March 4, 2011) Superman tells Aquaman that "The Justice League have a problem in Tokyo". A week later, Japan was hit by a devastating earthquake.

* ItsTheSameSoItSucks: [[spoiler: Terra being revealed to be a traitor and a spy in "True Heroes", since it had already been done in the comics in the '80s and their [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitans animated]] and [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitansTheJudasContract adaptations]], although [[EpilepticTrees fans hope that she's some sort of triple agent]]. This became subverted when she ended up BecomingTheMask to a far greater extent than in previous depictions, undergoing a HeelFaceTurn, turning against Deathstroke for good and [[SparedByTheAdaptation ultimately surviving]] the ordeal.]]

* ArcFatigue: By the conclusion of season 3, very little progress is seemingly made on the overall series arc. [[spoiler: Luthor loses his position as Secretary-General, but [[KarmaHoudini remains free]] and retains his position in the Light. Granny is being punished by Darkseid as a scapegoat, but will undoubtedly be free to continue as before. Despite everything that happened, the alliance between Darkseid and the Light remains firmly intact. There's talk of a great galactic war coming, but it's kept so [[VaguenessIsComing vague]] that its near-impossible to guess what the threat could be.]] The plot of this entire season can be considered just setup for the actual central conflict that may or may not finally happen in Season 4. Either way, the arc of the series is moving a lot more slowly than many had expected. Most took as practically ''given'' after the Season 2 stinger that Apokolips would invade Earth in Season 3, which [[spoiler: doesn't happen. The Earth is arguably never under direct threat in Season 3, unless you count the very few minutes it appeared Granny had won.]]
** This can also apply to the [[KudzuPlot many subplots]] started or continued in Season 3. Even more so than previous seasons, the writers very clearly did not write the season with any aim to be conclusive. Plot threads are laid all across the season that are never touched upon but are clearly meant to be continuted at some point. Anything involving [[spoiler: Jason Todd and Ra's al Ghul, Cheshire, or the potential for giving non-metahumans the metagene]] is left unresolved.

* AlasPoorScrappy: Okay, admit it, you hate L'gaan because of so many reasons, but it’s hard to leave him in the dirt because M'gann left him. In fact, he may have probably went worse than Superboy because despite Superboy getting MindRaped, at least he and M'gann had a genuinely loving relationship, whilst L'gaan was selfishly used to wound M'gann's self-esteem.

** Bane. He's shown to be every bit as smart as members of The Light, but the episode he appears in has already suffering from an EvilerThanThou/TheWorfEffect at the hands of Lord Kobra, and the next he appears, he's just relegated to the role of a generic thug. Fixed somewhat in his return in season 3, where he works with Deathstroke and combats Batman when he and his squad infiltrate Santa Prisca.

** Lagoon Boy. In the comics, he was pretty cool, despite not being as characterized as the other heroes. He was even pretty ripped, to the point where his puffer form reaches [[Franchise/DragonBall Roshi-On-Max-Mode]] levels of ripped. Here, he’s a less characterized and a PlotDevice in Superboy and Miss Martian's story and is a {{Jerkass}} to almost everyone, especially Superboy. It reaches the point where he even disrespected his ex-girlfriend M'gann once when immediately threw an accusation into her face that she was still in love with Conner after she breaks up with him (La'gaan). Also, he’s lacking the muscular features that his comic counterpart had, instead being a bit lanky and being extremely fat in his puffer form.

---> '''M'gann''': Poor Wally.....

** Aqualad is either viewed as being an awesome [[TheStoic stoic]] leader, or a FlatCharacter who never expresses any emotion. There's also those who say Creator/GregWeisman is making him overly perfect at the expense of Dick (by making him leader instead of Dick, though this was remedied as of Season 2 [[spoiler:until TheReveal and finale arc]]) and Garth (by not having Garth becoming Aqualad before Kaldur). And then in Season 2 there's [[spoiler: his off-screen FaceHeelTurn.]] And ''then'' [[spoiler:this turns out to be [[FakeDefector fake]].]] And then there are those who feel he doesn't get enough of screen time compare to the other characters.

** Nightwing's actions. Was he right to keep the team out of the loop? Was his plan too risky? Was he wrong for [[spoiler: kicking Arsenal off the team]]?

* BadassDecay: Superboy. When he first appears, he's shown to clearly be the overall strongest of the main characters, but as the went on, he kept getting subject to TheWorfEffect. It's especially bad in the second season when he's largely DemotedToExtra and can barely win a single fight, even losing against [[spoiler: Aqualad]] despite easily defeating him in the pilot.