Originally Posted by
Masterff
Personal Review of the YJ Series (so far and future)
I have some points , which I see difficult for the Series:
1. The Wonder Label/ The Concentration on young readers:
I personally have difficulties with this concentration. I started to read DC with Conner, Cassie, Bart and Tim during their YJ time and I enjoyed it.
But now I am older and I enjoy more dark, mature stories.
It feels strange for me to see Tim, Conner, Bart and Cassie still as teenagers and I also think that there were enough stories with them as teenagers, so that it would be refreshing to see them becoming older and move on.
I STRICTLY believe that both teams would benefit from changing labels:
-Damians Team would have much room to develop and their stories (as teenagers) are new
-Tims Team can change to the “Standard” Label and interact with the main Universe Heroes/ Teams, which they didn’t do so far.
I personally believe that it would be MUCH better for Tims Team to change to the “Standard” Label, because like I said above I grew up with Tims Generation, but I am now older and I think that the fans of Tims Generation are also now over 20 or older.
I personally really have problems to read YJ, for example when they travelled to Captain Carrots Universe.
2. The Speed of the Series
The Comic comes out once every month and there were often Flashbacks in it.
It made kind of difficult for me to read the stories, because the flashbacks slowed the story down and then you have to wait until next month to see what happens than.
3. Timeline
I personally have difficulties with the Series, because the timeline is unclear.
We now have a kind of new Cassie and I also have difficulties with Conner.
I mean we saw in the flashbacks how Conner arrived on Gemworld, BUT Conner in the flashbacks seemed to be younger than he was at the End of the Pre-Flashpoint, which should normally be the starting point or?
4. Focus
What I also didn’t like was that already during the first story they got 3 new team-members.
I think it would have been MUCH better to focus in the first storyline on Conner, Cassie, Bart and Tim and also let them come back to Earth and interact with Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Wally and Barry.
I missed the focus on them and I would have more loved to see the 4 first alone and be more in the focus, since I feel that especially Conner was kind of unusually quiet.
I also would like to read MORE of CONNERS and CASSIES Flashbacks which left some open questions.
5. Team Compilation:
I personally have problems with the team compilation.
For me Hex doesn’t fit into the team.
I mean she is good with weapons, but has no secret identity and as far as I have seen she also doesn’t seem to have the detective skills or fighting skills of a Bat-Family or Arrow Family member. Personally I also don’t like her enough to want to read more of her.
Teen Lantern would be normally a good addition to the team, but she is to young for me and so she doesn’t really fit into the team for me.
Amethyst seems to be a good addition, BUT I hope that she still has her magic skills and not only the use of crystals as swords, shields etc.
NEW Additions:
Arrowette would be ok, BUT she is to long inactive for me and Mia would be the better addition, since Mia developed also new skills during Pre-Flashpoint, while I think that Arrowette is to long inactive.
Aqualad is ok
Spoiler is unnecessary for and it makes the team to crowded and I would have more liked to bring a meta-human or magician instead of her.
Sideways is ok…
I personally have to say, that the team is to crowded for me and it includes to much “normal” humans without powers, which reduces the strength of the team as a whole.
I personally would have loved to see the following roster:
Tim, Cassie, Conner, Bart with
Miss Martian, Blue Beetle, Static, (Raven), Terra (Geo-Force), Traci 13.
I think that Damians Team could be the more interesting one since I find Crush, Djinn and Emiko more interesting than Spoiler, (the ACTUAL) Arrowette and Hex.
6. Scope of the YJ team:
I personally find it difficult to understand the scope of the YJ Team.
I mean it’s a wild mix between:
a) Veterans like Cassie, Conner, Bart, Tim
b) Heroes who are on the way to become Veterans like Spoiler, Amethyst
c) Newcomers like Aqualad, Sideways
d) Absolute Newcomers like Teen Lantern and Hex
e) Retired Heroes like Aqualad
I mean until now it was kind of clear:
-JSA were the kind of veterans
-JL is the JL
-Titans were the “replacements” and Nr. 2 in the power ranking
-TT are the current youngest generation
I don’t know how YJ will fit into this and I also don’t know where YJ will land in this “ranking”, since they have like I stated a wild mix of team members.
I don’t know which missions they will take on, because Cassie, Conner, Bart and Tim are kind of Veterans who should master almost everything.
I mean Conner battled Superboy Prime so he should be among the most powerful DC Heroes, while his team member Hex is obviously not.
7. Rivals for their place
Another point which I find difficult is that every member of YJ has now at least one rival for his place in a similar age.
If Bart, Cassie, Conner and Tim would be older than it would be less problem, because then the rivals would be younger than they were and so not so much a problem.
But now they have rivals and some rivals seem to be even more powerful than they are:
Conner has rivals in Kenan Kong and Jonathan (all 3 are seemingly at a similar age), if Conner would be over 20 and Kenan like 16-17 and Jonathan 13 it would be less problem.
Cassie has a rival in Peng Deilan
Bart has a rival in Wallace West and Avery Ho
Tim has a rival in Wang Baixi and Damian
Arrowette has a rival in Emiko
I see this as problem, especially since some rivals seem to be more powerful than the “original ones” the YJ members.
Its difficult for interactions…I mean will you simply make Jonathan outperform Conner and Jonathan become Superman while Conner stays SuperBOY?
8. Storyline
The actual storylines were ok, but I preferred more the storylines of other books like TT.
I hope we get another kind of stories when they are back on earth.
CONCLUSION:
This is all MY PERSONAL OPINION.
I strictly believe that it would be better for Tims Team if they get back to the “Standard Label” and they focus on a reader group of 20+ and will let Tim, Bart, Conner, Cassie age up, because like I stated above the comparisons with the rivals could be problematic to solve.