Tabula Rasa
Episode #29 & 30 - Tabula Rasa Part 1 & 2
Original Airdate - October 4th 2003
J'onn J'onzz has a crisis of conscience while Lex Luthor gains control
of Amazo, a powerful android who can copy the powers of the entire
Justice League.
Media by Bird Boy
Review by SJJ |
Credits:
Written by Stan Berkowitz
Directed by Dan Riba
Music by Lolita Ritmanis
Animation by Dong Woo Animation Co. LTD.
Voices:
Maria Canals as Hawkgirl
Phil LaMarr as Green Lantern
Kevin Conroy as Batman
Carl Lumby as J'onn J'onzz
George Newbern as Superman
Susan Eisenberg as Wonder Woman
Michael Rosenbaum as The Flash
Clancy Brown as Lex Luthor
Robert Picardo as Amazo
Lisa Edelstein as Mercy Graves
Tom Kenney as Search Leader
Masara as Beautiful Woman
Ashley Ednar as Little Girl
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Review
I have had the fortune while here at Toon Zone to review several new
shows of late. Wonderful stuff, however it’s now getting to the point
where I am beginning to either doubt my own critical skills, or the
universal law of averages.
Bluntly put, another corker my dear chaps and chapettes. This is the
year to make merry - at least so far as animation is concerned.
‘Tabula Rasa’ is the second episode of the second season of Justice
League. It shows the creators are doing something so rare in
entertainment these days; building on the mistakes of the past. Too
often in TV, concepts go stale through lack of progression, or suffer a
fit of radical alteration that simply alienates the fans of the show.
Here we are seeing subtle amendments to character and story
construction. One could almost saying they are proverbially ‘ironing out
the creases‘.
The story at it‘s most simple? Luthor is back and in as poor shape as
his last outing in season one’s ‘Injustice For All’. In his efforts to
find help in curing - or at the very least sustaining - his current
condition, Lex stumbles across an android whose singular power could
spell the end for the Justice League… and maybe us all.
It’s nice to see Justice League in a position to start building on it’s
own foundations. Rather than slipping back to the more traditional Lex/Superman
divide, we find Lex in a situation as bad as previously in ‘Injustice
For All’. For Metropolis‘ top dog, life is no better. He is still on the
wrong side of the law and hounded by the Justice League. Furthermore, we
are given a little glance into what’s been happening at LexCorp in his
‘absence‘. Superman fans will welcome the return of Mercy to whose
relationship with Lex is one of the many shining aspects of the story.
It’s handled in a mature and believable manner; with LexCorps new
leading lady finding herself torn between her past and her present. Lex
is a charismatic and manipulative as usual - as the story’s lead
agitator is to discover.
‘Tabula Rasa’ gives AMAZO his introduction into the animated DC
universe. His personal story and motivation is a little uninspiring. We
have seen the ‘manipulated aggressor’ story pitch in many shows in many
genres. In that sense there is nothing new here. That said, as his
personal predicament is not the key attribute to the plot, this
character doesn’t weaken the story in any way. In all fairness, being a
character from the comics (‘The Brave And The Bold’ being his first
outing) there are certain limitations to what can be done with the
character without straying too far from it’s source. On screen, the
massive power of this android stretches credibility in a way that would
have seemed less obvious in paper format. It certainly doesn’t take from
the story, but if there is any criticism to be laid at ‘Tabula Rasa’,
it’s that AMAZO isn’t a character that realistically translates too well
onto the TV screen.
The story moves at a good pace - the show certainly feels more
comfortable in the two-part format now. It glides smoothly without too
much predictability. If ‘Twilight' was a little overburdened and
occasionally convoluted, ‘Tabula Rasa’ makes up for that error. We have
some interesting sub plots. The ‘B story’ - which consists of J’onn’s
uncertainty of mankind’s worth - would jar if wedged into one episode,
but becomes a welcome and rather touching distraction in this two part
story. As a side note, I’d be interested if J’onn and Diana’s intimate
hug will cause a stirring in fandom as Bruce and Diana did in season
one. Regardless, it’s a lovely scene that again gives the action
orientated show a friendly breather.
The animation for this episode is pretty good. Occasionally some of the
fore-shorted shots look a bit odd (watch out for J’onn disappearing into
the woods - he seems to get far too small in relation to the background)
however any transgressions are made up for with some fantastic fight
scenes. What makes these battles stands out is some sharp storyboards
and some superb animation. One particular sequence that impressed me was
Superman’s first encounter with AMAZO. Great effort was made in ensuring
that weight and balance of movement was depicted accurately. Superman’s
agility varies in relation to the force of the attack. Watch out for
some of Wonder Woman’s battle scenes - again we see the same. ’Tabula
Rasa’s’ fights aren’t all apocalyptic battles of destruction. I’d
certainly agree some elements are, but the fights are well scaled, like
a climatic piece of music, the scenes understand you have to build up
the power to build up the tension. I’m not normally a man who enjoys
fight scenes - they normally end up as being rather predictable and
simple time fillers. I was happily surprised with ‘Tabula Rasa’s’
battle.
For me, the best element of the story was the use of characters. It was
nice to have the whole team getting full coverage and for the second
time this season, Hawkgirl gets some much needed limelight. Green
Lantern and Flash - while still an enjoyable part of the ensemble - take
a welcome step back after hogging so much of season one. That is not to
say they don’t have any impact on the show, but their role seems better
adjusted than previously. I would say there seems to generally be a
better balance within the team.
If Hawkgirl’s screen presence mimics that of ‘Twilight', so does Batman
and Superman’s deepened relationship. Once more, we see the two working
alongside each other, this time in a more positive manner compared to
‘Twilight‘.
Another attribute I felt was carried from the season premiere is this
slight alteration to Superman. He no longer seems to be the clean Boy
Scout of old. There certainly seems to be a darker edge to the Man of
Steel. He appears rather obsessive over Luthor in episode one - almost
to the disregard of J’onn’s safety. His fighting technique appears a
little dirtier than before, at one point resorting to a surprise head
butt to gain a fight advantage. He also seems more impetuous as well. It
could be this humble reviewer’s interpretation, but Superman seems a
little more.. uncontrollable here. If this is the case, this could lead
to some exciting developments further into the season.
Batman is as enjoyable as ever and as usual, he’s popping by to save the
day - however not always achieving it. He sports some great lines and
offers motivations akin to his comic JLA counterpart - in particular the
kryptonite he keeps in his pocket for ’protection’. A nod to the
cautious JLA Bruce of the comic world as well as a continuation of the
equally wary animated Batman.
We have some great music as well - look out for several underlined
motifs. I would imagine Batfans will feel their flying rodent shaped
hearts swelling with nostalgia. The battle scenes are complimented with
some great incidental scoring as well.
As usual, I must offer a nod to the cast, all of who do a fine job.
Robert ‘Voyager’ Picardo softly voices AMAZO and as usual, Clancy
Brown’s smooth, thick timbre captures Lex’s cocky and manipulative
character.
Overall, it’s a great story. All the plot lines tie up nicely for the
great finale, which itself is a chilling end to the tale. Personally I
enjoyed this a little more than ‘Twilight'. It was less messy, better
paced and generally a smoother story. It didn’t burden itself with too
many plot strands and as such, it allowed what was there to play out
with the space and quality required.
‘Twilight’ and ’Tabula Rasa’ are definite examples of a more mature
Justice League. It’s as if the show has finally grown up and found it‘s
direction. If season one pondered a little on the path, so far, season
two simply strides forward with confidence.
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