Justice League S02E24-26 Review: Big Plot Twist

Justice League, Season 2, Finale: Starcrossed

Ah, the big finale to Justice League! It ran as a big movie split into three episodes, and was one of the biggest plot twists back when I watched it as a kid. What initially started off as seemingly a simple "is this character we've known for so long actually evil?" plot with Hawkgirl -- arguably still the most mysterious of the main seven characters -- turned into actual betrayal both to Green Lantern personally on the romance front, and to humanity and the League when Hawkgirl's allies actually invaded the world. It was an invasion that hit so much harder than the shapeshifting aliens in the series premiere, mostly because the Thanagarians are characters, and, well, it's an army of Hawkgirls, basically. And we already know what a badass Hawkgirl can be.

It's a very spectacular finale, and it's one that ended with a bit of finality because the producers weren't sure if the series was going to continue. And in a sense, it is the end of a huge portion of the Justice League as we prepare to embark on a huger, more insane journey throughout Justice League Unlimited, which I'll gush about when we get there (next year, after this season of Teen Titans reviews are over). Anyway, the Starcrossed movie is an absolutely awesome season finale that's epic and honestly a bit of a sad one. But before we talk about the last scenes, let's talk about how this particular arc began.

The Earth ends up being attacked by a spaceship belonging to the Gordanians, which gave the League a bit of trouble until a larger ship, piloted by Thanagarians, show up to save the day. The Thanagarians introduce themselves as allies of humanity, and being Hawkgirl's people, there's a quick incentive for both the audience and the civilians in-universe to associate with the Thanagarians as the good guys. Hawkgirl, apparently, is an advance scout sent to examine Earth's defenses (which includes the Justice League), and the Thanagarians note how inadequate they are. It might be well-intentioned at first, but other than the whole secret agent thing, there's a more personal level of betrayal for Green Lantern as Hawkgirl reveals that she's actually engaged to the tall, muscular commander, Hro Talak.

The romance between Lantern and Hawkgirl has been the biggest focus throughout the season, being shown to grow organically throughout so many episodes, and it is that finale that gets put through the test. Hawkgirl is definitely still attached to Earth and her Justice League buddies, but the Thanagarians are her people and she has a duty, plus Hro kind of knows the right words to say, and what food to bring. Hawkgirl's conflict definitely plays into some sort of a Romeo and Juliet parallel, as evidenced by the title.

Of course, what Hawkgirl doesn't know is that Hro has been lying, and that Earth isn't being given technology and facilities to protect it, but rather to be destroyed to create a wormhole relay that will allow the Thanagarians to bypass Gordanian defenses and strike at its home planet. Hro makes it clear that he values Thanagarian lives a lot more than us 'mere' humans, and to him this isn't genocide, just a particularly nasty collateral damage in a generations-old space war.

While the other Leaguers are happy to help out in constructing what they think is a giant force field (bar the mopey Green Lantern), Batman distrusts the Thanagarians and goes undercover as a politician to get some intel. He discovers the duplicity, that the Gordanian ship that attacked was a decoy, and the big Gordanian fleet is actually near Thanagar, not Earth. But before he can warn the League, Kragger, Hro Talak's lieutenant, shows up and captures Batman. Kragger, in addition to being obviously evil by his character design, is also very suspicious of Hawkgirl, continually trying to drive a wedge between Hro and Shayera in their scenes together by sowing seeds of doubt.

The Thanagarians then take out the Justice League, knowing their weaknesses thanks to Hawkgirl's monitors, and Lantern is the last person to fall, being taken out by Hawkgirl herself to prove her loyalty to the Thanagarians. It's very sad because this is usually the point when the hero decides she likes her friends more and refuses to deliver the killing or knock-out blow. It's a definitive loss to the heroes in this section of the story as we cut to the Leaguers being imprisoned in specialized cells, while the Thanagarians establish their control of Earth.

It's pretty cool and a lot more impressive than the pilot's alien walkers walking near destroyed buildings. The sight of the armoured Thanagarians fly around and patrol Earth's cities like Stormtroopers is chilling, especially that one shot where the Thanagarians are perched on top of the Daily Planet's globe. Kragger, meanwhile, continues to test Hawkgirl's loyalty, wanting her to kill the Justice League herself, though Hawkgirl worms her way out by noting that killing the League will turn Earth's population against the Thanagarians. I don't think the third named Thanagarian, the female Paran Dul, really did much other than to be an officer to give orders and fight the League, but she has a pretty awesome voice and got some pretty cool lines.

Wonder Woman gets to break free, in hilarious moment where she manages to convince a Thanagarian warrior to feed her (her hands are tied behind her back). "Don't be afraid, little man. I won't bite." Which she proceeds to do exactly just that -- bite the Thanagarian officer, and stealing the dagger with her teeth. She frees the rest of the Leaguers, but they are weakened enough by red sunlight, gravity fields and whatnot that the only possible thing to do is to retreat.

They return to Earth and hide in a clothing store to evaluate their options, an decide to switch to their civilian identities to sneak around. It's a hilarious moment when Batman just shuts Flash up with "Clark Kent, Wally West. Bruce Wayne." when Flash tries to express his unease at suddenly revealing his secret identity. They split up in pairs because the Thanagarians are looking for a group of six, and rendezvous in Gotham City, the Batcave.

Diana, being the paragon of justice and having the strongest sense of honour among the League, is the one to break her cover when she clobbers a Thanagarian officer threatening a bunch of civilians, and while Batman tells her not to do it, he jumps into action as quickly when their cover is blown. There is a very cool moment when they are on the run, and this Middle Eastern man just tells them to come into a restaurant and sit on a table with half-eaten food, with a waitress quickly tying a bandana on Diana's hair. They are non-powered people, just a bunch of random dudes... who still risks their lives to protect the Leaguers. Of course there's a kiss involved that kind of hides Wonder Woman's face, which is a big yay moment for shippers. There's a nice moment where Batman, usually the one that is the most protective of his secret identity, simply gives the restaurant owner a grim nod of respect, and not a "don't tell anyone" speech.

John and Wally almost get their covers blown because apparently they don't have any official papers on them, but Clark Kent, reporter extraordinaire, just shows up and pulls the annoying reporter shtick which is absolutely hilarious. J'onn just going along with it and using an old-fashion giant-flashbulb camera is hilarious, too. The League gather in the Batcave and there's definitely a cool moment as Flash meets Alfred, and are shown the secret entrance via the grandfather clock. They had a moment where the Watchtower is quickly taken down earlier in the episode, too, but the League spend very little time in the Watchtower compared to Batman and the Batcave, and it felt harder here.

Shayera, meanwhile, is doubting her allegiances, especially as Hro's veneer as the nice lieutenant and perfect fiance starts to crumble when Hro's plans to destroy the Earth became known. There's a bit of karma, I think, for Hro to be hiding a very crucial thing from her when she did the same to Lantern, and after some harsh words are exchanged -- I think the episode is very great at portraying Hawkgirl's conflict and Hro being both a dick and reasonable at the same time -- Hawkgirl decides to bugger off and confront the Leaguers at the Batcave and tell them of the Thanagarians' real plans. She gives Lantern his power ring back, too, but they feel too betrayed and tells her to just get out. Which honestly isn't that illogical of a thing to do. But Hawkgirl ends up bringing a tracker that leads Kragger's army to them.

And there's definitely a great moment as the final episode begins where the DCAU started, in the Batcave. There is a horrifying moment when the sanctity of a superhero's base, their home, is trashed. Alfred is ready to put up some fisticuffs, superpowers be damned, and gets whacked aside for his troubles (which makes Kragger instantly the villain I want to get killed the most), the grandfather clock gets blown up as the Thanagarians enter the Batcave, and it's one of the best scenes in the series, to be honest, where the League unleash a can of whoop-ass that's easily one of the best fights in the series. Batman using his batarang to summon a swarm of bats, Superman and Wonder Woman just unleashing their full strength, J'onn whacking a dude thrown by Superman by phasing in and out, Flash sends the giant Two-Face coin tumbling down on a pair of troopers, Superman uses his freeze breath to stop Kragger from using the Mr. Freeze's ray gun (which is a cool little cameo, too).

The group splits up as the heavy hitters -- Superman, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern -- decide to take down the Thanagarian armada, while Batman, Manhunter and Flash are supposed to infiltrate the Watchtower... only for J'onn to deliver the most hilarious deadpan "I have no idea how to fly this thing." Flash's attempt only causes a cannon to be fired that blows up a chunk of Wayne Manor, much to Batman's displeasure. J'onn ends up having to mind-read Kragger's mind, and it's a bit chilling as J'onn forces his way in, being damaged in real life as his mind-self is damaged by Kragger's mental bird swarm. There's a nice hint about Kragger's true motivations on causing a rift between Hro and Shayera as we see two huge statues of Hro and Kragger side-by-side, while Shayera lay shattered on the ground. Definitely a nice little moment that flew over my head as a kid.

And, holy shit, the trio of Superman, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern just absolutely wrecks the army of fighter ships, with the awesome pre-ass-kicking exchange between Diana and Clark: "Pretty bad odds, Superman." "Yeah, they don't stand a chance." Right before the two just fly straight and create a wave of destruction through the armada. Green Lantern launching like a web of lances while roaring in fury is also great, too. J'onn shows off his power by transforming into a giant martian cyclops in the Watchtower invasion and that is absolutely awesome.

Flash's earlier crack about "what are you gonna do, throw a batarang at it?" ends up being literal as Batman intends to ram the Watchtower down to the facility... and as Flash and J'onn move the Thanagarian soldiers into the escape pod, Batman ejects them to safety, planning to pilot the Watchtower down himself because they needed the precision. Flash's panicked banging on the window, and J'onn's stoic expression after the initial surprise, and Batman going "It's been an honour" is a very powerful moment even if no one really believes Batman is going to die here.

Meanwhile, on the facility, Wonder Woman, very angry at the betrayal from Shayera, still ends up freeing Shayera from the prison she finds herself in although Diana makes her displeasure absolutely evident. "I should leave you to burn." Meanwhile, Green Lantern and Hro Talak fight each other, which, while not quite matching the badassery of the League taking down an entire fleet, is very personal to John. It's also the big clincher as John needs to take down the forcefield to actually allow Batman's giant batarang gambit to make contact, so it's doubly important. A combination of the angriness of someone whose woman is 'stolen' and Nth Metal weapons causes Green Lantern's ring to be sliced in half. Before that we get the absolutely immortal-slash-cheesy line "Kiss my ass" from Green Lantern, or rather, "kiss my axe." Shayera then shows up to lay a whoop-ass on Hro Talak, but Hro ends up taking her out (bet she wished she had some armour around that exposed belly now) as well... but John taunts Hro into charging him and slamming his weapon into the control panel, taking down the control field. The two of them are battle-worn, but Shayera and John shut down the forcefield together.

Superman, meanwhile, showing where his priorities lie, ends up abandoning the battle the moment he learns of Batman's plan -- slightly before the beginning of the John/Hro fight, which is absolutely heartwarming as all hell. Superman saves Batman before the Watchtower slams down. Superman: "Always have to be the hero, don't you?" Batman: "Right back at you."

The day is won, Paran Dul leaves with the beaten Hro Talak and Kragger and damning Shayera for basically signing their race's death warrant in the war. It's bittersweet for Hawkgirl for choosing a side, but it doesn't end there.

The final scenes, with Shayera, stripped of both her Hawkgirl costume and her Thanagarian uniform, sits in the living room and comforted by Alfred and his tea, noting how to him Shayera's always a hero for her actions in saving the world. "Without the sacrifices you've made, we wouldn't be here to share this nice pot of tea." It's great that in-between all this cosmic space battle there's an emotional center to it, and the little voting session on whether Shayera should stay. We don't quite listen to how everyone votes, with Batman and Lantern's votes being ambiguous, but Diana very much wants Hawkgirl out for betraying them, while Flash is very supportive because she came through in the end. Flash has always been the 'kid' and the emotional center of the team, and when they split up back in "Secret Society" he was the one who reached out to reform the team first, and it's a nice moment for him. J'onn also votes to let Hawkgirl in, noting and sympathizing with how Hawkgirl has no one left but them. Superman is ambiguous but he does note how difficult it will be for them to trust Hawkgirl.

Alfred's speech struck a chord in Shayera, and she resigns from the team rather than listening to how her teammates voted. Flash gives her a quick hug before she goes, and before she takes off, John and Shayera have a short, sad moment as they try to figure out what this means for them, and while the love is still there the wounds from the recent string of betrayals are still there and they need time apart. As the final scene, Shayera flies into the sunset while a wounded John can only look on with tears in her eyes.

Prior to that romantic conclusion, we get a short moment where Flash asks. No Hawkgirl. No Javelin. No Watchtower. What will they do? J'onn and Superman simply say how they'll rebuild, which will lead to Justice League Unlimited. But that's a review for another day.

Very, very great episode. Hawkgirl has grown from a one-dimensional blood-thirsty alien viking lady into one of the most nuanced characters in the show over season two, and it's an absolutely wonderful story for both her and John. Add all the great set pieces -- the Batcave fight and the civilian snooping around are two personal favourites -- and it's simply a pretty great story full stop.

DC Easter Eggs Corner:

• Hints about Hawkgirl's duplicity has been seeded throughout all of season two in hints that are definitely way too subtle if you don't already know Hawkgirl's betrayal here. J'onn was unable to enter Hawkgirl's mind in "Only A Dream" when she was possessed by Dr. Destiny. In "Twilight", she was dismissive and tried to stop J'onn from probing too hard to find Thanagar's information in Brainiac's ship. In "The Terror Beyond", Hawkgirl was particularly hostile to Doctor Fate when it's revealed he knew about Thanagar, demanding to know what he knows. And all this kind of shows why Hawkgirl was initially so reluctant to start a relationship with Green Lantern.
• As of this episode, the Leaguers know each other's identity. Well, Diana and J'onn doesn't exactly have civilian identities, and John Stewart made no attempt at disguising his, but Batman reveals Clark Kent, Wally West and Bruce Wayne very quickly. Only Superman and maybe Wonder Woman (during their little 'date' it's implied she figured it out) knew Batman's secret identity prior to this. I'm pretty sure it's the first time that DCAU's Flash is firmly established to be Wally instead of Barry Allen.
• Paran Dul, the female Thanagarian officer, wears a helmet similar to Justice Lord Hawkgirl's helmet.
• This is Alfred's biggest role since Batman: The Animated Series, previously only delivering a couple of short lines when appearing in Justice League. In addition to Alfred, Scarface and Mr. Freeze's gun make short cameos in the Batcave fight. This marks Alfred's last appearance in the DCAU, because next season the silly Bat-Embargo will already be in place. Also having his last appearance is Snapper Carr, Mr. Newsman Guy for a good chunk of Justice League.
• Hro Talak is an anagram of Katar Hol, the secret identity of the Silver Age (Thanagarian space cop) version of Hawkman, and is honestly quite similar design-wise to Hawkman, barring the fact that Hro Talak is kind of a dick.
• Batman's bat-summoning batarangs is a trick that was based on Batman: Year One, and popularized in the live-action Batman Begins.
• The scene of members of the league voting whether to dismiss a member of the league that had done a traitorous action that nearly took out the entire League with Superman casting the final vote (which goes unheard), while the leaguer on trial decides to quite the League him/herself, is similar to the end of the JLA arc Tower of Babel, where it was Batman that was on trial for having relatively savage countermeasures against his JLA buddies that was stolen by Ra's Al Ghul.