Age of the Geek

Never Too Late
     2016 is definitely the year of unexpected things. The Cubs won the world series, that… other thing happened (we'll get back to that next week), but most exciting for me is the news that "Young Justice" will be getting a third season.
     "Young Justice," for those that don't know, was an animated series from Warner Bros. Animation that centered around a team of DC Comics sidekicks. It easily ranks among the best super hero shows that Warner Bros. has produced, and that's no small feat.
     By all accounts, "Young Justice" should not have worked. Half the cast consisted of obscure characters that even few comic fans would recognize and the show didn't adapt any pre-established incarnation of the Teen Titans or Young Justice from the comic books. Instead of adapting a particular era of continuity from the DC comics, the show mixed and matched characters and histories in a way that made them familiar, but distinct.
     Abandoning the episodic, continuity-free style of other shows of its time, "Young Justice" felt like a return to the older "Justice League Unlimited" series, with character driven episodes, a heavy emphasis on continuity, and an overarching story. Ironically, for being a show about teenage super heroes, "Young Justice" is probably the most mature series Warner Bros. Animation has ever made, with characters growing up, making hard decision, and occasionally dying for the cause.
     The show took big risks and they paid off in big ways for fans of good super hero drama.
     Unfortunately, it didn't pay off for the toy executives that funded the show and it was canceled after two seasons.
     "Young Justice" was funded based on a toy deal with Mattel and while the show itself generated critical acclaim, that acclaim didn't translate into action figure sales. When Mattel canceled the toy line, the show went with it. Like so many other great shows, "Young Justice" ended before its time.
     This is not uncommon. The animation landscape is littered with great shows that got cut down in their prime, often on cliffhangers that will forever go unresolved. Since 2013, it seemed like "Young Justice" would join the ranks of "Sonic the Hedgehog" and "Wolverine and the X-Men."
     In spite of this grim reality a surprisingly persistent fanbase has been pestering showrunner Greg Weisman about a third season. Much like how Joss Whedon to this day still fields questions about "Firefly" coming back, Weisman has the somber task of shooting down the hopes of fans looking for a chance that "Young Justice" could see a revival. I've seen it in person.
     The sad reality is that no amount of fan petitions and internet chatter is going to bring back a show that didn't turn a profit.
     Or is it?
     Earlier this year, "Young Justice" made it to Netflix and Weisman changed his tune, hinting that fans should take the opportunity to re-watch it. Since then rumors have circulated about Netflix funding the much desired continuation.
     The petitions came back, the internet chatter increased, and finally, two weeks ago, Warner Bros. Animation announced that "Young Justice" was coming back."
     This does not happen. For a show to get canceled as a financial failure, only to be revived three years later, is unprecedented as far as I know.
     It's not confirmed that Netflix will be financially backing the new season, but that appears to be the most likely scenario. If so, that's something of a game changer.
     Since the 80s, the animation industry has been heavily tied to the toy industry. Toy lines weren't created to profit off of cartoons, cartoons were created to advertise for toy lines. This practice is still prevalent today, though to a lesser degree. The fact remains though that, in many cases, the number of people watching a show doesn't matter when it comes to deciding if the show will continue. The only viewers that matter are the ones that also go out and buy into the toy line.
     Netflix obviously doesn't have that interest. Their financial model is to throw money at popular things to convince as many people as possible to stay subscribed for another month. For Warner Bros., this makes "Young Justice" a much easier sell. They know they have a rabid fanbase that will go to great lengths to watch the show. That's exactly the kind of thing Netflix is looking for.
     Who would have thought that undying fandom and pointless internet petitions could actually get something done?
 
     Travis Fischer is a news writer for Mid-America Publishing and wants a second season of ABC's  "Sonic the Hedgehog." It's only been 22 years. There's still time for a revival, right?