Review: Young Justice: Phantoms “Tale of Two Sisters”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Just as multiple Shadows fall across her path, Artemis Crock’s life is interrupted by devastating news.

Our Take:

Well, this galactic vacation just ended in the worse way possible. Last week, our heroes discovered the true culprit behind the Red Martian King’s murder and saved the planet from a deadly bomb attack. Unfortunately, their heroism came with a cost as Superboy sacrificed himself to get rid of the device. This week’s episode shows that M’gann wasn’t the only person who didn’t take the news lightly.

“Tale of Two Sisters” shifted the show’s focus from Miss Martian to Artemis Crock (Stephanie Lemelin), whose regular, happy life is shattered by the news of Superboy’s death. She then discovers that a mysterious stranger named Oynx Adams arrives to tell her that she defected from the League of Shadows and warn her about Cassandra Savage’s plan. However, Savage also arrives to tell Artemis that Oynx is the actual mole. To figure out this complicated scenario, Artemis will have to turn to the one person who knows the League better than anyone: her sister Jade.

The episode marked the start of the second phase in Young Justice’s fourth season, which transports its viewers back down to Earth after their four-week vacation on Mars. It also features a new group of heroes, primarily Artemis, Arsenal, and Arrowette, taking on a heroic mission that requires more than one episode to complete. It did the job well in carrying over from last week’s episode by showcasing Artemis’ grief in its opening scene. Other than that, it’s a fine start to a new arc that offered more superhero action than the previous episodes.

The title served as a suitable reference to Charles Dickens’s novel, A Tale of Two Cities, regarding Artemis’ book in the flashbacks and the mid-credit scene. But, more importantly, it represents Artemis’ relationship with Jade, who left home to join the League years ago. The flashbacks involving Artemis and Jade were solid enough to characterize these sisters without breaking the episode’s pace. The episode also featured special appearances from Talia al Ghul and Damian Wayne during the one scene for the massive DC fans to endure.

Overall, “Tale of Two Sisters” returns to the show’s standard, down-to-earth superhero form with good results. It’s a minor step backwards from its previous chapters in terms of storytelling. Still, it represents an enjoyable and action-packed start to this new story arc that can only get more intriguing from here on out, especially with the reunion between two sisters.