For the last two weeks I’ve been writing reviews on the site for Green Lantern: The Animated Series and Young Justice. The two shows are the flagship animated programs on DC Nation, a one hour block of animated programming, based entirely on characters from DC Comics, for Cartoon Network. Both had just begun the second half of their seasons, which had been on hiatus, and both were doing quite well bringing their audiences back into the fold. I would argue that Young Justice was really the show everyone was waiting for, but Green Lantern was worming its way into my heart with each episode.
Imagine my surprise, then, when I went to watch two of my favorite Saturday morning cartoons only to find How to Train Your Dragon playing instead. Normally, this wouldn’t bother me…actually, that’s a lie. It would probably bother me regardless. My chief issue being that my cable guide specifically listed the episodes as airing on Saturday as well as the previews featured at the end of last week’s block. Obviously I wasn’t the only fan affected by this tragic turn of events. DC Comics and DC Nation were immediately bombarded with questions of “Why?” And, in typical DC fashion, the only answer given was, “New Episodes Return in January!”
Really? That’s the best you could come up with? I know they’re cartoons, but they’d just come back from a four month hiatus! Two weeks of new episodes and now we have to wait another three months before we find out what happened to Hal after facing The Anti-Monitor and how Young Justice will rally together after Aqualad’s destruction of Mount Justice? That’s…aww, sonofabitch! You brilliant bastards, DC Nation! It’s so devious and diabolical that it’ll probably work! You gave us two weeks and then the last episodes ended on cliffhangers, more or less. That means we’ll have to wait until next year to see the conclusions! I’d applaud you if I wasn’t plotting your horrible demise!
That’s really the only reasoning I can come up with for the sudden pull of two very popular shows. I mean, it’s not like they were up against anything that would’ve taken away their audience. I saw someone online mention the new TMNT show as a reason for pulling the shows, but the they aren’t even running against each other, so that 
can’t be it. They also have two popular lead-ins with Ben Ten and Star Wars: The Clone Wars, so it’s not for lack of momentum generated by the shows preceding them. Another, more plausible reason, is DC Nation’s next round of animated programming starting with Beware the Batman. Scheduled to air within the 2012-2013 season, Beware the Batman will fill the void of Batman-related entertainment we’ve been missing since Batman: Brave and the Bold was cancelled. Though, if you ask me, Brave and the Bold was fantastic and cancelled well before its time. Beware the Batman is also animated in the same CGI style as Green Lantern, which means the two shows will probably be paired together. There’s also Teen Titans Go!, Cartoon Network’s way of resurrecting the previously cancelled Teen Titans while cashing in on the popular shorts. This show will most likely be paired with Young Justice since they’re both classic animation. Or they could mix and match like before.
That, as far as I can tell, is the reason for the pull. If Cartoon Network was trying to get people to talk, then congratulations, they’ve succeeded. But will it bite them in the ass? Eh, probably not. We fan-people may get angry, but we likes what we likes. At the very least, I’ll keep watching Green Lantern and Young Justice, but they 
might have already created some bad publicity for their new shows by depriving us of the ones we already love. Of course, as per my job, I’ll watch the new shows, but that doesn’t mean I won’t have a scowl on my face with my hands crossed over my chest. Because I have principles, dammit!
About Samantha Cross
Sam is a self-described "sponge for information" soaking up little tidbits here and there that make her the perfect partner on pub trivia night! Hailing from the beautiful Pacific Northwest, she indulges her nerdy and geeky qualities by hanging out at the local comic book shop, reading anything she can find, and voicing her opinion whether you welcome it or not. An archivist and historian, she will research any and all things and will throw down if you want to quote Monty Python, Mel Brooks, or The Simpsons!
