What It Means to Be Superman 

"But Shady, there are other reasons besides Death Battle as to why people think Superman is boring." Yes, I'm aware. I was just eager to talk about the damage DB did to the conversation. (Which isn't really their fault, it was moreso how salty Goku fans interpreted their words) This conversation has been on my mind for years, so my diction put most of the blame on DB even though there are other factors. The Lex Luthor clip I used from After Hours came out WAY before DB's video.

Fun fact: this episode is the only adaptation of comic writer Alan Moore’s works that Moore himself actually likes.

Here's an insight I had about this episode: Bruce's fantasy is not just that his parents didn't die, but that HE didn't have to be the one to save them. His fantasy is that his dad stepped up and won and all he had to do was cheer.

Superman telling his son "I don't think you're real" has haunted me for years 😭

I love how when you boil it down, bruce and clark have the same dream. To not be superman and batman. It's no wonder they are great friends despite having very different outlooks on basically everything

The scene of Clark giving up his perfect fantasy for the sake of saving his friends is definitely something that hits you more as an adult than it did as a child. Shows like Justice League and episodes like this, specifically, are the gold standard for writing characters like Superman.

A few things from a guy who absolutely loves this episode: The music that plays as Superman says goodbye to his son as the planet explodes is the same music that plays when he leaves Krypton as a baby in Superman the Animated Series. When Superman sees the Black Mercy in Jor El's lab he holds his hand to his chest BUT NOT ON HIS CHEST. His hand stops at the exact (maybe not exact as Batman is pulling on the thing) spot where the Black Mercy actually is on him implying his senses are coming back. The fact that Batman's fantasy is his Dad beating up the criminal, while no surprise to us, is literally the ONLY thing he wants shows how messed up he is. It's a prime example of a quote Batman says in the comics saying "..because deep down Clark is a good person and deep down I'm not" to paraphrase.

Superman is a man who was given the power of a god while pinning for the life of a man. That.... Really hurts when you think about it.

It was so nice of Mongul to give Soops an Elder Scrolls game! So many of my friends LOVED Oblivion!

Superman's problem is how new writers treat him like a prophet or Jesus copy. Superman is a normal guy raised on a farm. He has values of hard work. Plus like batman he can find the best even in the worst of people like when he was sent into the future and made friends with a villain who destoryed the world and got him to say "thank you friend". He found humanity in someone who destoryed it and even used his brain in that episode to fix a car and make a weapon. It also annoys me how people misunderstanding of how flash and superman are different. Superman wants to be that hope people can look up to while flash is a good friend as we see in the show. Both have their fans but superman needs to hold that image so villains don't attack regular people.

Theres a reason why his evil versions are always intriguing to see, it shows how much Klark holds back. The cardboard world quote always stuck with me.

For the Man Who Has Everything....If this episode doesn't stir something inside of you, you truly are heartless.

This was the episode that proved that Superman isn’t boring. He tries so hard to be a perfect symbol of good so much so that many believe that he’s perfect in real life. To see him break down proves he’s a real person with emotion.

Clark is a man who never got to experience his home world, so he studies the culture and history of the people he’ll never get to meet. He loves his adopted world, but he’ll always wonder what his life could’ve been like on a world where he isn’t a strange immigrant. To some, he’s the man who has everything. But he’s also the man who lost everything

Supeeman's simple declarations to Mongul. "Do you have any idea what you did to me..." and "BURN", followed by the screaming. The voice actors sold it across the board. That was the darkest I'd seen Supes go back then. And it felt right. He was mad. While they were illusions, he had the pain of losing his family newly burned into his soul. What a great episode.

I loved the Batman joke. Like this man is the world's greatest detective, but can't figure out what to give to a friend on his birthday. I mean the man pays for almost everything in the JL, what else could he give? XD

I'm really glad that we're seeing more and more appreciation for Superman lately. As big an icon as he is, I feel like he gets shafted too often unless he's evil for some reason.

The story that made me realize that Superman was an interesting character was the movie, Superman vs the Elite. The story isn't about Superman punching the bad guy, its about Superman's ideology being tested, showing the downsides of having that ideology and why having the ideology is important.

13:44 Batman gave Supes his 16 dollars back.

"Bruh, why are you bragging and smiling? You are about to DIE!" I had to replay that scene a few times to get the laughter out of my system

10:35 I think you have to have a child yourself for this to elicit an emotional response. As a girl, watching this episode, I didn't really care when he said goodbye to his son. I was rooting for it even, thinking that the kid was nothing more than a obstacle superman needed to get rid of. But as an adult woman, now a mother, this scene was heartbreaking. A child very much so is an extension of one's self. To see them go or die is like having a piece of yourself die. And to know all those memories were fake and the people you loved were too would be mind shattering. Imagine one day you woke up to find out everything and everyone in your life was a lie, that the decades of life you lived were nothing more than a few hours of illusion. That the innocent child who looks up to you, and you're their whole entire world just as they are yours, will die.

You know an adaptation is good when Alan Moore, a man who is infamous for hating literally every other adaptation so much he refuses to allow his name to be credited, actually allows his name to be credited in the adaptation.

Dude, that scene when Clark says goodbye to his son broke me as a young child. Heck, it still brings me to tears everytime I re-watch this episode.

Superman is such an iconic figure because of the influence he has on those around him. He had the power to do whatever he wants and he chooses to use it to be a good person and make the world a better place. I love how the writers focused on the internal conflict Superman deals with because a hero can’t be successful without overcoming obstacles. Superman stands for three things: Truth, Justice, and The American Way!

What makes Superman special is his humanity. The burden of being a God who can shape the world how he pleases. Yet he chooses to help others for the sake of it. One of my favorite Superman moments, which I think is just the perfect encapsulation of his character. Is when he sees a suicidal girl. He waits, all day, and into the night. Not moving an inch until she's ready to talk. It's a touching scene, he could be doing so much, but he spends his whole day helping one person, in the grand scheme of things a blip on his radar. Because she simply needs help and Clark is the Big Blue Boy Scout. It gets me choked up thinking about it.

I find it ironic how Bruce Wayne sees Superman as the “the man who has everything” when pretty much everyone on the league I think would pretty much agree that Batman is the literal definition of “man who has everything”

Alan Moore liked this script so much he actually allowed them to put his name on the episode. That is RARE and a true testament to Dwayne McDuffys storytelling

Honestly it's nice to see Superman gaining popularity in the mainstream again. Yes, he's always had an iconic status, but he hasn't always been popular, especially when compared to batman. I think it's just the cyclical nature of things and how we want what we don't have. Times were good superheroes were too goody goody so we wanted edgy things, and so batman became popular. Now everyone one and everything is panicking and superheroes are edgy so we want goody goody heroes like superman again.

My question is 'Were They Sentient?' The world was created in Superman's head, its more than likely that the Black Mercy was using already made memories and dreams in Clark's head to simulate the world and people, similar to daydreaming. This world is perfect because Clark likely had some small amount of control of it, even if he didn't realize it. Reactions to what he said and did in the world were based on what reactions he imagined the people may have. Like his son Val, when scolded, could have easily sassed back or grumbled like kids often do, but instead he is calm, remorseful and quickly accepts the lesson. (Not saying kids can't be like that, but its very American dream, Leave It To beaver-esk.) This is also why his father's voices changes in the middle of speaking. Jor-El is Clark's father, but just as equally so is John. His brain holds both in that position so the simulation got momentarily mixed. If they were sentient, wouldn't the other people have noticed things like that? Also wouldn't they have questioned the tremors as well? Sentience is very uncontrollable, which is likely to work against the Black Mercy, just like how Justice Guild of America turned against Ray Thompson, who had the ability to alter reality and created people out of thin air WITH sentience. In my mind, the people are all made up and imaginary, not really sentient or alive. They were just simulations based more on memories, hopes and daydreaming rather then pure information. THAT BEING SAID Clark's emotions for these fake people were VERY real. As was the loss of them, especially if the Black Mercy made up a lifetime of memories for this world, not just ones to placate Clark's mind. After all Clark remembers Val being born. Dose he have simulated memories of being raised in this world? Dating? His Marriage? Its very intrusive and manipulative and Clark has every right to be as angry as he was. Thats just my thoughts however!

Man, them using the Destruction of Krypton music in the background while Superman is telling Van-El that isn't real is just...heartbreaking. And that little "I'll never forget" he says to his son at the end... Bro...who's chopping up onions in here?

12:49 Missed an opportunity to have Mongol litterally handing Superman a copy of elder scrolls 4 oblivion. XP

Mongul got an interesting ending. You can hear what sounds like screams of civilians in his dream of the Black Mercy. You can tell it's the same exact scenario that he figured Superman was having, which was a nice touch. Kinda weird for a bad guy like him to get a happy ending even though it's fake.

6:06 Ironic how Mongul get those same exact visions when the Black Mercy is attached to him. You don't see it, but you do hear it in distance, like people screaming in fear and stuff. This is not really shown here, but as a kid, I remember it being really eerie to listen to those screams.

To answer Shady's question on who Loana was supposed to be, it was a mix of the two girls, Lois Lane and Lana Lang, meaning that he had feeling for both of them but his self conscience is protraying them as one person

In a lot of Superman iterations, When someone he loves is killed, that can put him on the path to evil, but that's exactly what happens in this episode. He looses his home and family. Sure they technically weren't real, but he admits it himself that he remembers every moment of their lives together and he had to look into his own child's eyes and say goodbye forever. Even if his son wasn't real, the experience of holding him until he was gone was real to Clark. Afterwards he's so furious with Mongul that he nearly beats him to death for putting him through that until he's reminded not to dishonor the memories of the real home and family he lost by becoming someone they wouldn't be proud of. This version of Superman really showcases his strength. That even after immense heartbreak he won't abandon his values.

I've always loved this episode. Superman was looking legit angry because for once he felt like he had his culture and people back. In the comics, Superman feels grateful to have been raised by the Kent's but always lonely because he was the only Kyptonian left (besides Supergirl). Superman shouting "Happy?" At Mongol for making him believe he had his most desired future only for him to not only realize it was a lie but also have to be the one to destroy it, I felt that anger. When he looks at the statue of his father and briefly remembers he's all that's left, I felt that longing. WW and Batman being his friends and reminding Superman that even tho he's the lost his people, he's not alone because he's got them, I felt that heart. This is why I love Superman.

That smile on Bruce was definitely sad as hell

What's so messed up is that Batmans happiest world isn't even a full life with his parents. He just imagines Joe Chill being beaten down. He can't even imagine a happy world beyond that moment.

The part where he says goodbye to his son never really got to me until I had my own son. Now that shit gets the water works going. Even if it wasn’t real, he still experienced raising his son. The strength to let go of someone you love more than yourself is unimaginable.

I experienced severe whiplash going from choking up at Clark and Bruce in their Black Mercy prisons to cracking up at the free Black Mercy "Tell me what you want" joke. Thank you for that as well as the Pa Kent easter egg and Superman defence.

As someone who has literally never read a Super hero comic in his life and who's only experience with them is the first Injustice game, the mobile spin-off, and reviews on youtube, I really like Superman. like... actual Superman, the boy-scout who'd sooner give up all his powers than go back on his morals and who's only ever looking out for those around him. The idea of a dude with the power of plot on his side and the morals to not go crazy because of it is interesting to me, and watching him be poked and prodded at has given a lot of stories I quite like hearing and thinking about, even if I haven't read any myself. I kinda wish more stories about things like that were about, because I do really like that sort of thing, watching a hero be tested is where most of the fun comes from, and having that test not be physical but mental like it kinda has to be with Super Man is really fun. Which is why it sucks so much when people label him boring and we get less of that as a result, I loooove Dragonball, I've seen every movie, every short, watched every episode of the anime for ball, Z, GT, and Super several times over, went back and read all of the manga after that, and I've played most of the games at one point or another... But goku definitely ain't Superman, in fact he's kinda the opposite. The fun with goku is seeing how he pushes past his limits to take down foes more powerful than himself, and goku is anything but a purely moral character, he regularly puts himself and other people in danger because he thinks it sounds fun, at least from dragon ball to mid Z, in the Cell and Buu stuff that kinda slows down, but it's still kinda there. Equally annoying tho, I think, is how Goku has kinda been turned into a more fight happy version of Superman, because that kinda misses the point of goku as much as any evil superman misses the point of superman. it's a cool idea, maybe a little what-if thing, but that's just not who they are. Goku is a selfish, naive family man who wants to punch strong guys, making him a hero out of nowhere ignores the poison in him: that lust for a good fight and the lengths he's willing to go to in order to get one is what makes Dragon ball, Dragonball. TL;DR - I like Superman being a boy-scout and Goku being a dumbass who just really likes punching guys.

Van’s death never really got to me until last year…. I lost someone very dear to me and it destroyed my world for a good while. I decided to rewatch this episode and it helped me through the grieving process. I was Superman in that scene. Powerless to help the one I loved and didn’t want to let them go. His strength, his pain, and his anger in the following scenes really helped me connect with him. And the final scene on him looking optimistic in the future, helped me believe that everything will get better. I’m in a better place now and I think I wouldn’t have made it here without those around me and this episode

11:37 that hit so hard in the hart

11:30 I'll be honest. For how dark and brooding batman is, I like how in his preferred fantasy version of reality, papa Wayne beat up the burglar in the most comic book hero fashion while lil Bruce watched excitedly

I didn't break when Kal-El said goodbye to Van, but I broke when Bruce cheered for his father.

Kudos for it'sjustsomerandomguy snippet. Superman isn't boring.. Superman represents the ideal of what we strive to be everyday. The best versions of ourselves.

I like to think that Bruce _immediately_ snapped out of it because he recognized Wonder Woman's voice and had the willpower to wake up. Batman seems like the kind of character to be able to catch on when something isn't real. It was too good to be true and he probably knew that.

To date, this is the only adaptation of Alan Moore’s work that Alan Moore actually likes

Holy sh-! I never noticed the voice-change! Thanks for pointing that out. This is one of my FAVORITE JLU episode because its so emotional and like the original story from the comics it just really gets to me. WHen Mogul says "It must've been like tearing off your own arm." I was like... wow.. that is horrifyingly accurate.

This episode always reminded me of that one episode of BTAS where Batman was put into an "ideal world" by the Mad Hatter where his parents were alive and Bruce was engaged to Selina Kyle.

I truly think the one word to truly describe Superman that nobody uses is... sacrifice. He has given and lost so much in order to do what's right. Even upon his own happiness.😢

Superhero appreciation shady is best shady. Also, the Black Mercy singing "Tell me what you want" made me giggle

I agree about the bad guy thing. These days everybody wants the bad guy to be super deep and complex and have some crazy backstory. When really sometimes it’s cool just to have a bad guy who’s bad for the sake of being bad

I agree with the final statement. I've heard the "How can I get into a character who can beat everybody with ease" and I have to tell them that they clearly have never read Superman or understand the character. Superman is still my favorite superhero. He is such a great character and has amazing stories.

I've set it before, and I'll say it again. Why can we not get more of this Superman in this day and age? I mean, we kind of have that with "My Adventures with Superman," but still.

Superman is my all time favorite superhero already. He’s both relatable and aspirational. Specifically, I mean the post-Crisis pre-Flashpoint Superman.

There also exist people who see Superman's "godhood" as the core aspect of his character, that THAT is what he likes the most, and they borderline worship that version. In truth, and the episode actually shows this, Clark Kent's dream life is to live a simple, happy life with people he loves.

In the original comic, it was actually Robin that stopped mongul.

Superman is a great character especially in justice league tas universe. We see how much he has to struggle to both gain the trust of the people and regain it after he was brain washed to take over metropolis. Lose allies like Hamilton who while a jerk you can see how him and the Cadmus group fear how easily super heroes could take over the world(white outfit superman) This episode shows that superman would want a life at home and for his family to be alive. Mongol did something so horrible and thats to batman as well. He could have broken them both in that episode

12:10 and remember, "world of cardboard." He's STILL holding back.

Superman has never been boring. The fantasy of Superman is that the man with all the power in the universe just wants to be one of us and to help us selflessly. The fantasy is that we have a role model who embodies the best of us and who wants nothing more than to have a family and for us to be safe and free to pursue our interests. It's the reason "evil Superman" stories are boring. A man who has all the power and wants to oppress us with it isn't a fantasy. It's a stone's throw away from real life. Also, thank you for covering this episode. Easily one of my favorite episodes in JLU. Going on that emotional roller coaster of a ride with Superman and watching him give Mongul exactly what the tyrant had coming is satisfying every time. The way he yells "BURN" gives me, perhaps ironically, chills.

9:45 Holy shit! I’ve never noticed that!

That episode had to be one of the most emotional. I still remember how hard it really hits.

12:05 because, like the Joker, he's done his damage. Even if Supes beats him to a soup now, Mongul still accomplished his goal of making him suffer and lose everything he's held dear, even as a fabrication

I don't know how you reasoned that the people in Clark's vision are sentient. The episode is very clear on what they are: they're figments of Clark's imagination, full stop. They ACT sentient, but they're an illusion. So clearly, the moral thing to do is to end it and get back to reality where REAL people need him, no matter how real it seems. The amazing thing is that Clark still treats his vision of Van as real enough that he vows to "never forget". But great breakdown nontheless! This episode never fails to get me. Whether its Clark having to let go of Van and the rest of his fantasy, or the brief moment where he stays his wrath to remember his birthparents, his legacy (which I'm kinda sad you didn't point out, its a very poignant moment). Even the brief bit where Bruce falls under the Black Mercy's spell is heartbreaking, for how short it is. Its quite the episode. PS - Love the shoutout to the "I'm a Marvel, I'm a DC" skits. Those are classic RU-vid videos, and actually do a pretty good job at elaborating on the character for both lulz and some decent character moments in their own right. I highly recommend them to anyone who hasn't seen 'em.

A lesser-known comic character is the Phantom, who did have an animated series based on a comic book series called Phantom 2040. The Phantom is lesser-known in the US, but he's very popular in India and parts of Africa, but mainly in India. The Phantom's themes are varied, but the biggest one I've noticed is the importance of legacy and familial responsibilities. The Phantom did have a live-action movie back in the 1990s just titled "The Phantom," and it starred Billy Zane in the title role and the way they addresses things in the Phontom's lore and with the Phantom we are following is actually pretty novel; at least by superhero standards. The Phantom actually set the standard for masked heroes after him; he was the first hero to have pure white where his eyes were supposed to be on the mask, which Batman followed suit on, and you'll actually notice quite a few parallels between The Phantom and Batman, but the Phantom actually predates him, his first comic aired in February of 1937, let that sink in for a moment; he also has a creed and code, one that is mirrored by the Batman we know now.

Growing up literally nobody but me knew this show existed because my generation just barley missed the window seeing this show on tv so hearing someone talk so passionately about it like I would gives me inner peace

2 things I wanna say to Shady: #1: Having "Wannabe" by Spice Girls be the theme of the dream granting parasite was hilarious. #2: I wanna thank you Shady for showing what makes DC heroes awesome. For a long time I was a Marvel fan who didn't have any interest in DC comics. But seeing a fan express why he loves Justice League and other DC heroes has given me a newfound respect and interest for DC stuff.

5:52 That was a realy good joke

Mongul is REALLY great as a villain in this episode, and holy smokes this episode is fan-flippin-tastic. This episode is such an emotional gut punch, and that scene hits me right in the feels. Also... don't mind me while I pause the episode... I'm having an attack of The Feels right now. This is about as emotional as listening to the Muppets sing their farewell to Jim Henson. Just... yeah. Writing half this good would have kept the MCU and DCCU going for DECADES, especially if movies were about twice a year. EDIT: ...Okay, that music choice is both inspired and also obnoxious... and obnoxiously funny. Good job!

This episode hit me HARD as a kid, to give up your ideal reality to do what needs to be done. Just hearing you talk about it got me choked up, and I haven't seen this episode in 10 years. Amazing analysis as always, Shady. Excuse me while I find my tissues.

Shady so happy to see another one of your videos keep up the good work 5:49 😂😂😂

8:00 Good lord do I hate 'relatable villians' all the time too Like, sometimes a good Villian can be totally despicable and you just wanna see them socked in the face while also enjoying the ensuing Hero vs Villian encounter

I really want a Wonder Woman cartoon. That would be so awesome. Dc, get on that shit!

8:30 When your heroes were just good people. And your central villain is a legit bad person you want to see fall. And you can do it without them being silly.

8:59 is why I've always thought of Wonder Woman to be the Chaotic Good of the Trio Despite being a Vigilante, I can't see Batman as Chaotic Good. He could be considered lawful because he obeys a strict code of justice, but it's easy to label him as Chaotic Good because he operates outside of the law. It doesn't stop him from working with the police when need be. It really depends on the writer.

I'm REALLY excited for Shady to talk about Billy Batson. This show was my introduction to Captain Marvel and I adore Billy

Fun Fact: This comic this episode is adapting was the first time Superman used his heat vision as a weapon

God, this episode is so good. Batman might be a tortured soul, but I feel like deep down, Clark still feels that there's something missing, something he'll never have.

One of my favorite episodes of the DCAU that has my favorite versions of Batman and Superman. This episode is great and is one of the best adaptions from the original comic.

The thing that always got me in this episode was actually when Clark was beating up Mongul and stopped because he saw the statue of his parents, it really drives home how impossible and long gone that life he dreamed of was.

There's also the fact that, in a lot of Superman stories, if Superman *did* push the limit and do what a lot of anime protagonists did, it would be seen as a horrible thing to do. Because Superman's power *is* infinite. Yet the main message in his story is how humanity as a whole has the power to be better. If Superman truly became the god he is capable of being, then he proves all the skeptics right. Superman has to actively limit his power and solve problems without the use of his super strength simply because it's about the hope that simply doing the right thing is enough.

Fun fact: Superman going "Burn" and hitting Mongul with his heat vision was straight up the first time in comics that Superman used his heat vision to directly hit an opponent. He was MAD at Mongul.

I love this episode so much, too, and the storytelling and adaption of Alan Moore's comic issue of the same name are absolutely masterful; you genuinely feel the pain of Clark losing what could've been a paradise for him and see the desperate and undying attempts to help Clark by Bruce and Diana which indeed prove how much they care about him as a teammate and deep personal friend, which I love to see from the DC Trinity. I also never noticed that switch in Jor-El and Pa Kent's voices, which I really like since it is sort of an application that Clark's subconscious is seeping through since deep down, even if Jor-El is the biological father, he wishes he could've known, Pa Kent still is and always be the father that raised Clark and loved him, so, of course, he's still going to have some part of him stick with him. BTW I know this is a nitpick, but though Wonder Woman doesn't have a code against killing, she rarely resorts to killing as she does believe in man's world and potential and believes in the ideals of love and compassion to truly help the world and try and help those who need it since Wonder Woman, much like Batman, Flash or Superman does try to help some of her rogues gallery of villains and tries to save them like Cheetah, Silver Swan etc...

The reason people call Superman boring, isn't because of the character of Superman itself, its mostly because of how many bad writers have had their chance to write stories for Superman, and then basically those stories becoming well known enough, that everyone basically knows about them, and they get no desire or interest to learn more about the character, just because they got that information and opinion from second hand, and not because they arrived at it by themselves, because when I have shown my friends and colleagues good stories about Superman, such as the one with All Star Superman, or some of the episodes for the animated series or even JL or JL Unlimited, they actually ended up liking the character, and wondered why so many people were negative about the character, when they had a good time being entertained and one even found the Superman from Justice League Action, very memeable just because of how chill they made Superman in that series. Its also funny how some of those people that hate Superman, have no issues whatsoever with characters like Saitama or even All Might, who basically borrow elements from Superman's whole thing, and often times tell a lot of folks to watch One Punch Man or My Hero Academia, and while those stories are good and can be very entertaining, I rather be humbled with stories where they show how Superman is tested and demonstrates how to be the true symbol for heroism, all while being a regular farmer guy at heart who ends up doing good in the world, while trying to leave humanity to do their own thing when he could have been on top of them, unlike all those horrible stories about how Superman "snaps" like Injustice and all that stuff that just doesn't understand the character.

11:50 When Superman gets that angry you half expect the theme of George Newbern's other most famous role to play--i.e. "One Winged Angel."

Dude. You’ve gotta review the Cadmus arc in this show. It’s a masterpiece 🙌🏻

Personally I always thought of 2 reasons for Diana being able to break Bruce out of the black mercy were 1) Bruce has actually already had an episode in the original show where he had seen his life without his parents dying on that tragic night, and 2) at this time Diana is the one person je is romantically connected to fully, without that night no batman and no meeting Diana, the person he currently loves is not something he can imagine without that night. Unlike Clark who sees the brighter side easily therefore having his cake and eatting it with his wife in the krypton paradise Bruce has everything tied to not only that moment but that act, his mind is split in a way between the good he has now and what he could have had because of that moment.

12:30 Okay I know for time you can't talk about every single part of the episode, but THIS is the shot that really breaks me. Superman losing the family he always wanted is tragic, to be sure. But Batman finally having BACK what was taken from him? Getting to be that happy kid watching his dreams come true? Only to have it all crumble away as his dad goes from winning the fight, to losing the upper hand, to having Joe Chill get the gun back as reality sets in? THAT is heart-wrenching.

Another really good review, Shady. This episode is one of many that made me tear up, and still does to this day. Also, in regards to that bit about Death Battle, they also made the point that Superman's story is about a god trying to live among mortals, which is something else that people seemed to overlook with Superman

I've had this episode on my Xbox 360 for way past the decade and it's still one of the best episodes ever

One thing I noticed about this episode is when Superman starts fighting, the “mask” ie restraint come off and he pulls his punches less

I that “Tell me what you want” edit was fantastic. Also, I can’t believe you didn’t get the feels when Superman had to leave the simulation.

Here in Brazil, this episode is also is deemed to have the best voice acting in history. Specially the part where supes has the talk with his son all the way when he fights mongul. Cudos to Guilherme Briggs. It was one of his Magnus Opus.

15:05 honestly i like the last death battle with Goku and superman being friends because honestly they are very much alike and care for the people they love and the world around them and i would argue one of the few times superman could go hard against a opponent without the end of or the death of the world looming over him. And quite frankly i would love a superman v Goku crossover as i'd be pretty fuckin hyped!

I feel like Batman got out easy because he’s spent the majority of his life reliving it over and over he knew deep down

Plato once said "The worth of a man is what he does with power." Superman is not boring, he's an exciting character. He chooses to be a hero and struggle with it because that's who he is. "I feel like I live in a world made of cardboard, always taking constant care not to break something, to break someone. Never allowing myself to lose control." - Superman

12:31 Snap back to reality *Batman falls back* oop there goes gravity

The justice league cartoon was so good and I loved that it didn’t treat you like an idiot and handled hard themes

9:00 not even just "if she deems it necessary". Sometimes it's just anger getting the better of her and she has to be reigned in by her colleagues.