Justice League Unlimited/Initiation

Initiation
Season 3, Episode 1
Airdate	July 31, 2004
Written by	Stan Berkowitz
Directed by	Joaquim Dos Santos
← 2x26 Starcrossed (3)	3x02 → For the Man Who Has Everything
Justice League Unlimited — Season Three

Initiation is the first episode of the third season of Justice League Unlimited, and the fifty-third episode overall.

From this episode on, the series is known as Justice League Unlimited whereas in the first two seasons, it was known simply as Justice League. Green Arrow, Green Lantern, Supergirl and Captain Atom battle to stop a giant nuclear robot.

Starring the Voices of: Kevin Conroy (Batman), Phil LaMarr (Green Lantern), Carl Lumbly (J'onn J'onzz), George Newbern (Superman), Kin Shriner (Green Arrow), Nicholle Tom (Supergirl / Kara), George Eads (Captain Atom), James Sie (General Kwan), Lex Lang (Robber #1)

Plot Overview

The Justice League adds dozens of new heroes to their ranks in an effort to better protect the world. Green Lantern, Supergirl, Captain Atom and a reluctant Green Arrow are sent to Chong Mai to investigate a growing source of radiation. There, they discover the source of the radiation is a giant, flaming robot.

The robot manages to defeat Green Lantern, Supergirl, and seemingly kills Captain Atom. Green Arrow manages to fire a carbon rod into the reactor of the robot, stopping it. Back at the Watchtower, Captain Atom is reconstituted and Green Arrow decides to join the league after spying a certain Black Canary.

Notes

Comic Book Parallels

• Captain Atom: A former Air Force Captain, Nathaniel Adam volunteered for a top-secret military project theorizing that an alien metal could protect against atomic blasts. During testing, the metal fused to Adam's body and sent him 18 years into the future. The alloy allows him to tap into the quantum field, granting him with great strength, flight, and the ability to fire atomic energy and absorbing it into his body.

First Appearance: Space Adventures #33, written and illustrated by Steve Ditko.

• Green Arrow: Playboy billionaire Oliver Queen was stranded on an island after falling overboard on a cruise. In order to survive, he fashioned a bow and arrow, hunting and honing his skills until his rescue. After stopping a robbery at a costume party where he was dressed as Robin Hood, he devoted himself to ridding his home of Star City of crime. He is one of the world's fastest archers and is adept at hand-to-hand combat.

First Appearance: More Fun Comics #73, written by Mort Weisinger with art by George Papp.

Arc Advancement

Happenings

• The League: The Justice League has recruited dozens of new members. The Watchtower also has several small support satellites, presumably manned by the new members.

Characters

• Green Lantern: John Stewart dons a new look with this episode. He has shaved his head as is sporting a moustache and beard.

Trivia

The Show

• Unlimited Heroes: Some of the new heroes seen in the Watchtower include: Aquaman, The Atom, Atom Smasher, Aztek, Black Canary, Blue Devil, Booster Gold, B'wana Beast, Creeper, Crimson Avenger, Dove, Dr. Fate, Dr. Light, Elongated Man, Etrigan, Fire, Hawk, Huntress, Ice, Metamorpho, Mr. Terrific, Orion, The Question, Red Tornado, Rocket Red, Sand, Shining Knight, Stargirl, Starman, Steel, S.T.R.I.P.E., Thunderbolt, Vigilante, Vixen, Waverider and Wildcat.

Allusions and References

• Brimstone: The nuclear robot that the League faces in this episode bears a strong resemblance to the villain Brimstone. In the comics, Brimstone was created by Darkseid from an experimental generator at S.T.A.R. Labs.