The Savage Time | Episode 24
Aired: November 9th, 2002
Heroes: Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Superman, Batman, Hawkgirl, J'onn J'onzz, Flash, Alternate Present versions: Bruce Wayne, Barbara Gordon, Dick Grayson and Tim Drake; and Steve Trevor
Villains: Vandal Savage and Adolf Hitler
Objects: Power Ring, Javelin, Utility Belt (Gas Capsules), Lasso of Truth, Nth Metal, Hover Vehicles, Batmobile, Time Machine, War Wheels, Electric Gauntlet, and Luftwaffe
Places: Justice League Watchtower, Metropolis, Daily Planet, Batcave, Paris, and Berlin
Written By: Stan Berkowitz
Directed By: Butch Lukic
The Savage Time | Episode 25
Aired: November 9th, 2002
Heroes: Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Superman, Hawkgirl, J'onn J'onzz, Flash, Steve Trevor, The Blackhawk Squadron (Janos "Blackhawk" Prohaska, Andre Blanc-Du Mont, Olaf Friedriksen and Ritter Hendricksen) and Easy Company (Sgt. Rock, Wildman, Bull Dozer and Ice Cream)
Villains: Vandal Savage and Adolf Hitler
Objects: War Wheels, Nth Metal, Luftwaffe, Power Ring, and Lasso of Truth
Places: Paris, Berlin, and Blackhawk Island
Written By: Stan Berkowitz
Directed: Dan Riba
The Savage Time | Episode 26
Aired: November 9th, 2002
Heroes: Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Superman, Batman, Hawkgirl, J'onn J'onzz, Flash, Steve Trevor, The Blackhawk Squadron (Janos "Blackhawk" Prohaska, Andre Blanc-Du Mont, Olaf Friedriksen and Ritter Hendricksen) and Easy Company (Sgt. Rock, Wildman, Bull Dozer and Ice Cream)
Supporting: Alternate Present versions: Bruce Wayne, Barbara Gordon, Dick Grayson and Tim Drake
Villains: Vandal Savage and Adolf Hitler
Objects: War Wheels, Lasso of Truth, Nth Metal, Power Ring, Electric Gauntlet, Time Machine, and Utility Belt
Places: Paris, Berlin, and Metropolis
Written By: Stan Berkowitz
Directed: Butch Lukic
Summary
Summary written by VortexInfiniteThe Justice League is returning from an as-yet unknown mission in deep space. Six of them anyway. Batman awaits their return in the Watchtower. Green Lantern tows an out-of-comission Javelin back home when a sudden temporal disturbance catches the League off guard. Batman disappears and the remaining members are left to pick up the pieces.
Landing, they discover a world in turmoil. A man named Vandal Savage has assumed complete totalitarian control of the globe. The League is unrecognized and unwanted, at least by the soldiers who attempt to arrest them. A group of resistance fighters come to their aid and take them to their headquarters to meet...Batman.
This Batman is far removed from their old friend however. Decked out in high-tech armor, the Bruce Wayne of this timeline has achieved what was thought impossible. He is even more untrusting and darker than before. After some difficulty, he tells the League what has happened and helps them track down one of Savage's key establishments.
The League finds a time portal in the scientfic facility and goes through it, leaving alternate Batman behind to lead the resistance. They end up smack dab in the middle of a World War II battle. The history we know mandates that the Allies should be winning, but history has been altered with the addition of 21st century weapons technology. The Axis forces have been taken over by Savage and are crushing the good guys.
Savage, it turns out, is immortal. This trait has allowed him to send back blueprints for superior weapons and, most importantly, precious information of the war to his past self. Armed with this, Vandal deposed Hitler, cryogenically froze him, and began leading the Nazi party to victory.
That is, until the League showed up.
The Justice League gives the Allies a fighting chance against Savage's pumped up army. The group splits up. Superman, Flash, and Hawkgirl work with the legendary Blackhawks while Wonder Woman and J'onn J'onnz aid an American spy, Steve Trevor. Diana and Steve give each other googly eyes in between gunfire and explosions. Meanwhile, John Stewart (thought lost by his teammates) proves his worth when he is forced to work with the Easy Company without his ring's powers (the ring was drained of all its energy during the trip home).
Met with this opposition, Savage unleashes his trump card. An armada of giant bomber jets headed for America. The League comes together to stop the threat. Stewart, captured by the immortal villain, manages to bring down Savage's plane from the inside. Lantern is saved by Hawkgirl, but Vandal Savage is seemingly lost in the deep waters.
The team returns home through another portal and find everything as it should be. Superman is so relieved to see the old Batman back that he gives him a hug!
...Needless to say, after that, things are awkward between the two for a while.
Review
Review written by VortexInfiniteSavage Time is hands down the best episode of season one. Incredibly epic, amazingly well animated, and extremely thought-provoking, it is a shining example of what Justice League can be. The characters are each used ingeniously. Wonder Woman and John Stewart shine as the season that spotlighted them so heavily closes. The former has an interesting reaction to all-American Steve Trevor and the latter shows off just exactly what years training with the Marines can do.
Alternate Batman is an ingenious idea. It's always interesting to explore the countless "what-ifs" that come with this type of series. This version of the Dark Knight highlights the character's tragedy and personality. One of the most intense lines comes when Superman warns that going through with their plan would lead to alternate universe Batman never existing. His response?
"Nothing would make me happier."
Vandal Savage proves to be an exciting villain. His cool and intellectual manner is enough to send chills down the spine of an involved viewer. The fact that he could get rid of Adolf Hitler alone makes him a formidable opponent. He's miles from the pitiful antics of the Injustice Gang. (Speaking of Hitler, the scene where we find him frozen is also creepy and well-done.)
Finally, the guest stars in this episode were well-handeled. The Blackhawks, Trevor, and Easy Company manage to contribute to the episode without upstaging the heroes. The Blackhawks have an amazing theme song and Easy Company portray the American soldier in an interesting way. Trevor I found a little bland and annoying, but Diana's relationship with him is still a nice addition to the episode.
Just like the memories of that time period, Savage Time will never be forgotten. It is a highly successful homage to the Golden Age and 1940's patriotism.