"The End" Week: Young Justice #55!

Like the DC Nation cartoon Young Justice? Then we'll see what looks familiar from this issue! From 2003, Young Justice #55, "I've Got a Secret" Written by Peter David, pencils by Todd Nauck, inks by Lary Stucker.

The gaseous, ghostly YJ member called Secret has been turned to the dark side...oh, I'm sorry, by Darkseid. Hmm...this predates Darkseid's attempts to corrupt Supergirl and Mary Marvel; what is up with Darkseid trying to turn underage girls? Gross.

Although she's now an angry personification of death, Secret is still a scared little girl; and allows herself to be talked down by Robin, who appears plainclothes as Tim Drake to underscore the fact that they're only human. Darkseid is disappointed that he invested all this time and effort in her, but has a specific punishment set aside for her. After zapping Slo-bo with his Omega Effect, he zaps Secret as well, turning her...into a normal, powerless girl; that will eventually grow old and die.

Wait, Slo-bo, you ask? Yeah, since this was David and Nauck's last issue, and the main characters were going to be rolled into Geoff John's Titans relaunch; there's a lot of wrap-up for characters like Empress, Secret, Arrowette, and the eyeless Lobo clone Slo-bo. Secret would return for a Young Justice episode, convienently written by Peter David; but I'm not sure the others have appeared anywhere since.

Although occasionally serious, the Young Justice book was never grim, since David's sense of humor was never too far away. It seemed like some of that might carry into John's Titans at first; but in pretty short order DC started running away from anything fun as fast as it could...