Justice League (TV Series) Episode: A Better World, Part I

{{DC Database:Episode Template
 * Title              = Justice League
 * Image              = Justice Lords.png
 * Season             = 2
 * Episode            = 37
 * Date               = 1
 * Month              = November
 * Year               = 2003


 * Director           = Dan Riba


 * PreviousEpisode    = Justice League (TV Series) Episode: Hearts and Minds, Part II
 * NextEpisode        = Justice League (TV Series) Episode: A Better World, Part II


 * Quotation          = The World's in permanent lockdown, free speech is all but dead, and you don't know what's wrong?
 * Speaker            = Lois Lane (Earth-Justice Lords)


 * StoryTitle1        = "A Better World"
 * Synopsis1          =

Prologue
Superman and the Justice League fight their way into the Oval Office of the White House, where President Lex Luthor is ready to start a war. As Superman enters, Lex threatens to push the button, taunting Superman to stop him by using deadly force which he knows his adversary wouldn't use because he enjoys being the hero too much. Realizing that being the hero would mean risking the world to the constant threat of a madman like Lex Luthor, Superman finally does the unthinkable. Soon Wonder Woman and Batman smell something burning, and so charge into the Oval Office to see (though it isn't shown) the charred remains of President Lex Luthor. Wonder Woman gasps, while Batman simply says it had to be done. She goes over to ask Superman, gazing out of a window, if he's all right. He smiles as he says he feels great.

Two years later...
The Justice League team monitor Earth from their satellite headquarters, but now with a surveillance team on hand. Gone are the friendlier costumes the people were used to seeing; they now have a more militant appearance, calling themselves the Justice Lords. The Flash and Batman are conspicuously absent in this gathering; Hawkgirl and Green Lantern talk about missing Flash zipping in and making foolish comments, while Batman is holed up in his Batcave working on something since there's no crime for him to take care of. Superman talks with the President, who wants to know when elections can resume, and Superman tells him that elections have higher stakes than a football game, promising only "soon".

Suddenly an uprising is reported in Smallville University: a group of students are holding a protest demanding for elections to resume. Martian Manhunter dismisses it as a minor uprising, but Green Lantern knows it can spark a bigger rebellion and so goes to the scene with Hawkgirl to help the police quell the protesters. They soon flee in fear at the sight of the two Justice Lords, though the police manages to capture and arrest one of the protesters -- a sight that only slightly disturbs Hawkgirl as she once remembers a time when people liked seeing them around, but doesn't even faze Green Lantern.

Superman has a dinner date with Lois Lane, who treats him rather coldly due to his iron-fist control over governments and even the press, accusing him of not seeing where all this is leading. Superman tries to protest his case when Batman summons him, urgently telling him to come now. Lois tells Superman that the discussion isn't finished as he departs, but gets no further than the door when guards prevent her from leaving the apartment.

In the Batcave, the assembled Justice Lords team watch as they see themselves as they once appeared, battling a Luthor in a battlesuit -- a battle of the likes they have never fought. Batman tells them that this is a live image of a battle taking place in another dimension, with a team that call themselves the Justice League, featuring a Flash that still lives. Hawkgirl and Wonder Woman feel sympathy that they couldn't help straighten out that world like they did theirs, but Batman shows them they can: he activates a portal that lets them travel from their own world to the Justice League's, if they even decide to use it. Hawkgirl asks why wouldn't they choose to use it, and Batman answers that the Justice League world may not even be ready for the Justice Lords' kind of help.

Justice Lord Superman ponders that as he continues to watch his Justice League counterpart in action with the team, chasing after Luthor until he comes into a lab activating some sort of an energy gun, ready to aim it at Hawkgirl and Batman. Suddenly Flash zips in, disables the weapon, and fells Luthor in one swift motion. Wonder Woman lassos the villain from behind him. Luthor boasts that he will be out in days. Wonder Woman says, "not with a broken leg you won't."

After the police capture Luthor and the Flash straightens out the lab, a mysterious portal appears in a wall behind Martian Manhunter -- and a duplicate Martian Manhunter in a strange uniform emerges from it, telling the first one, "I am you." The duplicate tells the team that the dimensions are collapsing, and their universe (the one the duplicate came from) is at the center of the disaster. Batman asks the Justice League Martian Manhunter if he has read his duplicate's mind yet, but J'onn J'onnz says Martians not only don't read other Martians' minds, but they also can't. The rest of the team is willing to take the duplicate at his word and follow him through the portal into his dimension to help, with Batman and J'onn following. However, the duplicate leads them into a room in his dimension's Batcave where they are jolted into unconsciousness while the duplicate phases through a wall.

The Justice Lords Superman and Batman watch the Justice League writhe helplessly in their trap, saying "they'll thank us later." However, Justice Lord Hawkgirl notices her Justice League duplicate withstanding the jolts long enough to pound a wall with her power mace. She succeeds in breaking through, but is immediately stopped by Justice Lord Green Lantern. The other Justice Lords watch as Justice League Flash finally drops from exertion.

Meanwhile, on the Justice League Earth, a jagged meteor crashes in the forest, then splits open as a gray muscular creature with long white hair and bony extrusions emerges from it. He begins a destructive rampage that soon brings media attention, with the reporter on the scene wondering where the Justice League is. Meanwhile, the Justice Lords appear on this Earth and see this creature in action on a giant video screen. They immediately spring into action, pounding this creature with everything they have. As this happens, Lex Luthor has a casual conversation with the police escort in prison.

Soon this creature is mostly facing Justice Lord Superman, who asks him what he wants. The creature answers that he is seeking power and control, hoping to see the best that this world could offer as far as a challenge and not being impressed so far. They slam punches into each other that cause shock waves that shatter nearby windows. The creature pounds Superman into the ground and then holds him up, boasting that his skin can withstand a nuclear explosion. However, Superman pierces through the creature's skull with his heat vision, causing him to lose his grip as he is being lobotomized.

As the creature is safely herded away, the reporters gather around Superman and the Justice Lords, wanting to talk to them about the fight. Lois Lane comments that what Superman did to the creature was so out of character, but one of the reporters says it's simply about time he did that. Another reporter asks the team about the new costumes. Superman simply says that they feel it's time for a change.

Lex Luthor watches the whole thing on television. To his delighted surprise, he notices that this "Justice League" is truly not the Justice League.


 * Producer1_1        =
 * Writer1_1          = Stan Berkowitz

Featured Characters:
 * Appearing1 =

Supporting Characters: Villains:
 * (Earth-Justice Lords)

Other Characters:
 * (Earth-Justice Lords)
 * President
 * President

Locations:
 * Earth-Justice League


 * Earth-Justice Lords
 * Smallville University
 * Smallville University
 * Smallville University
 * Smallville University
 * Smallville University
 * Smallville University

Items:

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 * Notes              =
 * Trivia             =
 * This episode and Part II are included as bonus features on the two-disc release of Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths.
 * Recommended        =
 * Links              =