Outsiders

I believe in much the similar veins of other pieces of mine, where I delve into the personal details of my life and multi-faceted faces of my psyche that a cartoon can best explain.

Young Justice Season 3.

Outsiders.

I'd never been more angry watching a TV show.

As often happens in superhero and other fantasy media superpowers and the overall abnormal insanity of their Earth become allegories for prejudice, intolerance, and alienation. Often affecting the already vulnerable of society.

Often it is the burden of people of color or of poor social background and that is a running theme, however the wider demographic is one often not talked about or addressed. Understandably, since it's an adult's world and an adult's news anchor. Such informational TV isn't made for vapid, underdeveloped teenagers to tune into. And yet stories are littered with victims no older than ten on borders or forever shaken by school shootings, murder attempts, exploitation, abuse-- blasted on the media for all to see with never even the chance to actually let them speak.

Certain government organizations such as CIRCLE-- which centers on the civic engagement of demographics across the country-- invested research on this use of children as victims and just as often, instigators of violence without providing actually nuanced perspective on issues at hand in a way that makes them real contributors in overall discussion or what their perspective may have to offer in an emotional or pragmatic appeal.

They thoroughly disprove the notion that youth would "age into," so-called serious media which these days takes a much more politically charged, sensationalist slant in their broadcasts, rather than supposed objectivity. Instead, they smartly analyze the faults found and alienate completely from traditional news forms and by the numbers and figures instead turn to alternative media providers. Namely, social media and video platforms where those like them dominate the conversation.

It has been reported that teenagers are most politically and socially active through social media platforms to eloquently and passionately express their views and discourse on world events or social injustice. And better yet, they're listened to and warmly received as teens often make content that provides active conversation they can participate in and engage with on a deeper level than a constant rerun of the same news cycle speaking on issues but never offering any form of solution or analysis.

Young people want solutions, they want discussions, but more often than not the news proves disappointing.

While slightly exaggerated the fictional news around "meta-humans," in the Young Justice show was much the same format. Sensationalist fear-mongering and political plays of adults using the kids exploited and displaced from across the globe by business and government powers as playing pieces with near no mention of how the problem of rampant human-trafficking hunting meta-genes and child soldiers would be dealt with.

Outsiders was certainly an apt title for the season as the child protagonists under the wing of a now grown up main cast often had no other place to turn to. Pillars of morals and light that were once respected and admired by the world were forced into the shadows, seemingly for no other reason to anyone looking in, for wishing to offer active solutions and relief.

It is stated within the League: "metahumans are the newest exploitable resource."

Anytime a metahuman turns on a TV, whether from their own home or possibly a hospital room or the sole youth center available the news will feature a segment of a UN representative-- a peace organization-- sneering and blustering nastily about "the meta-youth delinquent center," as if many victims weren't known victims of abduction and disappearance. As if they'd somehow committed a crime to end up needing the services of a non-profit to provide lessons for their powers or a stable environment to emotionally heal.

And it was often premiered and touted as a main theme every episode.

The adults seeming all too content to judge while otherwise never addressing the underlying issue or even looking into increased disappearances, of course, save for the superheroes. And villainous characters hardly having to do the work of isolating and turning public opinion towards monitoring and near criminalization of having a meta-power.

In many ways it came off as apathetic, it came off as just horrible, incompetent, and irresponsible.

And yet with programming like Young Justice that uses such allegories and realism in their storytelling there is a real-world equivalent. And those comparisons come quite easily.

Meta-power, trauma, marginalized youths, teens taking to social media in affirming others. It speaks to issues of mental illness and neurodivergence in our real world just to name a few.

It speaks of the politicians and political parties more interested in keeping power and hold over the public's minds than doing the jobs they were sworn in to do. Such as, protecting the peace and instilling tolerance and love towards all nations. Instead of hate-speech and victim blaming.

Outsiders saw Garfield Logan, empowered similarly by violent circumstances and intervention that could not be refused, taking Martian blood to save his own life and so given the morphing power similar to theirs. And at sixteen a child actor with a presence in the news and using his program and role as a hero in that fiction to promote action among individuals.

"See something-- say a kidnapping-- scream something."

"See something, say something."

Don't let a child be kidnapped. Don't let a name and a face disappear.

However, as is super tradition Garfield was set for the heroic track by tragedy. First the cruel murder of his Mother by his country's corrupt monarch, then the untimely death of an adoptive mother and so, in the hands of a stepfather managing his career and a sweet old woman.

That is, until he began making connections towards her[Granny Goodness] involvement in the meta-human trafficking industry. Subtly cornered as she undercuts him during his work, and told by the adult supposed to look out for him to "make things right," "Whatever [it may be] he did to make her mad." When he'd been the one acting professionally and her picking out mistakes where there were none.

However, he has no support and is instead told to keep his tongue, respect his elders. Even when those elders-- neither-- respect him in turn.

That is, until he is able to act in his role as a hero, where he does have the power to act and possibly more vital, the respect of his elders to take his words seriously. And even more than that, take what he does as a person into account instead of just a teen with green skin.

Beast Boy had always been an "openly out," meta-human" but never more than that until pushback forced him to take a closer look and realize their voice wasn't in the media cycle. Not until he forced it there via social media.

And so, formed the Outsiders, a public version of the initial Young Justice team formed with the intent of striking from their respected mentors into the world they were promised. Where in the open Beast Boy and other meta-teens, notably most also being expelled or exiled from most spaces or runaway, served as direct contradictions and proof as to the very best metahumans could be for the world if given the opportunity.

And yet, they were met with red tape and derision for responding to crises. New laws targeting them specifically from doing their work: "forbidding of any meta-teen in certain states," meta-teen, not hero. And that distinction is important as a future episode will display this applies to newly activated meta-humans like a small boy in Cuba whose mother worked loyally with the military.

Season 3 encapsulates really what the world is today. Had been just five years prior. Where kids are ignored and devalued as little more than props, used for a political agenda when said agenda has no room to deal with their injustices anyway. So often, if any grown-up sympathizes and extends help it's a fair chance to say it's because they've experienced the alienation and complete ignorance first-hand.

Young people are told that until they can speak and act like the adults around them their ideas aren't worth acknowledging yet often when they comply, the only ways to get their message across is in youth dominated spaces such as social media and the wider web.

So then, what's left but to get emotional? To be a bit angry and impetuous?

In opposition to so much anger was the savage, vindictive satisfaction to see a rebellion take shape.

We are all Outsiders.

Becoming a chant and rally cry to an unreasonable authority or stubborn audacity to ordinances forbidding superheroes from responding to the super-powered emergencies they simply cannot handle by "normal" "human" means.

We are all Outsiders.

We are all just trying to find our way. And some of us are wired a bit different, do we deserve to be locked out then? Because, I hate to say but in some ways physical punishment and the whole "seen and not heard," as if we were some designer dolls than living flesh that popped out of a-- well just seems weird and not just weird. Downright obscene sometimes.

I believe, after half a two thousand words of grievance and impotent, the most composite ladylike rage we are well past polite words and macchiatos.

Get on board or get out of the way.