Away Mission

"Away Mission" is the fifth episode of the third season of Young Justice, and the 51st of the overall series. It debuted on January 11, 2019 on DC Universe, along with the fourth and sixth episodes, "Private Security" and "Rescue Op".

Logline
A distant conflict sends the team on an away mission, while the Happy Harbor gang decides what to do with Brion Markov and Halo (Zehra Fazal).

Synopsis
Mantis, Forager and other Bugs meet with Orion for a trade deal, but after they offer what they have mined, the goods Orion and two other beings deliver are revealed to be fake. The Bugs attack Orion and the beings, but the beings fend them off and take the minerals. While Mantis accuses the New Gods of having no honor, Forager suspects something is amiss. Brion Markov speaks with his brother Gregor on the phone, wondering when he will be allowed to return to Markovia. Gregor says that the Markovian Parliament has proposed a ban on meta humans and the deportation of Quracis. He says he promises to bring Brion home soon but he needs to be patient. Brion then asks Connor Kent, M'gann M'orzz and Snapper Carr when Dick Grayson will show up, but a Boom Tube opens and Bear of the New Gods steps out. He says there is trouble on New Genesis.

M'gann telepathically links everyone so Bear can share what happened: The New Gods have investigated reports of violence between the Bugs and New Gods. Forager told them about strange monsters who attacked them and a Mother Box that scanned Forager detected traces of human DNA. Connor wonders if they might be some of the teens abducted in Markovia. M'gann says she can bring the whole Team, but Connor pulls her aside and says he needs to stay on Earth to help Brion. Jaime Reyes, Bart Allen and Traci Thurston receive notice from M'gann that they are needed for a mission. Wonder Girl and Static are already on board the Watchtower when they receive notice from M'gann about the mission. The Team gathers in Happy Harbor to join Bear and Miss Martian, who depart for New Genesis via Boom Tube.

Connor unveils a zeta tube underneath the house, allowing Dick Grayson, Artemis, Jefferson Pierce and Halo to arrive. Dick says he hacked the Justice League computers to add new designations after Aquaman revoked Pierce's designation after his resignation and to give Halo and Brion access. Halo inquires about the data the Justice League computer has on her and Dick runs a search in hopes of finding more about her background.

The Team investigates the site where Orion met with the Bugs, when the Bugs arrive and are about to attack. Forager intervenes, revealing he asked Bear for his help. Bear says the Orion the Bugs met is an impostor and the real Orion is not on New Genesis, but Mantis doesn't believe him.

Connor, Dick, Artemis, Pierce and Carr discuss Helga Jace's status and what to do with Brion and Halo, though Dick, Artemis and Connor don't believe the two are ready to join the Team. They are distracted by shaking outside, which turns out to be Brion testing his powers.

Miss Martian shape shifts into a Bug so she can join the others in another meeting with Orion and determine who Orion really is. Orion shows up with the beings, who Miss Martian has ID'ed as metahumans, and the attempted deal goes awry. She senses a psychic wave, then shifts into her White Martian form and demands Orion explain himself. The two depart the scene, leaving the Team to wonder what is happening.

Back on Earth, Dick and Connor work with Brion on controlling his powers, but he struggles with hitting a rock and loses control. Halo then works with Artemis and Pierce in exploring the auras she can generate, and in doing so, she generates a yellow aura that allows her to deliver energy blasts. She injures herself in the process, but generates a purple aura to heal herself.

Miss Martian, the fake Orion and the two metas head to another location. She demands her "little brother" reveal his true form and "Orion" shape shifts to reveal a White Martian named M'Comm M'orzz, who now wants to take the name Ma'Alefa'Ak, given his anger toward Green and Red Martians. He complains that, while M'gann was spending time on Earth, he continues to face oppression on Mars, so he made a deal that, in exchange for manipulating the Bugs into starting a war with New Gods, he would get help so the White Martians could overthrow their oppressors. M'gann objects, but M'comm says the plight of Bugs is similar to that of the White Martians. He wants M'gann to join him, but M'gann refuses and the metas attack her.

Back on Earth, Brion says he can't stay any longer. Dick, not wanting Brion to leave, says he and the others will help him find his sister, convincing Brion to change his mind.

Bear and the Team intervene to help Miss Martian. She and M'Comm engage in a psychic battle while Bear and the Team fight the metas. The Bugs, who observe the battle, are ordered by Mantis to attack everyone, but Forager decides to fight on the Team's side. Meanwhile, M'gann tells M'Comm he can't win for hate and shows him how the friends she has made on Earth reminder her to choose love over anger. At first, M'Comm appears to be convinced, but tries to psychically attack her. M'gann stops the attempt and concludes she can't help her brother.

The psychic battle ends and M'Comm triggers a failsafe in the metas, killing them both, and escapes. Mantis accuses Forager of treason and kicks him out of the hive. He refuses to believe Miss Martian's explanation that M'comm was manipulating the Bugs psychically and wants nothing to do with anyone from Earth, Mars, the New Gods or Forager. Bear says Forager will no longer be safe on New Genesis and Miss Martian says Forager may come to Earth. Bear opens a Boom tube to send everyone back.

Title
The title refers to the Team's mission in New Genesis.

Cast and characters
! colspan="3" | Non-speaking roles
 * class="VA" | Troy Baker
 * colspan="2" | Brion Markov
 * class="VA" | Ben Diskin
 * Orion/Ma'alefa'ak/M'comm M'orzz
 * class="VA" | Bill Fagerbakke
 * colspan="2" | Bear
 * class="VA" | Zehra Fazal
 * colspan="2" | Halo
 * class="VA" | Crispin Freeman
 * colspan="2" | Gregor Markov
 * class="VA" | Bryton James
 * colspan="2" | Static
 * class="VA" | Andrew Kishino
 * Mantis
 * class="VA" rowspan="2"  | Stephanie Lemelin
 * colspan="2" | Artemis Crock
 * colspan="2" | Computer
 * class="VA" | Eric Lopez
 * colspan="2" | Jaime Reyes/Blue Beetle
 * class="VA" | Jason Marsden
 * colspan="2" | Bart Allen/Kid Flash
 * class="VA" | Jesse McCartney
 * colspan="2" | Dick Grayson/Nightwing
 * class="VA" | Danica McKellar
 * colspan="2" | Megan Morse/Miss Martian/M'gann M'orzz
 * class="VA" | Nolan North
 * colspan="2" | Conner Kent
 * class="VA"  | Khary Payton
 * colspan="2" | Jefferson Pierce
 * class="VA" | Jason Spisak
 * Forager
 * class="VA" | Lauren Tom
 * Traci Thurston/Thirteen
 * class="VA"  | Greg Weisman
 * colspan="2" | Lucas Carr
 * class="VA"  | Mae Whitman
 * colspan="2" | Wonder Girl
 * class="VA" | Danica McKellar
 * colspan="2" | Megan Morse/Miss Martian/M'gann M'orzz
 * class="VA" | Nolan North
 * colspan="2" | Conner Kent
 * class="VA"  | Khary Payton
 * colspan="2" | Jefferson Pierce
 * class="VA" | Jason Spisak
 * Forager
 * class="VA" | Lauren Tom
 * Traci Thurston/Thirteen
 * class="VA"  | Greg Weisman
 * colspan="2" | Lucas Carr
 * class="VA"  | Mae Whitman
 * colspan="2" | Wonder Girl
 * class="VA" | Lauren Tom
 * Traci Thurston/Thirteen
 * class="VA"  | Greg Weisman
 * colspan="2" | Lucas Carr
 * class="VA"  | Mae Whitman
 * colspan="2" | Wonder Girl
 * class="VA"  | Mae Whitman
 * colspan="2" | Wonder Girl
 * colspan="2" | Wonder Girl
 * colspan="3" | Dreamer (flashback)
 * colspan="3" | Garfield Logan (photo)
 * colspan="3" | John Jones (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Kaldur'ahm (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Marie Logan (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Monkey (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Moonrider (flashback)
 * colspan="3" | Serifan (flashback)
 * colspan="3" | Sphere
 * colspan="3" | Vykin (flashback)
 * colspan="3" | Wally West (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Wolf
 * colspan="3" | Zatanna (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Moonrider (flashback)
 * colspan="3" | Serifan (flashback)
 * colspan="3" | Sphere
 * colspan="3" | Vykin (flashback)
 * colspan="3" | Wally West (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Wolf
 * colspan="3" | Zatanna (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Wally West (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Wolf
 * colspan="3" | Zatanna (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Wolf
 * colspan="3" | Zatanna (photo)
 * colspan="3" | Zatanna (photo)

Continuity

 * Megan's photo album includes the selfie that Dick took with Artemis in "Homefront" and Artemis, Wally and Brucely's photo seen in "Princes All".
 * Conner introduces Megan as his fiancée to Bear. He proposed to her in "Princes All".
 * Conner wonders if the meta-humans involved in the attack against the Bugs are the kids that were boom tubed away in "Eminent Threat".
 * Cassie and Tim's relationship is still strained, following his defection of the Team to join Batman and because he kept her in the dark about Batman's plan.
 * Dick's line "I hacked the Justice League computer" echoes his line "I hacked the motion sensors" from "Fireworks".
 * Jefferson vouches for Helga Jace. The two had an earnest conversation in the previous episode.
 * When considering giving an amnesiac Halo access to the Watchtower, Conner considers they don't need another "Red Arrow incident", referring to his brainwashing and betrayal of the Team and Justice League in "Usual Suspects".
 * Lucas Carr mentions letting the Joker into Mount Justice, which happened in the companion comics issues "Haunted" and "Monkey Business".
 * Conner says Miss Martian no longer rips into anyone's minds and M'gann herself tells M'comm M'orzz that psychic manipulation is wrong, which is a turnaround on her actions in the first half of season two, and before that, when she tried to mess with Superboy's memories to make him forget he was upset with her abuse of power. This was covered in "Depths" and "Torch Songs, Part 2".
 * Halo manifests a new yellow aura. Previously she had manifested three: a red and a violet aura in "Royal We" and an orange one in "Eminent Threat".
 * Miss Martian had first referenced a Ma'alefa'ak in "...And the Penalty".

Trivia

 * Number 16:
 * The episode begins at 00:16 UTC.
 * Brion asks Gregor what he is doing to bring him to Markovia, after being banned in "Eminent Threat".
 * Gregor informs Brion that Parliament proposed deportation on Quracis. In "Princes All", Markovia had offered sanctuary to Quraci refugees.
 * Megan's photo album includes pictures of:
 * Zatanna kissing Dick (set in season one);
 * Marie Logan, Garfield and Monkey (set in season one);
 * Aqualad sitting in the woods, wearing his civilian jacket from season one;
 * M'gann hugging Martian Manhunter in his John Jones identity;
 * Superboy patting Wolf.
 * Bart is watching Garfield's TV show, Space Trek 3016.
 * Conner calls the hidden Zeta-Tube in Conner and Megan's garage his "Fortress of semi-Solitude".

Cultural references

 * Jaime's criticism of Gar's show echoes the criticism of most movies and TV shows set in space, namely Star Wars and Star Trek, which unabashedly defy the laws of physics.
 * The comic book Jaime is reading in his bedroom has an image of Brother Power the Geek on the front cover and Flex Mentallo on the back.
 * M'comm M'orzz refers to the green Martians as "a superstitious and cowardly lot", a recurring phrase in comics and popular media used first by Batman to describe criminals and explain the reasons for his frightening appearance.

Unanswered questions

 * With whom has M'comm M'orzz made a deal with, and why do they wish to cripple the reputation of the New Gods?
 * Where is the real Orion?
 * What happened to Bear and Dreamer's relationship?