Must See TV: The Top Ten Episodes of ‘Justice League Unlimited’

While the CW’s live action shows are forming a huge DC Universe on TV, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe is ever-expanding, years before either there was an entire multi-layered, character-filled superhero universe in the form of the DC Animated Universe.

The DCAU started with Batman: The Animated Series, and from there it grew until we finally got to Justice League Unlimited, which featured almost every DC hero teaming up to protect the Earth against every threat imaginable. The show ran for 39 episodes between 2004 and 2006, and we've picked the ten best episodes from that run.

There were dozens of different arcs in JLU, each concerning the lives of different characters from DC's deep bench. Highlights included the burgeoning relationship between Green Arrow and Black Canary, the will they/won’t they of Batman and Wonder Woman, the rise of Lex Luthor from corporate monster to sci-fi monster, and the Cadmus arc, which had extensive repercussions throughout the DCAU. It’s the closest any adaptation has come to creating a fully developed comic universe, yet it still managed to be accessible to new fans.

There's not a single bad episode in Justice League Unlimited, but we've still managed to narrow it down to a top ten, with stories that range from over-the-top action to small character studies to hilarious capers. Superheroes can be used to tell any story in any genre, and no show has ever shown that better than the JLU.

An honorary mention to two stories that didn't make the list; "Dark Heart," written by Warren Ellis, is a fun little sci-fi thriller, and "This Little Piggy," featuring Batman singing “Am I Blue?,” is one of the best parts of the entire show!