The Cartoon Network has a pretty great line-up of superhero shows on Saturday nights. I'm fond of "Teen Titans," especially Raven.
In "The End," her father, Trigon, who is basically evil incarnate, is urging her to "fulfill her destiny" and unleash him (and, therefore, doomsday) on earth. It's sort of "Return of the Jedi" meets the DCU. But I don't think that that's necessarily a bad thing.
Not long ago, I was talking about what's "derivative" versus "original."
The obvious point is that nothing in storytelling is completely original (ever notice how many awards go to stylistic deviations--some of which work and some of which couldn't be less kid-friendly?).
But the counterpoint is that it's okay, even desirable, to build so long as you brilliantly execute the twist(s). Mixed metaphor, but you know what I mean. Offer something familiar enough that the audience has a context for it, but new enough that they're eager to see how it plays out.
