WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Young Justice: Phantoms Episodes 14-16, now streaming on HBO Max.

Young Justice fans were confused when previews for the second half of Phantoms showed the apparent return of a major villain. Orm, also known as Ocean Master, was shown plotting against Atlantis; however, Lady Shiva had beheaded him back in Season 3, after a dispute with the Light. So how exactly could this intimidating tyrant return in Season 4?

Now that Part 2 of Phantoms has premiered, the show has confirmed he's not a shape-shifter and that wasn't a flashback. Orm's back in the flesh -- thirsty for blood and hungry for war under the Seven Seas. However, his return was made possible by a particularly dark plot twist that could also involve the Light and their weaving an even more tangled web.

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Ocean Master is a clone in Young Justice

Orm appeared in the first three episodes -- "Nautical Twilight," "Ebb Tide," and "Emergency Dive" -- orchestrating a terrorist attack. When King Orin held council to unite his kingdoms, Orm decimated the meeting with Neptune's Trident. Kaldur, as the new Aquaman looking to establish his legacy (and maybe a new direction for the show), began plotting reprisal but was distracted by a second attack. This time, the perpetrator was the Child from earlier in Season 4. Orm surprisingly showed up to help out... because he needed the place whole so he could have something to rule.

Young Justice briefly showed flashes of the old Orm, but he ended up getting arrested when a returning Arion thwarted Orm's attempts to betray the Atlanteans once the threat was quelled. Arion reclaimed Neptune's Trident and gave it to Orin, but while the royals were arguing over the first ruler of Atlantis returning, suspicious arose over Orm's authenticity. Orin realized that Orm got his facts wrong regarding past interrogations, which led him to seek out one of Orm's old colleagues. Dannuth also felt this wasn't the real Orm, so Orin had his scientists run genetic tests -- and the "returned" Orm was actually a clone!

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How did this happen? Lex Luthor's CADMUS project had previously created clones of Roy Harper and Conner Kent, so it's possible that the Light may be trying to destabilize or claim Atlantis through use of the Orm clone. That possibility may send members of Atlantis up to the surface to get further answers. It also means other heroes and villains might be replaced with clones in the future -- an interesting prospect for future episodes.

Orin, as much as he dislikes his brother, won't want their legacy sullied like this. Worse yet, if he finds out Shiva killed Orm, Atlantis might cut ties with the League and set out for revenge. Kaldur has a tough road ahead to ensure peace is kept and justice is served, but at least he's on the same page as his colleagues. And apart from the team, he might end up having an ally in Orm 2.0. The clone won't like being used as a pawn, so Young Justice could redeem Ocean Master by having him defend his former home. But if he's just the first of many clones, he could be the harbinger of something terrible.

See how Orm's clone saga unfolds with new episodes of Young Justice: Phantoms debuting Thursdays on HBO Max.

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