Why am I super excited for the DC universe more so than the upcoming Marvel films? Click to find out!
Now, after Man of Steel appeared and Warner Bros announced their DCCU slate, the internet erupted, mostly in hatred. Man of Steel was mixed to the fans and critics. Personally, my quick thoughts on Man of Steel is that it was bad the first time I saw, and miraculously I loved it the second time I saw it, which was around 6 months after my first viewing. The biggest thing everyone seems to be hating on DC is that it's not the Marvel way.....
Really? People are mad because they are already deep into Marvel films and don't like DC's plan to catch up on the Superhero fad? I actually think it's brilliant! As a comic fan I think it's amazing that the second film in their universe has Batman Versus Superman!!! That's arguably bigger than The Avengers. Probably even bigger than the upcoming Justice League movie. This "fad" that is quickly turning into a genre, is being overcrowded right now. By next year we will be having around seven superhero films per year! I honestly don't think that the Marvel way would have worked this late in the game for DC. They throw us in the deep end early on, and after that they branch out into individual films. While it may seem lazy and just a quick cash grab, it's probably the best way for DC to please comic book fans and casual fans.
Then, to top that off their third official DCCU film is about a team that only comic book readers would know. The Suicide Squad and an amazing jumping off point for the universe. For those who don't know, Suicide Squad is about a secret government organization who take supervillains that have been captured, plant bombs in their brain/neck (depending on the writer) and sending them off on impossible missions that would benefit the government. If they disobey the bomb goes off and they are dead.
The biggest advantage to having Suicide Squad in early on DC's universe is that they can cater to giving villains and their backstories all in one place so that if they appear in other films down the line they don't need to go over it. The biggest names in this would be The Joker and Harley Quinn. This will also be the film that has to get over the biggest hurdle for audiences, the new incarnation with the Joker. Sadly, I'm sure Jared Leto will get a lot of negative feedback simply because people adore Ledger's legendary portrayal, but you own The Dark Knight, you'll always get to rewatch it. Here, we're seeing a Joker we have never seen on screen before and Jared Leto is such a great actor that I can't help but be overly excited for this, especially with this being the first time Harley Quinn is on screen live action, also being played by an incredible actress. Batman V Superman won't be the defining movie for the DCCU, it will be the Suicide Squad in all the hurdles it will have to overcome: Unknown franchise, Previous Joker, and this is basically what Guardians of the Galaxy was for Marvel, but it's happening early in their Universe. How well this film does affects how the studio will look at other unknown properties in their Universe like Shazam, Cyborg, and probably Aquaman (althought it would mostly be how audience will respond for it).
If you want to take a dip into what the Suicide Squad is all about I highly suggest watching the animated film Batman: Assault on Arkham. It introduces you to the team, the dynamics, characters, and what you will expect from the upcoming film.
Next up is star power. While the MCCU does have big actors in it, it likes to take chances on directors, actors, and because of their films they made almost unknowns into super stars (i.e. Chris Pratt as Star Lord now leading Jurassic World). If you scroll down on the cast that is coming to DC it is stacked!
Batman = Ben Affleck
The Joker = Jared Leto
Harley Quinn = Margot Robbie
Black Adam = Dwayne Johnson
Deadshot = Will Smith
Amanda Waller = Viola Davis
Alfred = Jeremy Irons
Lex Luthor = Jesse Eisenberg
Aquaman = Jason Momoa
And that's just beginning!! Holy Crap on a cracker Batman!
Now I know that people are saying it's this reason why the DCCU may not do well, and all I can say is Why? All these people are great, and from what I've been hearing they are setting their egos aside to make a great film. I was one of the few people who were supporting Ben as Batman when he was announced, because he's had a great film career and with Argo he skyrocketed into people's homes. Yes, the biggest argument against him is "well look at Daredevil," well guess what, Daredevil was over a decade ago!! He's grown in acting and directing, having a much better view on the film industry. Also, you have to blame the director mostly because he directed Daredevil, Electra, and Ghost Rider, three of the almost universally panned superhero movies. Also, have you seen him as Batman? He's F---ing stacked!
Another part of Man of Steel that people really didn't like was the tone. The film was degraded in color and Superman barely cracks a smile throughout it. Now I'm not the biggest Superman fan, and I can understand why people don't like the tone, but after getting used to it I love it. Why? Because it perfectly captures DC's tone compared to the comics just as Marvel's non-dark, very funny films are like the comics. DC takes pride in their characters and storytelling, while Marvel has likable characters and fun and action. With this at least I know that I'm getting some serious storytelling, and yes Man of Steel did have a lot of action, you can't argue that when there wasn't action it was brilliant.
Like the actors, DC is bringing in great Directors:
BVS: Zack Snyder = 300, Watchmen, Man of Steel
Suicide Squad: David Ayer = End of Watch, Sabotage, Fury
Wonder Woman: Patty Jenkins = Monster, Five, Television episodes.
The Flash: Phil Lord and Chris Miller (I know these guys are writing it, not 100% sure if they are directing too...) = 21 and 22 Jump St, The lego movie, and Cloudy with a chance of meatballs.
Aquaman: James Wan = Furious 7, The Conjuring, Saw
All around WB is putting together great talent to work on these movies, and I can't not get excited for any of this.
Next up is the villains. As far as I know, WB has been very hush hush on what villains will be in their Universe. The ones I know are Zod from Man of Steel, Lex Luthor, Everyone in Suicide Squad, and Black Adam. Already DC has more interesting villains going for them than Marvel. Marvel has a new villain per film (with the exception of Loki) and I'd say I can count the memorable ones on one of my hands. Whereas DC we only saw one villain on screen, the potential for their future villains are more interesting. Black Adam is one of the most badass villains with a complicated history and is being played by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson! 'Nuff Said (to take from a man who made a universe).
Tying into the villains, the diversity of the stories in DCCU will knock Marvel out of the park. DC has space, fantasy, girl power, and awesomeness.....now I'm just fanboying out. Okay, we have the standard pieces of Batman and Superman, we'll have the first woman superhero film with Wonder Woman which might be akin to Greek myths since Greek myths are part of Wonder Woman. Shazam is about a boy who utters the word "Shazam" turns into an adult that could rival Superman. His powers come from magic. Green Lantern will be a space epic, The Flash will have comedy and probably be light hearted, and Cyborg will be not the first, but another black superhero that has technology and teen problems. Creatively, I see DC having more potential than Marvel.
Lastly, I want to mention that as of right now, 6/3/15, we have only seen one movie in the DCCU. Marvel has had since 2008 to build up an audience, introduce all their characters singularly, and people are still making an argument how DCCU could fail. We only have one movie to base this off of, let us all at least hold out hope and wait until after Suicide Squad to bring a decisive decision.
**As a side note DC TV is doing phenomenal not being tied to the movies, unlike Marvel. Not only can they get more shows out, but they are not creatively tied. (i.e. compare season one of The Flash or Arrow compared to season one of Agents of Shield).**
Now, after Man of Steel appeared and Warner Bros announced their DCCU slate, the internet erupted, mostly in hatred. Man of Steel was mixed to the fans and critics. Personally, my quick thoughts on Man of Steel is that it was bad the first time I saw, and miraculously I loved it the second time I saw it, which was around 6 months after my first viewing. The biggest thing everyone seems to be hating on DC is that it's not the Marvel way.....
Really? People are mad because they are already deep into Marvel films and don't like DC's plan to catch up on the Superhero fad? I actually think it's brilliant! As a comic fan I think it's amazing that the second film in their universe has Batman Versus Superman!!! That's arguably bigger than The Avengers. Probably even bigger than the upcoming Justice League movie. This "fad" that is quickly turning into a genre, is being overcrowded right now. By next year we will be having around seven superhero films per year! I honestly don't think that the Marvel way would have worked this late in the game for DC. They throw us in the deep end early on, and after that they branch out into individual films. While it may seem lazy and just a quick cash grab, it's probably the best way for DC to please comic book fans and casual fans.
Then, to top that off their third official DCCU film is about a team that only comic book readers would know. The Suicide Squad and an amazing jumping off point for the universe. For those who don't know, Suicide Squad is about a secret government organization who take supervillains that have been captured, plant bombs in their brain/neck (depending on the writer) and sending them off on impossible missions that would benefit the government. If they disobey the bomb goes off and they are dead.
The biggest advantage to having Suicide Squad in early on DC's universe is that they can cater to giving villains and their backstories all in one place so that if they appear in other films down the line they don't need to go over it. The biggest names in this would be The Joker and Harley Quinn. This will also be the film that has to get over the biggest hurdle for audiences, the new incarnation with the Joker. Sadly, I'm sure Jared Leto will get a lot of negative feedback simply because people adore Ledger's legendary portrayal, but you own The Dark Knight, you'll always get to rewatch it. Here, we're seeing a Joker we have never seen on screen before and Jared Leto is such a great actor that I can't help but be overly excited for this, especially with this being the first time Harley Quinn is on screen live action, also being played by an incredible actress. Batman V Superman won't be the defining movie for the DCCU, it will be the Suicide Squad in all the hurdles it will have to overcome: Unknown franchise, Previous Joker, and this is basically what Guardians of the Galaxy was for Marvel, but it's happening early in their Universe. How well this film does affects how the studio will look at other unknown properties in their Universe like Shazam, Cyborg, and probably Aquaman (althought it would mostly be how audience will respond for it).
If you want to take a dip into what the Suicide Squad is all about I highly suggest watching the animated film Batman: Assault on Arkham. It introduces you to the team, the dynamics, characters, and what you will expect from the upcoming film.
Next up is star power. While the MCCU does have big actors in it, it likes to take chances on directors, actors, and because of their films they made almost unknowns into super stars (i.e. Chris Pratt as Star Lord now leading Jurassic World). If you scroll down on the cast that is coming to DC it is stacked!
Batman = Ben Affleck
The Joker = Jared Leto
Harley Quinn = Margot Robbie
Black Adam = Dwayne Johnson
Deadshot = Will Smith
Amanda Waller = Viola Davis
Alfred = Jeremy Irons
Lex Luthor = Jesse Eisenberg
Aquaman = Jason Momoa
And that's just beginning!! Holy Crap on a cracker Batman!
Now I know that people are saying it's this reason why the DCCU may not do well, and all I can say is Why? All these people are great, and from what I've been hearing they are setting their egos aside to make a great film. I was one of the few people who were supporting Ben as Batman when he was announced, because he's had a great film career and with Argo he skyrocketed into people's homes. Yes, the biggest argument against him is "well look at Daredevil," well guess what, Daredevil was over a decade ago!! He's grown in acting and directing, having a much better view on the film industry. Also, you have to blame the director mostly because he directed Daredevil, Electra, and Ghost Rider, three of the almost universally panned superhero movies. Also, have you seen him as Batman? He's F---ing stacked!
Another part of Man of Steel that people really didn't like was the tone. The film was degraded in color and Superman barely cracks a smile throughout it. Now I'm not the biggest Superman fan, and I can understand why people don't like the tone, but after getting used to it I love it. Why? Because it perfectly captures DC's tone compared to the comics just as Marvel's non-dark, very funny films are like the comics. DC takes pride in their characters and storytelling, while Marvel has likable characters and fun and action. With this at least I know that I'm getting some serious storytelling, and yes Man of Steel did have a lot of action, you can't argue that when there wasn't action it was brilliant.
Like the actors, DC is bringing in great Directors:
BVS: Zack Snyder = 300, Watchmen, Man of Steel
Suicide Squad: David Ayer = End of Watch, Sabotage, Fury
Wonder Woman: Patty Jenkins = Monster, Five, Television episodes.
The Flash: Phil Lord and Chris Miller (I know these guys are writing it, not 100% sure if they are directing too...) = 21 and 22 Jump St, The lego movie, and Cloudy with a chance of meatballs.
Aquaman: James Wan = Furious 7, The Conjuring, Saw
All around WB is putting together great talent to work on these movies, and I can't not get excited for any of this.
Next up is the villains. As far as I know, WB has been very hush hush on what villains will be in their Universe. The ones I know are Zod from Man of Steel, Lex Luthor, Everyone in Suicide Squad, and Black Adam. Already DC has more interesting villains going for them than Marvel. Marvel has a new villain per film (with the exception of Loki) and I'd say I can count the memorable ones on one of my hands. Whereas DC we only saw one villain on screen, the potential for their future villains are more interesting. Black Adam is one of the most badass villains with a complicated history and is being played by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson! 'Nuff Said (to take from a man who made a universe).
Tying into the villains, the diversity of the stories in DCCU will knock Marvel out of the park. DC has space, fantasy, girl power, and awesomeness.....now I'm just fanboying out. Okay, we have the standard pieces of Batman and Superman, we'll have the first woman superhero film with Wonder Woman which might be akin to Greek myths since Greek myths are part of Wonder Woman. Shazam is about a boy who utters the word "Shazam" turns into an adult that could rival Superman. His powers come from magic. Green Lantern will be a space epic, The Flash will have comedy and probably be light hearted, and Cyborg will be not the first, but another black superhero that has technology and teen problems. Creatively, I see DC having more potential than Marvel.
Lastly, I want to mention that as of right now, 6/3/15, we have only seen one movie in the DCCU. Marvel has had since 2008 to build up an audience, introduce all their characters singularly, and people are still making an argument how DCCU could fail. We only have one movie to base this off of, let us all at least hold out hope and wait until after Suicide Squad to bring a decisive decision.
**As a side note DC TV is doing phenomenal not being tied to the movies, unlike Marvel. Not only can they get more shows out, but they are not creatively tied. (i.e. compare season one of The Flash or Arrow compared to season one of Agents of Shield).**
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