Justice Society: World War II (2021)

Justice Society: World War II (2021)

Dir. Jeff Wamester

An animated tale that's set mostly during WW II, unsurprisingly. In addition to forcibly occupying as much of Europe as they can, Hitler's Nazi forces also hunt for magical items that could sway the tide of war in their favour; e.g., things like the Lance of Longinus, or the Ark of the Covenant, etc. But America send a group of skilled and/or superpowered US citizens under the radar to prevent that from happening.

[If they thought they could feasibly get away with it, I sincerely believe that the US military would want the rest of the world to think that they won that war all by themselves.]

Like the superior JL: The Flashpoint Paradox (2013) movie, the events in JS:WWII occur because of Barry Allen / Flash's unique abilities.

Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2020)

Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2020)

Dir. Chris Palmer

A mere three months after the DC Animated Movie Universe came to an end, DC launched the Tomorrowverse, beginning with the aptly named Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2020).

It explores the Kryptonian's early years, firstly as a youth in Smallville and then as a twenty-something adult in Metropolis, working as an intern at the Daily Planet newspaper. The latter period is a modern 'smartphone' era. In ways that are both subtle and not, we see his pain at feeling alien and misunderstood.

Things thereafter descend into mostly mediocrity and blandness, with some very uninspired directing choices. It was the director's first feature film, so some allowances must be made, but even with those in place some scenes — such as the one wherein a costumed Supes first meets Lex Luthor — are amateurish at best. I don't mean that to sound unkind; it's simply an opinion.

Gen¹³ (1998)

Gen¹³ (1998)

Dir. Kevin Altieri

An animated movie based on the WildStorm superhero comic of the same name. Originally published in partnership with Image Comics, it didn't become a DC Comics imprint until 1999. That's enough of a connection to warrant a post, but I won't give it the DC label. [1]

Although ultimately a team set-up, the movie's main character is red-haired Caitlin Fairchild (Alicia Witt), who at the story's beginning is a college student with no super powers. She's recruited by a military organisation with a vested interest in activating the latent abilities in what it calls SPBs (Super Powered Beings).

The situation had the basic foundations for a superhero-themed coming of age drama, but it pushes frenetic action scenes and one-note villainy to the fore instead. The end result is an odd mix of teen cartoon clichés and immature adult happenings, with various profanities and at least one purposefully pronounced reference to characters having sex, which is probably what earned it its 15 rating.

Superman vs. The Elite (2012)

Superman vs. The Elite (2012) 

Dir. Michael Chang

A rather strange work in which a small group of new 'heroes' arrive in Metropolis and help cut down the Big Blue's workload, but their methods aren't sympathetic with his impossible ideals.

It's based on Joe Kelly's What's So Funny About Truth, Justice & the American Way? (2001) storyline. I've not read the source text, but after watching the film, I definitely want to, which is not my usual response to DC's adaptations.

It doesn't just use the medium as allegory, it includes real world concerns in a fictional setting. It initially distances the origins of the unfavourable actions from American soil so that it can use them as a critique of home, but by the end shrewd viewers will be in no doubt as to what the message is, while at the same time being left with a shaky moral platform from which to soapbox.

Batman: Caped Crusader (2024—)

Batman: Caped Crusader (2024—)

Season 01: 10 episodes, approx 26 minutes each.

The trailer for Batman:CC got me excited about seeing it, mostly because it's clearly influenced by Batman: TAS. But when I learned that it was co-produced by Bad Robot Productions, alarm bells started to ring in my head. Having now watched the entire first season, I feel that those bells were entirely justified in their warning.

By presenting itself as a kind of spiritual successor to TAS, the creators have no one but themselves to blame when viewers make direct comparisons between the two shows. It's helpful because TAS is the best Batman TV series ever made, so there's no better thing to be inspired by, but the flip side is that it creates certain hopes in the viewer that B:CC Season 01 utterly fails to meet.

Green Lantern: Emerald Knights (2011)

Green Lantern: Emerald Knights (2011)

Dirs. Christopher Berkeley / Lauren Montgomery / Jay Oliva

A monstrous evil — i.e., some gubbins about shadow demons, a rift in the nearby Sun, and an anti-matter universe — forces the Elders of the Green Lantern Corps to take drastic measures, which results in every available Lantern queueing up to get their power rings charged. Next to each other in line are Hal Jordan (Nathan Fillion) and a rookie named Arisia Rrab (Elisabeth Moss), who inherited her ring just three days prior and is understandably nervous.

Hal tries to distract the girl from the coming danger by telling her stories from the Corps' past, which is a pretty basic set-up for an anthology with six stories in all; one bridge and five others told via flashback.

Many of the most popular Lanterns are present, including Kilowog (Henry Rollins), Abin Sur (Arnold Vosloo), and Sinestro (Jason Isaacs).

Batman: Death in the Family (2020)

DC Showcase Animated Shorts:

Batman: Death in the Family (2020)

Dir. Brandon Vietti

NOTE: image used is the DVD cover art. The Blu-ray art is much better, but is spoilerific.

It isn't the worst animation that DC has ever put out – because Batman and Harley Quinn (2017) exists – but it's a strong contender for the most perplexing. But before you even get to determine if you feel the same way, it's advisable to watch Under the Red Hood (2010) because DitF uses the same storyline and some of the same footage, but is tweaked to allow the viewer to see alternate paths for some of UtRH's primary characters.

To clarify, you're presented with a choice at certain points in the scenario, such as who will live or who will die, with subsequent footage branching to reflect that choice. Some of what you get is new animation, often giving backstory or referencing something from UtRH. Sometimes it's an entirely new sequence, but at others it's new intercut with existing animation from UtRH, meaning you'll have to sit through some of it yet again.