I have to tell you that while in the world of cinema films so far, it's probably quite the victory of Marvel in the world of animation - the priority palm belongs to DC. Their animations are exactly what cinema films should be. There is humor, action, character development and translation of the comic book into the language of the film. Most of the animations are based exactly on selected comics albums. I have watched animations that referred to well-known comics about Batman but now I decided to make up for films about the Justice League. Here are some thoughts about the titles I have recently viewed.
Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox - a movie from 2013, is one of those stories where we are dealing with an alternative universe. I love such stories because they are much more interesting than the next playback of something that we already know.
Flash is transferred to an alternative reality where the Earth stands on the brink of destruction divided between Aquamena and Wonder Woman. What's more, Flash tries to collect the Justice League, only to find out that in this alternative reality the fates of the heroes have gone a bit differently. And yes, he actually finds Batman, but it turns out that Bruce Wayne is not necessarily him. And all in accordance with the principle that if one small fragment of the past changes, the whole changes. The film is assumed to be dark and most of the time we wonder how the characters will emerge from the situation that at first glance seems completely unmanageable. More than the action of the film itself, I liked the ideas for it - what else could be different in the biographies of the characters we know. Perhaps the most moving is the topic of Superman, who became something completely different - not necessarily of his own will. If you do not know the comic and you have not seen the movie, I do not want to spoil the fun. At the same time, I must say that it's nice to watch the animation in which the main role is played by Flash. Although I am not a fan of the show series, I have a great affection for the protagonist and I have no objection to following him as the main character. The only thing that bothered me in the animation is the fact that at some point the misfortunes that fall on the heroes become somewhat predictable. I'm also not sure exactly what is going on with animation. At some point, I came to the conclusion that almost all the characters look the same. On the other hand, the idea of a Batman costume was very cool. The whole story made a big impression. Mainly proved that DC thinks very much about an adult viewer preparing their animations.
Justice League: War - I did not expect much because I knew the comic book, which was - truth to say, average successful but included Jim Lee's drawings which works in favor. But the animation was a big surprised. It is somewhat alternative to the comic book (Shazam appears instead of Aquaman) but above all - it perfectly shows how you can enrich the story with a good dose of humor without losing the heroes. The situation is serious because we have a cosmic invasion here and the Darkside itself. The heroes who have fought so far separately must unite. Nothing new, we've seen it many times before. What is good? First of all, the fact that the heroes are set up so that they come into relations with each other in pairs - Shazam and Cyborg, Green Lantern and Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman. Flash is somewhat without a strong assignment but in total he is the biggest supporter of acting together.
The creators played well not only with a sense of humor but also with a difference in characters. Somewhere, I read that the biggest disadvantage of Batman movies is the fact that their creators do not understand that Batman can smile and continue to be Batman. The creators of animation perfectly understand this. Batman smiles in it more than once. And it gets even more fun each time. Besides - in this film we have a confrontation between Batman and Superman which goes exactly according to what you can expect from such a clash. Superman has more power over Batman, but Batman knows - Superman will not kill him, secondly pacify him in the most Batman way on earth - not a sink but with knowledge. Batman is incredibly intelligent so he knows what to say at the right moment. The whole meeting with outsiders from space is not particularly exciting, but it is these interactions between the heroes and their mutual likes and dislikes (Green Lantern is not the biggest fan of Batman) that drive the plot. And maybe DC really draws witty from your cinema films, but the case of successful animations should teach the creators that you can only laugh with some super heroic deeds, otherwise they do not make sense. As for the animation, it definitely added a lot of value to the kitschy comic - mainly because the creators played very well with the characters body language or even raising their eyebrows.
Justice League: Throne of Atlantis - After watching Justice League: War I immediately watched the Throne of Atlantis in anticipation of getting more. Especially since it's a story where you can get to know Aquaman a bit better. Unfortunately - while in the previous part of the cycle or the universe was at least fun, the Throne of Atlantis is a very linear story. In terms of plot, it's something between the action of saving the world and the classic story of a hero who grows up to his role. It seems that the Justice League is there only to find an answer to the question of how Aquamen actually found himself in this selected group. In addition, we have a story about a poor orphaned hero who seems to be abandoned by his mother but she only went to rule the Atlantean family who for centuries hid from the people. The rest is a bit like a game of throne because there are a lot of palace intrigues there. The story lacked consistency and, above all, humor. Animation - although it also does not impress us very well. Eventually, I watched mainly for ... scenes from the subtitles. Yes, dear people if cinema DC is boycotting the scenes after the subtitles, the animated films are doing pretty well. And they are interesting. Because they announce that the series will be continue (next animation about the League soon) and I will be happy to see something like that.
The time that I spent watching the animations based on DC comics, convinced me that there was, maybe there is hope for the film universe. Only you would really have to start again. Not so much to spin as to set out the most important elements of production. If we could pull films away from special effects and bet on building relationships between characters. If the creators have stopped being so panicked by the sense of humor that really does not take seriousness away from characters. At the same time, watching the animation, I get the impression that the creators understand the protagonists a lot better and their motivations than the creators of acting films who want to be dark and serious. And to make it clear - animations are not directed to children, a lot of serious scenes in them and some got much higher age categories than we expect from animations. In any case, if the DC movie began to learn from DC animation it would be good. And so far people looking for a real Batman, Superman and company should look at the animations. There gentlemen are quite good. And Batman sometimes smiles a little.