Commentary: DCCU Has No Idea What It's Doing
I'd like to begin with this: I love DC Comics with a passion. I've been a fan for the better part of 30 years. I learned to read via comics, the first Superhero movie I remember watching was Superman (1978). I learned life lessons from Perez, Byrne, and dozens if not hundreds of others. To me, "Because its the right thing to do" has more meaning than "with great power".
You know, Pete, I can get through a whole day without complaining that everything is awful. Even when it is. I didn't even need a villain to steal my body and teach me that finishing school and calling the cops was a good idea.
The problem I've found is that DC doesn't seem to know how to maintain a film franchise. Either they've historically gone to saccharine as they did with Superman II - IV or too violent as they did with Batman (1989) - Batman Forever (1995). While at the same time releasing a cartoon series that spawned numerous spinoffs and movies that people still recall as often being superior.
No origin story, no catchphrases, no award winning soundtrack? Never again!
Opting to make everything "gritty and hyper realistic" is fine for Judge Dredd and Punisher.
We were rated-R for violence before it was cool
But... DC Comics has always been the optimist in my eyes. Even when things got so bad that you could only assume the worst: Whether it was Superman's death, Batman's broken back, or Green Lantern's fall from grace... There was still hope.
Marvel classically dealt with terrorism, pogroms, and out and out mass murder, yet they've not only incorporated these into their films, they've, for the most part, done it well.
Many fans have applauded DC's creating of its own modern film franchise and have opted to ignore that the movies released so far simply aren't that good. But, rather than starting slow as Marvel did with Iron Man (2008) and the rebooted Incredible Hulk (2008) and building momentum, they've launched from the gate running with Man of Steel (2013).
Epic potentially standalone movies? Yeah, we can do that.
I can tell you everything right about Man of Steel: That's not hard. Jor-El and Lara-El launched their infant son into deep space in an experimental hyperspace capable lifepod. He was found by Jonathan and Martha Kent and raised in Smallville. Everything wrong... Why was General Zod the first villain? While Zod's death at Superman's hands is canon, he appeared too soon. He's a sequel villain. The second movie is where the hero meets his dark opposite. Why did the modern Kryptonian tech interact perfectly with the ancient? Try plugging a smart phone into a 1950s Univac.
Why was Jonathan Kent so... weak and why did he sacrifice himself? Since the Silver Age he'd been depicted as an Army veteran who understood the horrors of war and the need for personal sacrifice. In the movie, it seemed as if everyone and their neighbor knew what Clark Kent was, what was he protecting? Why did General Zod attack Earth without first establishing a secure base... anywhere else? I'm certainly not a soldier, nor have I been genetically engineered to be one... But having a safe recall location established and fortified seems like a good idea rather than committing all your resources and soldiers to an all out attack on an unknown target. In fact, this is the second time a DC movie has used this patently bad logic.
Sir, do you think its wise to commit everything to an all out assualt without more intel?
Hey! What's the worst that can happen?
I think even DC has started to realize that they've set a bad precedent by not following a working model by rushing a movie about a group of outlaw misfits banded together to save the Galaxy. WORLD! I meant world!
At no point will there be a "we need to do this because no one else can" speech.
DC has pumped up their release dates to a movie per year and they're actively using the New 52 as their basis the same way Marvel used the Ultimate Universe for theirs.
Please love us...
The problem with this? New 52 has been, for the most part, universally panned by critics and fans. Nearly everyone hated the revamped origins, the cut down timeline, and the recasting of classic characters.
DC's response was to bring back Hypertime/Multiverse as a Hail Mary: Superman is depowered and a fugitive, Batman has apparently faked his own death and retired, and Hal Jordon is now an outlaw mercenary and on the Green Lantern Corps wanted list. But now there's Earth 2! Again. Except Terry McGinnis is dead and a time lost Richard Grayson is Batman Beyond. Oh, and the surviving Kryptonians can only operate when the red sun of Earth 2's new binary star system has set. Because suspense and drama is easier than original and outside the box stories.
I know shortly DC will have another mini-Crisis and try another variation, but they've seemed to have forgotten that fans like change so long as it's organic and condusive to the plot and overarcing story.
We were almost a thing.
I'm not quite certain what the future holds for DCCU. I know that I'll be there as I've been there in the past: Hopeful, but expecting disappointment.