In the 1960s, writer Bob Haney got the idea to take all the younger characters in the DC Universe and mash them together as a team. Not unlike the very successful Justice League Of America. And so in the summer of 1964, in the pages of Brave and The Bold #54, Robin, Kid Flash and Aqualad teamed up. A year later, in issue 60 the team got its first female member in Wonder Girl, and a name, Teen Titans. And by 1966 the team would have its very own magazine. The Titans would see many twists and turns through the years, but at the core was still Dick Grayson, either as Robin or Nightwing. And as the book “grew up” from its early Silver Age roots, especially with the Marv Wolfman-George Perez 1980 relaunch of the title, it appeared writers would thrust the role of “leader” onto Grayson. Even on the animated series based on the Wolfman relaunched lineup, Robin was very much the leader of the team.
And so in 1999, when the team was renamed simply “Titans” guess who was right in front? Yup, Dick Grayson, now of course in his Nightwing personae. So in 2010 (JLA issue # 41 to be exact), now taking over, for the second time, the Batman mantle of his mentor Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson is finally a card carrying member of the Justice League of America! And once again it appears the writer, this time James Robinson, who has been on the book since #38, is angling Dick into a leadership role. This seems especially the case since in issue # 41 he assembled a team of heavyweights, drawing from former League and Titan heavy hitters and proceeded to disassemble them by issue #43! Leaving Batman with Donna Troy (Wonder Girl), Mikaal Tomas (aka the current Starman), and Congo Bill (aka Congorilla) as the current JLA lineup, the latter two from Robinson’s JLA: Cry For Justice mini-series. This is especially interesting since there is a feeling that DC wants a return of the “classic 7 (Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash, Aquaman, and Martian Manhunter)” in the 75th anniversary year of the company. But that is most likely down the road this year, in the meantime it’s Dick, Wonder Girl, Starman and Congorilla as your JLA roll call.
Well, that brings us to the current story arc, which features the Brightest Day trade dress, due to the fact that it is dealing with the return of Jade, who was one of the Black Lanterns who got resurrected at the end of Blackest Night. Issue # 44 featured Jade returning to Earth in the middle of a meteor fragment, and her father, Alan Scott, Earth’s first Green Lantern of the Justice Society of America, in bad shape with emerald energy emitting from him.
And so, preamble out of the way, we begin with Justice League Of America issue # 45. Written by James Robinson, art by Mark Bagley, inks by Rob Hunter and Norm Rapmund.
We begin where #44 left off. In Germany, with Jade announcing to Jason Blood that she will not stand down, and Dick's inner monologue exposition on her. Well, it turns out the meteor was part of the Starheart, which Jade describes. Then members of the JSA, trying to follow Alan Scott, whom is in a trance, headed right towards the said Starheart fly in, but their plane gets ripped up by what appears to be a mind controlled Power Girl. The speedsters in the JSA, Jay Garrick Flash and Jesse Quick are able to save the team. The matter gets complicated when Obsidian gets taken over by whatever is drawing Alan to the Starheart.
And from out of literally nowhere, even several characters inner monologue the fact, Supergirl flies in to take out Power Girl. It turns out Congorilla had signaled for her help before they left the Watchtower. Batman then gets Jade to use her magic based power to take down Power Girl (Kryptonian in case you didn’t know). While Batman wonders why the Starheart affected Power Girl, but not Supergirl, Jade then goes into an explanation of Starheart via a retelling of Alan Scott’s origin.
Well, the Starheart was this rock, created by the Guardians of The Universe as a way to create order between chaos and good. A piece broke off, fell to earth where Alan Scott found it, becoming Earth’s first Green Lantern. After Jade finishes up her story, Mr. Terrific, and Batman start receiving reports throughout the world of magic wielders going crazy. It is theorized that it could be in part thanks to the chaos part of Starheart. Then Alan appears to be out of his trance, but only to talk about the Starheart bringing about the end of the world, and he is transformed into something akin to what Alan Scott wore in the Kingdom Come story.
Well, that was interesting. Right now we are dealing with a JSA story in the pages of JLA. Which is fine, but is this something needed if Robinson is trying to mold a new team? I guess since the whole Starheart/Alan Scott situation is a big enough problem that the JLA has to be present for then yeah. Obviously the DCU’s biggest team has to confront it. It should be noted that this is part one of a story, and the second part will be in Justice Society of America #41 next month.
Don’t get me wrong, its a good story, its just feels like reading a JSA story with the JLA as the guest stars in their own title! Maybe that’s just the “B-Team” feel of the team at the moment, and wanting to see that team rise or fall before getting its first team-up with a team like the JSA. Yes, DC is all about the cross branding, and since Brightest Day is the current event, the flagship team book has to be a part of it. In any case this is still a good issue.
Justice League of America #45:
Reviewed by SteveJRogers
The DC DTV animated movie series has had its fair share of ups and downs. It has put out awesome movies, like Green Lantern, or Wonder Woman, and it has put out very bad movies, like Superman Batman: Public Enemies. So where does JL: CTE, the latest film in this series, sit? Well, it’s at the top. This movie was fantastic!
Before I actually review it though, I want to go into the history of the film. It originally was supposed to be Justice League: Worlds Collide, and was going to be part of the DCAU. The film was intended to be released between Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. It would have served as a bridge between the two series. However, the film never got made, and Justice League Unlimited began, albeit, bridge-less. Now, many years later, the film has finally been released, but rewritten as Crisis on Two Earths. Even though The Film has been rewritten, not much has changed. We get to see the League building the new Watchtower, how the expanded roster came about, and even how Wonder Woman got her Invisible Jet. The only actual difference is that Green Lantern is Hal Jordan, not John Stewart. Other than that, CTE fits nicely into the DCAU, and perfectly fills the gap between JL and JLU.
The story is simple enough, a good version of Lex Luthor, from an alternate earth, comes to the Justice Leagues world, asking the league to help him defeat the Crime Syndicate of America, super powered criminals who have the country’s crime under their thumbs. The League goes to Luthor’s earth to take down the Syndicate, but soon discover a more sinister plot to destroy all of reality. The story is not to complex, but excellent nonetheless. Though the movie is made primarily of action sequences (awesome action sequences), it has some nice character development, especially a subplot involving John Jonzz. Dwayne McDuffie delivers one his best scripts with this movie.
The animation is absolutely top notch. The fight sequences are brutal, and exciting, and just look great all-around. The character designs are very good too. They seem to take some inspiration from Frank Quitley’s artwork on the JLA Earth 2 graphic novel written by Grant Morrison. I particularly liked Batman’s fight with Owlman at the end of the movie. It was one of the coolest animated fight scenes I have seen in a while. I won’t talk about it though; you just have to see it.
One of the things that makes the movie so good is the flawless voice cast. Everyone involved is great, there is no weakness in the cast (can we expect less from Andrea Romano though?) In the Justice league we have Mark Harmon as Superman, William Baldwin as Batman, Josh Keaton as Flash (he was awesome, and had the perfect voice for The Flash), Vanessa Marshall as Wonder Woman, Jonathan Adams as Martian Manhunter, and Nolan North as Green Lantern. From the Crime Syndicate we have James Woods as Owlman, Gina Torres as Superwoman, Brian Bloom as Ultraman, and James Patrick Stuart as Johnny Quick. Also from the Crime Syndicate world is Chris Noth as Lex Luthor. Focusing on Batman for a minute; William Baldwin was great! At first I was a little jarred by his voice, it’s definitely different from Kevin Conroy’s DCAU portrayal. However, as the film progressed, I liked his performance more and more. He is actually really good, and I would like him to return to the role. His last line to Owlman is awesome! Speaking of Owlman, James Woods’ performance is one of the highlights of the film. He was the perfect actor for the role, and it shows! His performance alone makes the movie worth watching!
Also, one more thing I loved; the music. The film is scored by James L. Venable, and though he is new to me, I hope I hear more of him soon. His score was very good, and had a big budget cinematic feel.
So all in all, I can’t say enough good things about his movie. It’s certainly the best of the DC DTVs, and I highly recommend that you see it.
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths:
Reviewed by TheCapedCrusader
We received a copy of the DVD version of Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths a little while ago and it releases today in stores. Should you head to the store and buy this right now? Well, I am going to let you know.
At first glance, this film seems like another quick story to expand the animated DC Universe, yet something feels strangely familiar. We have the Justice League battling villains in order to save the world. Does that remind you of something? Perhaps, Justice League Unlimited. Well, when this film was announced, that is exactly what I thought it was. In the podcast that you will hear on Friday, I referred to the announcement seeming as if it was another Superman/Batman mishap. Everything seemed to line up as what we saw before. The story originated from Dwayne McDuffie, who wrote many episodes of Justice League Unlimited. All of the characters that were in the film we had seen in the show. So why would you think that this was any different than the many multi-part stories we saw in episodic form for the show? Well, let me tell you why.
The basic plot of the film is that the Justice League of our earth battles the Crime Syndicate from a parallel earth. In this parallel earth, things are different. Despite the Syndicate being an obvious group of villains, they are treated with a level of respect. The heroes on this "Earth" are led by Lex Luthor. Their "Justice League" has been taken out one by one by the Crime Syndicate. We even see The Jester (a parallel version of The Joker) give his life to try and stop the Crime Syndicate. Lex Luthor travels to our universe to enlist the help of the Justice League to help him take down the Syndicate. The Justice League travels to the alternate earth to take them out. Batman stays behind, as he believes that there are enough problems in their universe. Owlman (the parallel version of Batman) is pretty much the main villain. He has created a bomb that will take out not only the the earth of his universe, but destroy Earth Prime, hence eliminating all "Earths." Batman of course comes and faces Owlman head on leading to climatic ending.
Overall, this film was a surprise to me. As I said, because it was first announced as a series of episodes that McDuffie wrote for Justice League Unlimited, I was concerned that it would have a feel of episodes put together as a film. But, it did not have that feel at all. The pace was very quick. It did not feel at any point that there was meant to be a break between acts. It had a more mature feel with the obvious violence. It wasn't overdone. We got more than we would have if this had ever aired on Cartoon Network. I applaud McDuffie for this. He took what was supposed to be a cartoon and made it a film.
On the Batman front, William Baldwin did a decent job at voicing Batman. It isn't the best job, but it fit with the feel of the film. Batman did take a back seat to the first half of the film. Although we see that while he wasn't around, he had a recruitment drive to have more heroes join the league. That kind of seemed out of place. Then again we have seen stranger things in the DC animated films. Batman not only saves the day in the end, but also proves to be smarter than most of the Justice League within the final scene with the Crime Syndicate.
For the special features, there were some interesting ones. The main feature was a piece about the various "crisises" that have happened in the DC Universe. They did a very good job getting many of the main creators that were involved in everything from Identity Crisis to Final Crisis. There was also a preview of the next DCAU film, which we know will be Batman: Under the Red Hood. There wasn't any footage from the film, but we did see the voice cast as well as some storyboards.
Also in this release, was the first DC Showcase film. It featured The Spectre. A good story that laid out his origin and told an interesting story in a very short amount of time. This was maybe even better than the main film. I look forward to more of these.
Overall, the film was good. I would not place it in the top three of DCAU films, but it was definitely better than I expected. One thing that many do not know is that the film will be released at Best Buy with an exclusive Owlman figure. This will be in limited quantities and only be with the Blu-ray and 2-disc DVD version. So you may want to get that right away and not wait until the end of the week to pick it up. I think if you are questioning it, rent it on iTunes or at your local video store. You will see that the film is worth adding to your collection of DC films.
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths:
Reviewed by Dustin
Yesterday, there was a big announcement from DC about the future of the company. The press release stated a new executive team that will be put in place to run things. Back in September, we heard about the creation of DC Entertainment. The idea behind the creation was to bring the DC Universe to the mainstream public by way of movies, TV shows, toys, and video games. We gave you our thoughts about the announcement back then and with the news yesterday, we should again give you our thoughts. First, let's cover the press release from DC.
Jim Lee and Dan DiDio Named Co-Publishers DC Comics
Geoff Johns to Serve as Chief Creative Officer
John Rood Named EVP, Sales, Marketing and Business Development
Patrick Caldon Named EVP, Finance and Administration
(February 18, 2010 – New York, NY and Burbank, CA) DC Entertainment, founded in September 2009 to unleash the power of the DC Comics library of characters across all media platforms, has named its executive management team, including new co-publishers of DC Comics and a Chief Creative Officer, as well as heads of Sales/Marketing/Business Development and Finance/Administration. Diane Nelson, President, DC Entertainment, made the announcement today.
The new senior executive team includes Jim Lee and Dan DiDio, who have been named Co-Publishers of DC Comics, and Geoff Johns, who will serve as Chief Creative Officer of DC Entertainment. Additionally, John Rood has been named Executive Vice President, Sales, Marketing and Business Development, and Patrick Caldon will serve as Executive Vice President, Finance and Administration. Each of these executives will report directly to Nelson.
“DC Entertainment’s new executive team is a creative ‘dream team,’ with accomplishments and talent unrivaled in the business,” said Nelson. “This announcement continues and underscores DC’s legacy as the ultimate destination for creators. We’ll benefit enormously from the deep experience this team represents, while re-energizing the direction and focus of the company. I’m excited and honored to have each of them with me at the helm of DC Entertainment.”
“With this new leadership team, Diane will be able to fully and respectfully integrate DC’s brand and characters, not only as key content drivers in the film division, but across all of the businesses of Warner Bros. and Time Warner,” said Jeff Robinov, President, Warner Bros. Pictures Group. “I am very proud and excited about the accomplished executives who are charged with expanding this powerful library. They each have a diverse and complementary skill-set and are deeply committed to contributing to the DC Comics legacy.”
Prior to his current post, Lee served as Editorial Director, where he oversaw WildStorm Studios and was also the artist for many of DC Comics’ bestselling comic books and graphic novels, including “All Star Batman and Robin, The Boy Wonder,” “Batman: Hush” and “Superman: For Tomorrow.” He also serves as the Executive Creative Director for the upcoming DC Universe Online massively multiplayer action game from Sony Online Entertainment.
Lee is an award-winning comic book illustrator/creator/publisher who started his professional career at Marvel Comics where his work on the X-Men continues to hold the all-time sales record for single issue sales at eight million copies sold in one month. At Marvel, he also drew the Punisher and co-created many characters, the most popular being Gambit, featured in 2009’s “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” feature film. In 1992, he started his own production company, WildStorm Productions, and co-founded Image Comics, an independent comics company which quickly grew to become the number-three North American comics publisher. His most notable creations, “WildCats” and “Gen 13,” saw life beyond comic books as a CBS Saturday morning cartoon and as a direct-to-video animated movie distributed by Disney, respectively. In 1998, he left Image Comics and sold WildStorm to DC Comics.
DiDio most recently served as Senior Vice President and Executive Editor, DC Universe, overseeing the editorial department for the DC Universe imprint, including the ongoing adventures of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and scores of heroes and villains. He also worked to develop new titles with the industry’s premier writers and artists. At DC Comics, DiDio has spearheaded such bestselling projects as “All Star Batman and Robin, The Boy Wonder,” “Identity Crisis,” Green Lantern, Teen Titans and The Outsiders.
Before joining DC in 2002, DiDio was with Mainframe Entertainment, where he most recently served as Senior Vice President, Creative Affairs, overseeing the development, distribution, marketing and promotion of all Mainframe’s television properties. Prior to that, he served as Executive Director of Children’s Programming for ABC, where he was also a publicity manager, having started his television career at CBS, working in a variety of positions.
Johns builds on his current role at DC from being one of today’s most prolific, popular and award-winning contemporary comic book writers with this new executive role. He is a New York Times bestselling author who has written highly acclaimed stories revitalizing Green Lantern, Superman, the Flash, Teen Titans, and the Justice Society of America for DC Comics.
Johns began his comics career creating and writing “Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E.” for DC Comics while at the same time working with film director Richard Donner. After acclaimed runs on Flash, Teen Titans and the bestselling “Infinite Crisis” mini-series, Johns co-wrote a run on Action Comics with his mentor, Donner. Johns has also written and produced for various other media, including the acclaimed “Legion” and “Absolute Justice” episodes of Warner Bros. Television’s “Smallville” and Adult Swim’s “Robot Chicken” and “Titan Maximum.” He also wrote the story of the DC Universe Online massively multiplayer action game from Sony Online Entertainment.
Rood returns to Warner Bros. after 10 years with the Disney ABC Television Group, where he most recently was Senior Vice President of Marketing, ABC Family. While at ABC, he also consulted for ABC News during the recent transitions at “Good Morning America” and “ABC World News with Diane Sawyer.”
Prior to Disney, Rood worked for six years at Warner Bros. Consumer Products, negotiating promotional deals with national advertisers using Warner Bros.’ properties, including the DC Comics characters. He has also worked in promotions for Equity Marketing on the Burger King account and in advertising for Leo Burnett on the McDonald’s and Miller Brewing accounts.
Caldon most recently served as Executive Vice President, Finance and Operations of DC Comics and MAD Magazine. Before that, he served as Senior Vice President, Finance and Operations, and his other posts at DC include Vice President, Finance and Operations, and Controller, the position in which he joined the company in 1985. Prior to joining DC Comics, Caldon spent a decade at Warner Communications in corporate accounting and as Senior Vice President and CFO of the Cosmos soccer team (owned by Warner Communications at the time).
DC Entertainment, a division of Warner Bros. Entertainment, is charged with strategically integrating the DC Comics business, brand and characters deeply into Warner Bros. and all its content and distribution businesses. DC Entertainment utilizes the expertise the Studio has in building and sustaining franchises to prioritize the DC properties as key titles and growth drivers across all of the Studio, including feature films, television, interactive entertainment, direct-to-consumer platforms and consumer products. The DC Comics publishing business is the cornerstone of DC Entertainment, releasing approximately 90 comic books through its various imprints and 30 graphic novels a month as well as continuing to build on its creative leadership in the comic book industry.
Alright, so there you have it. Jim Lee gets a huge promotion. Didio moves up the corporate ladder. Johns gets a position that will keep him at DC for a good amount of time, while he gives input on everything that has to do with the DC Universe. So a couple of the normal posters here at TheBatmanUniverse.net gave their two sense about this big news.
The first thought come from SteveJRogers:
Well, Dan DiDio, Jim Lee and Geoff Johns have nice shiny promotions. I don’t think the full scope of what is happening here though won’t be felt until a successor to DiDio’s EIC role is filled. And I’d like to see how this affects the Green Lantern books as well as the Flash title. It was going to be interesting to see the EIC take over Outsiders as it really is more of a Batman satellite than a cornerstone of the entire universe. I doubt Johns will have much time to do anything other than a brief fill-in or mini or one-shot.
The important question for Bat-Fans of course is how does this impact the Bat-Books? I’m not entirely sure if it does just yet, of course Johns is in the midst of the new OOC graphic novel series, or I am calling it, the latest attempt of DC creating an Ultimate Universe (see All-Star Batman & Robin The Boy Wonder and All-Star Superman), but as I said, I can see an executive having that kind of project on his/her plate, but not any of the major on-goings (Batman, Batman & Robin, Detective are the big three at the moment).
What I hope doesn’t happen, and it has been seen far too many times (Marvel in the 1990s for example) is when you have giant seismic paradigm shifts that the first thing that happens is immediate change. So maybe it’s a good thing that the big three were promoted within, and whatever change happens is a gradual process.
Interesting times indeed.
So next we have some thoughts about Geoff Johns and his new position from Dark Knight Dave:
James Cameron may “King of the World” but Geoff Johns is King of the Universe. The DC Universe that is. I always when I reached work today I fired up the trusty Dell and started poking around the ‘net for any cool and unusual news. One of my more frequent stops is “The Source” brought to us by DC. Alex Segura usually has something to tease us with and I enjoy clicking on preview panels and checking out some new art and or storylines.
Who the heck is David Hyde? And why is he writing so many “War and Peace” type entries into the “Source” blog. I scroll down, I scroll down some more, this guy is pretty excited about something but it seems pretty dry. I think I’ll click on one of my favorite sci-fi sites, io9, and see what they have to offer. Oh, something has rocked the DC world. I read it. Geoff Johns is what? He’s in charge of what now? I zoom back to the “Source” blog and things are still pretty dry there but I am glad David Hyde is happy as I click back to io9.
Geoff Johns is being named “Chief Creative Officer for DC Entertainment.” Holy promotion Batman I thought the guy was busy now. Not only is he the brains behind the cash cow that is “Blackest Night” for DC comics (although he stumbled a little with the last issue of “BN” after a great Batman centric Blackest Night #5) he wrote the highly rated and well received “Absolute Justice” two parter for the WB’s Smallville series and he has single handedly thrust Green Lantern as one of the if not the foremost hero in the DC pantheon of heroes. Let’s add to his resume the much anticipated “Earth One: Batman” and a little thing called “Brightest Day” as a follow up to “Blackest Night”. Phew! You’d need the “Flash” just to write this guys Wikipedia page just to get it done before years end. Oh, right, he writes “The Flash” also.
Good luck Geoff the eyes of the DC Universe are upon you and its loyal readership eagerly awaits your next offering. I have no doubt it will be a hit.
P.S. Geoff I have a movie treatment for you! Geoff? Geoff?!!
Alright and lastly, Zach gives his thoughts about everything:
Yesterday, February 18th, DC Entertainment announced their plans for the future. DC Entertainment has decided to play quite a large game of musical chairs for the year of 2010. Some major players will be stepping up and taking control of the DC Imprint. Here is the latest news on the future of DC, that no one saw coming.
First off, the Jim Lee and Dan DiDio have been named new co-publishers of DC Comics. What does this mean? Jim Lee is experienced with being the editorial director of Wildstorm Studios, while also having a large hand in the upcoming video game, DC Universe Online. This is a huge promotion for Jim Lee, and this really is DC thanking him for all the hard work that he has put in over the years at DC Comics. Congratulations Jim, very well deserved. Now, Dan DiDio has also taken a much larger seat at the table. I know that many fans feel iffy about DiDio, but I think he will be able to handle this position. I think that while he hasn’t always made the best call, he has been consistent as the Senior Vice President and Executive Editor at DC. This also confirms that DiDio is going nowhere after rumors have swirled over the last couple years that he was on the hot seat. None the less, I am excited and I think DiDio will really flourish under his new position.
As if the news couldn’t get any bigger! DC Entertainment also announced that Geoff Johns will serve as the Chief Creative Officer of DC Entertainment. While some may know, I am not Johns’ number one fan, but I do know that he knows comics. And it is this reason that I know that the DC Imprint is in good hands. He truly loves the DC Universe and all of its characters. Now, don’t worry! Johns will continue to write, but now he will give his creative input on all the comics. In addition to this, he will use his control to get the DC Universe into other imprints such as film, merchandise, animation, and video games. I think Johns has proven himself to be worthy of the job, especially after the large work loads that he has taken over the years at DC.
In addition to these announcements, John Rood will become Executive Vice President of Sales, Marketing and Business Development. Rood has previously worked at Warner Bros. and to be a key asset in the growth of DC’s consumer products. Patrick Caldon was also named the Executive Vice President of Finance and Administration. Caldon has been with the company since 1985, about 25 years. I would definitely say he has earned his stripes.
Now, nothing was announced directly towards Batman, but I will say that this news does impact the Batman Universe, therefore affecting you, the fan. First off, Jim Lee knows Batman; he has done some terrific work over the years with the character, and will continue that work. He knows the passionate following the character has and I am sure will do everything to enlarge that following. In regarding Dan DiDio, I think during DiDio’s time as the Executive Editor, the character has been through some major changes. Some have been good and some have been bad, but I think for the most part he gets it, and therefore I am not very concerned. And I think once Morrison finishes his tale of the dark knight; Geoff Johns will definitely oversee many of the future tales. I think that from a creative stand point, Johns loves the character and looks forward to getting his hands on the Batman Universe.
Well it was a wild day over at Warner Bros. Many are already calling this the most talented executive team in the comics industry. I know I am excited to see what this team does. Are you? We will have to wait and see what kind of magic the new crew is able to pull off.
So there you have it. For the most part this will be in fact another new chapter for DC and DC Entertainment. Hopefully, now that they have the staff announced we can get to some news about future projects. As soon as we hear something, you will be the first to know.
Posted by Dustin
From all of us at The Batman Universe, we wish you a Merry Christmas! We hope that you spend time with loved ones and receive the gifts you really wanted. As you head to family and friends houses today to celebrate the holidays, please stay safe.
Batman sings?
Posted by Dustin
Peace on earth, goodwill toward men. This phrase describes everything in this picture. From this year's DC Comics Holiday Special 2009
Posted by Dustin
If you are viewing this site, I think it is safe to say that you have probably seen this show at one point. The show started off by focusing on the Big Seven of the DCU. They were Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, and Martian Manhunter. Now you might argue if these seven should be the main seven, but that is besides the point. Justice League ran two seasons and then was renamed Justice League Unlimited, which also ran for two seasons giving the series a total of four seasons. Justice League Unlimited still featured the "Big Seven," but it also featured a lot of lesser known DC characters. And when I say lesser known, I mean that. I don't think as a casual reader of DC Universe comics, you would have came across Waverider or Vibe. But the series introduced new characters that casual fans and even some seasoned fans may never have known about.
There is nothing bad to say at all about this series. The stories were well written and the animation was high quality. The only downfall of the series was that it ended. The first two seasons featured many multi-part episodes were the story carried over between two and sometimes three episodes. JLU didn't have the multi-part episodes, but it did have an overarching storyline through both of the seasons. The show hasn't been aired regularly on Cartoon Network for quite some time. I personally own the entire series in individual season form.
As for this set there are a couple of negatives, but we will get to that in a minute. Let's cover the series as a whole collected. The entire series has ninety-one episodes. The price tag may seem steep depending on where you are going to buy it from, but even $99.99 as the suggested retail price, is well worth it. Let me put it into perspective. If you were to sit down in front of your TV and start watching the series, it would take you more than two days to watch the entire series. Now I don't recommend you do that, but you may find yourself doing exactly that once you start watching the series. It is just that good.
Now for the negatives. I don't know if it is just the copies that I get sent or what, but there is always some sort of packaging error. With this series, I know it isn't just mine. The fifteen discs are packaged in two plastic DVD cases. One having all of the discs for Justice League and the other one having all of Justice League Unlimited. The two plastic cases are then enclosed in a steel case. Now, the problem with this steel case is that it has lips around the edges, which makes it difficult to get the plastic cases out without having to bend the steel. If someone was going to spend close to one hundred dollars on the series, I would imagine that they do not want to damage the casing. Once you figure out how to get the cases out, you might notice (or this was just mine) that the cases are mis-marked. They are labeled Volume One and Volume Two, but when you open the Volume One case, you find Justice League Unlimited, which many know is actually Volume Two. The paper inserts describing what is on the discs is also mis-placed in the wrong cases. Now, it may seem that I am making a big deal about nothing (and I probably am) but I can't understand why something that gets designed by a person and sent to a factory never gets checked to see if it makes sense. On top of all the that, the discs are labeled as if you bought separate seasons instead of one through fifteen.
I know I am spending way too much time covering the packaging of the series, but the thing is that this is the exact same thing that you might already have if you own the separate seasons. The special features are the same except for one new one. It is on the fifteenth disc and has the series creators discussing challenges and opportunities that the different characters presented.
Overall, the series is remarkable. It is up to par with Batman: The Animated Series. And I would even say that the writing for this series is actually a little better since it as an overall story plot. If I put aside the packaging mishaps, this is the perfect gift for a DC Universe fan for the holidays.
Justice League: The Complete Series:
It would have been a perfect five if not for the packaging and lack of new special features. Keep in mind that this rating is not what the show itself would be rated. I am rating the series collected in this new form. I can't stress enough that the show is amazing. The series was released on November 10. You can find it on Amazon by clicking here. Warner Bros. sent over this clip to show with the review. Take a look:
Posted by Dustin
So the final episode of season one has aired and did it go out with a bang or just sizzle? We hear from normal BTBTB reviewers Tiggerbrown and rhine1784. Starting off with rhine1784:
Batman: The Brave and the Bold
Fate of the Equinox
Synopsis: Batman teams up with Fate to stop the balance obsessed Equinox from remaking the Universe in his own image.
The teaser, well it was good and bad. BMBATB fans finally have the privilege of seeing Harvey Dent against the Dark Knight. True to his colors, Two Face keeps his own world fair and balanced with a flip of the coin.
For a third time Batman is after Equinox and his goal of keeping the universe in perfect harmonic balance. But Fate lends a hand, Doctor Fate. With Fates mystical powers the two heroes take on Equinox by evening the playing field in a Brave and Bold manner. Batman takes on the powers of many of his super friends. Blue Beetle, Flash, Plastic Man, and Green Lantern just to name a few, have all their powers transferred to Batman for one final epic battle with Equinox.
This episode is very fantastical, but it works, and with all the DC characters that make an appearance, it very much had a Justice League vibe to it. I really enjoyed the way this story played out. The Fate of Equinox truly felt like the end of a three part story arc since he first appeared in the episode “Mystery in Space”. As usual the animation is first rate and the voice talents are absolutely wonderful. Although the title remains “Batman” The Brave and the Bold, skewing off into a Justice League vibe certainly won’t hurt my feelings!
BTBTB: Fate of the Equinox:
Moving on to Tiggerbrown:
Batman: The Brave and the Bold
Fate of the Equinox
Season one of Batman the Brave and the Bold has mostly consisted of stand alone episodes; each one focusing on a different team-up with the Caped Crusader. The dynamic between the different hero match-ups is more often than not the predominant focal point of each story. Batman's "partner of the week" usually has some moral or behavioral conflict that impedes him from bringing the episode's bad guy to justice. There have been few repeat appearances, Green Arrow being one of the exceptions amongst the heroes, and the tone of the stories are usually light and kid friendly.
The season finale attempts to break the mold by bringing back Equinox as a serious arch villain and Dr. Fate as Batman's partner. The writers make a valiant attempt at creating an exciting hero vs. villain battle that explores the complex theme of chaos vs. order.
But before the main action begins, we are treated to a little crime noir vignette starring Two-Face. My favorite moments of this series have been when they use the classic villains; the golden age Joker being my particular favorite. This fun scene, highlighted by a great music score right out of an Elmore Leonard or Dashiell Hammett film adaptation, is a simple but classic confrontation between Harvey Dent and the Dark Knight. My only gripe is the detail on the evil side of Harvey's face. I like the almost Dick Tracyesque style given to Harvey, but his Two-Face look is too simplistic. The decision to only use the color green and limit the deformity took away from the fierceness of his character. I hope we get to see full length Golden Age style episodes in season two. The cheesy dialogue and square-jawed animation really lend well to that era.
The episode itself had its moments. I appreciated the writers trying to give the viewers a finale that is a bit more epic in scope than normal. The series has developed Equinox as its principal antagonist, and the apocalyptic potential of his success created needed tension in an often fluffy first season. Dr. Fate is relatively one dimensional in this issue, with the real focus being on Batman and Equinox. It was refreshing to see a villain in this series use their intellect to outsmart the world’s greatest detective.
The dialogue and the flow of the scenes created some confusion for me, and unfortunately, the episode climaxed by resorting to its often pre-teen plot resolutions. Having many of the heroes from previous episodes reunite was fun, but having Batman turn into a Transformers styled giant to defeat Equinox was exciting to some I’m sure, but a disappointment to me considering where the episode seemed to be heading.
The production values and acting were solid as always. However, I’m still hoping that next season will see a different choreography style for the fight scenes. The animation is top-notch as always, especially compared to the Marvel animated shows currently airing. The bright colors and grandiose settings suit the cartoon to a tee. Deidrich Bader has proven himself to be a lot more capable a Batman than anyone thought. I’m looking forward to seeing if he is able to develop the character a little deeper. If I could ask the producers one thing in regards to this Batman, is to have him take off the mask and introduce Bruce Wayne and maybe Alfred to the series. I think it would add a very interesting dimension for future stories. Oh, and match him up with Superman….that’s always a classic.
Overall, this was a serious step in the right direction for the series. Season one had some surprisingly memorable moments, and if the creative team behind BTBTB is going to give us efforts like Fate of the Equinox, this version of our favorite crime fighter will continue to gain fans both young and old.
BTBTB: Fate of the Equinox:
So there you have it. An average score of three and a half batarangs. The new episodes for the new season are right around the corner. And TheBatmanUniverse.net will be there to review them as well.
Posted by Dustin
Batgirl’s first meeting with the Justice League. Or first time taking LSD, I’m not sure. Either way it happened in Justice League of America issue 60.
Posted by Josh
Yesterday, some very big news was announced over at Warner Bros. and DC Comics. If you didn’t read the official press release, head over to the news post here. To summarize a really long PR statement, WB is creating a new company called DC Entertainment, Inc. This division will still obviously be owned by Warner Bros., but will report directly to Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. The main job of this new company is to prioritize the DC properties into all forms of media by specifically focusing on them alone.
I know a lot of people are going to immediately associate this announcement as a reply of what happened last week with Disney and Marvel. For those of you who strictly stick to the DC Universe, let me inform you of what happened. Disney announced that they were buying Marvel for around $4 billion. Now while the internet blew up all over the place about that, the range of feelings towards that announcement ranged in every direction. Some thought that Disney could ruin what Marvel has been doing, while others believed it was just a way for Disney to reconnect with the younger male audience. My thought is that we probably won’t see very much come out of this for awhile, mostly because Marvel has things spread all over the place with all kinds of different studios. While the marketting giant that is Disney will probably help Marvel in an area that they need little help in, we are still years away from seeing any kind of major impact.
The reason why I tell you all of this, is so that you understand why some have immediately made this out to be a counter measure of that deal. While at first glance it seems that it just might be, according to Deadline.com it has something that has been in the works for awhile:
I know what everybody is thinking: that this move is in response to the announcement August 31st that Disney is buying Marvel. You can think that, but you would be wrong. This change has been in the works quietly for two years ever since Robinov moved into the top slot. "It was Jeff’s idea to have DC Comics reporting to him, and DC will be his direct responsibility with Diane Nelson," an insider confided to me. I’ve also learned that Robinov for months has quietly gone to producers like Chuck Roven and Joel Silver and Akiva Goldman and "called back" all their high profile DC titles in development like The Flash and Wonder Woman. Not only was that shocking to the producers, but even more so when they found out this was part of Robinov’s strategy to severely limit the number of gross participants on the projects. Because the producers were told that they may get the titles back to develop, but with far less rich deals. "Jeff always wanted some kind of oversight of DC, and now he wants Warner’s to hold onto ownership," my insider explains.
Now with all of that said, could this be the reason why so many DC properties have been announced and then have completely fallen of the map? It just may be. It seems as if this was something that they may have been planning for awhile and be that it just comes off the heels of the Disney/Marvel announcement. If so what does it all mean?
First, let’s go over what this means for the DC Universe in general before we get to Batman. Basically, what I interpret out of the press release is that DC Entertainment will get a lot of our favorite superheroes on to the silver screen, the small screen, or into video games. We have been wondering for quite some time why WB has not been working with comic book characters, especially since there are so many they could capitalize on. WB has owned DC Comics for over 40 years. It all started with Superman back in the seventies. Batman came into the late 80′s. But besides the two big names, there really has not been much in terms of use of the rest of the Universe. We are just now starting to see more heroes come out. Putting aside the animation aspect of things for a moment, we will finally be seeing some other characters break on to film. With Green Lantern and Jonah Hex already underway and announcements last week about Deadman and Lobo attaching key production members. We also know that Human Target is getting it’s own show that will start airing in January. Could more things be announced in the future? Only time will tell, but my money is that we hear some big news about a truckload of properties come Q1 of 2010.
That all being said, what does this mean for us Bat-Fans? In my opinion, not much at all. Batman is currently the most successful property coming out of DC right now for WB. Batman has the billion dollar plus film franchise, a critically acclaimed video game, and a TV series that is being adored by fans of all ages. I don’t think that the new DC Entertainment will be super concerned about what Batman needs to do to become more successful. They just need to get Chris Nolan and his team back, make a sequel to the now world-record holding video game, and keep making more episodes of BTBTB. Could we see more? Yes. But I think their focus will be more on the under used properties over at DC. Wonder Woman. Flash. Aquaman? Well, maybe not all of them.
In closing, I think this is a great thing for all DC fans. This will be what most have been waiting for in one way or another. Many fans have asked themselves, "Why are we not getting the same treatment for our characters as Marvel is giving their characters?" Wait for the announcement coming in January 2010. Then DC fans, we will.
Posted by Dustin
“And here we go…”
It seems appropriate to quote Heath Ledgers memorable Joker character from “The Dark Knight” because it represents that moment before all Hell breaks loose. That single instance where there is relative calm before such a cataclysmic event that the foundation of all we knew will be torn asunder. For Ledger’s Joker that moment never came to pass. But for the new Batman that moment is already here. Before I get into what I consider an awesome preview provided by IGN this past Friday of Blackest Night: Batman #1. Let’s take a look at that moment as laid out in Blackest Night #0 and #1.
As many of you already know DC comics is publishing a massive crossover event called Blackest Night. It involves not only Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corp but seven other Corp representing the spectrum of light and there attendant emotions. Fear for the Yellow or Sinestro Corp, Rage for the Red Lanterns, Hope for the Blue Corp, Compassion for the Indigo Tribe, Love for the Star Sapphires, Avarice for Agent Orange, Willpower goes to the Green Lanterns, and oh yes, Death for the Black Lanterns. I urge you all to pick up Blackest Night issues zero and one to get you started with this mighty event.
As much as I’d like to cover the entire event I think I am better served sticking to the events that relate directly to Batman (both Bruce and Dick) and fill in where necessary the events from the rest of the Blackest Night spectrum.
In Blackest Night #0 we find Green Lantern Hal Jordan standing over the Wayne family gravesite. He is soon joined by Barry Allen’s Flash. (I love the team up of these two great heroes and friends and Ivan Reis’s artwork is amazing.) The two lament the loss of their friends such as Bruce, Arthur Curry/Aquaman and J’onn J’onzz, the Martian Manhunter. Hal recounts how Barry himself died a saint while Hal was remembered as a sinner. (Opposites of the same spectrum eh?) The Flash counters by telling Hal that there are larger forces at work and death isn’t necessarily an end point and if anyone had an escape plan it would be Batman. That’s an important note I’d say. One that was diluted by Dan Didio’s recent proclamation that Batman isn’t dead just missing. I’d rather he’d left that a mystery we all could have chewed on and debated. Perhaps Didio is reacting to “larger forces.” As Hal and Barry depart an unseen figure approaches the gravesite and (creepily) says, “Yes. THIS one.” A ringed hand is seen clawing at the unmarked grave of Bruce Wayne, a skull is unearthed and Black Lantern “Black Hand” cries, “By my black hand – the dead shall rise!”
Awesome! But why Bruce Wayne’s purported skull? What is so important about, “THIS one”? As we move to Blackest Night #1, Black Hand is crouched, Hamlet like, over the desecrated plot of Bruce Wayne. He holds a skull in one hand and a jawbone in the other. He speaks to an unseen force that compels him and seemingly tells the skull that no one escapes death and “that includes YOU.” As black power rings burst forth across the universe Black Hand in his best Gene Simmons imitation extends his tongue licking the skull, passing on some sort of black goo and says, “and you are connected to them all.”
Wow. The rest of the issue covers events related to larger events in the Blackest Night. Important to us Batman fans is the discovery of the desecrated grave by Alfred Pennyworth and the alert he sends out to the JLA. (Which Hal and Barry pick up.) Poor Alfred is shocked by what he sees, but oddly, calls out to “Bruce?” just as he approaches the site as if expected to see Wayne there. Interesting. What does Alfred know that we don’t? What “terrible mistake” did he make by burying Bruce’s bones there? If they are Bruce’s bones! Why does Black Hand think that skull is connected to “them all”?
I’m desperately trying to steer clear of spoilers as I love this mystery. I hope all you “Dark Knight Detectives” out there are working on this case and I would love to hear your comments.
Next up, the IGN preview pages.
Posted by Dark Knight Dave