I am filled with bitter nerd-rage after seeing Justice League. Not because it was bad, but because for a few brief moments, it was so good. We finally got a glimpse of what the DC movies should have been from the beginning and Henry Cavill FINALLY GOT TO BE THE REAL SUPERMAN! (Unless you live under a rock, that isn't a spoiler) But Justice League was so weighed down by course correcting its cinematic universe that it couldn't reach its full potential. It's a promising house built on the sand foundation of Man of Steel and Batman v Superman.
In Justice League we finally get bright colors, smiling heroes and joyful moments of triumph. There were points in Justice League where the iconic images made me tear up. It takes a while to pull itself out of the grim Snyderverse, but it was a definite pivot in the right direction. This is the first of Snyder's DC films that I'd be ok with taking kids to see in the theatre. You leave the movie feeling good. There is finally the impression that the heroes are the same characters that have inspired four-color comics for decades. This was my favorite recent DC film after Wonder Woman, and was light years more enjoyable than Suicide Squad or Batman v. Superman. It finally feels like we got a film made by someone who LIKES DC COMICS. It was a lot of fun. That said, there are also a lot of missteps.
The biggest problem with Justice League is its split personality. The accepted rumor in Hollywood is that Zach's original vision for the film was terrible and Joss Whedon was brought in to "help fix it". This is why he was already a part of the team when Snyder had to leave the project a while later, due to a tragedy in his family. Joss did a massive amount of reshoots and a lot of the new footage is obvious. The huge amount of trailer footage that ISN'T in the movie hints at how much the vision for the movie has changed in recent months. The final product feels like a filler issue between two big comic book story arcs. Its whole job is to be fun and set up the next story and in that, Justice League met its goal. It has a simple bad guy with predictable motivations, convenient plot devices to keep things moving in the expected direction, Krypton-sized plot holes, and lots of middling quality CGI. There are an overabundance of one-line jokes, but the humor is a big enough step in the right direction that many fans will forgive many large problems with the movie because of its lighter tone. There were some really great moments. There were also some real WTF moments? (No spoilers, but one of those moments is when The Flash and Cyborg are digging together. You will know the moment when you see it. Seriously, W.... T.... F???) Overall, I enjoyed the movie and was grateful for the change in tone. I think that if the project had changed hands sooner we would have ended up with a much better movie, but at least we got something fun.
In all superhero teams, each person fills a different need in battle. Some members are the fighters, others are the thinkers who solve the problem, while still others keep the civilians safe and out of the way. Despite having all the characters to make this work, Justice League's script didn't seem to think this aspect of superhero teams through. Each member of the League is given moments to shine, but we never really get a moment where they are firing on all cylinders as a team. The major battles end up being dominated by specific individuals making the whole "team up" portion of the movie less vital to the world's survival than it should be. There is no telling if this is the fault of the original script or the product of the fights being reworked on the editing floor, but it was a disappointing aspect after seeing how flawlessly Whedon balanced the heroes' talents in The Avengers.
Justice League also has a women problem. Yes, many of the Amazons wear bikinis in their scenes, both modern day and ancient. No, angry fanboys of the internet, there is no logical explanation for their vital organs being exposed. However the issue doesn't stop at a troubling selection of costumes. After the revolutionary screen treatment of women in Wonder Woman, the repeated use of Wonder Woman/Diana's butt to help frame shots in Justice League is obvious and awkward. Her teammates reference her physical appearance repeatedly which makes it feel like the Justice League's next acquisition should be an HR department. It's all jokes that we have seen in other movies and comments that women hear all the time in our daily lives, but that doesn't excuse it. For a movie short on screen time for female characters, it's troubling that the production team decided to spend so much of it focused on Wonder Woman's "assets." Maybe this was acceptable in a pre-Wonder Woman superhero film, but we now know that we can and should expect more, especially in a movie that takes place in the same universe. (I talk more about Wonder Woman's depiction in the movie below in the spoiler section.)
I went in to Justice League expecting to hate it but, despite its numerous flaws and women troubles, ended up walking out excited about the new direction that DC is headed. While not a masterpiece, I feel that the difference in opinion between critics and fans is easily explained. It's clear that this movie depended on prior emotional connections to these iconic characters to make it work. Many critics may not have enjoyed it because their recent connections to Superman and Batman are the other Snyder movies. It's hard to come back from that dark place and understand why the world wouldn't be glad that Superman, the destroyer of Metropolis, is dead. To them, this movie seemed out of joint with the DC world they know but was still trying to be a part of it. To long-time fans however, Justice League seemed like things were finally getting back to normal. We immediately connected with this return to the familiar four-color world that we love, and revel in seeing our heroes stand together on the big screen. There is a lot wrong with Justice League, but if this is the new foundation for DC's cinematic universe, I finally have what these characters should have represented all along... hope.
DETAILED CHARACTER BREAKDOWNS - SPOILERS AFTER THIS POINT!
Batman
Batman is fine in this movie. He isn't great but he is much MUCH better than he was in Batman v Superman. It's nice not having him be worse than the criminals he is catching. He has lots of gadgets and vehicles to help him keep up with his super-powered teammates, but we don't ever see the brilliant mind that makes him one of the most powerful characters in the DC universe. He isn't the "World's Greatest Detective" (in fact, a random burglar in the first five minutes of the movie seems just as smart as he is) nor does he seem to be an especially gifted tactician. He saw clear footage of Aquaman in Batman v Superman, but doesn't seem to know what he looks like in Justice League? His main role seems to be providing toys for Cyborg to take over and to provide dialogue that explains things to the audience, but he is Batman so he is still cool.
Cyborg
Cyborg is a really interesting character and Ray Fisher does a great job with the limited screen time he is given. His CGI body is not the best we've seen in superhero movies, but Fisher manages to act through that in spite of an unimpressive script. He gives us a hero we are rooting for and who has a clear character arch, no small feat in such an overpacked movie. There are tons of shots of Cyborg from the trailers that never made it into the film, so clearly his role and backstory were cut back to shave off time or CGI costs. I really hope that we get to focus more on him if there are future Justice League films or if an extended cut of this movie is released.
The Flash
I was surprised that they went with Barry Allen's dark backstory from the comics for Justice League. Honestly, when I heard the short run time of the film, I figured they'd just have him show up as some punk kid runaway and not get into it. The scenes between Barry and his dad are well done but I think they should have explained more about Barry's strengths besides being fast. He built a hideout and speedsuit by using cutting edge technology, but that is never explored. I think it would have been a great way for him to bond with Batman or Cyborg instead of just being the awkward comic relief for the whole movie. Again, I feel like this was probably a time issue. The Flash was definitely an audience favorite and a great way to add some child-like wonder to the film through the eyes of one of the main characters. It was a relief to finally have a character who is enthusiastic about the idea of becoming a superhero.
Aquaman
I think this character suffered the most from the two conflicting visions of Justice League's directors. In parts he seems like a dark, menacing drunk who saves people out of obligation. (Sounds like all the other DC heroes in Snyder's movies, right?) Then there are the clear reshoots and comedic moments that are a total contrast provided by Whedon. A middle ground between those two visions was needed, but never materialized. Instead, Aquaman ends up just coming across as Jason Momoa flipping between overacting and not acting at all. It was especially obvious how little the production team thought about Aquaman when the final battle had no sources of water or way for Arthur to use his full powerset. It's a team up move, right? Why write a final battle that completely handicaps one of the characters you just spent an hour trying to get onto the team?
Mera
Mera appeared in her skin tight underwater spandex, gold crown and super push up bra for only a few moments of the film. In the comics, she can control water with her mind to create solid objects, control the tides, or even kill her enemies through instant dehydration or forced drowning. Honestly, she should have been a major threat to even Steppenwolf in a battle at the bottom of the ocean, but all this Mera seems to be able to do is create air bubbles. The scenes in Atlantis were some of the most awkward of the film. We clearly have not mastered underwater scenes with acting or CGI. The Atlantian actors move like fish out of water (come on, I had to say that...) and the fact that they can't communicate without creating an air bubble is laughable. I really hope they get those issues sorted out for Aquaman.
Wonder Woman
Other than her badass fight scenes, Wonder Woman was pretty underwhelming in this movie, especially compared to the high bar set by her solo film. Frankly, I am on the fence about if she passes the sexy lamp test developed by Kelly Sue DeConnick. Her main contributions to the team are to be the heavy hitter until Superman shows up, and to tell the history of Steppenwolf and the mother boxes. If they had found a note about Steppenwolf's history stuck to a lamp, half of her purpose in the film would have been covered. Her fighting is great, but she never takes initiative and keeps falling into the trope of female characters only reacting to what happens around them. There are a few tender, almost maternal moments between her and the other heroes, but she doesn't really inspire them or step into the role of team leader. The script actually goes out of its way to point out multiple times that she is not inspiring the public at large and is living in the shadows due to her long lost love. This particular point doesn't make sense, since we saw her leaping into action at the end of Wonder Woman and she saves dozens of people at the beginning of Justice League too. She's doing the job of a hero so why are we explicitly told that nobody knows about her? This is obviously just a case of bad writing. They want to make Superman's return the most important thing in the movie, even if the only way to do that is by dimming all the other bulbs in the room to make him shine brighter. I can't wait to see Wonder Woman back in Patty Jenkins' hands.
Superman
The "Big Blue Boyscout" finally is back on the big screen. Superman is not a hero or beacon of hope in the previous Snyder movies. He was a brooding figure who seemed to dislike his self-imposed role of savior. His battles level cities and cause the loss of countless lives in Man of Steel. It's horrific and lays the foundation for Batman's hate in Batman v Superman, but it is never resolved. He helped fight one monster in an abandoned area of town, but that hardly seems to balance out the insane loss of life he caused smashing through buildings in the first film. And let's not forget him making out with Lois on what is essentially a mass grave site in Man of Steel.... ugh. Justice League does its best to retcon some of this, showing us cell phone footage of kids talking with a more classic-looking Superman and showing the entire world in deep mourning for Superman. Even the John William's theme from the Christopher Reeve films is used liberally to tap into nostalgia from the pre-Snyder versions of the character. I appreciated this clear attempt to undo the darkness of previous films in the series. When he finally arrives, despite the sometimes distracting CGI work on his face, the Superman in Justice League is worth the wait and is a hero worthy of the world's admiration.
Justice League opened to a astonishingly low $96 million opening weekend. A lot of things contributed to this including the bad reviews of previous Snyder/DC films, months of negative production rumors, bad press about the Amazon's new outfits (sorry, not sorry!), and the huge amount of drama surrounding the botched Rotten Tomatoes reveal of the scoreJustice League got on their website. I think that overall this was a much better offering from Warner Bros/DC than we've had since Nolan's films, with the obvious exception of Wonder Woman. I hope the depressing box office numbers don't cause Warner Bros. to give up on the Justice League's future movies just when they FINALLY seem to be moving in the right direction. We will definitely be seeing a solo Aquaman movie and a Wonder Woman sequel in the future, but only time will tell if they take another stab at the JLA.
What did you think of Justice League and how they portrayed the characters? Comment below!
And I don’t think changing him… you know, people are always like, “You changed Superman,” and I’m like, if you’re a comic book fan, you know I didn’t change Superman. If you know the true canon, you know that I didn’t change Superman. - Zack Snyder
Batman v Superman had everything going for it. A great cast, decades of content to draw from, and hundreds of millions of dollars should have laid a successful foundation for a great superhero film. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. While the film had enjoyable moments, its flaws far outweighed its positive qualities. There have been hundreds of articles published about how Zack Snyder didn't "get" the characters in this movie. I have decided to focus on the flaws in directing and film making that lead to this film's downfall, instead of analyzing his interpretations of the Justice League as characters... except with Wonder Woman. (You knew that was coming...)
Superman
Superman is easily the least likable character in the entire film. This is an impressive feat of crappy directing considering the Man of Steel is played by Henry Cavill, who I have adored since The Tudors. I haven't seen a talented actor given such bland direction and such terrible dialogue since the Star Wars prequels. We are introduced to Superman through the eyes of the citizens of Metropolis during his fight with General Zod from Man of Steel. He is a small figure flying above them as buildings crumble and people die. The level of destruction is unforgivable, especially to an audience that lives in a post 9/11 world, and afterwards Superman NEVER MENTIONS IT OR EVEN SEEMS REMORSEFUL. The people of Metropolis build a huge statue of him as part of their memorial, but no time is given to redeeming Superman in the audiences' eyes. We get a handful of shots of Superman being a hero (while looking depressed and unhappy), but Snyder doesn't spend any time building him up as a hero in our eyes. Most of Cavill's dialogue is focused on how dangerous Batman is, which after the opening scenes of Metropolis being leveled seems forced and incredibly hypocritical. The script never provides any depth of character, endearing moments, or proper motivation for his thoughts or actions. The lame attempts to humanize him via bathtub sex with Lois Lane or weird dream sequences about Jonathan Kent stacking rocks fail. I found myself agreeing with the characters who thought Superman was dangerous and wanted to stop him. Snyder slacked on character building because he thought we'd support anyone wearing the "S", and he was very wrong.
Lex Luthor The Lex from Batman v Superman is actually more like Lex, Jr. from the comics. He didn't build Lex Corp, and is lacking the serious businessman attitude that we are used to seeing in more traditional renditions of this infamous villain. Oh, and he has hair. The character actually works as a young, socially awkward tech-billionaire, but Snyder sacrifices the genius that makes the comic book character worthy of being Superman's nemesis in favor of more CGI and slo-mo. NOTHING ABOUT LEX'S PLANS MAKE SENSE! He is king of the plot holes. He kills a Senator because she is going to block the importation of Kryptonite, but his secret ship with the rock is already docked so it wouldn't have impacted his plans at all. He blows up a hearing that was going to impose sanctions AGAINST Superman (wouldn't Lex want that?) because Snyder thought it would be cool to watch a room of innocent people burn up around Superman. Finally, we get to the big master plan: trick Batman into killing Superman. Considering nobody has actually tested Kryptonite against Superman yet, this seems like a really bad plan. Plan B is even worse because Lex turns General Zod's body into one of the cave trolls from Lord of the Rings to kill Superman, just in case Batman fails. WHAT IF BATMAN HAD WON?? We'd have a mindless cave troll, sorry, DOOMSDAY on the loose and Superman would already be dead. Or what if Doomsday had succeeded in killing Superman and then was unstoppable and destroyed everything? Bad plan, Lex.
More annoying than the lame Wile E. Coyote level plots was Lex's complete lack of motivation. His goal is obviously to beat Superman, but we never know why. He makes some comments about devils coming from above, that absolute power and innocence are incompatible, and references his father's physical abuse, but we are never told the reason for his hate. Is he jealous of Superman's power? Afraid for mankind? Maybe someone he cared about was killed in Metropolis? In true Snyder fashion we get some cool shots of Lex Corp and some weird dialogue instead of real character development or backstory.
Batman
(AKA the other billionaire in the movie trying to kill Superman) Bruce Wayne/Batman is the most developed character in the movie and is the only one whose motivation we actually know. We saw him trying to save lives in the streets of Metropolis as Superman and Zod tore it apart. He clearly states that he wants vengeance for the thousands killed that day and is terrified by Superman's unlimited power. That's really where the good stuff ends. This Batman brands people for no logical reason, other than Snyder needs a plot device that gives Superman a reason to hate him. I really love (read: think it's stupid) that it's the branding that pisses Superman off and not the FLAT OUT MURDER of bad guys with the Batmobile's machine guns. Most troubling is the fact that we are given absolutely no history of this Batman's crime fighting. Has he always been a murderous vigilante? Did he start out as a hero and then start killing after losing hope? Did the death of a friend break him? Was he pushed to this extreme after the appearance of Superman and the realization of his own limitations? The cops seem to hate him, but there is still a Batsignal? No relevant background information is given to the audience to put Batman's actions in the larger context of his time in the cowl. But good thing we spent time showing Bruce's parents being murdered... again.
Since I disliked Snyder's city-murdering Superman I was really hoping that Batman would be a hero. He isn't. I get that this is an older, darker Batman, but he never does any real detective work or uses his brain. In Snyder's attempt to put at much mindless testosterone in the movie as possible, his ONE big scene with the Bat Computer is interspersed with shots of Bruce doing Crossfit in the Bat Cave. Batman's intelligence is what makes him so powerful in the DC universe, however we see no evidence of it in this movie.
Maybe it's the Gotham City in me, but it just seems like another example of the script taking a back seat to the visuals of the movie.
Wonder Woman I am pretty pleased with Wonder Woman's appearance in Batman v Superman. She looks great and wasn't in it enough for Snyder to ruin. We don't really get any character development or backstory for her, but I'm thrilled that they are leaving that to the Wonder Woman movie and Patty Jenkins. It seems that some important elements of her traditional comic book persona are intact. She goes by the name Diana Prince and is immortal (or at least doesn't age) since we see pictures of her from World War I. We see her kick some serious ass in the fight with Doomsday, and it seems her bracelets deflect even the most powerful of blows, and SHE HAS A GLOWING GOLD LASSO that she uses effectively in battle. Considering how little Batman does in the fight, and how much time Superman spent talking to Lois Lane, I think it's safe to say that Wonder Woman was the MVP of that beat down.
Wonder Woman spends most of the movie at fancy parties. Her role in the movie seems out of place, which is unsurprising since they added Wonder Woman to the story long after the project was developed. She is trying to track down a picture that Lex Luthor has of her from World War I and serves as proof that she is superhuman. Unfortunately, it seems that Diana doesn't understand how digital files work and that Lex probably has back up copies somewhere, but it does lead to her meeting Bruce Wayne. There were some golden moments through, despite her brief appearances and few lines. One of my favorites is when Lex references Greek mythology in a lame speech as a party, and the camera cuts to Diana rolling her eyes. (Yes, I was the only person in the theatre that laughed at that point.) The shot of her from WWI is intriguing and combined with her lines about pulling away from the world makes me WANT to know more about her history. WWI is an underrepresented war in motion pictures and I can't wait to see how they tie in my favorite Amazon. Finally, there is the now infamous smile during her fight with Doomsday which shows that Gal gets some of what Diana is about.
Lois Lane
The feisty reporter serves the same role in this movie as she did in her early appearances in the comics, a damsel in distress for Superman to save... repeatedly. She spends most of the movie tracking a mystery bullet that ends up being meaningless to the plot and a huge waste of screen time. Nothing she learns gives the "good guys" any advantage, or gives the audience any more information than they already had. Mostly she is there as a plot device to put Superman in danger.
The Justice League "Shoehorned" doesn't quite cover how forced and clunky the addition of other Justice League characters was in Batman v Superman. Batman emails Wonder Woman the files of super-humans that he stole from Lex Luthor's files. We then cut to shots of Wonder Woman READING that email line by line (what??) and then opening each file. I'd like to point out that each file is labeled with the logo of its corresponding Justice League member. (I guess Lex designed their logos? Did he design their costumes too?) She opens each file and views footage worthy of any made for Syfy movie. Seriously. The scene of Cyborg's creation looks like a badly made TV show, not like laboratory footage like they intended. Aquaman's debut was awkward for the audience and the actor alike. He looked so uncomfortable underwater that it made us feel uncomfortable to watch him. Seriously pathetic. Flash's security camera footage wasn't too bad, but his crazy time-travel appearance in Batman's dream-within-a-dream (screw you Snyder) confused everyone and had NOTHING TO DO WITH ANY PLOT POINTS. He warns Batman to save Lois Lane but there are no points where this warning seems to matter after that. I guess maybe they are hinting at Batman being able to tell the future? No clue. Even with decades of comic book knowledge at my disposal I found this confusing.
Zack Snyder is the master of cool visual effects and slow motion. He is also the king of badly developed characters, plot holes and wasted screen time. I think that it's ok for DC's movies to have a gritty, real-world feel. They don't need to copy Marvel's light-hearted formula, but they do need to make sense! I'm fine with seeing Batman and Superman deal with the consequences of vigilantism politically and in their personal lives, but we have to care about the characters for any of that to matter. The audience has to see more than bad ass CGI action to become involved in the story emotionally, and this is where Snyder has failed. He tried to stuff too much into this movie, which made it all meaningless because there wasn't enough time spent on anything for us to become invested.
Zack Snyder is a bad movie maker. He took two of the most emotionally complex stories in the DC universe, combined them, and managed to make them incredibly generic. Warner Bros. shares the blame. In their desperation to catch up to Marvel they have not taken the necessary time to build up their universe. Combine that rush with a director who already cuts corners in his storytelling and you have a recipe for disaster. We told them we were unhappy after Man of Steel and there have been red flags about Batman v Superman since the project started. WB didn't listen. Hopefully, the 69% drop in revenue from opening weekend will finally catch their attention. We aren't going to love something just because it has the Bat-logo on it. MAKE A GOOD MOVIE!
Wake up, WB! Keep Snyder in charge the visuals, because it's the only thing he is good at, and get someone with the chops to create a real cinematic universe for DC! A universe with depth and characters that we actually see as heroes.
Rumors about the Batman vs. Superman movie, now called Dawn of Justice, have been flying around the internet for months. I was thrilled that Wonder Woman was rumored to be in the film, then had a mixed reaction with the official casting, but I've always known it would be the outfit that would really make or break my hope for this film. Now, thanks to JoBlo.com, we may actually have some hints at the direction they are taking Diana in the DC movies.
Wonder Woman’s costume:
Costume design from the Rainfall Films Wonder Woman Short
The reports of Wonder Woman wearing the pre-new52 jacket and leggings outfit are inaccurate. Completely. The description of the outfit from our source uses the term “badass” on multiple occasions. This Wonder Woman is ripped right from the comics and has a “traditional, yet sleeker” costume that’s “battle ready.” She’ll have a blue leather skirt, silver-armored cuffs that reach to her elbows, golden tiara (with a design of some sort in the center, possibly the red star) and a variation of the traditional-looking red top (no word on additional armor on it). Her overall appearance is described as “Amazon warrior princess” and definitely not an urban reimagining. She’s there to kick ass and that’s readily apparent. Word is that WB is getting a VERY positive response on her appearance to those they’ve shown it to.
HALLELUJAH!!!! THIS MAKES ME SO HOPEFUL AND EXCITED!!! This sounds very similar to some of my favorite Wonder Woman designs, but it also may give us more hints about the movie. A "traditional" and "battle ready" design suggests that they may be keeping her back story intact, which is hugely important to fans. It also sounds like she is going to be a powerful fighter herself, rather than eye candy to hang on Superman's arm.
Wonder Woman’s weapons:
That’s right, not just a golden lasso here. Wonder Woman will have no less than FOUR weapons, including shield, sword, spear, and of course, the traditional lasso. It’s also noted that she will wear the shield on her back, Captain America style, when not in use.
Did you read that?!? GOLDEN LASSO!! If these rumors are to be believed than this is another sign that they are staying true to comic book Wonder Woman! It is also a great sign that they are arming her with the most common weapons that she is portrayed with in the comics. Now to wait and see if the lasso retains the magical properties it traditionally has.
Wonder Woman’s screen time in the film:
Her character will be introduced as “Diana” in the film initially before we ever see her as Wonder Woman. She will have a fair amount of screen time and will team up with Batman and Superman for the final battle against an un-named villain who may be working or controlled by Lex Luther. Her origin will be intentionally vague, but she is brought into the fold to show that there are other superheroes in the universe other than Superman.
This part I am taking with a grain of salt. I've worked on enough movie projects to know that things change drastically between the script and the cutting room floor. It's nice to hear the whispers that she will be more then a small cameo, and it's GREAT to hear that she will be fighting in the big final battle. Hopefully, they don't have her end up being Lois Lane 2.0 and just a new pretty face for Superman to save over and over.
Leaving her origins vague may mean that they are planning on giving her a solo movie later to explain things, but I'm guessing it's due more to pacing and trying to keep the movie shorter than Gone with the Wind. They are introducing A LOT of heroes in this movie. It initially focused on Superman and Batman, but now the confirmed cast includes Wonder Woman, Lex Luthor, Cyborg, Aquaman, and possibly even Nightwing. That's a lot of explaining to do if they are even going to briefly touch on everyone's origin stories, and introducing that many characters in a film will cut drastically into the screen time of any individual character. This makes me nervous, because I want Diana to get the screen time she deserves as part of DC's trinity.
Dawn of Justice has to do well for Wonder Woman to get her own film. These rumors give me hope, but we have a long way to go before we see the final product.
In October, I traveled to Seattle to speak about the Psychology of Cosplay at Geek Girl Con. It was an amazing panel organized by Dr. Andrea Letamendi, a clinical psychologist and cosplayer, and included Jessica Marizan, Chaka Cumberbatch, and myself as panelists. We discussed a ton of really great concepts, and the inevitable topic of "inappropriate" cosplay was brought up and discussed by the panelists.
I want to be completely clear about my feelings on this topic: THERE ARE INAPPROPRIATE OUTFITS TO WEAR TO PUBLIC EVENTS, AND AS COSPLAYERS, WE HAVE TO BE AWARE OF OUR AUDIENCE.
Now, the main focus of these debates is often skimpy/sexy cosplay. While I tend to be more modest than many other cosplayers, I have no problem with revealing cosplays. I have worked with children long enough to know that the human body, contrary to what many believe, is not damaging to the average child's psyche. I know I'll probably get emails about that statement, but it's true. The cosplays that really worry me are the bloody and violent ones. Those can really freak out kids in a way that cleavage never could.
This is NOT the cosplayer I saw, but this is the same basic concept.
My best example of this is from a convention that I attended in 2012. I was dressed up as Wonder Woman, and as always, was having a blast posing with kids. One of the most excited fans was a little Superman, proudly wearing his foam muscled outfit from the Halloween store. He flexed his muscles and flew circles around his parents to show me how fast he was. "Cute" doesn't quite cover it. Later that day, I was wandering the halls and I ran into a mutilated Superman cosplayer limping around and posing with people. From a makeup/costume viewpoint, he really looked incredible. He really resembled Superman and his massive injuries/blood looked real even from up close. I was admiring his work from a distance, when I saw my little Superman friend from before stopped dead in the middle of the aisle. The look of horror on his little face made my stomach drop. He started crying, and had to be carried off by his parents.
We are portraying characters that people love, and in some cases, look up to as personal heroes. This is especially true for children, who are a significant portion of the con-going population. We have to balance self-expression with our responsibility to respectfully portray these characters that have left such a deep mark on pop-culture. The last thing our community needs is policing and limiting of creativity, but we need to be empathetic. Be reasonable with the blood effects, or save it for select events and photo shoots. If we have the passion to step into the shoes of the most powerful characters in fiction, surely we have the power to step into the shoes of young fans and their families.
I know this is harder on me than it is on you. I am just one woman among countless fans, and it's starting to be pretty apparent how much you care about your fans. So, after more than twenty years of loyalty and love, I'm going to be frank with you. Our relationship is in trouble.
I was so young when my cousin introduced us, and I'd sneak looks at you until I was old enough to get an allowance and have you for myself. I loved your late 80s and early 90s style. I still have some copies of Wonder Woman, The New Teen Titans, Justice League (America, Europe, International, and even Task Force), and Batman & the Outsiders to remember the good times. Through all the changes, I stood beside you. I was there when Eclipso attacked, when Gotham was declared No Man's Land, and I hung in there for every "crisis" you could come up with. I watched Superman die and Metropolis try to cope with his loss. I followed along as Dick finally took up the cowl, and then put it down again. So many stories. Some were good, some were bad, but through it all I still felt like part of something wonderful.
Then you had some work done. The new 52 hit, and you became a hot ticket item. Suddenly, my friends who had never read comics before had a lot to say about you! It was nice to feel like my passion was spreading to new people. Like always, some stories were great and some sucked, but there were a lot of our old friends who weren't happy. I went to bat for you. I defended you to my friends and family! I pointed out all your good qualities, and whitewashed the bad because I wanted you to do well. Sadly, it was soon obvious that you didn't care about my feelings.
Great characters never reappeared, and fan favorites started acting completely counter to their normal behavior. Quality character arcs fell by the wayside in favor of shock value and company profit. It was clear that the bottom line and the big bosses' ideas were more important than treating your creators well. Lots of amazing creators disappeared for a variety of reasons which reflected very badly on your management. Your choices didn't make sense and started driving away the writers and artists who kept us reading! Fans read a comic when the character they love is well written and drawn. Your talented creators make your company, not the other way around.
Most upsetting is your overall attitude towards women readers and female characters. Comics have always been over-sexualized, but your unending trail of insults over the last few years has gone beyond what we've come to expect, even from this industry. Many great characters' personalities were tweaked and flattened so that they can fit into what you thought was a sexier mold. The fact that you assume that women need a Superman/Wonder Woman Twilight-inspired romance to become interested in comics is just one recent example of how your female stereotyping has reached ridiculous levels. Finally, when you asked thousands of amateur artists to draw one of your most prominent female characters about to commit suicide in a bathtub, it's flat out insulting. Can something like that be part of a tasteful storyline? Sure, but asking non-professionals to take on such sensitive subject matter is inappropriate. I cringe just imagining some of the entries you must have received. AND THEN some of your big-wigs took to social networking to make excuses and play down the incident. Jim Lee (who I basically hate at this point) blamed US for not waiting around to see the rest of the story. I don't care how the panels fit into the (unexplained) context of the story, you could have easily gleaned their drawing abilities from a more appropriate panel. You picked a horrendously irresponsible topic for this contest. It's downright disgusting. Apologize like an adult, hire a PR department, and move on.
Grow up. Stop blaming your audience for not liking your choices, and start making choices your customers will like.
I don't really know where this leaves us. I'm embarrassed to admit that I'm still with you when I'm in public. I've always flirted with Marvel, Dark Horse, and others, but now I'm seriously considering ending my monthly commitment to you. It breaks my heart, but even the good memories from our early days aren't enough to make up for the choices you are making. Shape up, or it's over.
I am filled with bitter nerd-rage after seeing Justice League. Not because it was bad, but because for a few brief moments, it was so good. We finally got a glimpse of what the DC movies should have been from the beginning and Henry Cavill FINALLY GOT TO BE THE REAL SUPERMAN! (Unless you live under a rock, that isn't a spoiler) But Justice League was so weighed down by course correcting its cinematic universe that it couldn't reach its full potential. It's a promising house built on the sand foundation of Man of Steel and Batman v Superman.
The biggest problem with Justice League is its split personality. The accepted rumor in Hollywood is that Zach's original vision for the film was terrible and Joss Whedon was brought in to "help fix it". This is why he was already a part of the team when Snyder had to leave the project a while later, due to a tragedy in his family. Joss did a massive amount of reshoots and a lot of the new footage is obvious. The huge amount of trailer footage that ISN'T in the movie hints at how much the vision for the movie has changed in recent months. The final product feels like a filler issue between two big comic book story arcs. Its whole job is to be fun and set up the next story and in that, Justice League met its goal. It has a simple bad guy with predictable motivations, convenient plot devices to keep things moving in the expected direction, Krypton-sized plot holes, and lots of middling quality CGI. There are an overabundance of one-line jokes, but the humor is a big enough step in the right direction that many fans will forgive many large problems with the movie because of its lighter tone. There were some really great moments. There were also some real WTF moments? (No spoilers, but one of those moments is when The Flash and Cyborg are digging together. You will know the moment when you see it. Seriously, W.... T.... F???) Overall, I enjoyed the movie and was grateful for the change in tone. I think that if the project had changed hands sooner we would have ended up with a much better movie, but at least we got something fun.
Justice League also has a women problem. Yes, many of the Amazons wear bikinis in their scenes, both modern day and ancient. No, angry fanboys of the internet, there is no logical explanation for their vital organs being exposed. However the issue doesn't stop at a troubling selection of costumes. After the revolutionary screen treatment of women in Wonder Woman, the repeated use of Wonder Woman/Diana's butt to help frame shots in Justice League is obvious and awkward. Her teammates reference her physical appearance repeatedly which makes it feel like the Justice League's next acquisition should be an HR department. It's all jokes that we have seen in other movies and comments that women hear all the time in our daily lives, but that doesn't excuse it. For a movie short on screen time for female characters, it's troubling that the production team decided to spend so much of it focused on Wonder Woman's "assets." Maybe this was acceptable in a pre-Wonder Woman superhero film, but we now know that we can and should expect more, especially in a movie that takes place in the same universe. (I talk more about Wonder Woman's depiction in the movie below in the spoiler section.)
Batman
shave off time or CGI costs. I really hope that we get to focus more on him if there are future Justice League films or if an extended cut of this movie is released.
Mera
Superman
The Lex from Batman v Superman is actually more like Lex, Jr. from the comics. He didn't build Lex Corp, and is lacking the serious businessman attitude that we are used to seeing in more traditional renditions of this infamous villain. Oh, and he has hair. The character actually works as a young, socially awkward tech-billionaire, but Snyder sacrifices the genius that makes the comic book character worthy of being Superman's nemesis in favor of more CGI and slo-mo. NOTHING ABOUT LEX'S PLANS MAKE SENSE! He is king of the plot holes. He kills a Senator because she is going to block the importation of Kryptonite, but his secret ship with the rock is already docked so it wouldn't have impacted his plans at all. He blows up a hearing that was going to impose sanctions AGAINST Superman (wouldn't Lex want that?) because Snyder thought it would be cool to watch a room of innocent people burn up around Superman. Finally, we get to the big master plan: trick Batman into killing Superman. Considering nobody has actually tested Kryptonite against Superman yet, this seems like a really bad plan. Plan B is even worse because Lex turns General Zod's body into one of the cave trolls from Lord of the Rings to kill Superman, just in case Batman fails. WHAT IF BATMAN HAD WON?? We'd have a mindless cave troll, sorry, DOOMSDAY on the loose and Superman would already be dead. Or what if Doomsday had succeeded in killing Superman and then was unstoppable and destroyed everything? Bad plan, Lex.
Batman
I am pretty pleased with Wonder Woman's appearance in Batman v Superman. She looks great and wasn't in it enough for Snyder to ruin. We don't really get any character development or backstory for her, but I'm thrilled that they are leaving that to the Wonder Woman movie and Patty Jenkins. It seems that some important elements of her traditional comic book persona are intact. She goes by the name Diana Prince and is immortal (or at least doesn't age) since we see pictures of her from World War I. We see her kick some serious ass in the fight with Doomsday, and it seems her bracelets deflect even the most powerful of blows, and SHE HAS A GLOWING GOLD LASSO that she uses effectively in battle. Considering how little Batman does in the fight, and how much time Superman spent talking to Lois Lane, I think it's safe to say that Wonder Woman was the MVP of that beat down.
"Shoehorned" doesn't quite cover how forced and clunky the addition of other Justice League characters was in Batman v Superman. Batman emails Wonder Woman the files of super-humans that he stole from Lex Luthor's files. We then cut to shots of Wonder Woman READING that email line by line (what??) and then opening each file. I'd like to point out that each file is labeled with the logo of its corresponding Justice League member. (I guess Lex designed their logos? Did he design their costumes too?) She opens each file and views footage worthy of any made for Syfy movie. Seriously. The scene of Cyborg's creation looks like a badly made TV show, not like laboratory footage like they intended. Aquaman's debut was awkward for the audience and the actor alike. He looked so uncomfortable underwater that it made us feel uncomfortable to watch him. Seriously pathetic. Flash's security camera footage wasn't too bad, but his crazy time-travel appearance in Batman's dream-within-a-dream (screw you Snyder) confused everyone and had NOTHING TO DO WITH ANY PLOT POINTS. He warns Batman to save Lois Lane but there are no points where this warning seems to matter after that. I guess maybe they are hinting at Batman being able to tell the future? No clue. Even with decades of comic book knowledge at my disposal I found this confusing.
Zack Snyder is the master of cool visual effects and slow motion. He is also the king of badly developed characters, plot holes and wasted screen time. I think that it's ok for DC's movies to have a gritty, real-world feel. They don't need to copy Marvel's light-hearted formula, but they do need to make sense! I'm fine with seeing Batman and Superman deal with the consequences of vigilantism politically and in their personal lives, but we have to care about the characters for any of that to matter. The audience has to see more than bad ass CGI action to become involved in the story emotionally, and this is where Snyder has failed. He tried to stuff too much into this movie, which made it all meaningless because there wasn't enough time spent on anything for us to become invested.
Captain America style, when not in use.
Leaving her origins vague may mean that they are planning on giving her a solo movie later to explain things, but I'm guessing it's due more to pacing and trying to keep the movie shorter than Gone with the Wind. They are introducing A LOT of heroes in this movie. It initially focused on Superman and Batman, but now the confirmed cast includes Wonder Woman, Lex Luthor, Cyborg, Aquaman, and possibly even Nightwing. That's a lot of explaining to do if they are even going to briefly touch on everyone's origin stories, and introducing that many characters in a film will cut drastically into the screen time of any individual character. This makes me nervous, because I want Diana to get the screen time she deserves as part of DC's trinity.
I was so young when my cousin introduced us, and I'd sneak looks at you until I was old enough to get an allowance and have you for myself. I loved your late 80s and early 90s style. I still have some copies of Wonder Woman, The New Teen Titans, Justice League (America, Europe, International, and 
even Task Force), and Batman & the Outsiders to remember the good times. Through all the changes, I stood beside you. I was there when Eclipso attacked, when Gotham was declared No Man's Land, and I hung in there for every "crisis" you could come up with. I watched Superman die and Metropolis try to cope with his loss. I followed along as Dick finally took up the cowl, and then put it down again. So many stories. Some were good, some were bad, but through it all I still felt like part of something wonderful.
Great characters never reappeared, and fan favorites started acting completely counter to their normal behavior. Quality character arcs fell by the wayside in favor of shock value and company profit. It was clear that the bottom line and the big bosses' ideas were more important than treating your creators well. Lots of amazing creators disappeared for a variety of reasons which reflected very badly on your management. Your choices didn't make sense and started driving away the writers and artists who kept us reading! Fans read a comic when the character they love is well written and drawn. Your talented creators make your company, not the other way around.
towards women readers and female characters. Comics have always been over-sexualized, but your unending trail of insults over the last few years has gone beyond what we've come to expect, even from this industry. Many great characters' personalities were tweaked and flattened so that they can fit into what you thought was a sexier mold. The fact that you assume that women need a Superman/Wonder Woman Twilight-inspired romance to become interested in comics is just one recent example of how your female stereotyping has reached ridiculous levels. Finally, when you asked thousands of amateur artists to draw one of your most prominent female characters about to commit suicide in a bathtub, it's flat out insulting. Can something like that 
be part of a tasteful storyline? Sure, but asking non-professionals to take on such sensitive subject matter is inappropriate. I cringe just imagining some of the entries you must have received. AND THEN some of your big-wigs took to social networking to make excuses and play down the incident. Jim Lee (who I basically hate at this point) blamed US for not waiting around to see the rest of the story. I don't care how the panels fit into the (unexplained) context of the story, you could have easily gleaned their drawing abilities from a more appropriate panel. You picked a horrendously irresponsible topic for this contest. It's downright disgusting. Apologize like an adult, hire a PR department, and move on.