Bruce Timm has returned to what he does best. There is no DC animated universe without him. Of course the likes of Alan Burnett, Erik Radomski, Sam Register. And the late Dwayne McDuffy also have a huge impact on this empire, but Timm is more often than not the figurehead. Justice League: Gods and Monsters does what so many comic book one-shots do so well. ‘What if?’. What if the man sent from Krypton was the son of General Zod instead of Jor-el. What if Batman was a hybrid vampire who killed the criminals he chased down. What if Wonder Woman was the granddaughter of the All-Father a New God warring with Darkseid.
Creating a new comic book character is easy, but creating one that resonates and is attractive to fans is not. And even harder than that is creating an alternate version of a beloved character. But having already done it a few times in the animated universe with co-creating Harley Quinn and starting Batman Beyond, Bruce Timm and company are more than up to the task. Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. The only members of this world’s justice league are being framed for the murders of the world’s best and brightest, and since having a sketchy past doesn’t help matters the approval rating for the justice league is understandably small. So while the world suspects this trio of these horrible crimes the justice league decides to investigate and clear their name. During this time, we get some well drawn out and detailed looks at their past.
Protecting the world at their own leisure.
We get to see Superman’s Origin first, no longer a baby found in the fields of Kansas. This time he is found presumably around the border between Mexico and the United States by a migrant couple. –We are never told outright.– This change is what explains his gruff and aggressive view towards people and politics in general. Having grown up persecuted and generalized leaves a mark on a man. And being the biological son of General Zod feeds into his need to control and lead these people. He wants what’s best but isn’t afraid to hurt people in the process. Benjamin Bratt Voices the goatee toting man of steel and he does a good job. In fact it’s hard to find a voice actor in Andrea Romano’s career that doesn’t sound great. From Batman: The Animated Series, to The Dark Knight Returns. She’s the best in the business.
Kirk Langstrom, a one time villain of Bruce Wayne’s Batman, is now the Hero this city deserves. Instead of a giant grotesque man bat he’s a sleek vampire with a feast for blood. His backstory is the heart of this movie and by the end of it you realize how sad and vulnerable this character is. He’s certainly more emotionally available than Bruce Wayne ever was. Voiced by Dexter himself Micheal C. Hall, he’s calm, cool and collected. Certain aspects of the original dark knight are present like his sleuthing ability. But in other ways he’s starkly different. He has no problem killing criminals, and the obvious one is that he has fangs.
Wonder Woman is no longer Diana from Themyscira. Instead, she is Becca the Granddaughter to the All-Father and enemy of Darkseid. While all of the heroes back, story play into the overall plot at least a little, she feels the most removed from her past life. Her origin is intriguing and heartbreaking that gives reason to the way she is now, detached and emotionally unavailable. Tamara Taylor Voices this feisty version of the hero. Her past with Steve Trevor is still present but, in this case, its much more of her using him to get what she wants instead of the original tale. Another Stand out in terms of character and Voice Acting is C. Thomas Howell, who plays Will Magnus, the best friend of Kirk Langstrom and has an integral part of his origin. Lois Lane voiced by Paget Brewster, one of the many skeptics of the Justice League and Jason Isaacs as the brilliant but mysterious Lex Luthor. All with their tweaks and alterations.
If you thought the last guy was scary…
Bruce Timm’s Art style stands out as good as it ever was. The curves and straight edges lend themselves beautifully to the world and motion around them. Barrel chested men with lantern jaws and women with striking eyes and breakneck curves. A majority of the animated movies previous have been far more Japanese anime in tone. Which is fine, I enjoy that style but my favorite is seeing the classical yet modern take on the characters. And while the story around these characters is good and holds up to a certain amount of questioning it does fall into some pitfalls when it comes to Villain Cliches and plot holes. So much is held back until the very end that it’s sometimes hard to follow how or when we got to this point.
It’s hard to not recommend these DC animated movies. Normally their very well done, all around and they show off comic book stories in motion. And instead of knowing exactly where it’s going like every other adaptation this is a brand new story. The characters are unapproachable at first but once you start to learn more about them, you can’t help but root for them in the end especially Kirk Langstrom’s Batman. Sometimes relying on exposition too much can be understood to a point, this is a brand new story, and they are trying to build a world. Fantastic voice acting, and beautiful style combine to make an interesting new tale for DC Comics Trinity of heroes.
