Tag: DC Universe

DC Comics, Movies

Forget the DCEU: Warner Brothers Should Embrace the Multiverse

It has not been a great couple of weeks (years?) on the DC Films front.

After Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad failed to live up to most people’s expectations last summer, Warner Brothers looked like it was starting to right the DCEU ship. Triumphant teasers for Wonder Woman and Justice League made DC the talk of San Diego, and fans were stoked for directors like James Wan, Rick Famuyiwa, and Ben Affleck to lend their visions to DC supeheroes. Well, less than a year later, 60% of those directors have been dropped and now, Ben (maybe?) doesn’t even want to be Batman anymore. And in the most WTF move yet, Warner has approached an actual misogynst, anti-semitic racist to helm a movie with the initials S.S.!

But, taking a page from Vulture’s always awesome , maybe Warner Bros. can use the chaos surrounding the DCEU as an opportunity… to blow up the whole damn thing.

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DC Comics, Movies

How to Reboot Lex and Joker in the DCEU

It goes without saying that I haven’t been the biggest fan of Warner Brothers’ approach to the films based on their roster of DC Comics superheroes (also known as the DC Extended Universe). Even before Batman v Superman or Suicide Squad debuted to less-than-enthusiastic reviews, I went on record being against the DCEU’s tone and aesthetic. After BvS failed to become the pop cultural behemoth it was supposed to be, the folks at DC Films attempted a much publicized “course correction” to take their movie universe in a different direction — and if the Comic-Con trailers for Wonder Woman and Justice League are any indication, consider me all in for this new “course.” But as much as I’m looking forward to this new phase of the DCEU, I will never be satisfied until they recast the two characters I feel they’ve bungled the most: Lex Luthor and the Joker.

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DC Comics, Guest Post

Rebirth’s Big Bad Could be the Best Thing to Happen to DC in Years

by EC Yi

After a friend told me the big reveal from today’s premiere release of Rebirth this morning, I went the closest comic shop during my lunch break and gave DC money to read the issue firsthand. This friend was bent out of shape over today’s news that the force orchestrating the recent changes in DCU was none other than…

(Seriously, if you haven’t found out already, I’m about to spoil the Big Bad reveal here. Last chance.)

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DC Comics, Movies

There’s Nothing Heroic about Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

So here are my thoughts on Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I wanted to wait, but I couldn’t. Feel free to discuss and debate. I look forward to it.

This movie overall was… fine. A strong 7, perhaps add a 0.5. You could see where the studio rushed to cobble the Justice League together, and elude to the fact that, perhaps, there was once a Robin. I have to admit that Ben Affleck made a very good Batman. The Bat was brutal, and the fight scenes were enjoyable.

So, if you haven’t seen it, go ahead. If you have skittish children, keep them home. For a DC cinematic effort, it’s like most that have come before, with the sole exception that there was one that one “hero” on display. And that is where my issues lie.

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DC Comics, Movies

Things Other Movies Did Better Than Batman v Superman

I didn’t hate Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I walked into the theater last night fully expecting to hate it. Two and a half hours later, I ended up merely not liking it. That’s progress, I guess?

That said, there were a couple things I actually liked (most having to do with Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman) and I can’t deny that Ben Affleck looks like Batman (even though he sure doesn’t act like him). But the thing that distracted me throughout the movie was the fact that it contained a lot of elements that were executed better in other live action adaptations.

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DC Comics, Movies

The Epic Failure of Batman v Superman

Before I begin this review, I want you all to watch this clip from Man of Steel.

I remembered watching that scene from that film and actually yelling out loud how incredibly stupid and unnecessarily melodramatic that was.

That’s exactly how I felt after watching Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

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DC Comics, Hard N.O.C. Life, Movies

BLK x NOC Preview Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

UPDATE: Part 2 of our BvS podcast crossover with BLKBOARD is available here!

We’re now only a few days away from the worldwide launch of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Before the movie comes out, this special edition of Hard NOC Life — also available on iTunes and Soundcloud — invites the founders of the new website and podcast BLKBOARD, Jermaine Dickerson and Michael Tré, to discuss the launch of the DC Cinematic Universe.

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DC Comics, Television

January Brings Four Straight Days of Greg Berlanti’s DC Universe

It’s no secret we’re big fans of The CW’s shared universe of DC superheroes. Arrow and Flash are two of the only shows we still livetweet and recap on a regular basis (shout out Connie and Christelle!) and this season — though it’s on CBS and not (yet) connected — we’ve thrown Supergirl into the mix as well. Of course all of these shows are now on their annual holiday break and won’t return until January. But when they do, they’ll be joined by a new kid on the block, Legends of Tomorrow.

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Comics & Graphic Novels, DC Comics, Hard N.O.C. Life

Superman: Truth, Justice, & the Asian American Way

On the eve of June and the post-Convergence DC Universe next week, we are in breathless anticipation to see the new, more diverse DC Universe as promised by the publisher’s “DC You” campaign. Part of that diversity is represented by the all-star writing talent attached to the flagship books of DC’s most iconic character: Superman.

Hard NOC Life was honored to welcome Action Comics writer Greg Pak (@gregpak) and new Superman writer Gene Luen Yang (@geneluenyang) — whose preview story you can read here right now — on the show to talk all things Man of Steel.

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DC Comics, Television

Orange is the New Black: Racebending Redheads

The ever-expanding DC Universe on The CW just got a little bigger. Relative newcomer Ciara Renee has been cast as Kendra Saunders, aka Hawkgirl, in the still-unnamed Flarrow spinoff that will also star Brandon Routh and Caity Lotz from Arrow and Victor Garber and Wentworth Miller from The Flash.

What’s unmistakable about this casting, though, is the fact that Hollywood producers have once again gone “ethnic” when casting a traditionally redheaded character from the comics. So I have to ask, has the pendulum swung too far? Is this too much of a good thing?

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