The DC Extended Universe died with Orm eating a cockroach in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom's mid-credits scene. It was an embarrassing, albeit fitting, end to a franchise which had struggled from the start. Over a decade, there were good and bad things about the DCEU, and everyone has an opinion about them.
Unlike our recent feature looking at the things Marvel fans don't want to accept about the MCU, the DC fanbase is far more divided with vastly different takes on what does and doesn't work with these characters.
With that in mind, we anticipate many of you agreeing with some of our points but not others! Bear in mind, though, that we love all things DC here and each of the arguments listed can be viewed as either a defence or criticism of the DCEU; we'll leave it up to you to decide which side you fall on and whether you're one of the fans who just can't accept these are the case (in one writer's opinion, anyway).
So, to take a look through this feature, you just need to tap the "Next"/"View List" buttons below.
8. Copying Marvel Was The Right Move (It Just Didn't Work)
When moviegoers rejected Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice's dark tone, Warner Bros. went into panic mode and made sweeping to Suicide Squad to lighten (and brighten) up David Ayer's approach to storytelling. That's the same reason the studio ultimately turned to Joss Whedon to make Justice League less Batman v Superman, and more like The Avengers.
From that point on, attempts to replicate Marvel Studios' success continued in earnest, with Aquaman, Shazam!, and Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey basically copying and pasting their tones from the MCU. Honestly, it was the right decision...it just didn't work.
Making the DCEU the grim, borderline R-Rated world we saw from Zack Snyder and Ayer simply didn't work. There's a reason the movies above, and Blue Beetle, received positive reviews and even The Suicide Squad (which was R-Rated) clearly benefited from a filmmaker with Marvel experience. Alas, The Flash and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom proved Warner Bros. couldn't consistently pull it off.
7. Superman Sucked
There's no denying that Henry Cavill did a great job as Superman, and with the right script and director, perhaps the actor could have done amazing things with the role.
However, while sharing praise for his Clark Kent, many fans ignore the fact that this Kal-El...well, he's not exactly the selfless hero we know and love from the comics. In Man of Steel, he didn't decide to start saving people's lives until finally getting over his daddy issues (after allowing his adoptive father to sacrifice himself to keep his powers a secret), while killing Zod - even as a last resort - is massively out of character.
What led to the DCEU's most powerful hero heading down a dark path in those Knightmare flashforwards? His fiancée was killed, another sign that this Supes is one who cares more about himself than those he protects. Simply put, this Superman is no hero!
6. Warner Bros. Shouldn't #ReleaseTheAyerCut
Ever since the Snyder Cut of Justice League saw the light of day, Suicide Squad director David Ayer has been campaigning hard to get fans to rally behind a #ReleaseTheAyerCut movement.
He insists that his original version of the 2016 movie is some sort of unseen masterpiece and that the changes Warner Bros. made (a slightly different ending, some graphics, and the jumbled approach to exploring the origin stories of each Task Force X member) were somehow responsible for why it was such a disappointment. Honestly, this is very difficult to believe.
The movies Ayer made both before and after Suicide Squad was released weren't great, and it's not like Suicide Squad was heavily reshot like 2015's Fantastic Four. It's entirely possible that the filmmaker's cut was more coherent and enjoyable with better story arcs, but #ReleaseTheAyerCut stans need to get over this hashtag. And fast.
5. Birds Of Prey Wasn't A Bad Movie
Did the poorly titled Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) drop the ball on its titular team? Without a doubt, yes. The characters deserved better, shouldn't have been tied to Harley Quinn this soon, and were, in many ways, symbolic of the DCEU's failings.
However, putting that aside, this wasn't a bad movie. It's no masterpiece, but with 79% on Rotten Tomatoes, it's among the best-reviewed efforts this franchise ever delivered. Margot Robbie is fantastic - as are most of the supporting cast - and Ewan McGregor is arguably among the DCEU's greatest villains to date as the twisted Black Mask.
Again, mistakes were made, but it's laughable to see Birds of Prey often categorised alongside the likes of The Flash, Suicide Squad, and Wonder Woman 1984 as the worst the DCEU had to offer since launching with 2013's divisive Man of Steel.
4. Batman v Superman Features One Of The All-Time Great Fight Scenes
So many DC fans get bogged down in the jar of pee and that whole "Martha!" scene, they seem to forget the fact that Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice delivered one of the best fight scenes to ever grace the screen in a comic book adaptation.
The battle between the Caped Crusader and the Man of Steel is absolutely epic and does a brilliant job of showcasing what an excellent tactician Batman is as he cleverly finds ways to overpower the alien. Brutal, hard-hitting, and like watching the comics come to life, this entire sequence simply doesn't receive enough credit.
Yes, Snyder made a bunch of mistakes here; Doomsday looked terrible, Batman killed, and Lex Luthor was...weird. However, the negativity surrounding Batman v Superman has blinded some to the greatness that was occasionally on offer!
3. DC Studios Didn't Kill The DCEU; The DCEU Did
From a certain section of DC fans, James Gunn, Peter Safran, and DC Studios as a whole get a lot of hate. Why? Well, they're blamed for destroying the DC Extended Universe with a reboot which has tossed away Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck but kept Gunn's plans and family members.
While an argument can be made that announcing the DCU reboot's slate at the start of a year which saw the release of four DCEU movies was a mistake, DC Studios cannot be blamed for the demise of this franchise. Warner Bros., however, can.
There was never a cohesive vision for these characters and they've been passed around repeatedly over the years with no real idea of where to take them. Blue Beetle was fine, but one could argue that Wonder Woman is still the only truly great PG-13 DCEU movie...in a series comprised of more than a dozen titles. Don't hate DC Studios...hope they can make things right!
2. Joss Whedon Got A Lot Right In Justice League
Look, there's no getting around the fact that the version of Justice League released in cinemas was a mess, and by no means a great movie. It was, however, far from a disaster and certainly not the unbearable mess some fans describe it to be.
The hatred of the "Whedon Cut" is what birthed the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement, and ultimately forced Warner Bros. to go ahead and spend tens of millions of dollars finishing Zack Snyder's Justice League. That was superior, but in Whedon's version, Superman actually acted like... well, Superman!
There were some cringe-worthy jokes, sure, but when was the last time Snyder delivered anything as fan-pleasing as the Man of Steel and the Flash competing to see who's faster? Even Cavill seems to have preferred The Avengers' director's approach to a more hopeful Supes.
1. MCU > DCEU
Okay, to be more specific, we're referring to the MCU's characters being better than those in the DCEU. Like it or not, Marvel's heroes and villains are more interesting and a bigger draw, something that was evident from the box office performance of movies like Black Adam and The Flash.
There's no denying that there are heaps of incredible DC characters, with Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman all undeniable icons. However, the problem with them - and this has been the case with DC for decades- is that these Gods among men aren't relatable.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe's characters are closer to reality, with even a literal Thunder God like Thor a flawed, believable person. Because of this, fans and regular moviegoers alike will no doubt always gravitate more towards Marvel's characters, with Spider-Man and The Hulk bound to continue intriguing and exciting people more than Shazam and Aquaman ever will.
That may not bode well for the new DCU...