The DC Extended Universe has undoubtedly been a mixed bag for many people. Some love it to the point of trolling articles with anti-Marvel comments anytime an MCU news article comes out, while some hate it to an equal degree towards DCEU articles. Needless to say, opinions are flying, and no matter what side of the debate you’re on, the universe as a whole is laden with issues. Whether it be storytelling issues or how the characters are handled, it is important to examine these issues, and determine how to solve them moving forward.
By the time Man of Steel was released in 2013, it was obvious that Zack Snyder was taking a rather unconventional approach to Superman. Instead of the fun and colorful beacon of hope from the comics, we were introduced to a darker take on the character who felt closer to Christian Bale’s Batman than the character people have come to know and love from television, movies, and comic books. However, it is generally agreed that this film was mostly solid, despite being weighed down by the final act, in which the battle between Zod and Superman causes mass destruction throughout the city, and the Man of Steel ultimately kills Zod.
This scene has been the source of controversy among fans, some arguing that this was particularly out of character for Superman, regardless of the film trying to be darker. When Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice was announced, director Zack Snyder promised the film would address fan concerns in regards to the mass destruction caused during this battle. Jump ahead three years to 2016, those concerns weren’t dispelled as many had hoped. Instead, more concerns regarding how each of the characters were handled were brought up.
Within the first few minutes of the movie, Superman had already killed a man; Jimmy Olsen, who in this universe was a CIA agent, was killed at the hands of terrorists; later in the film, Batman, who famously has a no-killing rule in the comics, plowed people down with machine guns; Lex Luthor was no longer the menacing presence he is in the comics, but an insane character with an overcomplicated plot to get the two heroes to fight. These characters, who have been developed through many mediums over the years, were suddenly stripped of everything that made them who they were. Superman and Batman in particular were characters that inspired generations of children and adults alike. These characters famously aspired to protect people without killing, if it was possible.
The problems in characterization go far beyond whether or not the characters kill. Superman, who in the comics is a fun and interesting character in the comics, is made boring, and is portrayed closer to Jesus than Superman. Throughout his first film, he managed to feel like an actual character, in part due to the efforts of the filmmakers to pause and allow the character some background through flashbacks and dialogue, which gave us the opportunity to relate to him. In Dawn of Justice, this was missing altogether. Instead, Superman only appeared every now and then, with very little dialogue and no opportunity to understand him better as a character. Ultimately, his character was killed off without giving the audience a reason to care for him. Batman didn’t have it much better; his character was suddenly a darker, less friendly take on the character many of us grew up with. It was obvious that Ben Affleck’s take on the character was heavily influenced by Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, and he was portrayed as a more experienced, angrier Batman. As soon as we were introduced to him, we were supposed to accept that this Batman, who was known for branding criminals in-universe, and killed people throughout the film, had a lot of history to him, despite none of it ever properly being shown on-screen. The only slight justification for why he acted the way he did in the film that was shown on-screen was the murder of his parents, which still doesn’t explain why the character was so different to the other versions we’ve come to know and love. It made the movie a lot harder to watch than it had to be if the character were already developed.
This brings us to another issue: the telling, not showing approach to storytelling the universe has taken. In Batman v. Superman, we briefly see the deceased Jason Todd’s Robin suit. In Suicide Squad, we find out Harley Quinn was an accomplice in his murder. In BvS, Wonder Woman is portrayed as more distant from mankind because she no longer believed that people were still good, despite us not getting to see what drove her to this point, which we assume we’ll get to see this year in her first ever solo film. Until everything is explained, we’re just supposed to accept that there’s more to these characters than we get to see. It’s a problem that has so far proven alienating for some viewers, but one that can be fixed easily in future films.
At the time being, Warner Bros has 16 live-action DC films in development, including the recently announced Batgirl, set to be helmed by Joss Whedon; Nightwing, rumored to be directed by Lego Batman director Chris McKay; and The Batman, to be directed by Matt Reeves. These three films in particular, each with a director attached to helm, suggest that there may be more story to tell than what we’ve been given. Whether they’re set in the past, or more likely the present, they’ll be bringing new characters to the table for future installments to help create a Batman family of films. This opens so many opportunities to fill in the gaps between Batman’s beginning, and where we meet him in BvS. DC just has to be sure to use this chance in order to win back fans. If they use these films to expand the universe and bring it one step closer to the comics people love, they just might be able to beat Marvel at the game they’ve been trying so hard at for so long. There’s enough material to use, enough well-developed and loved characters with legacies to bring to the big screen, that DC has no excuse not to use, if they’re starting to realise what they’re trying to achieve in this universe. There’s no reason we can’t have Teen Titans or Birds of Prey any time soon.
What I’ve been trying to say in this article is, DC needs to realize that there’s a lot of fun to be had in this universe, but they have to make an effort and tell every part of the story that they can. They’ve so far been held down by Snyder jumping the gun and starting off with TDKR/Death of Superman to develop a universe that’s just finding its footing. I’m rooting for DC right now, but they’ve got to work things out. We’ll just have to wait until Wonder Woman comes out this June to see if they’re starting to get things right.
Oh, and one last thing -- if DC moves on from the uncomfortable dark tone of Zack Snyder’s initial vision for this universe, and uses every opportunity moving forward to bring on directors to tell their own stories for these characters, I imagine we’ll be seeing a lot more directors. Hell, there’s a Flash movie that could use one right about now.