SPOILERS: The Main Characters Of JUSTICE LEAGUE Ranked From Least To Most Memorable
Justice League has been on general release for almost a week now so the majority of you will probably have seen it, but just in case, this breakdown of the movie's characters will contain huge SPOILERS...
Zack Snyder's Justice League definitely turned out to be a divisive venture, but one thing even the harshest detractors seem to be able to agree on is that the superhero team-up flick was spot on when it comes to delivering highly enjoyable, (mostly) faithful interpretations of some classic DC characters.
Whatever faults the movie may have, it did succeed in uniting the likes of Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman and The Flash for the very first time in live-action, and it was a pretty damn awesome sight to behold.
True, some heroes and villains fared better than others, and that's why we've broken down all of the main characters from least to most memorable right here.
Have a read through 'em and let us know if you agree/disagree and why in the comments section.
To view the list of characters in its entirety, simply click on the VIEW LIST (ONE PAGE) button below.
10. Mera, Commissioner Gordon, Martha Kent, Hippolyta
We'll start with some of the more minor players who only made fleeting appearances in the movie. Out of the three, Diane Lane's returning Martha Kent definitely gets the most to do, and as usual, she's excellent in the role - though she's not featured quite enough to count as a main character.
Commissioner Gordon pops up in 3 short scenes, and although there's plenty of potential here (it is J.K. Simmons, after all) we're going to need to see a lot more of him before we make up our mind.
Likewise Mera, who only appears once. The future Queen of Atlantis does get to demonstrate her powers while taking the fight to Steppenwolf in an exciting sequence, but her dialogue scene with Aquaman is far too brief to get a proper read on.
9. Steppenwolf
Speaking of the horned herald of Darkseid, he has the dubious honor of taking the least memorable main character spot. To be fair, Steppenwolf isn't the worst antagonist we've seen in a CBM, he's just your typical generic bad guy whose only purpose is to try to take over the world while giving the heroes something to punch.
The real problem stems from the godawful CGI used to bring him to life. While the villain doesn't look too bad in certain shots, most of the time his face is reminiscent of one of the aliens you'd see on the SyFy channel a few years ago.
This is a $300M movie we're talking about here. Ditch the animated baddies, guys!
8. Lois Lane
There are those that feel Amy Adams was miscast as Lois Lane since she debuted in Man of Steel, but for others the real problem stemmed from how the character was written.
Unfortunately, Lois doesn't get nearly enough to do in Justice League to win over either contingent. That said, her small role is a vital one, as she's the "big gun" Batman brings in to remind the newly resurrected - and very pissed off - Superman of who he really is.
As with most of the characters, there's more of Miss Lane in the trailers so hopefully those scenes will make the cut if we ever get some kind of special edition.
7. Aquaman
Now we get to the core team members themselves, and The King of Atlantis has to be considered the least memorable of the bunch.
That's not to say Jason Momoa doesn't do a good job and Aquaman certainly has his moments (the lasso of truth gag is probably one of the funniest parts of the movie), but ol' Arthur Curry gets the short end of the stick when it comes to character development and a few additional introductory scenes wouldn't have gone amiss.
It was recently confirmed that a whole lot of extra Aqua-scenes were shot, though, so perhaps we'll get to see them some day.
6. Alfred
Yes, Alfred comes in just above Aquaman on this list.
Though Bruce Wayne's loyal companion technically doesn't have as much screen time, Jeremy Irons' excellent take on the classic Batman character ensures that he emerges as a very memorable addition to the team, and the movie as a whole.
Michael Caine's Alfred will remain the definitive Alfred for most fans, but here's hoping Irons gets the opportunity to do even more with his incarnation in another solo Batman outing at some point.
5. Cyborg
Going in, Cyborg was easily the League member I was the least interested in, as I was never a big fan of the character in the comics - however, this movie's take on Victor Stone turned out to be a very pleasant surprise.
This is due, in large part, to Ray Fisher's performance, and it's safe to say many fans will now be hoping that Cyborg solo movie does get off the ground after all.
A little more time spent on Stone's origin would have been nice, but again, we know a lot of stuff wound up being cut from the theatrical release.
4. The Flash
As we figured from the trailers, The Flash is used primarily as the comic relief of the team, and he is pretty damn funny... for the most part.
Sure, not every joke lands, but Ezra Miller still gives an endearing, wide-eyed performance as Barry Allen, and will no doubt wind up being a huge fan-favourite.
We really could have done with getting to know him a bit better before Bruce Wayne came knocking, but his enthusiasm shines through almost immediately, and we're soon fully on board with this first big-screen incarnation of The Scarlet Speedster.
3. Batman
Ben Affleck's first portrayal of The Caped Crusader in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice came in for a lot of backlash for being a little too ruthless, so the character has been lightened-up considerably for Justice League... perhaps even a little too much?
Make no mistake, Affleck gives another terrific turn as Bruce Wayne/Batman and carries a good portion of the movie. A lot of the humor associated with Bats actually works quite well, too - but one can't help wishing for a little more emphasis on the dark part of The Dark Knight at times.
Let's hope Affleck stays on as Batman and gives us at least one great solo outing for his take on the iconic DC hero.
2. Wonder Woman
Warner Bros. is said to have dedicated a significant portion of the Justice League reshoots to putting more emphasis on Wonder Woman after the success of Patty Jenkins' solo film, and if that is the case, it definitely worked out for the better.
Gal Gadot follows up her star-making turn in that movie with another knockout performance as a more world-weary, but no less heroic Diana, who still hasn't fully come to terms with the loss of Steve Trevor and is reluctant to put others in the line of fire as a result.
She does have that one awkward scene with Cyborg in which she spills her guts to a man she literally just set eyes on, but you can blame the script for that!
1. Superman
Despite his limited screen-time, Superman was the most memorable character in Justice League for me - and not just because of his godawful CG gob.
When Batman and the others eventually resurrect Kal-El (how they go about it remains divisive, but I digress), the movie itself gets a whole new spark of life, and the sequences with Supes taking on the various members of The League are easily the best parts of the movie overall.
Henry Cavill is also on top form, initially as an intimatding and very dangerous Man of Steel, and then as the far more affable Big Blue Boy-scout that fans of the classic interpretation of the character have been hoping to see.
We know Cavill has at least one more movie in his contract, so let's hope we get to see a sequel to Man of Steel that lives up to the promise of his Justice League scenes.