A Retelling of DCU’s First Chapter

How should it have been different? When James Gunn announced the first chapter of the DCU it was mix of obvious choices, fan favorites, and of course, projects with that James Gunn trope all over them. Fans were accepting of the lineup and even looked forward to a few. But the tone has changed much since then. Actually, seeing and being a part of everything unfolding – and how it will continue to unfold – fans are becoming critical and even dismissive of the DCU. They are quick to point out the logical choice of characters but eventually become frustrated when irrational choices are carried out. That was clearly evident when the DCU essentially matched the MCU’s super success with Spider-Man: Brand New Day with a casting announcement of Jimmy Olsen, a series that practically no one wants. But if things were different, if the line up was more rational, what could the first chapter of the DCU look like?

James Gunn was adamant that the DCU was going to look and feel different from the MCU because each project was going to feel different with their tone. That makes sense! But when his method were revealed, that’s when fans pressed on the breaks again. Gunn wants the DCU to run like Star Wars, not the MCU. That opens the door for disconnected stories that exist in their own little circle. So far though, fans have targeted that approach. Some have joked that if the MCU went the route the DCU did, Iron Man, Iron Heart, the Nova Corps and Venom would be the first movies of the MCU. Which is obviously questionable. But the DCU did have a route that it could have took to make the DCU run more smoothly.

If James Gunn wanted the DCU to feel different than the MCU, a good way to officially start the DCU is perhaps begin with the Big Bad. A movie about how Darkseid came to power could have started an entire universe with a literal bang. This movie could have set the tone. Set the trajectory. A movie about how Darkseid came to power could have showed his war with the New Gods. That type of movie sets a standard. It establishes a much different feel than the MCU. In fact, it goes the opposite way than the MCU. The MCU began with heroes then villains. The MCU kind of set up this formula that the hero creates the villain. But if the DCU went this way, it creates a valid, natural need for heroes to exist in this universe. It gives every character a legitimate reason to exist because the audience would have been aware of how much of a threat Darkseid is. Sure, Darkseid is not technically a household name, but if this movie would have been framed in similar lenses as The Lord of the Rings or Dune, something on a massive, epic scale like that, the DCU would have landed explosively on the scene.

Then, of course, a Superman movie will follow. The Superman movie that already exist in the DCU already could take this slot still. The only difference would be the exclusion of the Justice Gang and the inclusion of references to the classic Justice League members. Maybe The Flash and John Stewart or Hal Jordan could have had a small but critical role to help establish things to come. But for the most part, the plot points in Superman could stay. This is a version of Superman that fans have been wanting to see for some time. That hopeful and caring version. So, it makes sense that Superman is truer to his persona in his first outing in the DCU. Plus, it makes a great juxtaposition that the movie following a dark, epic, and mature Darkseid movie will be a hopeful Superman one.

After that, would be the anticipated Batman movie. Since at this point, it’s already established that this universe has gods, monsters, aliens and people with superpowers, this version of Batman would be fantastical and mystical. The DCU’s Batman would have a jet that’s actually bat shaped. A cave that a has an oversized penny, playing card, and animatronic T-Rex. And multi-versatile batarangs. To show that off, the villain of this movie would probably be Bane that actually uses Venom. Red Hood who was resurrected with magical waters. Or Mr. Freeze who uses an oversized ice gun. To make these stories feel more connected, Batman could be prepping his contingency plans on Superman after witnessing what Superman could do. Then that planning stops when a local threat in Gotham demands Batman’s attention. Maybe Gordon Godfrey, a Darkseid henchmen, could spread news in Gotham to make things feel connected even more.

A Wonder Woman movie will then come out. This is DC at the end of the day, and the Trinity should be the only ones kicking everything off. Since this will be the introduction of Wonder Woman in the DCU, this movie could see some plot material retreaded. She could be on Themyscira but to change it up, she has come BACK to live on her island. Wonder Woman could have stepped into Man’s World, did what she can to help out but grew tired with the world of violence so she decides to go back to her island. But this movie could be the first one set on Earth to include a mother box. This draws Darkseid’s interest to Earth but not enough to mount a full-scale invasion. So, he sends the Furies. The Furies could cause so much trouble that news of their destruction travels to Themyscira. Wonder Woman becomes motivated to fight them so she again ventures out to stop them. One Fury could even be a former Amazon. As she fights them, she becomes more aware of what they are after. Once the Furies are defeated, she stays behind again to help Earth prepare for Darkseid’s potential arrival.

Then each member of the Justice League will get their own projects.

Aquaman could benefit from either animation or live action. But since this project trailed behind the previous Aquaman movies, animation might be leaned toward just to establish some difference. At this point, Aquaman is the full-fledged, accepting king of Atlantis, perhaps similar to the version fans got to see in the Justice League animated show. With that, this Aquaman will be more seasoned, wiser, and patient. And be more comic book accurate. Unfortunately though, Aquaman could still be seen as less powerful as his compatriots even though he can stand his own against them. So this animated film/series needs to prove how much of a powerhouse he could be. The type of story it could be is maybe a tower defense concept. A powerful relic of some type is in Atlantis and people want it. That means his villains, mercenaries, powerful villains such as Black Adam and A.M.A.Z.O. , A.R.G.U.S., the Suicide Squad and others are sent to Atlantis and he has to defend it. Since it’s underwater, other heroes might have some difficulty getting there, making him more isolated. By having everything thrown at him like this, it could show how powerful, how intellectual, how strategic and even how loving and caring he truly is. That establishes him as powerful force.

Martian Manhunter could also benefit from animation. His show could borrow some notes from The Boys Presents: Diabolical and Love, Death, Robots. For each episode of these shows, the animation style was different from the last. That suits Martian Manhunter pretty well since he is a shapeshifter who adopts plenty of identities. When he is a detective, the show is black and white. If he turns into a soldier of some kind, the colors could be saturated. Martian Manhunter could even venture into horror or body horror which could make the style even darker and more imposing. In an episode where his shapeshifting takes center stage by showcasing the creatures he can turn into, the show could adopt some anime flare. And when the show turns into a true superhero one, the animation could look like the style DC used back in the early 2010s. This approach brings some much color and versatile energy to a character that is long overdue.

A Green Lantern project could either stand as the show fans are getting or shake it up a bit. One of the criticisms of the show, very early on, is the lack of green power, emphasis on green. At the same time, it is smart the show is putting the main spotlight on Hal Jordan and John Stewart instead of picking one and disappointing the fanbase of the other. So, if there could be any change up, the show will take in place in space with more green on screen. The trade back though is the series will have to be even more limited to dial back on budget. It could still have that detective style Lanterns will have but it will be set in space. And what Jordan and Stewart could be investigating is planets being burnt to a crisp. Every episode gets them closer to the culprit. From seeing a planet burnt to fighting a couple of Parademons to bumping into Orion to fighting Steppenwolf to finding mother boxes and eventually discovering Darkseid is searching for the Anti-Life equation. That final discover leads them flying back to Earth because they have suspicion that Darkseid is heading there.

And of course, The Flash. It would be ironic, and a bit meta, that The Flash will have the shortest outing. He could benefit from something like a special presentation that Marvel did with The Punisher. This special presentation could be an hour or so and have him fighting Reverse Flash. It would probably have some shared spirit from a storyline in the comics, The Flash: One-Minute War. Since these two men are obviously fast, they could have their fight stretch across time. From dinosaurs to the first human civilization to the rise and fall of Rome to Superman crashing on the farm, to the events happening in this universe’s Batman movie to the moment Darkseid arrives on Earth. But having a short special presentation revolving around The Flash could help keep the cost down a bit but it also somewhat fits the character, again, in a meta sort of way. Having gone this way, The Flash has seen everything up until Darkseid’s arrival so he’ll be the one going back in time and bringing the Justice League together before the Justice League movie, which will end the first chapter of the DCU.

The voices of fans are pretty much unanimous when it comes to the selection of projects within the DCU’s first chapter. For the most part, fans are rejecting some of them due to fact the characters are so obscure or just simply don’t deserve a project. The ideal path that would have been accepted a lot better would have been a path that had a project revolve around each member of the Justice League. And each movie or series lead up to something. Obviously, this is not the route James Gunn wants to go, but this is the formula that fans are accustomed to and believe is the right course of action. DC has the players to do it but the gameplan is lacking conviction. If the DCU had a better selection of projects, a more ideal and desired one, this new fresh cinematic universe could have been pulling in interest and hype instead of some frustration from fans. The Justice League needed to pave the way.