They are the least grounded episodes, and this show was marketed as “grounded Golden Age Batman.” A key part of that problem is Golden Age Batman was not grounded. It was full of the basic part of Batman that is not based in reality, a man in a costume is not killed by all these hit men with guns. Even besides that he did battle magical foes and mad scientists making crazy dream weapons.
In One of the best episodes he battles a ghost. In another he battles a vampire (not supernatural but crazy science), and in another it goes full out on a normal person being superhuman (not Batman). None of this is realistic, and they are all different. What made these episodes great was not even their craziness. It is they showed Batman at his most merciful and caring.
Of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies (DCUAOM) this is one of the most fondly remembered (not top 5 but up there). It returns almost the entire cast of Justice League like Michael Rosenbaum, Susan Eisenberg, Carl Lumbly, and Kevin Conroy. In addition George Newbern is replaced with Superman The Animated Series star, Tim Daly. It is an adaptation of a very popular comic book. It has good action, and big stakes with lots of inner team drama. After all that I think it is… good and nothing more.
In the opening scene Batman, the clear protagonist of the movie, tracks the Royal Flush Gang and gets whipped until the rest of the Justice League arrive. We then get to a major improvement over the comic book source material, the dialogue. In Tower of Babel the League seems to either hate each other or have really clunky dialogue to show friendship. Here they really come off as good friends that would be devastated to lose each other. Another key detail is Green Lantern tells Bats how often he saves him, and Bats replies the score is 8-7. It is harsher in hindsight showing how much Bats studies his teammates.
In a good fight they defeat The Royal Flush Gang, and in very efficient writing that takes up little time Flash deduces they must have a backer with much more technology expertise. Bats goes back home unaware Mirror Master hitched a ride into the Batcave where he downloads Bats’s files (later revealed to be on how to defeat The Justice League).
Vandal Savage brings in these guys with the payment of 100 million dollars per league member they kill. Um, Vandal I hate to tell you this, but you have Metallo and Cheetah on your team. You do not need a file on how to kill Superman. Still with this grandiose building and Savage’s charisma this is another good scene.
Is this part of the DCAU with its shared animation style with Crisis on Two Earths and actors from the DCAU? I say no. Vandal’s healing ability is different. J’onn is no longer the last living Martian. Cheetah is very different. Hal and Barry are now on the team instead of John and Wally.
Thus begins The Legion of Doom using Batman’s contigency plans. First is the one against Batman by using his dead parents as a distraction. Bane buries him alive and then… Leaves.
News flash to you Bane, people who are not Batman can dig themselves out of graves. That is the upcoming formula. The Legion of Doom claims victory and leaves without finishing the job, yet they assume it is done. This one is much worse than the comic version. Ma’alefa’ak gives J’onn a poison that makes him turn on fire even when wet. Better set up than the comic but misses a joke it had. Wonder Woman is made to fight an endless battle, and this is a much superior version of what the comic did.
Scarecrow’s toxin makes Green Lantern think he accidently killed so many people, and this is way better than the comic. The best one is Flash. The bomb is strapped through his wrist with a great deal of pain, and he now must run for eternity. Big improvement from the comic. Superman is… Metallo gets him in a way that they should have been able to think of by themselves.
The way to beat all these people rexcept for wonder Woman require them being good people (in contrast to aquaman and Plastic Man in the comic), but I presume Vandal just modified them for that.
The Legion of Doom then celebrates killing six heroes who are still alive, and Vandal reveals he is an immortal who is trying to reconquer the world. He will do this by killing most people with a weaponized solar flare. It is pretty interesting seeing the reactions. Ma’alefa’ak has a voice and expression of mild interest. Cheetah is scared she will die. It is hard to tell if they are scared of him (remember other than Mirror Master they think he is the master at contingency plans and likely has them for his villains too), or if they want in. When you join The Legion of Doomthis should be expected.
Batman digs himself out of the grave and goes to check on the rest of The Justice League. Turns out he has contingency plans for his contingency plans, and again this is a huge improvement over the comic. Instead of all getting fixed easy it is really dramatic on saving Clark right down to them having to on the spot completely change plans on giving him the needed surgery.
After everybody is saved they discuss Batman’s contingency plans in a scene very different from the comic. In the comic they are pissed at him. Here they are upset but seem to understand after all the times they have been mind controlled and the like in the past. In the comic Wonder Woman is supposed to be the voice of reason saying if Bats told them about the plans they would be fine.
While Flash is the best acted, Green Lantern has the best reactions.
That is where I am completely against Mark Waid. If they are told about them then their is really no point in having them. Here Green Lantern is the voice of reason pointing out the real problem is allowing them to be stolen.
Batman’s attitude is very different. Instead of trying to change the subject he defends them by calling everybody else fools for not having plans, but this is probably also a jab that all they need to do is hit him on the head. He meanwhile needs them.
Now back to the real fun.
Mindless Violence
Batman and Flash track the plans to Vandal’s base in Louisiana, and here comes our fight. We get a great traveling shot and… Why is Clark fighting Metallo and Flash fighting Mirror Master? Should put Bats on Mirror Master and Green Lantern or Wonder Woman on Metallo.
The best fight is J’onn vs his brother having a shape shifter fight. The worst is Wonder Woman vs. Cheetah. Batman beats Bane the same way he always does. The rest of the fights are good. Before they win Vandal successfully launches the missile. This results in Superman again failing to save the sun in a Bruce Timm work (also happened in “eclipsed” and Justice League vs Fatal Five. As Green Lantern buys them time they deduce The Hall of Doom has a shield and use that to shield the entire Earth from the solar flare.
Next scene made me realize why I really do not care for this movie or the comic, it is a very inferior version of “Starcrossed.” Batman resigns from the Justice League. He then has a heart to heart with Clark about how much they trust each other and show it in their weird ways.
Also Cyborg was there, but nothing he did was important and all could be cut.
I give it three Tree Stars. The plot is disjointed, but it feels realistic for this world of costumed superheroes, and the fights are sure entertaining. It is not that interesting (really small word count for a superhero movie review from me), but it certainly kept my attention. I should add I really really hate the comic book, so I am having no issues with the adaptation’s changes.
Sorry this took so much time. This movie is really not that interesting and was way less fun than I thought it would be. Then work was crazy for the last three weeks straight.
Next time-
All major studios’s 100th anniversary logos ranked.
In recent years Scooby-Doo has starred in many crossover movies, and this is often called “The Guest Era.” This is another DC crossover in his (as of writing) most recent movie.
This film was (While incomplete) leaked onto Internet Archives months before its release. Everybody at the time was saying it was from around 2013 based on the logo, and I knew from looking at it that was false. Not to mention I did skim to Velma, and I knew that was not Mindy Cohn’s voice. Another rumor is that saved it from being written off as a tax write off, but I also hear that is false.
Robert Kral does the music. He also did Scooby-Doo Mystery Incorporated, Superman Doomsday (they reuse some music from it), and several other DC movies I have reviewed. Unfortunately it has the same director as Return to Zombie Island, but hopefully she redeems herself here.
The Justice League is mysteriously gone, phantoms have taken over The Hall of Justice, and Metropolis is overrun with supervillains, thus Mystery Inc is on the case.
A few red herrings are introduced, and I like that the valet loves The Mystery Machine due to it being a normal van.
If only he Knew how wrong he was.
I love little details on how superheroes affect the normal guy, and for him it means he thinks normal vehicles are special.
Mayor Fleming is trying to bring to keep The Hall of Justice from being bulldozed. She is there to move us from point A to point B, but I did spend a while wondering if she was a twist villain.
Here we get Lex Luthor, Rex Ruthor, and Mercy Graves. It is hard to tell if former president Luthor is actually smart or dumb for most of the movie. Rex Ruthor (I love how they somehow keep it ambiguous until the credits if that is his name or if it is Rex Luthor) is just his friend or so it seems. Mercy is overworked and apparently is no longer grateful for what Lex did for her. By keeping all the key details about these three a mystery until the end the movie is really about figuring them out. Are they comedic villains or just pretending to be. Is this Scooby-Doo stuck inside of Justice League or Justice League trapped in Scooby-Doo? I am glad they limited themselves to one Trump Joke. Contrary to what the memes say Trump and Lex are very different. I think this version of Lex is an attack on the DCEU version, but I am not sure. He has many references to his Gene Hackman version.
Krypto saves them from the phantom, and issues a lockdown when every civilian is out of the building except for Lex Luthor and Rex Ruthor, as Lex got lost (a running gag). It is a good scene except Velma says Krypto looks like a stray. That white fur is way too clean for him to be a stray. Krypto is Superman’s dog and trying to get him back.
It took me a second watch to realize why I was enjoying the Fred and Daphne plot. When they were nine at a Summer camp Daphne and Jimmy Olsen were voted “best redhead couple,” and Jimmy has been saying Daphne is his girlfriend ever since. This does not exactly make Fred happy, so he tries to prove his manliness to Daphne. It took me a while to realize why this was my favorite plot of the movie. They are not fighting; they are playing. They keep laughing and smiling at each other as they exaggerate their issues showing they are play fighting. It is something I do not recall Scooby-Doo ever doing. The rest of the movie is wacky comedy, and they stick out by doing more grounded comedy amidst all the wackiness. It ends with Jimmy breaking up with Daphne, and then Fred and Daphne reverse roles.
They see a recording of Superman disappearing, and between that and the following Grundy chase I was able to figure out the mystery at around the 2/3rd mark. Superman seems to just vanish after being hit by a light, and the villains are called “Phantoms.” The Justice League is in the Phantom Zone, and the phantoms are them. Mercy is carrying around The Phantom Zone Projector. Lex is faking stupidity and the ultimate mastermind. I think this would be harder to solve for people that are not Smallville nerds.
The best part is when they need to make Lex mad. They do this by discussing the plot of the worst Scooby-Doo movie ever. Lex calls it “…The most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard, and I saw Superman the Musical.”
After that they trap mercy revealing everything only for Lex to snatch the Phantom Zone projector, release his army of demolition robots, and reveal that Rex Ruthor is a dog version of Metallo (cyborg powered by Kryptonite). Lex claims he planned this whole thing. I do not believe him.
Here comes our final battle. It is the only time I can think of when Daphne’s fighting prowess are important (no, they were not important at all in Samurai Sword. They easily could have been edited out). I presume this is in continuity with the comic book where she filled in for Batgirl and then became Batgal. I remember in my mini review not being impressed with the climax, but I think that is due to how much better the climax of the Batman crossover movie was.
There are lots of good gags in it, and a role for all 6 main heroes and even two red herrings. It is a solid, but unimpressive ending where Lex is defeated and Rex Ruthor is banished to The Phantom Zone. In the closing action The Justice League is back and Grundy is living the dream of befriending Scooby-Doo.
Very solid movie. Other than Daphne and Fred nothing really sticks out compared to other Scooby-Doo movies (but that take that to Return to Zombie Island was great), but it is funny and a decent mystery. I enjoyed seeing these DC characters trapped in a Scooby-Doo film. Four Tree Stars.
In one scene Shaggy fires all eleven of Ollie’s trick arrows.
What is that supposed to do?
You do not kill Ollie. How are you supposed to shoot that from an arrow non-lethally?
Did Disney’s Dinosaur really rip-off The Land Before Time?
I really cannot sum up this movie better than what World’s Finest did.
“not a deep or profound entry in the Bat-cycle, nor is it a particularly exciting one. But it’s a pleasant afternoon-filler and will likely please those fans of the animated universe who fondly recall the low-impact dramatics of the series’ first incarnation…well, we all need those.”
Until recently there were four films in the DCAU in addition to its many series. They are Batman Beyond The Return of the Joker, Batman Mask of the Phantasm, (the two most acclaimed ones), Batman and Mr. Freeze Subzero, and last of all this one, which actually came out well later when Justice League was finishing season 2, while this has the art style of The New Batman Adventures which ended over 4.5 years before this came out in 2003. Alan Burnett chose this animation style since he liked it best. Bruce Timm had no involvement in this one, and Burnett was in charge.
The mystery is that all three of the main suspects are Batwoman. They tag team it to throw suspicion off, which is actually a good plan since every person in this world has only two body types, and they are divided by sex (except Penguin, the only non-attractive man in the world).
It opens with some hired henchmen transporting weapons, and the titular mysterious Batwoman stops them. That image of her using is a great way to introduce how different she is from Batman, and we get a decent action scene with good music out of it. Perfectly fine opening. It is quickly brought up that Bats is upset she used his name and likeness. That is brought up later with the three Batwoman. One of them, Sonia wanted the name to honor Batman, while the other two wanted to make an entirely new identity.
It is toyed with that none of three suspects would be the Batwoman, but that it would be Catwoman or Barbara Gordon. Barbara even gets a small scene, and it is terrible. Since the design was made for her that would have been a decent mythology gag.
Our four main villains are Bane, Carlton, Dusquene (like Du-Kane from the comics), Penguin (very distractingly with a different voice actor), and Rupert Thorne (first time he has appeared in nearly ten years). Penguin and Carlton were Jumba and Gantu in Lilo and Stitch the previous year, so alien reunion time.
Of the four films this is by far the weakest villain group. Bane is boring and loses the same way he always does. Rupert Thorne is just there. Carloton is there to be redeemable family member to one of the Batwomen (Kathy), and Penguin is carrying the group despite getting repeatedly clobbered. They are in a deal to deliver arms to rebels in the fictional country of Kasnia, and Batwoman consistently stops their shipments. A key reason for this is Carlton’s daughter, Kathy is one of the Batwomen. Until that is confirmed this mystery is dropped when Batman sees her and Batwoman in the same place.
After a terrible scene of Barbara flirting with Batman we are introduced to batwoman #2, Rocky. She is the best of them. She is the typical genius but awkward scientist, but she has the best motivation. Her fiancé was framed by Penguin for a crime and is now in prison for life.
Batwoman #3 is Sonia. Theoretically it should have tipped me off that Bullock has a new partner instead of Montoya, but contrary to what modern comic readers would think Montoya was pretty much a non-factor in the show who normally did nothing more but stand there and look stoic (she was brought over to the comics as basically an entirely different character). Her motivation is that Rupert Thorne blackmailed her parents into bankruptcy, and then Batman saved her life from a fire. Sonia has some nice rewatch bonuses, like how she smiles when Bats shows up, and how she knows too much about the captured weapons.
Bruce and Kathy develop a romance over their shared dead parents killed by gunmen (an assassin targeted Carlton, missed, and hit his wife). The scenes do not drag, but they are not interesting. At least the fight is good when Bruce points out she took him to The Iceberg Lounge where she knew her father would hear about it and get angry.
Around then is the best fight in the movie. Rocky as Batwoman nearly kills Penguin, and in the picture above you can really she how much she is enjoying this revenge. Then Penguin’s hench women show up. In the show they are awful as fighters, but here they are actually very good, and for once Batwoman is not doing well.
This is just not Penguin’s night, and that is not even accounting for all of his stuff that got destroyed.
2/3rds through the movie is when Bats finds out all three are Batwoman. Honestly the mystery part is very quick compare to the romance and fights. This leads to scenes with all three of them plotting. I like the detail that Rocky wishes they came up with a whole new identity, but Sonia insisted on going by Batwoman. I also see how these three are a very good team who form a complete hero. Kathy is the best athlete and has the money. Rocky has the technology. Sonia has the drive and knowledge of criminals.
This man has been memed as “The Smartest Batman Goon Ever.” That is because at one point he just leaves Batman alone. What is left out is that only happens after he gets beaten up so much he finally learns.
One thing I like about Sonia, is she does not speak in Spanglish. Then Bane speaks in lots of Spanish, as he captures Kathy resulting in Batman and the other two Batwomen rushing to rescue her.
Carlton gets ready to hit her after she blames him for her mom (and his wife)’s death, but he does stop himself. Being the only smart villain Penguin immediately remembers she was in the lounge when Batwoman (Rocky) was there so there must be at least one other Batwoman.
That leads to a perfectly decent climax to a perfectly decent film. Carlton and Kathy take turns saving each other’s lives, and Batman and Bane have a decent fight that ends with Bane falling to the depths of Hell (there is no way he survived that).
In the closing action they Sonia is publicly known as Batwoman and leaves Gotham. Bruce Wayne finds proof that Rocky’s fiancé is innocent and gets him out of jail. Bruce and Kathy date at the end, and we get a short about Bats chasing Catwoman. It is better than the actual movie with multiple funny gags.
Three tree stars. Perfectly decent movie. Nothing special, but good. It is a good way to spend 75 minutes, especially if you can watch it on streaming.
It has been over four and a half years since I originally made this list. Since then many of my picks have moved a little, and I have seen so many more movies, and I have wanted to remake it and make it much bigger ever since September of 2019. After years of taking notes I decided I was ready for the big upgrade all the way to 50.
Rules
Cannot be made by Disney. Only one per franchise, but spin-off franchises are allowed (I know 4 titles push it on what counts as sequel vs spin-off, but I have to finish the list, and I wanted to include them). I will get to sequels that would have easily made it at the end. That also means only one Batman movie, Justice League movie, etc. even if they are not in continuity with each other. Since I am much more familiar with Western Animation (and the Anime fans keep insisting they are a separate medium anyway) I am just focusing on Western Animation).
50. Watership Down
Vastly inferior to the book, but plenty of its brilliance shines.
History- Plenty of book adaptations came afterwards
49. Open Season
Dumb plot, but it is funny and has a cool villain.
History- Beginning of Sony Pictures Animation
48. Isle of Dogs
I think the drama is not that good, but the comedy is great.
47. Smallfoot
Not amazing but distinctly entertaining.
46. League of Super Pets
This time it is the drama that really carries it.
45. Lego Aquaman
By this point the DC Lego movies had really found their groove, and made an Aquaman movie very distinct from the DCEU version.
44. Lego Ninjago Movie
Surprisingly wholesome father-son movie.
History- Key financial failure for Warner Animation group.
43. Megamind
I am surprised I do not like this movie more. I think it is all the superhero parodies I have seen. Anyway it is really funny, and it knows how to take itself seriously when it needs to.
History- With its fanbase I am surprised it did not spawn a fanbase.
42. Madagascar 3
A great example of personal growth in a film franchise. To stick out from the others this is the only one with such a big Man (animal in this case) vs man plot. The other two are more about man (animal) vs himself. This one takes all that growth and uses it to face bigger external threats.
History- Known for being a great way to end a series and a rare case in this age of stopping at 3 despite being a big hit at the box office.
41. Lego Shazam
It is fun seeing The Justice League like this.
History- Final Lego DC movie.
40. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant Mayhem
Due to how new it is this is the one most likely to move big time if I ever remake this list again.
I really enjoyed this distinctly child friendly version of some of my favorite heroes, while keeping all the dark themes they had since day 1.
39. Justice Society World War II
38. The Little Bear Movie
Great to see a childhood favorite series with bigger stakes while staying true to its country life style.
37. Gulliver’s Travels
The minor comedy is really good, and the songs are very catchy.
History- The second American animated movie.
36. Ice Age
surprisingly adult. It is visually appealing and has good action scenes.
History- Showed the power of Blue Sky and the ability of smaller studios to compete with Pixar and Dreamworks with CG animation.
35. Charlotte’s Web
Great story with very good acting. Does have some tone issues.
34. Despicable Me
The focus is where it needs to be, on Gru.
History- Started a widely successful studio and franchise.
33. Anastasia
Great job at showing emotions through songs.
History- Bluth’s last financial success, and it almost made 20th century Fox Animation Studios into a major force.
32. Prince of Egypt
am going to get flack for not making it higher. It is this low as I consider The Ten Commandments to be a better version, and it is still a great movie.
31. Titan A.E.
Made by all the twists and character interactions.
30. Green Lantern First Flight
Very villain focused with the hero trying to navigate this new world.
History- Made a lot of money, and animated fantasies became much more common place.
20. Into the Spider-Verse
Not as a great as most people on the internet say in my opinion, but the animation and comedy are great. I just do not think it has the emotional payoff needed like the next movies have.
19. Reign of the Supermen
This reminded me why Superman used to be my favorite superhero.
History- Best film of the DCAMU
18. Rise of the Guardians
The marketing was terrible, and I expected to hate it. I instead loved it. Big jump from last ranking.
History- The first victim of Fox’s bad management of Dreamworks.
17. Kung Fu Panda
Yes, the first one is my favorite, partly as Shi-Fu is my favorite character. He and Po are close to the top of my protagonist list. It is a perfect example of how good Dreamworks can be.
History- Became the new codifier for Dreamworks movies.
16. Puss ‘N’ Boots the Last Wish
Great villains, comedy, heroes, and drama. Just not that interesting on a rewatch, or it would have been around 10 spots higher.
15. Arthur Christmas
My favorite film from Sony Pictures Animation. Great family drama.
14. The Secret of NIMH
Beautiful movie, and it focuses on motherhood
History- Instrumental for the rerise of animated movies a few years later.
13. The Flight of Dragons
The most adult film on the list. Very thought provoking climax.
12. Balto
The major plot points are man vs society, man vs himself, man vs man, man vs nature, and man vs higher power. All of the first four are on here.
Masterfully done tone by Martin Rosen, and the incredible ending.
History- First animated film to be rated PG-13.
7. Animal Farm
While it has major issues its great scenes are always enough for me to overlook them.
History- First British animated feature film.
6. The Iron Giant
You probably already love it if you are reading this list.
History- The codifier for vindication by cable.
5. The Lego Movie 2
Wonderful twists and character development. Making it a musical really helps it to stick out from the rest of the franchise.
History- Bomb that cemented end of the franchise.
4. An American Tail
Whenever I have family issues this movie solves them.
History-Ended the dark age of animation after nearly thirty years.
3. The Dark Knight Returns Part II
Finally, I get to make a list with it where it is not number one. This movies changed my life, motivated me to get a job, and be an essential worker during the pandemic.
2. All Dogs go to Heaven
Very personal for me, as I converted to Christianity while watching it.
1. The Land Before Time
My favorite movie of all time and the reason I became a film buff.
History- solidified the Renaissance age of animation.
These next two would have made the list. They were not made by Disney, but were ultimately distributed by them.
The Brave Little Toaster
Ron’s Gone Wrong
These are par of a franchise that otherwise would have made the list in the five Tree Star category (ranked from best to least great)
Three new films from last year with a 3.33 Tree Star average.
1 star
51. Injustice – The only good thing I can say is it did not put me to sleep.
50. Batman vs. Robin -A love it or hate it film that unfortunately I hate.
49. Son of Batman-Batman lectures about not killing while feeding the minions to sharks and dropping stadiums on them.
48. Batman Gotham Nights – See below
47. Green Lantern Emerald Knights- I hate anthology films so these are not my cup of tea. In addition the segments are too generic.
46. Batman the Killing Joke- If not for Hamill’s performance this would be the bottom pick and have zero stars.
45. Wonder Woman Bloodlines- I literally LOLed at a few dramatic moments. If not for that this might be the bottom pick. The most forgettable movie here.
44. Catwoman Hunted- Did Joss Whedon write this? Almost nothing but quips.
43. Battle of the Supersons- Insanely padded for a 75 minute movie, bad characters (except for Damian), bad animation, and very generic and used storyline. This should have been G rated.
2 Stars
42. Justice League Dark- I kept hearing how great it is, but I just found it boring. I am sure a general poll would have it much higher.
40. Suicide Squad Hell to Pay- I should say I am the opposite of a Suicide Squad fan (more on this at number 16), but I know most fans liked it. I did love Copperhead.
39. Justice League Warworld- 4 small movies in one. Wonder Woman gets 1 Tree Star. Batman gets 3 Tree Stars. Superman gets 2 Tree Stars. Justice League gets 1 Tree Star. 2 average.
38. Superman/Batman Apocalypse- I hated Batman and Wonder Woman in it, did not care for Supergirl, but Clark and Darkseid were well done.
37. Batman Bad Blood- All those heroes and villains were perfectly balanced, as nobody had enough screen time. Despite that the action was very good, and dad kept calling it “cool.”
36. Batman Hush- It had some good comedy, but everything else was lacking. I am not a fan of the comic, so I actually like it more than many viewers.
35. Justice League vs. Teen Titans- 3 movies as protagonist and Damian is finally a good character. Terrible pacing, and lying title, but it had good fights and drama.
34. Batman Gotham by Gaslight- Unlike most viewers I thought the buildup was bad, but the twist was interesting. My dad was so confused about everything.
33. Batman: The Long Halloween Part II (1)- Too dark, as in I cannot see a thing. Batman is a wimpy damsel in distress this whole movie.
32. All-Star Superman- Very good the first time, but just dull and no focus on repeat viewings. The score is great.
31. Superman Man of Tomorrow- No consistent quality averaged out to a slightly poor film. Parasite and J’onn were great. Lois, Lex, Clark, the animation, and the climax were poor. I kept hoping the heroes would leave, so I could see more Parasite.
3 Stars
30. Superman Red Son- A love it or hate it movie, but I thought it had hordes of good and bad that averaged out to decent. Batman, Bizarro, and the fights were great. Wonder Woman, Lois, and Lex were terrible. An average movie that everybody has strong opinions on. This is my brother’s favorite comic, and he refuses to watch it, because of its reputation.
29. Wonder Woman- The Wonder Woman movies are just forgettable. I consider her to be a much better side character than lead.
28. Justice League Doom- Plenty of great fights and acting and a stupid, stupid plot. Entertaining popcorn movie. Mom was so mad at the language.
27. Batman The Long Halloween Part I- some good action scenes. Joker stole the show.
26. Justice League War– Stupid plot, mean spirited, unlikable “heroes,” pointless, and I rooted for Darkseid the whole time. That is why I like this movie. I cannot blame anyone for saying this is number 40, but I found it to be so bad its good.
25. Legion of Superheroes- I know and understand why most fans of The Legion hate this But I am not one, and I think it is fine.
24. Superman Unbound– I kept hearing this was bad. I disliked the opening scenes, but I really loved the Clark/Brainiac rivalry, and their battle.
23. Justice League the Throne of Atlantis- Are my Dad and I the only people who like it?
22. Flashpoint– I keep hearing this is a masterpiece, but the animation is ugly, and I do not find the Flashpoint universe intriguing. It still has some great fights and dramatic moments.
4 Stars
21. Teen Titans the Judas Contract- Too many characters, bad development for Terra, Deathstroke does something stupid so he loses, and the beginning scene has nothing to do with the movie. Despite that it has a great plot, Deathstroke and Terra were great villains, the fights were great, and Beast Boy’s teen drama was surprisingly good.
20. Green Lantern Beware my Power– I really enjoyed the mystery and Adam Strange. Admittedly the ranking is going lower if we never get a Green Lantern Rebirth movie or at least Day of Judgment movie
19. Batman Soul of the Dragon- An overall cliché movie, but some scenes were too great for me to not really enjoy it.
18. Batman Assault on Arkham– This is not a Batman film but a suicide Squad film. It takes everything about a team I hate and fixed it. The film remembers the whole time that they are villain protagonists, and they get their revenge on Waller.
17. The Death of Superman– Terrific on the technical level and getting both comedic and tragic scenes. Unfortunately this was not enough story for an eighty minute movie.
16. Justice League Dark Apokolips War– Had problems with shock value and wasted potential, but very entertaining, surprisingly funny, and it is a rare superhero movie about watching heroes fail.
15. Justice Society World War II- Solid action film and characters that needed better villains.
14. Superman/Batman: Public Enemies- Stupid plot, but very entertaining, and the big dramatic moment hit hard.
13. Batman Year One- Batman’s actor could have been better, but everything else was great. The style reminded me of the Animal Farm movie.
12. Superman Doomsday– I never got the dislike. I do not like the art, but the fights are great, the comedy and Lex are great, Lois is great, and The Eradicator is terrifying. Reign of the Supermen is the better part of the story for a movie, and they wisely prioritized it.
11. Superman Vs. The Elite- Another love it or hate it movie, and I love it.
10. Green Lantern First Flight– A rock solid origin movie with a terrific climax. I really wish it got a sequel.
9. Justice League the New Frontier Big praise for focusing on the non-Trinity members of the team.
8. Justice League Crisis on Two Earths– Sure the Rose scenes are terrible and some of the fights drag on, but the villain protagonists are amazing, most of the fights really click, and the script is terrific.
5 stars
7. Reign of the Supermen_ (3)- Sure it has the stupid scene where the Justice League is taken out, but I loved the fights, Clark’s return, the hopeful ending (it somehow always makes me forget about JLDAW), and the Supermen’s development. Dad and I loved watching it all three times.
6. Justice League Gods and Monsters– Another love it or hate it. I loved it, and dad left before it was over deeming it too depressing. This is the same guy who had no problem with The Plague Dogs. The score is great, the heroes are amazing reimaginings, the villain is very complex, and the murder mystery angle was great.
5. Batman under the Red Hood- The typical number 1 pick. Everything is well done or amazing, but nothing really surprised me.
2. The Dark Knight Returns Part 1– Best fights of all 40 movies, second best score, second best acting, and a solid adaptation of my favorite two comics.
6 Stars
1. The Dark Knight Returns Part 2 – This movie changed my life. I was miserable and unemployed. This inspired me to seek out a job, look for night jobs, and become a deontologist. It remained an inspiration to me to keep going to work during the Covid fiasco (I am essential).
Sometimes part of being a reviewer is enjoying a movie more than the typical viewer. Time to dive in on Beware my Power.
Green Lantern is one of my favorite heroes, and thanks to the cartoon Justice League Unlimited John was my favorite, even though I now rank him as 6th of 8, since his show version is much more like Hal than his bland comic interpretation. Thus I was mixed when I heard John would be the protagonist in a story clearly highly inspired by Kyle, and indeed this could have been Kyle. Instead it was a version mostly based off his show version with a large ensemble cast of new characters for this movie universe.
This movie is part of “The Tomorrowverse,” and it really jumps right into the Justice League. In between movies it was formed, and they have complex relationships, so apparently there is a significant time skip (or Hal and Ollie were already friends before joining so just a small time skip). I think that last piece should explain that this is a terrible introduction for non-comic fans. They should just watch either The Animated Series or First Flightinstead.
John Stewart like in the show was a marine, but now he has guilt from killing people and bad PTSD from it. His life is in ruins. In the show it was once mentioned he was struggling financially (based on the episode “The Brave and the Bold” he was exaggerating, as he at least has emergency savings and these episodes had the same script writer). Here he is broken emotionally. Thankfully both versions avert “The Stoic Black Man trope.” I maintain avoiding that was a key reason he stuck out in the show.
In a mix of Kyle and Hal’s backstory a space ship crashes with a dead guardian, and the ring chooses John. Probably because he hates it bossing him around he wants the ring off, but it will not let him. Now contrary to what the star of Blue Beetle said it is nothing new for a superhero to not want to be one. What makes this version unique is that normally means the hero does not want this adventurous life. Here it means he has already had one, and he just wants to move on.
It takes him to the watchtower where they discover it was Hal’s ring (meaning Hal should be dead) and the Guardians have not talked to them for a year. Now as a Green Lantern fan I knew to expect they were adapting Hal being evil, but them throwing a curveball and just killing him is not far fetched. Hal has two wonderful storylines where he comes back from the dead, and both options lead them open to future movies, and they can both make this movie good.
The only Justice League member important this movie is Green Arrow, Ollie. He decides to use the ship to go to Oa and annoy the Guardians into talking and finding out what happened to his best friend. John insists on going with him to remove the Ring. He very smugly shows and tells him how to be a lantern.
He has to teach him The Green Lantern oath, and John openly criticizes the best superhero oath ever written. At first I was annoyed by this thinking it is the overly common “That just happened humor,” but later in the movie he learns what it truly means, that he has not done enough and must always fight evil.
This is a great image. It completely dwarves the characters and other statues. Foreshadowing what will happen it is missing the lantern instead of limbs like the other statues. It shows how highly admired Hal is even without the hologram declaring him the best Green Lantern in the universe. The statues also introduce us to Sinestro.
They get attacked by Hawkgirl, and John nearly loses it and kills her. This movie has lots of mystery backstory, and she gives the key details on the Rann-Thanagarian War. The Rannians have a Zeta Beam which acts as a teleporter. They were going to connect it to Thanagar, as Hal watched over the project. Something went wrong, and it teleported Thanagar into Rann’s atmosphere killing millions and putting them at war. She is convinced this was all treachery by Rann (her being blood thirsty before reason is a key part of her character). The best part is Hal sacrificing himself in an attempt to save everyone. A great scene from one of my favorite heroes, that makes me hope they get to Green Lantern Rebirth.
They find many dead Thanagarians, and a Zeta Beam teleports Adam Strange there. He and Hawkgirl fight on sight. I did not expect this at all, but my favorite character is Adam Strange. I have read a few comics with him, and they all stank, and he was not very interesting in any of them. Adam Strange in-universe is an old legend thought to be long dead, and he finally found his way back. I know he has a family, and in a rare case of being new viewer friendly they keep that detail hidden for a while.
They go past many dead Rannians, and into a giant space battle, and they talk to an injured Rannian captain in a doomed ship. He tells them about how Thanagar attacked Rann making it pretty obvious to both the audience and characters a third party is manipulating everybody. In probably the best scene in the movie he cons John into repowering his ship so he can go home, but instead he uses it to kamikaze into the Thanagarians. Hawkgirl calls him “noble” for it and is now respectful of the Rannians. With this new information Hawkgirl and Adam now get along and work together to figure out what is going on.
They see Adam’s father-in-law made a weapon to destroy Thanagar and that Sinestro has made a cruiser than can be disguised as a Rannian or Thanagarian cruiser.
This leads to a fight with The Sinestro corp. It is a good battle with plenty of back and forths and cool visuals, and it starts their killing message. The characters preach not killing, but the movie actually favors killing. Not killing Despero gets them captured, and Sinestro ruins the mood due to…
What is with that design? How did anybody ever trust him with a name like “Sinestro” and an obviously evil design like that?
In what should be a sign that Hal is actually Sinestro’s boss they are thrown in the same dungeon as him. He is good at pretending to be good, as he praises them, and he comes off as humble and praising his replacement. He says he released his ring do Sinestro could not steal it.
Hal gets them out, liberates their weapons, and he kills a Sinestro Corps member. He syas the lives at stake and being stuck in a prison made him willing to kill.
Whenever John loses his ring his costume goes changing his outfit. It is a nice detail to show his control, as his costume is clean and well kept, while his lone jacket is destroyed and in tatters (granted there are plenty of continuity mistakes here that get distracting).
Adam talks to his father in law about the weapon, and it gets into Justice vs Revenge. Adam’s wife and the scientist’s daughter was killed by Thanagarians in the last war. Adam wants to honor her memory thinking she would not want Thanagarians to be killed like her. His father-in-law wants to make them suffer for it. Nobody convinces the other one, nor are we ever shown what Alanna Strange would actually want, because it does not matter. What matters is not letting your morals get corrupted from tragedy.
They fight the Yellow Lanterns again, and John uses what Hal taught him to kill Sinestro. It is not played for coolness, but horror, as he hates having to do this, but it was the only way he could save himself. With what they were doing to Hal, I think this was also the creators throwing Hal’s fans a bone.
Like in Emerald Twilight Hal is now Parallax, influenced or possessed (this version is not clear which one), and is now evil and slaughtered The Green Lantern corp. I like the detail that Sinestro is just terrified of him now.
Hal is going to use the Zeta Beam to destroy the universe and remake it. Unlike the comics where he was doing that I have to give this credit for making him actually the main threat the whole time. In the comics he only did anything after Extant did 90% of the work. He fights John, and overall it is underwhelming. Hal comes off less as a god and more like a slightly more powerful Lantern, and there is no way John should even be able to compete with him. On the other hand him reciting the oath while willing the rings away was pretty cool. Hal catches second win, but before he can kill John his best friend kills him.
Did we see enough of Ollie and Hal’s best friendship to earn this scene. I think so. Just the horror Ollie had when seeing what happened, their brief interactions, and how Ollie described him did scream how close they were. Also if you need best friends to spend hours and hours on screen together then a direct-to-video movie is not for you anyway.
To stop the Zeta Beam from destroying the universe Adam sacrifices himself ending the war too.
I give this movie four Tree Stars. It has so much going on with many characters I did not expect to see in an animated DC movie. Hopefully this gets built on later. The Tomorrowverse has plenty going for it.
Sorry this took so long. I have been moderatly sick for a while, and this was a hard one to write. For Christmas season I am doing The Legend of Frosty the Snowman, and The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus.
Film number 50 in The DC Animated Original Movies Lineup. It is based off the 2000 Elseworld comic by the same name, and before this movie I had never heard of it. I often hear it is the most obscure work they have adapted, and I am glad they did it, as I really enjoyed reading it.
Batman battles a Cthulu like entity called Iog-Sotha (I know nothing of H.P. Lovecraft’s work, and I will not pretend to understand it). It takes place in the 1920s, so it will be compared to fellow Elseworld film Batman Gotham by Gaslight. I am surprised many people say they should be sequels. For one this takes place in America, not Great Britain. It is much more fantastical, and Batman’s abilities are very different. Gaslight might have the weakest film Batman I have ever seen, and this version is high up there with the best. Not to mention as elseworld taking place in a different time period is hardly unique to Gaslight. It is much closer to The Dark Knight Returns, with how they view Batman’s death and focus on why the absurdity of Batman is not actually absurd in the world he lives in.
It opens in Antarctica foreshadowing a cold and rough terrain they will have to manage in Gotham. Bruce Wayne is looking for survivors from a research expedition particularly Professor Cobblepot. He is with Jay (Jason is Indian in this version), Dick, and Kai Li. Kai Li is designed and loosely based off Cass Cain. The name change is to make her fans know this version is very different, as she is also based off Carrie Kelley, and Tim Drake.
They find many bodies with only Cobblepot and Grendon unaccounted for. It is left unknown why he is looking so fiercely for Cobblepot, but he reads his journal which says something from the ice is calling him home and coming. Bruce finds him covered in spore looking parasites and naked completely pale running for a cave. Bruce calls him “Oswald” like he is an old friend. It is later revealed Cobblepott and Thomas Wayne have major hiitory with each other, so Bruce likely views as an honorary uncle.
This movie is about finding the truth in the unknown. Plenty of details are left out, but most are given, as the characters must figure out what type of movie they are in. The first mystery is what is that cave and what is on Cobblepot.
Next comes a very creepy scene. Bruce finds Grendon trying to break free from the ice a giant squid like monster, as he has been chosen to be the messenger of “him who looks down on Earth.” Just looking at “him” brings madness, so Grendon gorged out his eyes, and Bruce falls over and is attacked by penguin monsters.
These things look like hybrids of biblically accurate angels and penguins. Grendon swallows a squid like thing from inside the ice, and then Bruce knocks him unconscious and takes him back to the ship. We are then introduced to Kai Li, the deuteragonist. She is shocked when Bruce tells her to bring all the explosives to destroy the cave entrance.
This movie is about determining the truth, and here comes The Occam Razor fallacy, assuming the simplest explanation is correct. Bruce tells them it is a prehistoric frozen monster that is full of a prehistoric virus that is affecting the local wildlife. Thus they need to cut it off especially with Covid this seems very reasonable to modern audiences. This takes place after the Flu Pandemic making it even more reasonable to them. It is not the case, as this is a monster from another dimension, but it is reasonable. The problem is it cuts off the ability to check his work. To make up for that they bring Grendon with them and place him in the meet freezer.
He tells them Cobblepot is gone while avoiding eye contact seemingly blaming himself. This happens as Cobblepot watches them leave. Cobblepot has left his humanity behind to become an animal.
When he goes to new Cities Bruce keeps picking up new children hence his crew. For his Robins Dick is the one who helps Bruce look into everything and believes in the logical explanations. Jay seems to think there is a supernatural explanation. Kai Li does not know what to think other than she wants to be a part of it, and Alfred just wants everybody to have a normal life. Bruce has a conspiracy map. He thinks the killings which often have “Gotham City” written are from a cult. He declares it is time to go back to Gotham City and shows Alfred his batsuit.
Only Kai Li doubts they will stay in Gotham, and Grendon (now in a Mr. Freeze costume) tells them they are returning for their doom. He and Jay clearly really hate each other.
The flashback to the Wayne murder is full of foreshadowing. Their is a pillar like statue of Thomas Wayne foreshadowing that he basically founded Gotham. He says Bruce must learn to stand on his own two feel instead of somebody else’s foreshadowing the help Thomas got in the past. Their killer uses a knife instead of a gun, and this more skill based weapon makes this Batman have an easier time killing than usual. In the comics it also shows why Batman is willing to use a gun like he does on the cover, but the film adaptation cuts that.
When fleeing Iog-Sotha calls to Young Bruce and is then quieted by the bats. One reason this gives me so many The Dark Knight Returns vibes is the bats. There he would speak to a specific bat in a way that made it seem like another personality at times. Here it is the same way, but it is a whole Cauldron of bats he regularly listens to. It gives a strong supernatural element.
Jay loses the straws and has to stay behind and watch Grendon. Bruce does not trust the police and we briefly see all the homeless, foreclosures, and prohibition rules and hypocrisy. It just takes a few seconds to show it. One thing I love about Direct-to-video movies is they are almost always quick and to the point. I really think a modern blockbuster would pad this out with so much generic dialogue about how important it all is.
At Wayne Manor they find Kirk Langstrom’s dead body waiting for them along with the alive Jason Blood/Etrigan. Bruce and Dick look at Langstrom and determine something with thumbs and claws killed him. Some viewers have complained Etrigan’s backstory was not explained but I disagree. We immediately see his demon form, and with his yellow eyes clashing with Bruce’s blue eyes so well it is obvious he is a demon. We do not need to know his backstory with King Arthur.
He tells Bruce in order to defeat the spirts “Bruce Wayne must die and through death become himself” and Gotham must be burned to be saved. Bruce laughs this off. For the first part it obviously means becoming Batman, and he has not been called that. He perceives himself as a Wayne right now, not a superhero but an avenger. With Bruce not believing Etrigan turns into a demon in front of him and jumps out the window.
Bruce is left flabbergasted, an emotion we rarely see on him. He then comically tries to brush it off like it is nothing with Alfred right there trying to figure out what is going on.
Ollie Queen is introduced as a drunk that nobody really likes who sucks at details like knowing the difference in scientific names for plants and animals. Mayoral candidate Harvey Dent shows up introduces as the likely hero of Gotham. Normally either of these two would be the villain, but instead they are both heroic and will help save the city even if they are not Batman.
Ollie falls unconscious while drunk saying he owes Bruce more than he can know, as he cries saying “the sins of the father are heaped upon the son.” One one hand I am glad I saw this for the first time half asleep due to how eerie that made it. On the other I cannot accurately say if I could solve all the mysteries.
For the first time Bruce puts on the costume and the visuals are very similar to The Animated Series. First he takes out some corrupt cops taking liquor from Langstrom’s house. Not very interesting and more about how much he will grow later. He reads his journal saying the bats call to him and know about an entity from another dimension coming for their world, and he realizes Cobblepot had the rest of his work.
I really like this design for Talia. It shows her basic background while showing how different she is in this world.
Batman finds the book by calling about it so the librarian will check, but Talia al Ghul trailed him and takes it first. She uses a tiny demon to possess the librarian. This establishes that while demons must possess people they take none of their will or acceptance. Bruce is shocked showing he still does not believe in the supernatural. He gets saved by Etrigan who takes himself and the demon out. This results in Talia capturing Etrigan in a bottle removing him from the picture.
Batman escapes using acid and faces Talia still calling them just a cult. He does not believe until she pulls out another monster, Killer Croc. This scene shows how in a short time Bruce is coming to believe in the supernatural, and it should now be clear to the audience that they are the real deal and not goons in costumes. As a big Batman fan I enjoy the change seeing him completely out of his league and surprised at what is going on. He is completely wrong genre savvy for the first third of the movie.
Talia reveals she is 812 years old and releases Killer Croc on Bruce. After getting whipped Bruce escapes on a train before falling unconscious. He gets back to Alfred now admitting he has no real idea what he is fighting.
Gotham harbor is completely frozen by Grendon. Dick goes to the their ship to check on Jay just to find Grendon killed him and then Killer Croc kills Dick. Less than 40 minutes and already they are dead.
Talia brings her father back from the dead, and she seems to start crying. Like Bruce they both want their dead parents back and take drastic measures. The difference is Bruce puts the pain on himself and Talia puts it on others.
Unlike Alfred Bruce still disbelieves he is dealing with supernatural, but he looks into the legend looking for fact (I do not buy it. He is scared it is all supernatural and hiding it). He finds that Ra’s al Ghul is from 2000 BC and trying to summon Iog-Sotha. Deciphering a code he sees their temple is underneath Gotham.
Bruce goes there and this time knows what he is facing and uses this to defeat Talia and kill Killer Croc. Then he has trouble comprehending Ra’s Al Ghul using magic to defeat him and send a plague of reptiles on Gotham. As Harvey promises to fix this he is easily elected mayor.
In one of the most important scenes in the movie Batman barely crawls out of the sewers like the reptiles and into crime alley where he has flashbacks to his parents death, and the bats call out to him how only he can stop them and only “The Bat” can stop them. Now he accepts his mark of madness and he is dealing with the supernatural. When Alfred gets him he calls him “father.” It is ambiguous if he thinks he is Thomas or acknowledging that Alfred is a father to him (I think it is the first one). Later Alfred does call him “son” and Bruce in response still calls him “Alfred.”
The Al Ghuls and Grendon declare that Dent is the key and the key is within Grendon. Talia rips it out of him killing Grendon and Ra’s turns it into Poison Ivy. Their view of allies as just agents to be disposed of is then contrasted with a scene of Bruce, Kai Li, and Alfred mourning as Lucius contemplates putting Bruce in Arkham who is just saying “doom” trying to figure it out.
Kai Li finds Ollie dressed like a crusader and, he reveals his 300 year old father killed Thomas and Martha Wayne unleashing Iog-Sotha back on Gotham to destroy it. He has been preparing to fix it, as only he can because the sins of the father are heaped upon the son. Thinking he is crazy Kai Li flees. It does not help that she then finds Bruce dressed as a bat and talking to his bats about doom.
A little scene shows that Harvey has a horrendous poison ivy infection. We all know where this is going for him.
I really love the designs this movie.
Ollie kills poison Ivy but gets mortally injured. He gives Bruce his holy sword and four holy arrows, and he debates the sins of the father with Bruce. I think the film takes Ollie’s side that the child must try to redeem the parents. The people who do the most good had fathers who are later revealed to have worked with Iog-Sotha. It gives motivation needed for greatness. Bruce himself changes sides next scene, and calls himself a man who needs to run right into the fire to save Gotham. So much about this movie about discovery is about self discovery. Bruce sees more and more than a city in need of a hero needs himself to be the larger than life hero. Forget about the nonsense like donating all his money. This world needs a man dressed in spandex to fight demons.
There is a debate for what to name their base; is it a wine cellar or a cave. They call it a wine cellar when depressed like now and a cave when they are happier.
Bruce tells Kai Li and Alfred he is not coming back accepting his upcoming death. When Alfred protests he responds that he does not know what he faces, but is this is what he was meant to do. I think this is my favorite scene. For one it highly resembles many parts of The Dark Knight Returns when Alfred and Carrie accept his upcoming death and Batman’s deontological ethics. It also shows how he has changed from a skeptic who now accepts how much he does not know. He has placed the pieces together that he must die a hero and accepts what information he has.
Still being a detective he finally goes to The Oracle (something he has avoided for years) for answers, and they get into why the bat. It is not just the fear they inspire but their ability to see beyond the darkness. It is their echo location, which is a metaphor for discovering the truth amidst all the darkness and gloom.
She lets him speak with his father who reveals he was born in 1585, and that he Kirk Langstrom’s father, Cobblepot, and Ollie’s father were original settler of Gotham. With them all dying off they made a deal with the devil and did “terrible things” (it shows animal sacrifice, but I think the implication is they also did human sacrifices on the natives). In doing this they released Iog-Sotha on the world, and it drove them all but him mad, and he was killed. They both agree as the son it is up to Brue and only he is capable of stopping Iog-Sotha at the doorway, and he must gain “communion” with the bats.
Bruce immediately then does the logical things in the circumstances, draws a star, drink a mysterious (to the audience) potion and prays to the bats. They ask his if he is ready to become one of them, and he accepts now that he is to become The Bat, and they teleport him to the mausoleum underneath Gotham.
First he find the door, Harvery, flipping his coin. Surely this drives him for madness… Or he flips his coin to Bruce (recognizing him easily) and wishes him luck, and Bruce promises to see him soon knowing they are both about to be dead. A very sweet and surprising scene amidst all the darkness.
Next the music gets way darker and slower as he fights zombie like versions of Dick, Jay, and Ollie. He uses up three holy arrows on them, and this makes him more miserable.
Next while Ras” Al Ghul finishes the spell he battles Talia. They have been changing methods this whole time and this time Talia has glowing green eyes, great strength and magic weapons giving her the early advantage. Bruce pretends to fall unconscious so he can kill her with the last arrow in the only time he clearly kills a human.
So without his parents being killed by a gun but a knife he never saw the incredible ease of killing, thus he has less restraint against it. In addition after last fight he is in a rough time, and she has been cheating death for over 800 years (not to mention Iog-Sotha is about to come back). It makes rational sense to kill her, even if I do not like that. At least the fight was really good. I have really enjoyed their rivalry this movie.
After that he goes to fight Ra’s Al Ghul who tells him it is already too late and merges with Iog-Sotha and wipes out Bruce effortlessly taking and then destroying his last holy weapon. Ra’s Al Ghul tells him no human can comprehend Iog-Sotha or look at him without going mad (too late for the last one). He turns into Iog-Sotha and traps Bruce and turns the sky to a blood red color. Bruce then accepts that he is one with the bats.
He breaks out of the cocoon like substance declaring himself to no longer be alive and “I am Batman.”
I know it might just be the recency bias, but I think is my favorite usage of the iconic line. He has now accepted the supernatural to a greater extant than even Iog-Sotha and proceeds to tear it apart. It also means I can finally quit calling him “Bruce.” This is the first time the word “Batman” is ever used, and it is glorious.
Iog-Sotha retreats to his ginormous true form ( I love that the other dimensional abomination is so scared and confused), and Batman releases Etrigan who finishes him off and in the process fulfills the prophecy of burning Gotham before it can be saved. From what I have heard of H.P. Lovecraft this is the bid difference. His work is very cynical about humanity, and they cannot win. Here the great heroes remain great heroes and win.
A few months later, and the Wayne Memorial Fund has rebuild Gotham, and everybody mourns Bruce not knowing he still watches over them in death.
I cannot think of a better image to end the movie on. I really love this. Between the great fights, mood, character development, and mystery it is a full on masterpiece. Like The Dark Knight Returns it focuses on the idea Batman is mentally unstable and turns it on his head by focusing on how fantastical his world is.
Five Tree Stars
Next time I return to Universal Cartoon Studios with Alvin and the Chipmunks meet Frankenstein.
The Animation Historian 