DC Comics' direct to DVD movies....

[Christopher]

No I do remember Timm saying somewhere that the WB wanted Superman to be lighter and more kid-friendly. But it's been so long I can't remember where I saw it.

Well, I just recently rewatched the series, and if they'd wanted it to be "kid-friendly," they wouldn't have allowed so much blood and death in it. Seriously -- in all of the FOX run of B:TAS, you saw Batman bleed maybe once or twice, if even that, but in S:TAS, Superman -- yes, Superman -- bled on several occasions. And in B:TAS, they couldn't show death or even talk about it openly. Depictions of the murder of Bruce's parents always had to be indirect and vague and symbolic. But S:TAS opened with the destruction of an entire planet and the death of everyone on it. And later in "Little Girl Lost," when Superman discovered Supergirl in cryogenic suspension, the frozen corpses of her mother and the others in her family were shown on camera, something FOX would never have allowed in a million years.

The show that WB wanted to be more kid-friendly was Batman Beyond, as I recall. Though despite the teen hero and the prevalence of stories about students, teachers, parents of students, school counselors, etc. turning into supervillains, it ended up being just about the darkest DCAU show up to that time, with a lot more villains dying at the end.

 

[Warped9]

^^ STAS sets precedent for a new live-action Superman with some edge to it. That's all right by me.

 

[Warped9]

I just finished watching Justice League: Crisis On Two Earths this evening. I was trying to keep an open mind because I'd seen reviews and opinions all over the map. My conclusion?

I quite liked it. I'm sure whenever I watch it again I could nitpick at it, but as it is I enjoyed it. I don't know how it really compares with the original source materiel because I've never read those Crisis issues. I didn't have much problem with the choice of voices for the individual characters and overall I just accepted them. That said, though, for me Kevin Conroy will always be the "real" animated Batman.

I also liked seeing the Under The Red Hood preview and I'm quite looking forward to that release.

These films have gotten me to reflect on how they compare with the comics source materiel. I still like comics as a medium, but for me the value has evaporated. As well written and as well illustrated as they can be they are still static. And with the escalating price the bang-for-the-buck just isn't there anymore when you're through it in ten minutes. A DVD film has motion and sound and extra features that can last you up to near two hours total. I think you get a lot more out of it. In print comics' value now seems to be in trade collections and graphic novels.

Just my two cents worth.

 

[Mr Light]

Individual comic prices are ridiculous. What I do is buy the trade collections, read them, then sell on Amazon Marketplace, only loosing a few dollars on each one. Only downside is you don't get to read them again a year later!

 

[Warped9]

I bailed on individual comics about two years ago. Money was tight and I just couldn't justify the expense for what little I was getting out of it. Trades and graphic novels still hold some appeal. It takes you some time to get through them and you feel like your getting your money's worth. Also the trade collections are often much cheaper than if you had bought all the individual issues that went into it. AND you likely have a lot less advertising in it.

The direct-to-dvd films are more like trade collections or graphic novels for about the same price or less AND you're getting motion and sound and extra features.

This is somewhat like comparing print novels with film adaptations. There are advantages to both and they're quite different mediums and can appeal in different ways.

 

[The Evil Dead]

^
The other thing is that well, I can't be the only one who feels intimidated by the dense continuity in comic books. I hear about interesting events like Marvel's Dark Reign but then realize I have to read something like 200 comics to get the whole story. And furthermore, I need to know the major beats of all of Marvel's events for the past several years.

On the other hand, I can pop in the DVD for New Frontiers or Public Enemies or Crisis on Two Earths or Planet Hulk and get some pretty damn good entertainment!

 

[Warped9]

^^ Agreed, because the dvd films are essentially standalone stories with occasional oblique references to previous events, but nothing that distracts you from the main events unfolding at the moment.

 

[Warped9]

I had already seen parts of Wonder Woman on Teletoon or YTV or something several months ago, but this afternoon I sat down to the whole thing on dvd. Pretty damn good. My only quibbles were a) the climatic battle at the end was over the top I think, and b) I wasn't that crazy about the animation style although it was serviceable.

But I liked it enough to be interested in seeing another Wonder Woman feature set beyond the origin story. Somehow I've never been able to develop enough interest to read a Wonder Woman comic issue.

 

[Warped9]

I read the original graphic novel and had seen some of it on TV, but just now I finished watching Justice League: The New Frontier from start to finish on DVD.

I liked it. Somehow this worked better for me then when I'd read it initially. Of course the threat to the world is really just a gimmick to get the rest of the story across. I must say I loved the style and the iconic look of the characters.

The one that really got me and I wouldn't mind seeing again in a standalone feature was Batman. I just loved the look, that is before he changes his look to something supposedly a bit less threatening.

 

[Hartzilla2007]

I read the original graphic novel and had seen some of it on TV, but just now I finished watching Justice League: The New Frontier from start to finish on DVD.

I liked it. Somehow this worked better for me then when I'd read it initially. Of course the threat to the world is really just a gimmick to get the rest of the story across. I must say I loved the style and the iconic look of the characters.

The one that really got me and I wouldn't mind seeing again in a standalone feature was Batman. I just loved the look, that is before he changes his look to something supposedly a bit less threatening.

I believe that was actually Batman's original look from the 1930s.

 

[Christopher]

^Inspired by it, certainly, but I don't think it was identical.

 

[Warped9]

^^ Agreed. It was inspired by it and it was inspired. It really fit in with the retro setting of the 1950s.

 

[FalTorPan]

The story for Justice League: New Frontier was a disjointed mess, although it looked pretty. I haven't bothered with the other direct-to-DVD movies.