DC Versus MARVEL On the Big Screen: Why DC Failed Pt. 1

Copycats

Trap 1 was how the hell do you copy Marvel’s plan without being a copycat and COPYING Marvel’s plan?  If they did that they would be deemed losers even if they had good box office numbers for they were mere copycats. Instead of trying a more organic build up as Marvel did, DC felt they had to force the issue with a fast build up to their prized team up – The Justice League.

A Vision Muddled

The next mishap came at the hands of DC itself.  It did not believe in the vision of the man they handed the franchise over too – Zach Snyder. Initial reviews for the DCEU launch were mixed for Man Of Steel.  The movie has become more accepted over time, but initially it was too dark and certain story points were not well received.

When Batman V Superman was announced, fans went crazy.  There was no bigger match up any movie goer could want.  Legend versus legend based off the title The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller.  The studio did not like the feedback from MoS, so they did what has doomed nearly every movie under such circumstances – they interfered.

While we got our first chance to see Wonder Woman in action, the film was largely considered a cluttered mess.  The vision was ripped apart by studio and Snyder.  The end of the story was also rushed, bringing in Superman’s ultimate villain, most thought was too soon.  In watching the director’s cut Snyder would later release, the film comes much more into focus.

What later happened with Justice League is a bit of a toss up.  Rumors were that things were not going well between Snyder and the studio execs.  Another mess seemed imminent, but then tragedy happened.  A family tragedy struck, pulling Snyder off the project all together.

Joss Whedon stepped up to finish the film.  While many love Whedon’s past works, the amalgam of Studio, Snyder and Whedon just didn’t work.  The movie was a mess and grossed the lowest domestic total of any of the DCEU films.

Ironically, Zach Snyder was criticized and maligned for his vision on the DC Universe.  It was too dark and people just didn’t like what he did, yet when the disaster that was JL came out everyone was screaming for the Zach Snyder cut to be released.  Even fans were contradicting themselves.