Justice League: Throne of Atlantis

When it comes to the world of superheroes and comics, I’m more on the DC side rather than the popular Marvel. There’s nothing wrong with Marvel but we all have our preferences and to me, nobody beats the man of steel. Each side has its successes and it’s complications that gives one an advantage over the other in certain aspects. When it comes to DC, it’s got the financial backing of cinema giant Warner Bros. Studios which hasn’t produced a lot of desired results until recently. Compared to Marvel which is supported by Disney’s limitless revenue stream and dominant reputation.

It’s no secret that Marvel is destroying DC on the big screen with a movie releasing practically every year and most of them getting rave reviews most of the time. Only recently has DC started to pick up the pace with the mega success of The Dark Knight saga and recently released Man of Steel. Then there’s the success DC has in television with the popular hit Arrow and The Flash unlike Marvel with their show Marvel: Agents of Shield which has been moderate at best. But the biggest advantage DC has in this never ending geek feud is it’s made for television animated movies. That brings us to the topic of this article with the released film, Justice League: Throne of Atlantis.

Following the success of the last film Justice League: War, this film follows the famous superheroes as they stumble on the famous legend of Atlantis. Now this justice league is based off the New 52 version of the 

Justice League which means simply different costumes, more violent and more attitude. The main protagonist in this film centers around Arthur Curry who we can all tell is destined to become King and known to the world as Aquaman. There’s just one problem being his half-brother Orm and his partner Manta who want nothing more than to start a war with the “land-dwellers.” Upon learning of Arthur’s claim to the throne, Orm commits the ultimate betrayal in order to put his plans to fruition and have the war he’s been craving since he was a boy.

The film started out strong with a great opening sequence but slows down by spending time to show what’s been going on since the events of the previous film. Superman and Wonder Woman are becoming closer, Cyborg is coming to grips with who he is, Cyborg is working for the government, and everyone else is going on with their lives. While the world knows them as a group, it appears that the title Justice League is more of a show than an actual group. A way of making the public feel safe because they believe the league is actually working together when in fact they couldn’t be more apart.

Then an attack on Cyborg occurs which unites the team once more and it’s discovered that his attackers are warriors of Atlantis. This starts the sequence of events that will eventually introduce the league to Arthur Curry who will soon find that he’s not just a normal human being. Just like in the last film, the action was spectacular as too was the story itself but there were flaws. There are two that I speak of and one being that for some reason, certain members of the league are able to breathe underwater without an oxygen mask. The second being a mistake in a scene where Arthur learns an unfortunate fate and in that scene, Superman’s uniform is incomplete.

In the new 52 version, Superman’s upper shirt goes all the way up to his skull, covering his neck and his cape hangs onto his shoulders. In the scene his neck is exposed and his cape is hanging where it traditionally is, so I’m guess whomever the artist is that drew that scene mistakenly put the classic version instead of the new 52 version. Other than that, there were no technical issues. So as far as the rating goes, I have to give this film a 7 out of 10 because of those issues and slowing down the action. This film wasn’t as good as its predecessor but it was good for introducing the newest version of Aquaman which is both attractive and intriguing.

With the future release of the Justice League movies and solo movies of The Flash, Wonder Woman and others, its good DC is still committed to these films. Because of their popularity, fans are getting introduced to different elements that inspire the demand for a movie such as the recently announced Suicide Squad and Justice League Dark. These films generate huge revenue for DC but as good as these films are, DC needs to get on the ball with bringing these characters to the big screen. Until then, I will be looking forward to the next release of the DC animated films with the next one titled Batman vs. Robin. This sequel to Son of Batman is something I have been waiting for and it will get me in the mood for the release of Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice.