Review: Justice League: Gods and Monsters (2015)

It's been awhile since Bruce Timm and Alan Burnett, creative genius behind the DC Animated Universe, have written anything new, with Burnett's most recent writing effort (according to IMDb at least), being the 2011 episode of Batman: Brave and the Bold "Bold Beginnings!". Timm has stayed mostly in the executive producer status, but now, the duo return to form to create a new mini-series using DC Comics characters.

This project, titled Justice League: Gods and Monsters, aims to examine an alternate universe where everything is a lot more cynical and darker, yet not pessimistic either. And suffice to say, as a fan of their work, I feel Timm and Burnett did an excellent job.

Now, it must be said that this is very much a product by fans for fans, so a strong knowledge of DC Comics and the characters that inhabit that world would be the best way to experience this, as this film does a lot of fun references and cameos that really hold the most meaning for fans. However, the basic story, of a hard lined styled Justice League who have no qualms with killing the bad guys being framed for murdering innocent scientists, is still straightforward and well written enough to feel accessible to even those who aren't quite in the loop.

The animation is quite nice, and the character designs appealing as always. The characters feel well rounded and developed, and the voice acting is quite good. Special shout out to Benjamin Bratt as this universe's Superman, and Michael C. Hall as this universe's Batman and Jason Isaac's as Lex Luthor.

Timm and Burnett also make sure to keep their characters, which could have easily been the stereotypical 'bitter vigilante' type and unsympathetic, instead feel sympathetic and likable yet not held on any pedestal. They're flawed, and they learn from their flaws, and grow as characters.

So yes, suffice to say I enjoyed the film. It is on the violent side (the fact that this is direct to DVD is taken advantage of to be far more violent then the standard DCAU fare), and it's true that, being an installment of a larger mini-series, leaves some plot threads unexplored, but overall, it's a good strong product at a concise 75 minutes.

4 out of 5.