Thoughts on an alternate DCEU

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NoOneofConsequence
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Thoughts on an alternate DCEU

Post by NoOneofConsequence »

Spinning off from the other DCEU thread. I have over the years pondered the idea of an alternate DCEU. Though it sort of involves either handwaving away Nolan's Batman trilogy or perhaps having it be just a two film thing. But, sort of a light (if long winded) outline of ideas.

So, to start with, I'd use the biggest thing DC has going, which is Batman. So debuting at the early part of the year's blockbuster summer season is Batman: Dawn of Justice, which is set a few years into Bruce's career as the Dark Knight. He's made a sizable dent in Gotham's crime and corruption, taking down a number of major organized crime heads and several corrupt politicians, and wrecking havoc among the major crime families and gangs. Gordon has been named the Police Commissioner. This isn't really the Batman of The Dark Knight (and most certainly isn't "The Goddamn Batman"), but closer to Denny O'Neil's reinvention during the 70s and parts of the Batman TAS. He's serious and driven, but not obsessively broody (or psychotic). Anyway, this has left a vacuum in Gotham's underworld. And into this comes ... Oswald Cobblepot. I've no idea who I'd cast in the role, but I would kind of like to do him as British. The sort of lower class British gangster type, but one who apes the trappings of polite society. Nice suits, big vocabulary, etc. - which is part of the origin of his nickname. But at heart, he's still a brute. Short, stocky, well muscled, and not exactly what anyone would call handsome. He and Batman go to war. And obviously Batman wins. But this is a harbinger of how Gotham City is changing in the wake of Batman's crusade. And it ends with Batman and Gordon acknowledging this.

Then comes the mid-credits stinger: Bruce is at home, doing whatever it is he does when not being Batman or Playboy Bruce Wayne, when Alfred enters the room and tells him there's something he urgently needs to see. On on the television is breaking news: The first public appearance of Superman in Metropolis.

Around Thanksgiving of this first year is Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn. (In which we pretend that the Ryan Reynolds film doesn't exist.) Because it's my world, it stars Idris Elba as John Stewart, based mainly on Dwayne McDuffie's version of the character from the Justice League animated series. This is an origin story, with John being chosen as Earth's sector's new GL and will be taking place almost entirely in outer space. Him training on OA, him adjusting slightly to culture shock, learning how to push the limits of his willpower and what he can do with the ring, etc. I kind of want the villain to be Sinestro, as the once paragon of the Corp who has gone rogue and used his ring to conquer his own sector, imposing his own vision of peace and justice upon it. This would likely be an act born out of frustration and anger at the situation he's been tasked to deal with, and possibly meant to mirror certain frustrations John, as a former Marine, had to deal with in Afghanistan or Iraq (or one of those fictional DC nations). Ultimately, John wins, and SInestro is stripped of his ring and imprisoned (setting up his ultimate return with his own yellow ring and army of fear mongers). John returns to Earth to take up his post. And is promptly surrounded by military forces and told to surrender.

Year Two starts with Wonder Woman. It would be very similar to the film we actually got. The couple of minor alterations would be that that I've always felt Wonder Woman should have her own fictional city that is as distinctively hers as Metropolis is to Superman and Gotham is the Batman. (In my head, I tend to think of it as Liberty City and draw certain inspirations from Philadelphia, but Gateway City - ie San Fransisco - may work just as well here.) But it is at this city's museum of natural history that she works at, and her friend, Dr. Helen Sandsmark, who has found for her the original photo plate from WW1 that sets off the flashback. The other major alterations would be that I kind of want to increase Dr. Poison's role a little more and that the final fight would not be yet another slugfest against a faceless CGI giant. (I've honestly always thought Eris made a better foil for Wonder Woman than Ares, but it is what it is.) Anyway, I'd have him be human sized and played by the actor in a costume, with some cinematography tricks to make him look as imposing and "god-like" as possible. And Diana wouldn't be the daughter of Zeus. This is just me being a grumpy grognard who likes the Perez origin in which she's entirely the product of her mother's love and faith. Anyway, this film likely ends with Diana deciding to publicly appear as Wonder Woman for the first time. I'm not entirely sure how that would happen. Possibly as the start of some sort of encounter with Cheetah, Giganta or one of her other more flashy/destructive foes.

And the for year two's holiday season, we have Aquaman: Son of Atlantis. While I like Jason Momoa as an actor, he's not really what I'm trying to go for here. I'm shooting for a King Arthur/Camelot vibe with this whole thing and the hopeful overall trilogy. This is a somewhat misfit young man who doesn't fit in living in semi isolation with his aging father in their lighthouse. At which point he discovers his mother was actually a princess from the lost city/continent/empire of Atlantis and he's a potential heir to the throne. Now he's sucked into royal politics and having to prove he's worthy of the royal blood he carries, all while being pitted against his much more experienced and rather more ruthless half brother Orn. And ultimately he finds the Trident of Neptune (Excalibur) making him the clear heir to the throne and champion of his people. But having been raised on land, he decides that its time for Atlantis to make itself known to the surface world and assert their rites to their own territories. So he's going to the surface to serve as ambassador and a champion of the seas and those who make their honest living from it. And the mid credits stinger is him popping up on the coast, and meeting Wonder Woman.

Year three starts with Superman. It has no fancy subtitle, as I can't think of a good one (and Man of Steel is being saved for later). This is several months if not a full year after his debut (as seen in Batman). We get a little of his origin with short flashbacks and news stories, but this is not an origin story. I have no desire to try to top what the Christopher Reeve film did very excellently, and would like to try to break some new ground here. This is about Superman beginning to establish himself as the world's greatest superhero. Tonally, this is 100% the sort of forthright and earnest idealism of the Captain America films, especially the first one. The man - who he is and why he tries to be a hero - is ultimately more important than the superpowers. Clark honestly doesn't want to see anyone be hurt or suffer needlessly, but has some awareness of his limitations when it comes to being able to help people. But he is beginning the process of becoming that symbol of hope for both Metropolis and the world. And because I'm hoping to tread some new ground here, Lex Luthor will not be the villain. He will however, have a presence lurking about the film. I would kind of like to have Toyman as the main villain. He is this psychotic inventive genius hell bent on revenge against the world and twisting something innocent and fun - toys - into weapons of mass destruction and murder. I want to have a Superman who is primarily focused on saving lives and stopping destruction (rather than just having a slugfest in the middle of a major city) while also having to use his brains to out think Toyman's traps. Superman will also fight a giant battle robot. Because I demand that Superman fight a giant battle robot! Ultimately, Superman even wants to save Toyman from his own madness, just because that's the kind of person Clark is. The mid credits stinger is likely of Lex Luthor discovering Kryptonite.

And finally, for the holidays, we have The Flash. I'm not really sure how this one would play out. I don't really want to do a straight up origin story, but that would probably be part of it. Abra Kadabra might work as a villain, as I think it might be interesting to have a guy claiming to be a wizard with Barry trying to use his science smarts to figure out the tricks, only to have the eventual reveal that he's a time traveler from the future here to be the first villain of one of history's greatest and most tragic heroes. But honestly, of all of them, this is the most vague idea at this point.

But, anyway, that would be the groundwork. And at this point, I'm a little torn between going ahead and following it up with the first Justice League film, or holding off a little and doing something like Batman & Superman: World's Finest and/or Brave & The Bold with Flash and Green Lantern.
What is tolerance? It is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty and error; let us pardon reciprocally each other's folly. That is the first law of nature.
Voltaire, "Tolerance" (1764)
NoOneofConsequence
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Re: Thoughts on an alternate DCEU

Post by NoOneofConsequence »

So, presuming we went with a Justice League movie, I have to confess I don't really have a really good idea for it. Or rather, I really can't think of anything much better than a variation on how the animated series did it, using the White Martians. An alien invasion is the sort of threat that would justify them getting together, and has the benefit of being a good way to introduce Martian Manhunter (yes, I'm a traditionalist in this way; To me, Cyborg is first and foremost a Titan and probably always will be). But were the cartoon went for a strong HG Wells War of the World homage, I think I'd try to pull more from Morison's Hyperclan story, and do something that was a bit of an homage to the old 80s V miniseries. My general idea is that when you first see Superman at the end of Batman: Dawn of Justice, what is being reported on is him saving the first manned space plane mission to Mars on its return trip. But what no one knows is that while on Mars, they accidentally broke an ancient seal that was keeping imprisoned the last surviving White Martians after their failed genocidal civil war against the Green - and possibly other color - Martians over a millennia ago. Ironically, this has allowed them to survive the extinction event which wiped out the rest of the Martian race. So now, a about a year or so later, they show up pretending to be mostly human looking benevolent space elves here to welcome mankind into the greater galactic community. Naturally, this involves making certain changes to earth to bring it more in line with "civilized" society. (If you've ever seen the classic Twilight Zone episode "How to Serve Man", you know what sort of changes these are.)
Part of this meet and greet/diplomacy act involves meeting Superman and Aquaman, and this is the first time the two of them really meet and interact with each other. Hopefully this would get to play a little on the fact that both of them have a bit of a "fish out of water" thing going on, both while growing up and even now, as well as that they've both taken it upon themselves to act as symbols. Clark as a beacon of hope and promise of safety for the world, while Arthur is representing Atlantis to the surface world and trying to be a bridge between two worlds. This may or may not also involve Wonder Woman.
The Flash, meanwhile, gives us more of a "man on the street" perspective of what's going on. A mix of bewilderment and excitement that plays off of Barry's scientist nature, but also a few concerns as he starts to put more and more pieces together. And that brings us to Batman. While this isn't the paranoid crazy Batman of certain takes over the years, he is naturally very wary. Since the end of his own film, he's spent a lot of time looking into the new Superman and these other superhumans who've appeared in his wake. And again, not for the purpose of destroying them in some sort of preemptive strike, but to make sure he understands what he's dealing with before he comes into contact with any of them. And then there's Green Lantern. John Stewart has spent the past several months in government captivity trying to peacefully convince them that he's not a threat.
Eventually, Superman, Aquaman and Wonder Woman are captured by the White Martians, and Batman ends up breaking Green Lantern out, and the two of them encounter Martian Manhunter, who's been secretly living on Earth since being sucked through space-time to a 1950s Denver laboratory. There's a massive battle, with everyone getting to look extremely awesome. And when the White Martians are defeated and resealed on Mars (it what may or may not be alluded as being similar to the Phantom Zone), the seven decide to form the Justice League.

Which brings us to phase two. If part one was establishing the world, part two is exploring it a bit and establishing what this new era of superheroes might mean.

I don't have a set order for these, but it would ideally include:

Superman: Man of Steel, in which Lex Luthor starts to come out of the shadows a bit more, with his ties to the high tech criminals of Intergang and this film's main villain, Metallo. This would also introduce John Henry Irons and his Ironworks company, but not as Steel. At least not yet.

Batman: Shadow of the Bat, with the fall out of Batman taking on a more public role, introducing both Dick Greyson and Barbara Gordon (but not as Robin or Batgirl), and having the first appearance of The Riddler, done much more in the Batman TAS vein, who has come to Gotham to have a battle of wits with Batman.

Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis, in which he more comfortably settles into his role as a hero of two "worlds", and gets to battle the total bad ass that is Black Manta and his COBRA-sized army of high tech pirates. And it would introduce Garth and Talia, the future Aqualad and Aquagirl.

Green Arrow, who is not a grim n gritty urban vigilante, but instead an urban swashbuckler more in the vein of Robin Hood, fighting for the powerless and the forgotten with a smile on his face and a Batman-esque arsenal of high tech arrows. It would likely conclude with an encounter with Batman.

Martian Manhunter, which would be a mix of his backstory on Mars and what he's been doing since the 1950s, and dealing with actually being a public figure now. I'm not sure who would make a good villain here.

I'm still working out ideas for the Flash and Green Lantern, as well as Wonder Woman (who I'd like to see battle Doctor Cyber). Also the second Justice League film, which may or may not involve Doctor Destiny.
What is tolerance? It is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty and error; let us pardon reciprocally each other's folly. That is the first law of nature.
Voltaire, "Tolerance" (1764)
NoOneofConsequence
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Re: Thoughts on an alternate DCEU

Post by NoOneofConsequence »

So, Green Lantern: War World, in which John Stewart, with the assistance of Kilowog and Arisia Rrab, is sent to find out what happened to a missing Green Lantern who was investigating rumors of an outlaw space gladiator arena. They find Mongo's WarWorld and the missing Lantern, Ch'p. (Yes, the squirrel.) And, because it's WarWorld, they get captured too, and end up in the arena. This is partially an excuse to introduce some of the various alien races, including Thangarians and some of the characters who eventually end up as Red, Yellow, and other Lanterns. Also, the sold-into-slavery-by-her-sister Starfire. And Lobo.

And, The Flash: The Brave & The Bold, which introduces The Atom and The Elongated Man - and perhaps Kid Flash - as they help him face the team up of the Rogues. (Most likely The Trickster, Captain Cold, Heatwave, Weather Wizard, Mirror Master, Captain Boomerang, The Top, The Pied Piper, and Rainbow Raider.)

And I'd like to do a Wonder Woman sequel in which she faces Doctor Cyber, who I'd like to update into a sort of female version of our various modern day tech lords (Gates, Jobs, Zuckerberg, etc.). Probably something that ultimately examines a lot of the negative aspects of the modern online survealence state, the problems of social media, and cyberbullying.
What is tolerance? It is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty and error; let us pardon reciprocally each other's folly. That is the first law of nature.
Voltaire, "Tolerance" (1764)
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Voltron64
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Re: Thoughts on an alternate DCEU

Post by Voltron64 »

Going off your thoughts, here's my own take on a direction the DCEU could have taken instead. And it involves changing the name of Chrisopher's Meloni's character from Captain Nathaniel Hardy to Nathaniel Adam.

I mean, that's a perfect Captain Atom origin with the exposure to alien metal everywhere and a singularity from two phantom zone engines colliding.

And it also inspires me to combine the Knightmare future of BvS: Dawn of Justice and Justice League with Armageddon 2001.

The big twist turning that Batman was following the wrong lead; Superman was a red herring and was never gonna end up following Darkseid.

No, the conqueror from the future...was Monarch.

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NoOneofConsequence
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Re: Thoughts on an alternate DCEU

Post by NoOneofConsequence »

That actually would make a lot of sense. 🤔
What is tolerance? It is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty and error; let us pardon reciprocally each other's folly. That is the first law of nature.
Voltaire, "Tolerance" (1764)
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Voltron64
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Re: Thoughts on an alternate DCEU

Post by Voltron64 »

NoOneofConsequence wrote: Wed Mar 24, 2021 5:34 am That actually would make a lot of sense. 🤔
And adds an element of grandiose tragedy with a corrupted Captain Atom being the BBEG/Final Boss of the DCEU.
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