It is said that when a person loses everything they have in life their situation can only get better, but Superman is not just anyone. After a Machiavellian plan by the Joker, the Man of Steel is devoid of emotional ties and perspective, resurfacing as a worldwide authority figure. Some colleagues from the Justice League share his vision. Others like Batman, they will oppose each other head-on.
Bring together the staff of League of Justice -and, by extension, DC Comics- in the same film is no longer something that we can consider exceptional, but it should always be a winning bet. Combine the huge pull they possess Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman or the Joker it is a very powerful claim; and how Injustice: Gods Among Us takes them into unknown terrain is also an even bigger hook for the superhero fan and, in this specific case, also of video games.
After all, that the creators of the brutal Mortal Kombat were involved in its creation is something that sets very well what is expected of it and the tone of its events: Injustice is not a story for all audiences nor hug that overly intentional darkness from the cinema of Zack snyderInstead, it takes the heroes into a state of shock and, from there, transforms them from within or makes them react – out of time – and as circumstances evolve.
From there, and with the newly released feature film, we find two different adaptations of this premise: on the one hand, the universe Injustice Originally shown in video games and comics, it was daringly different from anything seen in DC until then. In fact at the initiative level we are talking about one of the great workhorses of Elseworlds, the DC Comics label dedicated to exploring alternate licensing realities.
Nevertheless, the new injustice universe, its very late 2021 animated adaptation, lags far behind both in essentials. Gradually losing the enormous strength and transgressive spirit of the original initiative until reduce the set of premises to the most superficial.
Yes, in all adaptations of Injustice, including the animated one, we see again a story driven by friction and conflicts of interest between the Iron Man and the Dark Knight of Gotham. Both are once again the opposite sides of the same coin. A concept that today, perhaps, seems too exploited but that in its day was approached with a truly fascinating depth and scale.
However, in the new animated adaptation of Injustice, that of 2021, we ran into a succession of problems: the tone, the viscerality and the ambition of the original plot are no longer there. The way in which events end up putting their protagonists on the ropes and destroying them from the inside, physically and emotionally, is shown in a more shy, restrained or very in passing on the small screen. And that is a fatal mistake.
When the greatest “injustice” of the film is towards the original work
Unfortunately, the adaptation of Injustice: Gods Among Us what signature Warner animation resolves leaving a sensation not so groundbreaking for the general public who have already seen series like The Boys or Invincible and, even worse, having been a missed opportunity in those that come from the games and the very prolific series printed in staple and several compilation volumes always recommended.
The reason? An adaptation does not have to follow the original work to the letter, of course, but the case of Injustice is very specific: it is about a version too accommodated to the audiovisual format that stumbles and collapses in essential respects. And that has a double crime when the premise from which it starts, as we will see, is so powerful and truly delicate, which is the construction of the universe and its maximum triggers, It was already done.
At Injustice At Warner Animation, the topics covered and the opening events are essentially the same. The plot base of the 2013 video game and the comic series created for the occasion is there, of course, but beyond giving the replica – with greater or lesser success – to the key scenes with an animation that deserved to be much better, all those elements that distinguished it from the ordinary stories of the Justice League are sadly diluted by a script that is minutes short and lacks something essential: the ability to constantly dislodge the viewer.
Because Injustice: Gods Among Us It is not the typical plot in which metahumans must face a greater threat without risking breaking their own moral codes, but quite the opposite: taking blatant inspirations from Mark Millar’s Superman: Red Son, we are transferred to one of more alternative universes. interesting from the Burbank publisher to pose to the viewer two simple questions:
- What are the consequences of the Joker crossing the line with the wrong person?
- What if one day Superman’s wires got crossed?
Regarding the part of the Joker, which will appear just and necessary on the screen, I am not referring to the typical murderous joke with the signature of the clown prince of crime, but to a massacre on a scale not so recurrent in the comics whose consequences cause humanity itself to reel. An atrocity capable of changing the perspective of justice for the greatest Boy Scout in the DC universe: superman himself.
The project Injustice original seeks to give answers to all those questions, and the end result is a raw and visceral alternate universe that, little by little, it grows on a much larger scale until events become unsustainable. A vision of the DC universe whose scale transcends space and time in which the dark edges constantly overshadow the bright ones and whose animated replica, in the final bars of the film, demolishes any hope of a comeback.
The bad news is that neither the sheer scale of events nor the epicity of the game or the comics end up showing up in the 2021 film. The good news? If you did not know this universe, surely what is shown through this film of almost 80 minutes it does not leave you indifferent: key and well-known characters are struck down uncompromisingly, while Unusual alliances are born from the most desperate situations. And yes, some of the sharpest lines of dialogue have been brought into the film.
And, as with the projects related to Netherrealm Studios, this unconventional story around the ultimate breakout of the Justice League It seeks to turn the already known upside down and, in the process, that the death and murder counter on the screen is, at least, striking. Which implies that even in the initial minutes we will see how characters are dispatched that in the original adaptations will later have a greater role and others, such as Aquaman or Shazam, just receive two sad phrases and a scene.
A missed opportunity for Warner Animation to shine on the small screen
From minute one it is clear that the film of Injustice it has been produced to be distributed in a domestic format. Which is not bad. In fact, both the character designs and the production and animation are absolutely aligned with what has already been seen in Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge and its sequel.
That said, it must be recognized that the end result falls far behind current animated feature film standards and is more in tune with animated series. For those who miss the animation style of the 90s maybe is an added claim, but it is worth remembering that, unlike Mortal Kombat, the transmedia initiative of Injustice was born well into the new millennium and with DC’s New 52 reaching the kiosks.
Visual style has its point, all be said. Character designs favor superhero poses and cheekily drink from the influence of Mike mignola (Hellboy) and Bruce Timm (Batman: The Animated Series) without reaching the mastery of both. The way in which these have been accommodated to what is shown in video games and comics is not the problem.
What’s more, we can see animation sequences and even special attacks that have been directly extracted from Netherrealm Studios video games. Some quite cheeky. A grateful wink Which, unfortunately, doesn’t overshadow the other setbacks this adaptation has.
Leaving the issue of the huge licenses and changes that has been given to the Injustice animated, we ran into an irregular rhythm which, while quite understandable – and well handled – in the first 15 minutes of footage, constantly runs into the same problem: the bulk of the characters are wasted on screen and the final climax, which rescues much later elements, deflates the whole. First with a hint of Deus ex machina and later with a moment of complete emotional rupture that, by no means equals that of the Red Son of Millar.
At least we don’t meet again one moment Martha as seen in Batman V. Superman. Although that is not exactly a consolation.
However, Injustice adaptation is too late, but he does it at a very interesting time.
Unfortunately, the result does not measure up to all of the above. To be fair, there are elements that work much better in a video game or as a wink in a comic strip than in an animated feature film: a bar where all the villains are? Sure there was a better solution.
But the big problem of Injustice is to condense into one hour and eighteen minutes a series of stories designed to encourage discussion and dialogue among fans. Retain the interest and fascination generated between the publication of each staple or with the purpose of putting ourselves in context between combat and combat in a fighting game that, without needing a great plot context, leaves in diapers in its two installments what is seen in this film. Because Netherrealm makes good stories, and tells them wonderfully.
Each medium has different resources and adapting them to a new one without losing the essence is the great challenge of any story. And in this aspect, the film about one of the greatest superhero tragedies he stays in the shadow of his own video game.