When SDCC comes around, it’s like Christmas in July of most comic book fans. There is never a shortage of new trailers, casting announcements, and news from our favorite movies and shows. This year didn’t let us down. With trailers from Thor: Ragnarok, Ready Player One, Justice League and a whole lot more fans were treated to a variety of exciting things to come.
One of the most anticipated trailers was the second feature from Justice League. With so many black clouds circling the DCEU, DC needed its next hero team up to wow SDCC. Wonder Woman gave fans a glimmer of hope leading up to the November release but was it enough.
From the trailer alone there’s so much going on. In both trailers, they’ve lead fans to believe Superman will not be appearing in this film. Pay enough attention and you’ll know that is most likely not the case. Propped up by a series of one-liners, the trailer reveals a much deeper look into the film. Of course, it opens with everyone’s favorite female badass Wonder Woman then goes on from there:
The Villain: From the New Gods series, DC is introducing the Justice Leagues larger than life foe, Steppenwolf. He’s not the big, bad, villain fans wanted to see in Darkseid but he’s done his fair share of damage in the comics. DC might be using one of their lesser known villains here, but if he’s as powerful as the comics say, it’s a great lead into the JL sequel. From the trailer alone Steppenwolf doesn’t look like the villain who could be taken down by a single hero alone.
“No protectors here. No Lanterns, no Kryptonian”: DC really wants you to believe that Superman will not be in Justice League come November. They even went as far as to point out that the Green Lanterns are nowhere to be found. This quote while minor reveals a great deal about the first stages of the movie. More than likely, we’ll see just how vulnerable our heroes are before their equalizing counterparts file in. While there’s still a chance neither or both be in the film, leaving them out will be a huge injustice.
The Quotes: DC clearly wants to point out that Justice League will have a bit more humor in it. They’re also using one-liners to push the lore for their characters. “One misses the day where all one had to worry about was exploding, wind up, penguins.” alluding to the famous Batman villain, “I just pushed some people and run away” speaks to Barry’s inexperience as a hero, “Oh wow! They really just vanish, that’s rude” a call back to Batman leaving Gordon on the rooftops. They really hammered home the easter eggs in this one hoping to draw in the crowds.
Hope: The central theme of Justice League seems to be hope. From the newspaper shrink-wrapped in the beginning reading “World Without Hope” to the Alfred claiming with a brief pause “Now let’s (pause) hope you’re not too late”. If we go all the way back to Man of Steel where Superman proclaims “It’s not an S, On my world, it means hope” it’s clear the message their trying to send. They’re not flat out saying Superman will be in the film, but they’re definitely hinting. To have him come right out in the trailer would be another Doomsday moment where they reveal too much too early. This time around they want just enough speculating to keep you hoping for a different reveal.
Justice League might need to be the DCEU’s masterpiece. With slightly restored faith in the franchises due to overwhelming success from Wonder Woman, they finally have a leg to stand on. With so much doom and gloom that has surrounded their projects, you could make a superhero film out it alone. Now they’ll look to rebound with their biggest title, with some of their biggest heroes. The pressure is on Will they meet the demands of their fans who grow more impatient with each failure? Find out this November.