#just seeing batman beat up superman and going “cool”

[thenotoriousscuttlecliff]

The Snyderverse was a artistic hollow, emotionally stunted, intellectually shallow era of movies made by and for those who just want things to look badass, cool, and aggressively masculine.

[deadsetobsessions]

Edit: thank you @tetranationaltortoise for pointing out that the Red Spot is on Jupiter instead of Saturn! Fixed it! You’re not nickpicking, you’re providing very appreciated constructive criticism (and a basic fact check I should have done lol) <3

Danny, as usual, hadn’t meant to become the local cryptid. Local being extremely relative, as his locality in this instance is… space.

He just wanted to have some relaxation time. He just wanted to do some homework, chill on Mars or something, and then call it a day.

This hero business was taxing and Danny took his breaks when he could. Take that, work-life balance! Just kidding, Danny had no work-life balance. His life is a mess and he's overworked.

What was it that Superman had said in that one interview?

“Evil never sleeps."

Apparently, that also meant Danny never slept either.

“Hrk!” Danny snorted awake, looking around wildly at the vast expanse of space to see what woke him.

….

Yeah, that’ll do it.

In front of him, merrily floating through space, is the battered remains of what used to be an asteroid and a mecha that’s a weird combination of Gotham’s vigilante hero, Batman, and Metropolis’ Golden Boy, Superman.

The vibrations of the collision had shaken Danny awake.

Danny got up, baffled as hell and half asleep still. He floated to the giant Bat insignia tumbling around, inching closer as he saw the- oh hell, that’s so cool, it’s a plane!- cockpit and the passed out hero inside of it. Danny clicked his tongue, the sound swallowed by the lack of air.

He shoved the plane closer to earth, passing it to a bewildered (and both beat up and stressed out) Superman, who did a double take at the glowing green boy chucking him the Toy-maker Batplane.

Danny had waved, blinked out of visibility, and had gone back to his nap.

After phasing inside the plane and nabbing a batarang from Batman’s pouch, that is. Danny will consider it payment for the clean up service he’d unwittingly signed himself up for.

And so went the first encounter.

——

The second time he met the so called Big Leagues, Danny had just come back from fighting Dan. He wanted a break, dammit, and if staring at Saturn’s gorgeous rings and gaseous formations helped him sleep better, then that’s what’s going to happen.

Then, a similarly green glowing Green Lantern “landed” to where he was floating curled up. Danny knew about Lanterns. Their council often tried to meddle in his court.

“Hello,” the Ring projected its Lantern’s words to Danny’s head. Danny tilted his head without looking at the Lantern. “I’m John Stewart. What are you doing out here, kid?”

Danny thought this guy had a nice, soothing voice. Powerful, as Latern tended to be, but infinitely kind.

Danny decided that this one wasn’t immediately on his shit list.

“Phantom.” He said, and the Lantern asked him to repeat it as the glow of his ring enveloped the halfa.

“Phantom. Are you lost, Phantom?”

“No, just dead.”

John Stewart paused. “…Dead?”

“I’m a ghost,” Danny raised his hands and phased it through the Lantern’s arm.

“Ah,” the man said, flustered. “Right. So… you’re just…”

“Hanging out.” As he talked to the Lantern, Danny had a rather amusing idea. He rotated himself- turned- towards Jupiter and pointed to the Red Spot. “That’s actually my grave.”

John Stewart paused. “I’m sorry…?”

“My grave. Don’t disturb it. It’s rude,” Danny lied through his sharp ghost teeth. “Your council disturbed my grave the last time they stopped by and it took ages to get it back right.”

The green Lantern shield enveloping Danny flickered as John Stewart went through the five stages of grief. To be fair, the council had last visited this solar system... a couple thousand years ago, so John was no doubt rapidly doing some mental math regarding Danny's age.

“The council disturbed your grave…?”

“Not that they knew it, those pretentious weirdos.” Danny pretended to be offended, just to see the struggle on John’s face as he debated defending the council or telling a dead child their grave didn’t matter. Because Stewart was a hero, he went with the latter.

“I see. I am sorry, on their behalf.”

“Eh, whatever. Just make sure they don’t do it again. So… what can that ring do?”

——

"Hi. Could you not litter in space, please?"

Wonder Woman whirled around, sword out and pointed at Danny.

"A... child? Who are you, child?"

"I'm not a child-! You know what, it doesn't even matter. See that?" Danny waved at the pieces of shattered meteor and smashed up alien tech floating outside of the watch tower. "Littering is not cool."

"How did you get in here?"

"I'm Phantom. This is kind of my neighborhood." Danny let his mouth run, sleep deprived and exhausted. "I'm dead, that's how I got in here. Could you not litter in my backyard, please?"

He had better things to do than cleaning after full grown adult heroes.

"Oh, you are the ghost child Lantern mentioned! I see! My apologies, the clean up will be starting in a bit." Wonder Woman slid her sword back into its sheath.

"Great. Nice meeting you. I'll stick around to make sure you young whipper snappers clean up properly."

With that, Danny sunk into the floor. After a moment's deliberation, he decided to take a nap in the floor vent.

——

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Danny jolted awake once more. Ancients, like mentor, like mentee. Robin stared at him, awkwardly wriggling through the floor vents.

"I'm taking a nap here," Danny grumbled. "What are you doing in the vents?"

"Me? What are you doing in the vents? I'm allowed in here!"

"Wonder Woman knows I'm here," Danny replied. She knows... probably? "I'm Phantom."

"Robin."

"So... what are you doing?"

"Knowledge is power," Robin intoned, clearly imitating the Bat.

Danny stared.

"... You're stalking the JL?"

"Information gathering!"

"Stalking," Danny concluded, ignoring Robin's grumble. "Yeah, okay. If you need help, let me know, I guess."

"I don't need help." Robin paused, tilting his head to the side like a particularly curious bird. "Unless you're up for some pranks? Green Lantern's been getting on my nerves lately."

Danny frowned at him. "I like John Stewart."

"You've met- no, not him, the other one."

"Oh. What do I get out of it?"

Robin reached into his belt pouch and pulled out... a bag of marshmallows? How the hell did that-? Ah, right, hammerspace.

"Oh, wait, can you eat this?"

"I'm dead, not tasteless. I love marshmallows, hand it over. I'll help out."

"Deal."

——

"I swear to god, Spooky, there's something in the walls. It's even creepier than you!"

Batman grunted. He'd stop Robin if he went too far and it started affecting Lantern's abilities on the field, but as far as the Dark Knight was concerned, the Green Lantern had it coming. Robins were vindictive on a good day. If Hal hadn't learned that from Dick, then Jason's retaliation was well deserved.

"Oh, maybe it's the ghost!" Hal said, looking around with his ring glowing.

"I thought John said he was a godling?" Diana polished her sword as she looked on in amusement.

"The boy." Batman grunted. "Not human, his pointed ears and green skin is proof of that. Did J'onn say anything?"

"Not yet."

"Whatever he is, he saved Batman. He's welcome in the Tower," Superman tilted back as his hearing picked up on Robin's and Phantom's snickering.

[dcxdpdabbles]

I love your writing. It's just the best. Seriously I check dc dp tags to see if you've written anything.

By the way, can you write anythng with another dc hero or maybe a villain? Maybe Superman or Captain Marvel(Shazam) or anything. You don't have to obviously, but it would be really cool if you did.

Oh gosh, thank you! I'm glad you like my rambles. I'm happy to write you a dabble! Hope you like!

Billy Batson was expecting a lot when the Wizard told him to only break the ice crystal in dire situations. He figured if the dying man had enough time to pass on thousands of years' worth of knowledge and store Old magical artifacts, then the Crystal had to be a last resort.

He also figured it wouldn't be so darn breakable. Billy felt they should have made the last resort a little steadier if it was so important.

But no, one accidental trip over his far too worn-out pants legs had the thing shattering like cheap glass.

Billy stares at the shimmering remains, his heart pounding in his chest as the soft green glow that had always come from the crystal fades away.

"Oh no. no, no, no. I can fix this. I can fix this. " He whispers to himself, falling to his knees and scooping up the pieces. He tries to reattach them, but the crystal melts in his palms. "I can't fix this."

All this because some jerk kicked him out of his old sleeping place, down by the docks. He had been squatting in Old Man's Jackson shed ever since the man finally bit the dust, and he had been so excited to have a building all to himself. Word must have gotten around somehow because he comes back from a Justice Leauge Meeting to find a sixteen-year-old rooting through his stuff.

As a homeless ten-year-old, Billy had scrambled to reclaim his possessions, including this critical crystal, jumping on the intruder with a war cry. He got a broken arm, a black eye, and a few bruised ribs for his troubles.

Thankfully he could walk away with most of his things as the teen sneered and screamed at him while he ran away.

It's not that Billy couldn't fight off the homeless teenager, but he didn't, and to go all Captain Marvel on some random citizen. Captain Marvel can go toe to toe with Superman, but plain old Billy Batson struggles to take kids his own age. He's always been smaller than his age group, not to mention hunger's damage to him.

He returned to the abandoned subway, stumbling down the dark tunnel. Billy didn't like the place- it was damp and cold and a little too open if someone else wandered in, but it was the only place he could go for the night on such short notice. He was thinking of asking Batman if he could take more shifts on monitor duty just so he could sleep at the watch tower.

Then his pants leg got stuck on a broken stair, and he fell, sending his dew earthly possessions into the air. Now he was, blinking away the spots from the beating the teenager gave him and a powerful artifact he promised the Wizard he keep safe, broken beyond repair.

Against his will, sobs start to shake his body. The more he fought to clear his eyes from the tears, the more he began to fall. He leans his forehead on the floor, uncaring how a piece of crystal cuts his skin, causing a trail of crimson to flow down his face. What's one more scar on his already broken body?

In a moment of weakness, he violently wishes he could run to his mom for comfort. It's a fantasy. She's long gone, buried next to his dad, and his uncle was somewhere warm spending their money.

The knowledge causes more despair, and he sobs harder.

Why does he have to be here hungry, without a home, when his father's brother didn't even bother to attend their funeral is living off of his inheritance? Living great, if all the zeros he saw on the check were any indication?

Life is genuinely unfair sometimes. That's why he took being Captain Marvel so seriously. Someone had to protect people from the cruelty of life.

A swirling green portal rips open underneath him just as the trailing thought of I wish someone out there wanted to protect me just as much.

His echoing scream, the swirling green, is the last thing Billy knows before everything goes black.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Billy wakes to the sound of someone humming. He blinks open his eyes, fighting against the exhaustion and the siren call of slumber. The first thing he notices is the soft green of the walls, like the color of Easter eggs he used to paint with his Dad. He smiles at them.

It's his favorite color.

Then Billy notices his eyes getting heavy again as he slowly turns his head into the plush pillow and sinks into the warm blankets around him. His body is boneless in comfort, his eyes are closed, and he's just dropping off into dreamland when his mind finally notices that you're homeless and don't know this room. You're in danger!

Billy leaps off the bed like he's been shocked, throwing the two blankets on the ground. Glancing around, he's horrified to see he's in some kind of kid room- comics, toys, posters- all tailored to his tastes. He can even spot an archeology kit for kids sitting on a desk, just like the ones his parents used to buy him when he wanted to help out in their digs.

He always thought he actually found something in his little play rocks while waiting at one of the tents as his parents worked. They always beamed when he showed them the fake dinosaur bones he discovered in his kits.

He even has nice, fluffy pajamas. The kind that doesn't have buttons or zippers but is oversized, so they let him toss and turn in the night. His bottoms are a grey and black checker pattern, while the top has the Batman symbol proudly on the front.

Everything is perfect, from the decor, to his clothes to even the furniture placement.

It's the bedroom of his dreams.

Oh gosh, he has been Coraline-ed!

"Oh, Billy! You're up. Breakfast is ready and I just finished ironing your uniform." A man's voice says from the doorway. He swings his head around to see a man in his late twenties in an apron smiling at him. He's handsome, has fluffy black hair and baby-blue eyes, and practically embodies comforting vibes.

The other-mother.

"Who are you!?" Billy demands, fist raised. He can't go Captain Marvel with someone dead on staring at him- at least he risks his secret identity, but he has been on the streets long enough to put up a decent fight.

The man seems flabbergasted by his aggression which causes Billy to bristle until he slaps his own forehead.

"Right, forgot about the introduction. I'm Danny Fenton, and I will be your new guardian until you are old enough to care for yourself." Danny smiles, and the boy can't help but find it too pretty to be authentic. "As per your request as the champion of Magic."

Billy has been taken by someone who knows he's Captain Marvel. Which could be better on the one hand but on the other, it means he can do this.

"Shazam!" A bolt of lighting has him shifting into his adult form and flying a break neck speed towards the threat. He intends to punch Danny, but his fist is caught in Danny's palm like it's nothing.

Danny seems unimpressed. "Don't think you can Shazam yourself out of class, young man. Being a hero will cut your attendance, but I won't allow you to skip just because."

Calm yourself, child Batson Solomon says to Bill. King Phantom is here per your request for aid. He will not harm you.

What request!? I never called for him!

When you broke the Infinite Realms Crysta of distress, you called for someone to protect you like your caregivers once did. King Phantom is the most vigorous protective spirit in all the realms. He answered the call. Solomon replies. Billy can feel the god shift on his golden throne a sense of amusement. It's strange to know what the gods are doing without really seeing them He made a deal with the wizard to pose as your father until you are of age. You both are bonded by this Oath.

An oath. That made Billy feel a little better. He knows that once an Oath is made, no one in the parties involved can break it. If the Wizard had done one while borrowing Billy's body then Billy would be untouchable until the contract was done.

He has a new dad that would be bound by magic and the might of the six gods to protect him.

Billy was curious to know if that was a good thing or not. Being protected is not the same as being loved.

"Kid? You okay?" Danny asks.

"What is expected of me? What do you want me to do?" Billy counters, floating back a little now that he knows what's happening. An Oath is a two-way deal. If Danny had to pretend to be Bill's father, then Billy had to do something for Danny.

"Well, I expect you to have your teeth brushed and eat your breakfast before class, but something tells me that's not what you mean." Danny jokes with a chuckle. Billy frowns, which makes the humor on the man's face disappear. "In all honesty? You are my anchor. I haven't been in the material world for years. Not since my home dimension was destroyed by an asteroid. I missed it. I missed people."

Okay, nothing sinister. But he would never let this random stranger think he had the right to boss Billy around.

"You don't have to pretend to be my dad when we're alone. And you can't tell me what to do!" Billy hisses, expecting the man to get upset like other foster fathers had been before he ran.

Danny nods. "Sounds fair. Sorry for coming on like a fruitloop."

"A.....fruitloop?"

"A big fruitloop. One with a cat."

Right.

"You said my uniform. What uniform?" Billy asks to choose to come back to Danny's odd phrase later.

"Gotham Acadamy. I signed you up for classes-"

"We're in Gotham!? Why?!"

Danny tilts his head. "It's the only place with enough death to sustain me."

Billy is glad he is Captain Marvel right now. Otherwise, he thinks he would need more guts to ask. "Why do you need death?"

"Not death itself, more like the by-product. I need ectoplasm since I;;m a ghost." With a bright flash of twin rings, Danny shifts into a very obviously non-human form, and Billy's mouth drops.

"You're dead?!"

"So-and-so. I'm a halfa. A being dead and alive but at the same time neither" Danny rubs the back of his neck, twirling his small point tail nervously. "Yeah, it's a bit confusing. Sorry."

"It's fine....ugh so we just live in Gotham until I'm what eighteen?"

"Until your twenty." Danny winces at the glare Billy throws him. "Sorry, ghosts see adulthood as two decades for the living, two centuries for the dead. Since I'm both, I have to follow both and thus have to be your caregiver until you're twenty. I can portal you to Fawcett whenever you need to hero with the snap of my fingers. It'll be inconvenient, but I promise it will be better than the streets. And I will never, ever hurt you, Billy."

Billy crosses his arms, listening with half a ear as the gods start speaking at one, their voices and opinions a background noise he long learns to turn out until Atlas is louder than the rest.

I understand this might be a lot at once, young Batson, but accept King Phantom's help. You will no longer be alone. It is not easy carrying the world on your shoulders, trust me.

The god's words make Billy sure this is a good idea.

"Shazam!" With another burst of lighting, Billy is a kid again, stretching his neck back to make eye contact with the taller man. "Alright. You got yourself a deal .... again."

Danny grins, warm and delight dancing in his eyes. "Excellent! Lets's hurry then, we're supposed to arrive at your school early today to meet with a man in charge of your scholarship who is my new employer for computer software. That's our cover, by the way. We moved here after I got a job at the man's company."

"Who are we meeting?"

"Someone unimportant, I'm sure," Danny says, waving a hand. "My friend Clockwork set us up our background, we have the papers to prove everything."

Billy finds out that Danny really is from a different universe because how in the world could he claim Bruce Wayne as unimportant!

[nitewrighter]

So last night I was watching the JLU episode "The Man Who Has Everything" and the plot synopsis was, "Wonder Woman and Batman visit Superman at the Fortress of Solitude for his birthday, only to discover he's been captured by Mongul." And I'm walking in like "Cool, fun, I'm going to see Bruce and Diana punching Mongul while surrounded by a whole bunch of nifty little Fortress of Solitude easter eggs" but NO it turns out that 80% of the episode is Clark trapped in an Illusory Krypton where he has everything he wanted and it turns out that just boils down to being a chill Dad on a farm (but also the farm is on Krypton which didn't die and also his dad is still alive). And when Clark finally realizes that this Krypton is an illusion, he takes his son by the shoulders and he's like "I love you and I'm so proud of you and I remember the day you were born and how it was the happiest day of my life and I am packed with all of these amazing memories of watching you grow up but I don't think you're real" and you straight-up feel your heart get ripped out of your chest at the concept of Supes having to make the conscious decision to part with all this to get back to reality and save his friends

And when Superman finally breaks free of the illusory Krypton he goes completely apeshit on Mongul and it's so satisfying.

But then also Bruce gets trapped in the same 'prison of what you most desire' and it turns out he just wants to see his dad beat the shit out of the dude that killed him and Martha.

It's honestly kind of funny because Clark's 'perfect prison' was this highly complex conceptualization of Krypton where Jor-El is talking about how it took him years to salvage his reputation after mistakenly predicting Krypton's destruction, and Clark's wife is this obvious fusion of both Lois and Lana, and Clark has to remind his kid to take the dog out, and it keeps cutting back to Bruce's fantasy which is just "Hell yeah, Thomas, beat his ass."

[buriedalienfma]

So the producer behind "My Adventures with Superman" essentially confirmed that the show will not be featuring Batman (or any of the other DC heroes) in any of the future seasons, since they want to keep focusing on Superman. And you know what ? I couldn't be happier about that. More often than not, Superman/Batman stories have been used to prop up Batman, by having him fight Superman and beat him up, or just by undermining him in some way, and I'm tired of that. Frankly at this point I would rather see MAWS' takes on actual Superman characters like John Henry Irons, also known as 'Steel' in the comics (especially if they can come up with a cool new design for Steel's suit of armor) or even Kenan Kong. Superman's world is rich and fascinating enough on it's own without having to involve the other DC superheroes, and I'm glad that the show is going keep the show centered on that.

[givemewallywestorgivemedeath]

Hi! As the Tumblr expert of the Flashfam, would you say that they're capable of solo-ing other members of the Justice League if they wanted to? I mean, from reading the Flash War, Superman couldn't even keep up with the Flashes because they're too fast. Doesn't that mean they could beat Superman and other heroes easily?

Hey! Thanks for the question!

To start this off I first want to say that there is a meta answer to this and a in-universe answer to this.

The meta answer is: it depends on the series. For example, it is extremely unlikely that a series dedicated to a specific hero or team would have said team losing to a speedster, solely because heroes are supposed to win. It doesn't make sense for, let's say Superman, to lose a fight against Eobard Thawne in a Superman book. Even though Eobard would be capable of taking Superman out, it's Superman's story, and the hero always wins. But if it's a Flash story? Hell yeah, definitely. Also in crises/crossover series you can generally see speedsters being used to their full potential. (For example, Eobard demolishing Batman)

But that's no fun so let's look at the odds in-universe.

Because there are so many different Leaguers I'm going to separate them into categories to make it easier:

The Non-Powered Heroes:

The Non-Powered Hero is always a fan favorite. In a world full of gods it is fun to see the average human being the smartest and most capable person in the room. People like to root for the underdog. Unfortunately for them, they are extremely unlikely to win against a speedster in a fight. They would need Dues Ex Machina levels of gadgets specifically tailored to speedsters to even have a shot. Like I said before, Batman went toe-to-toe with Eobard in the batcave (where all of his gadgets are) and the man was decimated. Being smart and having gear and skills doesn't do much when you look like a frozen statue to the person you are fighting.

The 'I Got One Thing' Heroes:

These heroes are really interesting and cool. Their ranks are filled out by heroes like Black Canary, Black Lightning, Beast Boy, Signal, ect. However, even if their powers would hinder a speedster they are A) extremely unlikely to use their powers fast enough and B) extremely unlikely to actually hit a speedster. Speedsters also have a lot of experience fighting people with just one really strong power and they typically fight 6-20 of those guys at the same time and win. Even super strong heroes like Black Lightning are out of luck because speedsters feed on electricity.

The Strong and Invulnerable Heroes:

Honestly? If I am being completely real here? The Strong and Invulnerable Heroes don't have a chance in hell. I'm sorry but heroes like Wonder Woman and Superman are built to be tanks. They excel at fighting physical threats. They can't do anything against reality bending. That is even how speedsters have historically dealt with Kryptonians in the past. They teleport them into another dimension with no yellow sun and just leave them there. A skilled speedster would have them in a pocket dimension or 20 thousand years in the past before Supes could even blink.

The Lanterns:

Speedster and Lantern relations demand that Lanterns get their own category. First of all, the location of the fight would matter. Speedsters would have an extremely hard time winning against a Lantern in their natural element of space. The Lanterns, however, would have an extremely hard time winning against a Speedster on a planet. Speedsters can phase through and break constructs so there isn't a lot that can be done. So it's entirely dependent on location in my opinion.

Additionally, the Lanterns and Speedsters know A LOT of shit about each other so this would be an interesting fight. The Speedsters know the Lantern's color weaknesses and they know about the battery life of their rings (which they might be able to drain tbh, Barry's worked with the energy in Hal's ring multiple times before and has manipulated it). But, conversely, the Lanterns know that Speedsters don't do well in the cold and that the more energy they expend the more unstable they get. So, it would be a wild fight, especially because the Lanterns can fly so there's a possibility that a Speedster couldn't reach them to take them out immediately.

Psychics:

Speedsters do have a little bit of an advantage against Psychics. In the past Speedsters have sped up their minds so fast that their speeding thoughts actually injured people in their minds. But to be frank they have no skill or expertise in this area and, historically, strong and skilled Psychics can easily grab control of Speedsters. For example, Gorilla Grodd. When fighting Gorilla Grodd the main tactic of the Speedsters is to take him out before he has time to think, ie moving faster than the speed of thought. That doesn't always succeed. So a very strong Psychic would have a pretty good shot against a Speedster.

Magic Users:

It REALLY depends on how strong the Magic User is. Raven, Zatanna and Dr. Fate would all have a 50/50 shot against a Speedster in my opinion. Any magic user that can bend reality and do super strong spells would have a really good fighting chance because they are the exact same brand of fucked up as the Speedsters. Also Speedsters don't really have a counter against curses or spells. They have zero magical expertise. So it's really just a matter of if the Speedster can knock them out (or gag them in Zatanna's case) before they can get a spell out.

So when it comes down to it Speedsters are the experts of fighting large groups of people at the same time. They know how to prioritize and they are fast enough to take out the heavy hitters before they can even react. I think it would largely depend on the Justice League roster at the time (for example, the JL cartoon roster of Bats, Supes, WW, Hawkgirl, GL and MMH wouldn't stand a chance as only MMH would be a threat but a team consisting of MMH, Miss M, Zatanna, Dr. Fate, Raven and Deadman would probably take a Speedster out fairly quickly.)

Their main weaknesses are extreme cold, magic and mental attacks, so a team entirely filled with heavy hitting Magic Users and Psychics would excel at fighting a Speedster. So to answer your question, yes a Flash could probably take out a typical Justice League roster solo (unless the roster was tailor made to exploit their weaknesses).

[thevindicativevordan]

There was a time where Batman and Robin were inseperable from another (from the 40s to the 80s), but nowadays Batman is seen as a solo figure or the head of a family. Any thoughts on this evolution?

Realistically, Batman dressing a child up in a bright costume to go fight gangsters and psychos is morally indefensible.

For someone like me who doesn't care a whit whether Batman is realistic or not, I can easily accept that Robin within the context of Batman's world makes sense. But many cannot, especially those who do want to lean as hard as they can into the gritty and realistic side of Batman. A child running around in a bright costume provides a striking contrast with Batman, deliberately so. Robin's narrative function is to bring light to Batman's grimdark world, and the easiest way to crank the darkness, depression, and bleakness up to 10 is by getting rid of Robin and sticking with a solo Batman.

Batman as head of the family leans all the way in the other direction.

Here we travel to the opposite end of the spectrum and return to the Silver Age where being Batman is, dare I say, fun. The family bonding living together leaves little room for the solo brooding that is a hallmark of Batman. Appeal of this is for people who relate to the found family side of Batman and play that all the way up. Living in a mansion, bonding with people who understand you, going on cool adventures where you beat up bad guys, it's easy to see why people love this take on Batman too.

That the two tones can coexist at the same time is why Batman is as big a franchise as he is. Other franchises like Superman or Spider-Man have tried to emulate his success but haven't pulled it off to the same extent. But it's left little room for middle of the road takes, most writers either favor one side or the other. Hence, we rarely see just Batman and Robin anymore outside of books aiming to give us that exact kind of adventure stories.

[robintherobiner]

The league, visiting Gotham: Hi Batman!

Batman, in the middle of beating up the Joker: *grunts*

Joker, gooey-eyed: Are you getting weaker, Batsy? I barely feel these punches! Old age is getting to ya! Come on, hit me harder!

Batman, hitting harder but otherwise ignoring Joker: Why are you all here?

League: Well... Superman said your heart-rate was really high, and its never high! Like, all those alien invasions and you were still cool as a cucumber!

Batman: Well, I-

Joker: Ooh! I know this one! Lemme say it, lemme say it!

League: Uhm-

Joker: Batsy's all hot and bothered cuz of our foreplay!

League:

Batman:

Joker:

Batman, dropping Joker and walking away: I HATE YOU

Joker: I HATE YOU TOO, MY GORGEOUS EMO HUSBAND! SEE YOU LATER, POOKIE PIE~

League: Wha-

Joker, licking his lips: Hate to have him go, love to watch him leave. God just look at that ass-

Joker, dodging a batarang: SORRY YOUR FRIENDS INTURRUPTED, HANDSOME! I'LL SUCK YOUR TITS ANOTHER DAY, MKAY~?

[rootbeerrex]

@taters-for-tots ranks more dc characters: this time heroes

learning from our past mistakes, this version will be one long post.

once again, all opinions belong to

Superman (5/10)

"This kind is better because he's... he's just more wide, do you understand? he's more superman cause he's just very wide."

"Superman is like custard... and I won't elaborate on that."

"He's just. There's not many things you can say about him, everything's already been said. And also because he's a boring white boy. I am more interesting than superman."

"I haven't seen a superman who looked over the age of thirty in so long... this is what we should be doing. Superman should be a tired older man."

"Overwhelmingly average"

"The wonderbread of superheros, mostly in the color scheme."

2. Batman (6/10)

"We have discussed this before, but we need to bring up the duality of his ears..."

*looks up bat*

"order of flying mammals, that sounds like they're an organization" (Rex note: I don't think he knows what taxonomy is, but that's gonna be a shock for another day).

"what kind of bat is batman supposed to be. that's my question."

"'The batman cannot be comprehended and therefore cannot be stopped' I think I could stop him pretty easily. He can definitely be comprehended, I'm comprehending him right now! look at that, it's batman!"

"I'm just so desensitized to batman cause he's like. Everywhere."

(BTAS specific)

"Batman the animated series is so wild because- okay I love his design because he's so ANGULAR. This man is a POLYGON. that's just how things were in the 30s 50s 90s."

*rants about mickey mouse vs batman for about a minute straight*

"I know there were different rating systems when BTAS came out, but it's wild to be watching an animated PG series and seeing the joker fully pull out a machine gun and start SHOOTING at him. It's even MORE wild when he pulls out a pistol! And then it's not the little flag-gag like you expect, and he actually SHOOTS him!"

"I also think they got the length of his ears right on this one."

3. Wonder Woman (9/10)

"This crown design is. Goddamn."

"Wonder Woman is pretty cool. I have a Wonder Woman cape in my closet. I just think that she's pretty neat. I thought the Wonder Woman movie that came out recently- (rex note: it was 7 years ago) was pretty good!"

"I think it's cool that she's got her initials not once but twice on her outfit, and doesn't use a lot of weapons. She's got her lasso and her cuffs, and other than that she's just kinda punching people and that's awesome. And no one asked but she would beat captain america in a fight."

"Original comic wonder woman is also cool. She just always looks neat."

"The CALVE strength this woman must have to be doing all of this in high heels must be insane and I appreciate her so much for that."

"DC Superhero Girls newest version isn't very good because they made her too spindly, but this version looks like a person."

4. Martian Manhunter (guy/5)

"Hello?? who is this guy?? what's um... why is... what. who?"

*hearing his name without seeing spelled*

"John... Jones... Is his name???"

5. Flash (7/10)

"I want these boots. let it be known that I want these boots. Him eating a burger while running very fast.

"a lot of the rating for the boots, and the rest because his name is barry"

"I think it's fun that they were like- these other heroes have all these things like Superman has X-ray vision and flight, and Batman has grappling hooks and tech, and Wonder Woman is a GODDESS, and he just. He go fast and that's who he is."

"He's just a guy. He's just a little man. I like his little ear lightning bolts. Sometimes I forget that's what they're supposed to be and I think he's just wearing bluetooth headsets on both ears for some reason"

"I'd very much like to know what's going on here."

"This might've been a joke but... is there a reverse flash? What's his deal? I like to think that he runs really slow and it doesn't benefit him at all."

7. Cyborg (6.5/10)

"He's a guy. For sure. I don't know what's happening here where the skin on his fingers is all- like- crinkly? That's weird. But otherwise I think he's pretty cool. He's got a nice color scheme going on, I'll give him that."

"There's a cyborg guy, right? Is his name just cyborg?"

"I think he looks cool. It's a neat design, I just think he looks neat. yeah. I think he's pretty cool. I remember him mostly from the justice league ride at six flags because there's a really creepy animatronic of him standing outside the ride."

"Neat idea for a character, IDK a whole lot about of him, but he looks pretty cool."

---

And that is all for now, once again don't shoot the messenger for these opinions, @taters-for-tots is the one who called superman the "wonderbread of superheroes."

[baambastic]

Thoughts on Battle of the Super Sons (major spoilers for the entire plot):

Grazer is great as Jon

Laura Bailey’s Lois is great

I don’t particularly care for Travis Willingham’s Clark. His Superman is fine, but his voice sounds wrong coming out of mild-mannered journalist Clark Kent.

Love the whole opening. Especially love the old comics-style (complete with benday dots) montage of Clark’s life up until Jon’s birth

Glad to see we’re skipping the complicated multiverse stuff

Jon immediately jumping to “cosplay” as the reason for the Superman costume under the bed has made my day

But also Clark why was it just under your bed. Presumably while you were on a League mission for two weeks.

“I don’t care that you’re sorry! I just want you to be here!” OOF

The child is very sad, but at least the cat’s alive!

Jon feels like an actual kid, constantly excited by all the superhero stuff

They mentioned Kon!

Oh wow this movie has blood in it. I’m a bit surprised, even with the age rating

Tom Kenny Penguin! Haven’t heard that since 2004

Troy Baker doesn’t really sound like he wants to be here

It’s not Super Sons if Damian doesn’t make me want to punt him out the nearest window at first

Damian continues his bad habit of pushing kids to their deaths in the Batcave.

They did not make Jon an uwu soft bean, and for that I am grateful. He dishes out sass equal to or greater than Damian’s.

Also Griffo really sold how Damian felt about being rejected by the Titans. Really solid

Griffo’s Damian voice sounds like Damian’s trying to copy Batman’s gruff voice. I like it

Why is Damian the only person in this movie who says Jon and not Jonathan?

BAT-COW!!!!

Using two members of each main young hero team (Teen Titans, TT2003, YJ Animated (not the ‘98 version bc of overlap with TT2003)) for the Teen Titans is an interesting idea

Kind of surprising that Ollie and J’onn are the only other League members we get to see on the Watchtower

Blue Beetle and Hawkman (and I think the Atom?) were also shown on Starro’s hitlist, so it’s weird that they’re nowhere to be seen

I still need to get my hands on a hoodie like Jon’s

Those students have really low standards for insults

Bruce Don’t Beat Up Your Son Challenge (success on technicality of mind control)

Also, really effective body horror for something so bloodless

Damian you big softy

More body horror. yay

I dunno why i’m surprised Damian suggested killing Lois

Yo they made Krypto scary. Nice

Jor-El why did you send them to the watchtower if you thought they were probably gonna die

Lois continues to be awesome

Nice to see you, J’onn. Too bad you don’t get to do anything.

The dynamic between Lois and Lex is always fun to watch

Interesting Starro design. A bit too spiky for my tastes tho

“I’ve eliminated all human-based problems on your planet.” “You’re going to eat the planet!” “Correct.” Love that

Aw, poor baby demon brat

Oh, I never thought I’d see the day that Lois Lane used a DIY flamethrower on Lex Luthor. Incredible

I question the decision to include two green-skinned shapeshifters in the same fight scene

Speaking of, that’s a really cool effect they’ve got on J’onn when he’s burning

Jesus. No punches pulled on the sons v dads fight

Batman got punched out by an 11-year-old farmboy. He’ll never live that down

Man, this evacuation scene is wholesome

“I don’t know” *pushes all the buttons*

This whole Starro burning scene is very visceral, I gotta say

Jon and Dami are adorable, even when they think they’re about to die

Superdad to the rescue, with Jon looking like he’s about to cry with relief

Bathug! (they’re so awkward lol)

Starro covered in charred flesh? No thanks, I’m good

I think that lake water might be one of the few 2D animated things in this movie

Even with the character development, Damian’s still a demon brat (positive)

Aw, he’s so excited to go to Jon’s game

“Gotham’s Billionaire Prince Bruce Wayne Spotted With Son Damian at Middle School Baseball Game in Smallville, Kansas”

“Still can’t fly” *pained groans can be heard from the ground below*

They really didn’t mention any of the other Bats, huh? That’s surprising.

I’m guessing, since Jon can actually control his powers, all that stuff with Kathy and the milk hasn’t happened here

Battle of the Super Sons was a ton of fun! It has good writing, good humor, good emotional moments, and is consistently nice to look at. Shame it’s only got a 6.7 on imdb. I honestly might prefer this over the original Super Sons comics run

[hom3land3r]

Through some great universal schism, your world was separated from the world of Superman and the Justice League, but do you ever think about what could have been had your world still been a part of theirs?

I think it's possible Superman would get involved and try to save you or get you away from Vought fairly early on. Lex Luthor might also try to manipulate you to come work for him.

Batman certainly would very quickly learn and start to handle Vought by going after them the legal way. Lex probably would interfere and buy out Vought. But I think Bats probably would cock block Butcher like a major amount like Cock Blockula and if not beat the shit out of him himself, have at least one friend give him a brutal spanking.

That's if the Joker doesn't get involved for Butcher stealing the Bat's attention...

If we're talking about the alternate world that was used for the comic you? Batman would have definitely been the first to figure out what was happening with Vought and the abused children to deranged celebrity pipeline they had, and worked out a more efficient way to stop it and disarm them. He probably would have also figured out Butcher had the wrong guy in his sights.

Martian Manhunter could have fairly easily detained you until Superman could help you. I'm betting there would have been a minor though majorly destructive fight where he got you to stand down and then offered his hand to properly train and rehabilitate you. He'd have given you that choice or if you threw a tantrum, put you in the Phantom Zone so you weren't a threat to people or to cool off.

When you showed enough progress, he might have even put you on the farm with Ma and Pa Kent just to show you what having loving and caring people in your life was like. He could have been like an older brother to you and I think you would have actually liked Kal-El a lot.

Butcher would have likely ended up in Arkham at odds with the clown and similar attempts made to rehabilitate him. And I think seeing you reform would have made him want to do similar, even if just as a dick measuring contest to see who can be the more good person. Who knows, maybe you could have even become friends that way.

Which is a question in itself. You could always just troll Butcher beyond all reason, and you have, if you just put in a little bit of effort. Especially if you did decide to be the perfect good guy. His obsession would worsen, but if you were actually good, he would no longer be able to convince himself that he wasn't the bad guy. Even if you did do good for the wrong reasons.

Not to say that everything would be hunky dory, but I do think things could be a lot better for you with Superman...

Mostly, I just wanna see what would happen if Diana wrapped the Lasso of Truth around you and Butcher. At the same time or separate, either or is fine. You have to admit not being in a world with Wonder Woman is tragic.

Not so much if Darkseid or Granny Goodness got their hands on you...

But anyway I don't know, what do you think?

[zahri-melitor]

New(ish) Comics Day! (Even more delayed by essentially a week due to extenuating circumstances)

Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #11: Ah. End of the David story. This is definitely one where I didn't have the requisite reading background to follow what was happening in the resolution, but good ol' DC Database had my back. I am sure I will care more once I've got around to reading Kingdom Come.

The Flash #791: More One Minute War! Bart and Ace remain my absolute favourite parts of this comic, as they play off each other so WELL. ALSO BART AND MAX REUNION.

The New Champion of Shazam! #4: Mary!!! I’m so glad I caught up on this last week so I could immediately follow with this today. Shocked, SHOCKED at the Georgia reveal (I’m really not). Unethical experiments in the basement is clearly a bad thing, Dr Sivana. Hoppy helps save the day! (I think Darla might have adopted Hoppy at this point. Sorry, Hoppy’s previous owner, but that rabbit is magical)

I get not wanting to use Miss/Mary Marvel as a hero name, I do, but every time they start calling any of the Shazamily by their transformation names problems occur. That’s how we ended up with Freddy referred to as CM3, because he couldn’t introduce himself as Captain Marvel Jr without transforming. So I’m hoping that was just a cool set moment and not a hero renaming.

Warlord #7: today in our tour of Mike Grell’s brain we are melting a rifle down to make a Damascus steel sword. Um. Sure. You realise the carbon content of that will be wrong and from a quick glance Damascene steel goes in for nickel alloys while gun steel uses a broader range of alloys including vanadium, chromium and aluminium given metallurgical advances over the past few centuries…oh never mind. I already figured that Grell can’t read a phase diagram.

(This has been your nerd corner moment with Zahri. Yes I have in fact studied this shit at a university level, how on earth did you guess)

Conveniently Mariah was the Russian national Sabre Champion in her past! So the new sword is just fine.

Trevor tells Mariah that her sensible blouse and hard wearing pants of an archaeologist is why she just got considered loose by people in this market, so she needs to dress like the locals.

Cue a clothing transformation scene into… this. (Look I’m just going to drop the panels for you, you won’t believe me otherwise). Sure. That fits in so much better, Trevor.

Trevor accuses Mariah of being a Romanoff due to her surname of Romanova. I’m just going to leave that there and go scream into a paper bag. That’s…not how it works, Trevor. It’s an extremely common Russian surname.

Also there is a cursed axe.

(Yes, Warlord is one of the highlights of my week, if you couldn’t tell)

To be read: I am MEANING to sit down and get onto the Tom Taylor Nightwing run at some point because while I have heard all the meta, the concept of ‘rewrite the Blockbuster arc’ is at least interesting to me in that I want to see which beats are used and which are not (and I am a person who quite enjoys portions of Devin Grayson’s writing so I want to see if the stuff I enjoy gets teased out). I intend to sample Monkey Prince. At some point I am going to work out the reading order of the ‘get into current continuity Bat Books’ plan I have but I’m still trying to untangle which bits I want to read.

 To do: work out when I’m going to pay for DCUI Ultra and be only 28 days behind.

[tinseltine]

I realized this is JLaw‘s first official comedy – “Silver Linings Playbook” and “Joy” are each a dramedy. “Don’t Look Up” is funny, but its genre would be cautionary/Scifi. Lawrence was the comic relief in “American Hustle”, but again, a satire, not a broad comedy.  I’m glad she finally found herself here. 

The Blackening’s got the feel of Bodies Bodies Bodies, just not as clever.  You can see the twist ending coming from a mile away. But as someone whose black card is always in threat of being revoked, due to having grown up on a constant diet of corny, white fare; I liked the irony of a board game of actual black cards, where each character has to answer culturally black trivia in order to stay alive!  And yup, if I were playing, my black card would once again have been in jeopardy, cause for a number of the questions, I’d have been about as much help as I’d be in an escape room requiring math. 

Overall I enjoyed the film and thought this fresh take on the Flashpoint event was creative. Just not as creative as the 2013 film, which still had meta-humans and heroes, with each of them in different roles than what they are in the traditional DC’s Earth-Prime version. For instance, Bruce Wayne was killed in the alley that famous night instead of his parents; turning his father into Batman and his mother into the Joker. Superman is captured and nowhere to be found. Cyborg is a resistance leader, giving America a fighting chance within a war between Aquaman’s Atlanteans and Wonder Woman’s Amazonians. Aquaman cheated on his wife Mera with Diana and it led to this major war.

Vibrant all the way around, story, visuals, characters! Although, I’ll admit, I got a little sleepy a few moments before we meet the super cool Spider-man named Hobie Brown, aka Spider-Punk voiced by Daniel Kaluuya, but that could have been due to the heaping portion of Chinese food I ate at the beginning of the movie. This Spider-Punk was my favorite spidey. Kauuya says he: put a lot of emphasis on what matters to the fans when it came to finding his superhero’s voice, so much so that when he first took on the role of Spider-Punk he listened to fan-made playlists dedicated to the character to understand how they saw him rather than choose to base him on any punk rock icons of the past.

Me and my sister came out of Disney’s Live Action The Little Mermaid smiling from ear to ear feeling as though it managed to capture and hold true to everything we loved about the animated original and at the same time, embracing the world of today with beautiful diversity. But then I read The New York Times review by Wesley Morris and he just makes me feel stupid for enjoying the movie. I suppose he has some salient points like “This new flesh-and-blood version is about a girl who’d like to withdraw her color from the family rainbow and sail off into “uncharted waters” with her white prince.” Also, although I loved Halle Bailey’s interpretation of Ariel, his review now makes me question, does she imbue varied enough facial expressions while mute?

The Mother explores themes of family, redemption and identity, as Lopez’s character (with no name) struggles to reconcile her past and present. It’s not a groundbreaking or original movie by any means. It borrows heavily from other action movies like “Taken”, “Salt” and “Atomic Blonde”. The plot is predictable, the villains are one-dimensional and the moments of warmth aren’t very moving. But it’s entertaining, and it’s JLo, so stream it!

I definitely feel GOTG3 has stronger beats than Ant-man Quantumania, but it’s still a little long and lacking a certain spark had by the prior 2 movies of this MCU franchise. I think we need to go back to keeping the films just under 2 hours. Infinity War and End Game each needed to be nearly 3 hours because of so many characters and major story arcs, but with these sequels, no matter how beloved the characters, there’s not enough to fill them. I love superhero movies and particularly the MCU, but lately I can always feel the point in which they should be wrapping up, yet there’s 40-45 minutes still to go. 

THIS WAS TINSEL & TINE'S #MINIMOVIEREVIEW EXTRAVAGANZA #14 for complete content - https://tinseltine.com/minimoviereviewextravaganza14/

[mouseratz]

reading tdrk.

I can see why people like it- the aesthetic is gorgeous and moody, the contrast between the stifling heat and the grey rains is even there.....

but of course, I do have to question it's politics. It tries to both-sides issues to explore them via snapshots of the news anchors and interviews, and....it still comes up as very anti-rehabilitation/recovery; nothing gets better, ever. Batman is still Batman because he's sick in the head, and is treated as having the same issue as Two-Face, basically (which is about the only reason I can figure he's been included in this story.) and also that it's batman's reappearance that caused twoface to return as well. whatever. at least it's kinda gay about it? like yeah "we tumble like lovers in the night" and "four men died" sure. yeah they were fucking at some point in their lives

also it's like "if you call Batman a fascist you don't know about true justice and patriotism" side-by-side with the guy talking about how he wished the criminals he illegally beats up anyway had less rights. Ok. yeah I don't know that you know what you're talking about man it kinda sounds like he wishes the government was more oppressive than it already is.

Jim Gordon shot a teenager and he gets to keep his job at least temporarily. well I guess that's realistic isn't it

also batman has a gun in this scene. broke the number one Batman rule

Carrie Kelley's design fucks SO severely why is she the one thing nobody took from this story????

I do also like that we get to see a big Lana Lang. like, the "grittiness" of the art style means the female characters are actually drawn like people with distinctive features.

I do really like Bruce mistaking Kelly for Dick when he was injured. that's a really cool way to have them meet.

I do also like the weird spiritual obsession Bruce has with genuine honest to god bats. like yeah that adds up

and of course. Fascist for real superman. I knew that was coming lol. it's not good but at least it's given more context (he turned to it after some kind of attack on heroes and vigilantes by the government, he gave in and gave up, and wants Bruce to do the same.) I still don't like it but I was bracing for worse.

I do still just love old lonely fucked up Batman and Carrie Kelley Robin they're cute as fuck. another crazy child adopts you after one abandoned you and you failed the next and gave up on it all.

selinas design is also.....hm. she runs an escort service. kind of hard to believe the character would turn to something she grew up in and hated in many of her origins,* but hey who knows. and then she's heavily implied to be sexually abused by the joker. awesome!!! I do feel that is actually really pretty misogynistic to have your strong female character show up and do nothing but get sexually abused. so. awesommmeeee

(*sex work is fine work irl and if it's something someone chooses to do, I just know that in this characters case she was forced to do it from a young age with many other young girls, it was a bad situation in her context for sure.)

joker calling him "darling" and having no qualms about being obsessed with Batman is alright.

oh, so NOW guns are a cowards weapon? gee. then where'd the rifle come from earlier bats?

okay. super weird that the joker killed himself or whatever. I do like how creepy his face is.

I do really love that this showdown happened in the "tunnel of love" though. this old man is a homosexual

the horses are awesome I will say. do you really need a reason. the horses are cool.

I also enjoy how it's kind of turned on it's head- the people who are supporting Batman, who are emulating him, aren't good. they're causing more meaningless violence. now does that cause Bruce to reflect on himself? Probably not. but it's kind of real bad when the people who wanna be just like you talk about purging the city. it's not going great. or not he just recruited them also? ok.

the nuclear thing is uhm. wow ok. "Nothing we can't handle, folks, we're still america- and I'm still president!" yeah.

well. I guess it's still kind of romantic to want to die together even if you also hate each other. it's dramatic, at minimum. sure whatever.

oh, faking your death. okay the rituals are intricate. I can't take any of this shit seriously the wink. so are you guys still a thing, or....? what is all of that. what is wrong with both of you.

oh that's the end. ok. I see why people like it. it's not bad but it's also not really my speed. I like the artwork more than I liked the story honestly, lots of iconic imagery. Carrie Kelley is awesomeee I want to see her again. uhmmm everything else can kind of stay here. forever.

I now see what Batman v Superman was trying to invoke (and did so very very very terribly) , because while there is a conflict and the government is evil Bruce and Clark are genuinely frenemies here I would say. wasn't as bad as it could've been

I also don't really get why Batman has multiple lines paying lip service to "guns fucking suck" as an ethos, but in reality, we see lots of "cool" shots of him holding a rifle so it's like. okay that feels like cheating and getting by on a technicality. if he has a gun in my book it's gotta be a crazy bat-gun that doesn't shoot regular bullets.

I actually legitimately love Clark getting blown up by a nuclear missile and it looking absolutely fucking horrific. like he ends up being more or less Fine but not before having that moment of grisly terror. it gives a sense of impact to it instead of just being like "oh it blew up and was bad". you SEE it.

overall, it's not bad. I kinda liked it but I don't think it's my kind of story, like it just has too muddled messages (it wants to have antifascist messaging, which I do respect, but the actual events are kind of confusing and weird to me at times, I feel it could've been a little stronger in that if it wasn't so obsessed with its own dark grittiness.)

[janaawrites2024]

Week 3 Writeup #4: Personal Writing

Written by Nike

Write about your hero.

I've read of many heroic stories in my short life, and my all time favorite will always be Spider-Man. Image owned by: Marvel Comics

There’s much to like about Spider-Man. What’s not to like? He’s witty, he’s cool, he’s smart, he pulls the hottest people, his suit is cool---I could go on. But the most common reason people admire the webbed wonder is because of the sheer strength of his perseverance. You see, Peter Parker has been through a lot. Actually, it’s more the fact that he’s always going through a lot, whether it be his Aunt May having cancer in the comics or his villains acting up or just bad luck in general (kicked out of his apartment). It always seems as if life (or the writer for his comics and movies) was out to get him specifically.

And well, when the writers keep finding new ways to beat you down, giving up was always a temptation one could not resist. Many a time, Peter was in this boat. And many a time too, he found the courage to stand back up. Scared, bruised, and bloodied to hell and back—he stood up and went back out there to fight for people who would never know who he was outside of his spider moniker.

That’s another thing that I admire him for. His deliberate kindness. A gift passed to him from his Uncle Ben and Aunt May along with the famous quote, “With great power comes great responsibility.” I say deliberate here because Peter wasn’t always a very kind person. In fact, in the beginning stories of his comics, he was bitter and angry at the world (which he had all the right to be). When he gained his powers, the first thing he did was join an underground fighting ring to make money off of it to buy himself a car and impress his love interest, Mary Jane Watson. When his Uncle Ben died after a robber shot him (a robber that he didn’t care to stop), he was so consumed with his need for vengeance that he nearly killed the man responsible. But reminded of his dearly-loved Uncle’s words, he spared the man’s life. He then went on to shape his entire life to upholding his Aunt and Uncle’s teachings, and to make sure that no one would ever feel the same type of grief and loss that he felt on that day for as long as he was able.

Of course, as I’ve previously mentioned, life would always treat Peter as if he was its personal cat toy, and his morals would always be tested with his heart. Still, he makes an effort to reign in his anger, and be so consistently good and kind that it would inspire others that watch him to act with a similar goodness.

There are many iterations of Spider-Man (Spider-Noir, Robot Spider, Spider-Woman, Spider-Pig), but here’s the thing: no matter what shape or form they come in to take the mantle, they almost always show the same traits of stubborn and kind as the first one.

And here’s the third reason as to why Spider-Man is my favorite. The thing about ‘Spider-Man’ is that anyone can wear the mask. Anyone can be Spider-Man.

For others like Batman, Superman, Iron Man, Captain America, or Captain Marvel, to name a few, there’s something specific about their personas that you have to carry in order to be them. You can’t be Batman or Iron Man if you aren’t rich or a genius. You can’t be Cap either if you don’t have a sense of duty or love for your countrymen that requires you to stand up to dictators without flinching.

For me, it’s a tall order to look up to them because, well. They’re legends. They’re too ‘big picture’ for me and all for the greater good. Distant titans with cheesy posters, saving world after world; shining, powerful, buff, and so far from everything I could ever hope to be. Point is, I’ll always be looking up at them. For Spidey, I could be him and all it would ever require of me is heart (and maybe Spider powers, it’d be cool to have them). For me, this character says to me that, no matter how small, I could still make a difference. And for all that I know that small difference will have a greater impact than I could ever imagine.

[shuezapato]

Godzilla X Kong Review

Director - ADAM WINGARD 

- VHS

- THE GUEST 

- YOURE NEXT

Composer - Tom Holkenborg / Antonio Si Lorio 

- Mad Max Fury Road 

- Deadpool 

- Batman Vs Superman 

- Godzilla Vs Kong

- Anita Battle Angel 

Budget  - 135M, cheapest monster film to date

Time - 1.55 min

Faq - Millie Bobby not returning as Madison Russell in this movie

Summary in a few Sentences 

In pursuit of finding more of his kind Kong stumbles upon a new threat that requires him to team up with Godzilla to beat

Jia has seizure visions so the human character can go with Kong because reasons

Godzilla is here just to beat up other Titans because he’s an asshole who needs to show he’s the Alpha 

The Good

Following Kong through hollow earth shows even without words you can have a Kong solo film with little to no human characters

His emotions of grief depressed hope all show up and his first scene vs The Scar King works very well, the tribe like setting and Kongs cry to others to stand up for themselves speaks loud even though none of these charecters can talk, Scar Kings presence as a brutality as a harsh ruler shines with in minutes of meeting Kong

Even thought there only there for plot exposition both Trapper and Bernies charecters are fun, they make what could have been some dull moments of dialog plot dumps into actual fun scenes and could carry a movie if needed to 

The dynamic of Jia and Kong is cool to see how both are essentially fish out of water with Jia going to live a “normal” life and Kong in his natural habitat, both are tied together and both need each other as they have created a family bond both there to protect one another

Baby Yoda Kong is here and gives Kong a sense of family purpose

Mother is the Queen of the Monsters and takes no crap

The Bad 

Godzilla has no purpose in this film other then to get stronger because reasons and he knows he needs to get stronger because reasons

Hollow earth sizing, Hollow earth is gigantic and it makes Kong feel small or normal size and you forget how big these titans are compared to the surface world, there size loses its aw

Dr Ilenes character has nothing to do but exposition dump

The Scar King ultimately is weak with out help and does Godzilla really need a power up 

Godzilla new powers seem the same there is no way to show his power scaling other then a slimmer appearance that is barley noticeable 

The Scar King got locked away from the surface world because reasons 

The Ugly 

We dont need Godzilla in this film, Kong Vs Scar King would have been better, having Kong try and save his kind and his kind not want to be saved because of how fearful they are to scar king would have been a great idea to expand upon 

They tease an Ape vs Lizard war again and it doesn’t feel like it makes much sense when you compare strength and powers 

Another throw away villain 

Destruction without consequences 

End Thought 

If you can turn off your brain for 1.55 min and enjoy Titans fighting with some great comedy coming from Trapper and Bernie this is the movie for you 

If you think to much you’ll keep asking questions that the studio doesn’t have answers to like how did Kong found The Scar King in what seemed like days and The Scar King couldn’t find a way out in thousands of years?

Solid 7.5 / 10 would watch just for the fights