Joker & The Batman Proves DC Doesn’t Need a Connected Universe
When you consider that both jester ($1.074 billion) and the batman ($770.8 million) made a lot of money at the box office, you have to wonder why DC bothers with a connected DC universe. Surely, the success of these two movies proves that it’s completely unnecessary. Previous DC hits (such as Christopher Nolan’s Batman and Christopher Reeve’s Superman movies) were not interconnected. And maybe that’s the key to a successful DCU.
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Crossovers in comics have a long history of being some of the most iconic and beloved events ever produced by any publisher or creator. Things like the Avengers coming together to fight Thanos’ forces from the infinity gauntletCaptain America fighting Iron Man in Civil warand even Batman briefly meets Superman during his investigation into batman: silence they are among my personal favorite comic book moments of all time.
It seems that this series of interconnected stories is what makes comics, well, comics. We love to see Superman take down Doomsday, but we’d love it even more if he joined forces with Batman or Wonder Woman to do it, that’s just the way it is in this industry.
Perhaps that’s the same reason the Marvel Cinematic Universe introduced crossovers quite early in its run, to make its live-action movie series feel even more like the comics it’s based on. After all, that’s what the fans want, right? Well, I think the blockbuster of The Avengers Y End of the game speak for themselves.
It’s no secret that the DC Extended Universe has had some trouble getting its feet on the ground. From a rocky start to a series of questionable marketing choices, for a while it seemed like all the DCEU could do was try to replicate what the MCU had done before, and that included having its epic crossover event with League of Justice.
A big interconnected world of characters and stories is just what we expect from superhero movies in general because that’s how things have worked in comics for years. That said, is it really necessary for live-action movies to have this kind of connected multiverse where all the characters know each other and every action in every movie has an effect on the franchise as a whole?
DC fans have had a rough few weeks as 2022 comes to a close. We’ve lost most of the Justice League members as we prepare to enter the DCEU’s James Gunn era, and no one is really sure what to expect from this new administration. However, the deal appears to only affect the mainline of the DCEU, with the notable exceptions of Matt Reeves. the batman universe and jester – which also happen to be the two best DC movies released in recent memory.
Batman has always been one of the central characters in the Justice League, which only makes it even more confusing for DC to have so many versions of the character, that is, if they wanted to create an MCU-like connected universe. What Matt Reeves proved is that the Caped Crusader version of him was the closest comic book fans have ever seen, and he has nothing to do with anything the character does.
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Some of the best stories ever published by DC Comics have been solo Batman stories: that’s a fact. Things like Arkham Asylum: a serious house on a serious land, the killing jokeand even Batman: Christmas, if you’re feeling festive, are some of the greatest comic book stories ever written. What’s more is that they rarely need a DC backstory to make sense: readers just need to know who Batman is, and that’s enough to understand what’s going on in the story.
What this means is that these Batman comics are not only some of the best comics ever written, but they are also some of the most accessible to new fans. What is fascinating to see is that both the batman Y jester they apply this same approach in their films. They are DC movies that are not connected to a shared universe.
A mere glance in jester it’s enough to set the movie apart from the rest of the superhero movies made in recent memory. It is the same principle that we saw in arkham asylum: We know the characters, but they are located in a completely different environment than just plays for both long-time fans of the character and new readers.
the batman it is more or less the same. We’ve seen the superhero origins of Bruce Wayne countless times in live action before: we all know how he lost his parents and we all know how he became the legendary vigilante he is now. However the batman It did was set the stage for a new DC connected universe, but a Batman-only universe.
This is a monumental idea that Marvel never fully explored with their MCU. While the vastness and richness of the MCU’s lore is undeniable, it can be pretty shallow when you look at it with an objective eye. Following Matt Reeves’ approach, we would need to see a lot more backstory on some of Marvel’s central characters, rather than only appearing when the interconnected storyline demands it, like the eternals.
It might seem as if jester Y the batman being their own separate sub-universes within the larger DCEU might be confusing to some of the more casual fans, but I think the opposite is true.
While the MCU suffers to add context to new characters, events, and even entire stories (Wanda Vision,) fans of Batman or Joker can simply go to the cinema and watch the movies starring their favorite characters without having to watch Aqualad on HBO Max to understand why Bruce Wayne has a new haircut, as the MCU expects us to.
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With each new project linked to the batman announced, and the next jester Close to release, it seems clear that DC has decided to keep these two universes, at least for now, separate from any connected universe plans James Gunn may have, and I honestly think that’s the best option.
As much as I love both movies, seeing Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker go toe-to-toe with Pattinson’s Batman is just something I just don’t see happening. They’re two very different characters who work perfectly well within the confines of their own movies, proving that not every superhero or comic book movie needs epic crossover events to succeed.
Marvel fans have accused the DCEU of repeating what the MCU had done before, and they may have been right at one point. Which is also why it’s so essential that the DCEU get more movies like jester Fact: They need to find their own identity in an industry focused on repeating what is successful, with little or no interest in innovation.
jester Y the batman are some of the best movies DC has ever made, not just because of their characters but because they bring something unique to the table: proof that you don’t have to be the “most ambitious crossover event” to be the best comic book movie ever. done. Let’s be honest, DC doesn’t really need a connected universe.