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Poor DC. This is why you cast relative unknowns and lock them down hard. And then if it works out you roll out the truck because they are worth it. Another area they didn't learn from Marvel before they even got started.

Gal Gadot and Jason Momoa (box office projections keep going up for Aquaman) say hello, however. Zachary Levi may join that club, if Shazam! is well received like some are expecting.

Cavill was also exactly what you say, except that they burned two of his appearances on films that were poorly received. Now you have an actor with one film left on his deal who doesn't want to do it anymore unless he gets director approval, etc., and a studio that's reluctant to give a guy whose movies have done nothing but underperform a new deal with that kind of power and privilege.

The takeaway is to make movies that audiences like and want to pay to see, and the rest will work out.

Affleck was obviously a big name, and sure, that casting was fraught with peril. Then again, the recent revelation that the Snyderverse was supposed to end after JL2 means that they weren't looking at him being Batman indefinitely. Was the Snyderverse a good plan? Apparently not, so another takeaway here is to have a good plan that everyone involved approves of and understands.

The "dceu" doesnt actually exist anymore. Wb has given up on trying to actively link the movies going forward and tell an ongoing narrative. Word is they just intend to make movies. If sometimes a character from one shows up in another then thats all it is. But they have no intention of building a cohesive single storyline like marvel has done.

Mostly because they suck at it and their actors are quiting.

Full reviews for Aquaman should arrive tomorrow at 2.

 Lance845 wrote:
The "dceu" doesnt actually exist anymore. Wb has given up on trying to actively link the movies going forward and tell an ongoing narrative. Word is they just intend to make movies. If sometimes a character from one shows up in another then thats all it is. But they have no intention of building a cohesive single storyline like marvel has done.

Mostly because they suck at it and their actors are quiting.

Good riddance. I hope Snyder never touches another super hero movie again.

Early returns with the critics aren't bad. 78% on RT, and a more mixed 53 on metacritic (only 2 negative reviews there so far though). Scanned some reviews and it seems like the general consensus is that it's campy and the script might not be amazing, but it's big dumb fun with some cool visuals.

The reviewers I've seen say you'll get your money's worth of spectacle, action and lore, but at the expense of character development, Like, duh?

I have no idea how one would go about doing a thoughtful character study of Aquaman. He's not Batman, nor do his villains resemble Batman villains. His source material includes a pet octopus that plays instruments. For many, their most prominent memory of him involves him riding a giant seahorse. So I think James Wan's instincts were right to go really big, fun and otherworldly with this character.

Now, if someone somehow pulled off a deep character dive (pun intended), I'm sure critics would have called it another gloomy introspective affair from the DCEU.

Scores seem to be holding steady. Seems like it may not be a perfect movie, but it's a good popcorn film with some really great visuals. Apparently the third act is insane.

I'm really excited to see the proverbial balls arrive at the wall. Sometimes a nerd just wants to see a bunch of colorful costumes and creatures with colorful lore smack head first into each other in epic combat. That's colorful.

 gorgon wrote:
I have no idea how one would go about doing a thoughtful character study of Aquaman. He's not Batman, nor do his villains resemble Batman villains. His source material includes a pet octopus that plays instruments. For many, their most prominent memory of him involves him riding a giant seahorse. So I think James Wan's instincts were right to go really big, fun and otherworldly with this character.

Now, if someone somehow pulled off a deep character dive (pun intended), I'm sure critics would have called it another gloomy introspective affair from the DCEU.

Scores seem to be holding steady. Seems like it may not be a perfect movie, but it's a good popcorn film with some really great visuals. Apparently the third act is insane.

Batman isn't much better, with equally goofy nonsense in the source material. Its just that Bats had a lot more iterations beyond the silliness, whereas the useless 'Superfriends' Aquaman became a cultural touchstone that stuck for a long, long time. Even kids who never saw it on TV got it from south park or Dragonball Z abridged.

Though I agree with your larger point. A fun superhero movie has a better shot than DCs usual fare.

Yeah, they even ended up sort of addressing that in the New52, with Hal Jordan echoing the typical Superfriends/Big Bang Theory talking points.

Aquaman's response.

Why do those sharks have dog teeth?

This line from IGN's review was all I need to see the film:

"This is the movie Green Lantern was too reluctant to be."

I still love the way Aquaman's perception was addressed in the post Brightest Day relaunch. The police trying to protect him and someone horrified to see him eating fish at a restaurant. Good stuff.

 Compel wrote:
Yeah, they even ended up sort of addressing that in the New52, with Hal Jordan echoing the typical Superfriends/Big Bang Theory talking points.

Aquaman's response.

Spoiler:

That was a good moment for him. I always liked this resolution to the Aquaman vs. Namor battle many years back. It's corny, but it fits and works.

 LunarSol wrote:
This line from IGN's review was all I need to see the film:

"This is the movie Green Lantern was too reluctant to be."

It seems to have been received particularly well on nerd sites...? Definitely seems like Wan embraced the comics like no one ever has. I mean, (minor spoiler):

 Compel wrote:
Yeah, they even ended up sort of addressing that in the New52, with Hal Jordan echoing the typical Superfriends/Big Bang Theory talking points.

Aquaman's response.

Spoiler:

And then he gets absulotely owned by Swamp Thing.

gorgon wrote:That was a good moment for him. I always liked this resolution to the Aquaman vs. Namor battle many years back. It's corny, but it fits and works.

Spoiler:

So the guy who takes down entire superteams, goes toe to toe with the Hulk, all the while screaming "IMPERIOUS REX!!!!!!!!!" is going to get clubbed with a whale? THAT entire book was lined with matches that shouldn't have ended the way they did. It was an embarrassment, and is all the more reason why JLA/Avengers needs to be held up as the paragon of Marvel/DC crossovers.

 Just Tony wrote:

gorgon wrote:That was a good moment for him. I always liked this resolution to the Aquaman vs. Namor battle many years back. It's corny, but it fits and works.

Spoiler:

So the guy who takes down entire superteams, goes toe to toe with the Hulk, all the while screaming "IMPERIOUS REX!!!!!!!!!" is going to get clubbed with a whale? THAT entire book was lined with matches that shouldn't have ended the way they did. It was an embarrassment, and is all the more reason why JLA/Avengers needs to be held up as the paragon of Marvel/DC crossovers.

Power levels are whatever a given story needs them to be, and Namor is a prime example. It's really not something to get bent out of shape about.

In other news, Momoa says Cavill isn't done.

"I just talked to Henry… He’s absolutely not [leaving the character],” he said. “He loves the character, he’s not. 100 percent.

I don't really believe it, but there it is.

 gorgon wrote:

 Just Tony wrote:

gorgon wrote:That was a good moment for him. I always liked this resolution to the Aquaman vs. Namor battle many years back. It's corny, but it fits and works.

Spoiler:

So the guy who takes down entire superteams, goes toe to toe with the Hulk, all the while screaming "IMPERIOUS REX!!!!!!!!!" is going to get clubbed with a whale? THAT entire book was lined with matches that shouldn't have ended the way they did. It was an embarrassment, and is all the more reason why JLA/Avengers needs to be held up as the paragon of Marvel/DC crossovers.

Power levels are whatever a given story needs them to be, and Namor is a prime example. It's really not something to get bent out of shape about.

In other news, Momoa says Cavill isn't done.

"I just talked to Henry… He’s absolutely not [leaving the character],” he said. “He loves the character, he’s not. 100 percent.

I don't really believe it, but there it is.

That same Crossover had Storm beating Wonder Woman, Wolverine beating Lobo, and Batman beating Captain America. How well do YOU trust it? I don't. Once again, read JLA/Avengers by Kurt Busiek and George Perez, THAT is a crossover between the two groups done right.

Just saw it.

Very, very good and I think bodes really well for future DC movies.

I really enjoyed it. There's nothing revolutionary here, it's a big flashy superhero action movie. But it's a big flashy superhero movie done well, with the good sort of cheese and melodrama, likable characters and well-shot and easy to follow action scenes (especially the Manta fight and the final battle, which could have just been a big confusing lightshow). It's nice to see the DC movies finding their feet.

I saw it too, and I liked it. It’s not amazing or game changing, but it is more than passable, which by DC’s current standards is great, and a good sign that they’re continuing to turn it around. It can sit comfortably beside Wonderwoman. A solid 7.

Just came home from cinema. Awesome movie.

This was a sweet Marvel movie. Lots of bright colors, people smiled, it was just generally big and fun. It even has a mid credits scene!

Saw it...and liked it! It’s definitely lighter fare, but it’s fun with a really likeable lead in Jason Momoa.

Our theater was full and the crowd seemed to enjoy it, and I think it’s headed for a really solid opening in a very crowded weekend.

A highlight for me? The

 Future War Cultist wrote:
A highlight for me? The

Spoiler:

octopus drummer!

I was bummed we didn’t get more of

but it was a welcome sight.

It’s interesting to me that some critics have felt that the villains were weaknesses. I was fine with Orm as the big bad with a POV, and thought we got the perfect amount of Manta as a rage machine who will be fully realized in a sequel.

Aquaman was entirely too good. I literally can't believe DC managed to make a freaking Aquaman movie this good. This may be the most absurd success outside of GotG being brilliant.

Also, Amber Heard is stupid gorgeous. What the hell was Depp thinking?!

I mean, its a bad movie. Just a really fun one. Whenever it tries to pause and do something serious the wheels come off, but when it wants to be about fishmen riding sharks into battle against crabmen it delivers. Black Manta is done exceptionally well and makes for probably one of the best multi major villain uses I've seen in a super hero film. It helps that the cast doesn't hold back and seems all in throughout. It ironically lacks depth, but overcompensates with a pretty stunning realization of a comic world that even comics have often failed to realize. It's Geoff Johns's DC through and through and that's the kind of DC I like.

I went in with really low expectations (despite having missed BvS and JL myself) and was pleasantly surprised. The dudebro attitude of Momoa was grating at times and overdone frequently but overall is was a fun movie that didn't pretend to be something more culturally significant than an action movie nor act as just a pitstop between other movies or setup for a universe.