"Justice League vs. Teen Titans" Animated Feature News & Discussion Thread (Spoilers)

[RoyalRubble]

I think the movie looks promising judging by the preview, anyway. The Titans team seems interesting enough and I'm curious to see how it will all play out (and not only in regards to this story, but any possible future story-lines with them set in this new continuity). The team dynamics should be fun.

Looks like Lex Luthor will be in the movie as well, at least briefly.

Spoiler

 

[Troy Troodon]

Fine, we'll wait till the movie comes out, then we can all decide for ourselves whether it's good or not.

 

[Spider-Man]

Troy, you need to dial the hyperbole down. Out of 1 - 10, everything seems to get a reaction of 11 out of you and its almost always negative. It makes it hard to take anything you say seriously. Thanks!

As for this movie, it looks great and actually makes sense given the continuity of this movie series. I've been reading Teen Titans since the 1980s, save for a couple times here and there. It was one of the first DC Comics I read and it felt really special when DC printed on its old Baxter paper format. I even have the Teen Titans/X-Men crossover comic which is so awesome. I loved Geoff Johns run on the book too and that featured some of my favorite all-time Titans stories. And to me this movie looks pretty fun. It seems to make sense in the film series' established continuity and I like the line-up! Should be a good time. I can't wait to see how Damian fits into such an eclectic crowd.

 

[RoyalRubble]

I think it's kind of weird there was no real mention of the Justice League being possessed by Trigon into fighting the Titans, during the preview.

Also noticed that while Blue Beetle's design is pretty similar to his Young Justice one, Jaime's look is different.

 

[RoryWilliams]

There were several parts of the video that were especially interesting to me. I liked the idea they mentioned that Cyborg feels closer to the Teen Titans because they're all closer to his age and are easier to hang out with and talk to (You are never gonna get Wonder Woman and Batman to agree to a pizza and video game night, heh). Though that does raise the question of where Shazam is since you'd think he'd be someone that would also be interested in that angle.

Starfire being older than the other kids and acting as the leader was another surprise. That's very similar to Geoff Johns' run where Cyborg, Starfire, and Beast Boy acted as the mentors to the younger kids like Bart Allen and Superboy. I'm also wondering if there was some other past iteration of the Titans in this continuity, since Nightwing seems to know who they are. Maybe he was a member back when he was Robin.

 

[Otaku-sempai]

Starfire being older than the other kids and acting as the leader was another surprise. That's very similar to Geoff Johns' run where Cyborg, Starfire, and Beast Boy acted as the mentors to the younger kids like Bart Allen and Superboy. I'm also wondering if there was some other past iteration of the Titans in this continuity, since Nightwing seems to know who they are. Maybe he was a member back when he was Robin.

That would be my guess.

 

[Frontier]

So my thoughts:

- It looks like Shazam, Aquaman, and GL are definitely sitting this movie out. Which, on the one hand, means more time to spend with the Titans and evens up the teams, but I hope we get back to them for the next Justice League movie. And Rory makes a good point about how it would've been nice to see how Shazam interacted with the Titans .

- "Titans Go!" Ha! Was expecting Titans Together, but pretty awesome to hear Starfire say it and see her as leader of the team .

- Is the League fighting Mister Twister and Damian gets involved? There was that crimson tornado and the guy with the "T" on his shirt that Cyborg seems to be fighting.

- I saw this pointed out somewhere else, but anyone else find it funny that they mention the Titans being a team of sidekicks and yet Damian is the only sidekick on this specific roster ?

- Looking at the team in the context of the setting, it definitely seems like the Titans have been around for a while given Dick's knowledge about them, his relationship with Starfire, and the mention of Titans Tower in Bad Blood. I agree that it seems likely the team was formed when Dick was still Robin, and which he likely led at the time, but then gave the reins to Kory when he became Nightwing or started operating on his own in Bludhaven. Now it's apparently a team that takes in young, teenage Superheroes with nowhere else to go or who have trouble controlling their powers. Raven, Beast Boy, and Blue Beetle seem like the most recent recruits to the team before Damian joins .

Though that begs the question...who were the original Titans alongside Robin and Starfire?

- Lex in his Warsuit fighting Superman! I wonder if this is part of his plan from the teaser of Thrones of Atlantis or just to better establish DCNAU Lex Luthor ?

- So it doesn't seem like the conflict between the teams comes from the League getting possessed but from a disagreement over what to do with Raven. Kinda reminds me of the plot to Avengers vs. X-Men .

- Raven hanging out with Damian looks to be both hilarious and adorable. And her completely deadpan expression at a naked Beast Boy was pretty funny too .

- Jaime with a mohawk was unexpected. And Is that hissing noise coming from the Scarab? It even seems like it possess Jaime at one point .

- I guess even being Batman (and Dick's) partner for so long still doesn't make Damian exactly a team player.

- The touch with Cyborg being more at home with the Titans then the League is definitely a nice touch, and makes a lot of sense given he's still the youngest on the team .

- Superman being a father figure to the Titans is cool, and it seems like he might be the first member of the League to come around to what they're doing. Though the scene of him finding Damian with a sliver of Kryptonite (presumably Batman's), looks a little awkward.

 

[Bestmand902]

I have the feeling that the context behind Lex fighting Supes might be someone asking Lex for help on fighting the possessed Superman. At least that's my guess

 

[Troy Troodon]

Any sort of adaptation is going to come off as "fan fiction" since by definition, they're not gonna be able to 100 percent accurately reflect 50 years of comic continuity. That's a bit of a stretch to say that taking liberties with the canon makes it an insult to the franchise.

Sure adaptations aren't going to be perfect... but at least most adaptations follow the source material. If we're going by DC Animation logic, We had animated adaptations that followed the stories they were based on very closely.

Batman Under The Red Hood was an adaptation, The Dark Knight Returns was an adaptation, All-Star Superman was an adaptation. Of course they weren't perfect but they still followed the source material really well.

When I say FanFiction I mean stuff like pairing Superman with Wonder Woman, or Damian Wayne and Raven, or Damian Wayne not learning to be a better person after he already did then makes a heal turn at the end, (Granted it might be explored later but I'm still rather iffy on this) all while based in a continuity based on the New52. (@Fronteir I know you don't want me comparing this to such, but really all the Superficial elements of that continuity are here.)

You either make an adaptation or make something original, you can't do both. (And anyone bringing up examples where that can happen, I'll only find ways of pointing out how those examples differ from this one.)

So why not make a Titans movie based on the Pre-New52 without influences from the reboot? (I'm not trying to compare this continuity to the New52 again btw, just saying.)

But again, I will check this movie out and who knows, maybe it's good, maybe not.

 

[RoryWilliams]

You either make an adaptation or make something original, you can't do both.

Really? Because Marvel has made a fortune doing that exact thing. Superhero movies take certain elements while changing others all the time.

But about the specific point about them mixing New 52 and classic comics, my reaction is...and? DC has had several different continuity iterations. Pre-Crisis, Post-Crisis, Post-Infinite Crisis, and now the New 52. Adaptations make a habit of picking and choosing stuff from the various set-ups all the time. Saying "They're mixing the classic Titans with the new 52 League!" means nothing to me as far as outrage goes.

And this just goes to the point I made earlier which is that some people were gonna hate this no matter what. Because ya know what? Had they not mixed continuities and just used the New 52 Teen Titans instead of the New Teen Titans, people on here still would have been mad.

(And anyone bringing up examples where that can happen, I'll only find ways of pointing out how those examples differ from this one.)

I'm sure you will, because you just seem to be angry about this like you are about virtually everything else on these forums. No offense meant. You just seem to not like anything, from what I've seen.

 

[Troy Troodon]

Really? Because Marvel has made a fortune doing that exact thing. Superhero movies take certain elements while changing others all the time.



I'm sure you will, because you just seem to be angry about this like you are about virtually everything else on these forums. No offense meant. You just seem to not like anything, from what I've seen.

I liked Assault on Arkham, and I liked Gods and Monsters, and even Batman Unlimited and the Vixen short series! And going back to the Marvel movies, the context there is different because they are big budget live-action movies, there is more in animation that you can't get away with in live-action, as evidenced that animated shows and movies tend to be closer to the source material than the live-action ones do. That's only scratching the surface for how those movies differ.

And while the Marvel movies had their own faults they were still well directed and well produced films with likable characters and good character development. But while they were good they're not really the definite take on the heroes of the Marvel universe, much like how Christopher Nolan's Batman movies aren't really the best interpretation of the Batman mythos.

 

[Frontier]

I don't think there's anything about this movie that screams "adaption," rather just incorporating characters and teams into this new continuity, unless just using Trigon and Raven is cause to say they're adapting the origin of the New Teen Titans which they're obviously not (aside from certain team members).

And I have not seen anything in the trailer that implies they're not being true to the characters, if not the exact source material.

 

[RoryWilliams]

as evidenced that animated shows and movies tend to be closer to the source material than the live-action ones do.

That's highly debatable. The cartoons make changes all the time.

And while the Marvel movies had their own faults they were still well directed and well produced films with likable characters and good character development. But while they were good they're not really the definite take on the heroes of the Marvel universe, much like how Christopher Nolan's Batman movies aren't really the best interpretation of the Batman mythos.

And the animated films are supposed to be the definitive take?

 

[Troy Troodon]

That's highly debatable. The cartoons make changes all the time.

And the animated films are supposed to be the definitive take?

Because before 2014, they were distributing film versions of actual graphic novels.

 

[Frontier]

Because before 2014, they were distributing film versions of actual graphic novels.

And now they're going into more original material with the continuity, so obviously they aren't necessarily beholden to a specific canon.

 

[BigFatHairyDeal]

Making Starfire the leader of the group is an interesting twist. It's a good spin on the character who often comes across as too naive, among other things. I wouldn't look forward to seeing more of the character if we were getting more of the same, so this is one of the aspects of the movie that I think will be a positive. Furthermore, her presence in this universe has been foreshadowed, so kudos.

When I say FanFiction I mean stuff like pairing Superman with Wonder Woman, or Damian Wayne and Raven

I get that pairing off random characters is one of the easiest things about fan fiction to mock, but Superman/Wonder Woman have been paired in DC Comics now for, what, three and a half years? There's even a shared regular comic book title that's run for more than two years. At some point, it's time to stop calling it "fan fiction" stuff and just an idea you don't like. I mean, it's actually one of the things that this line of movies is following from the current comics.

 

[Troy Troodon]

And now they're going into more original material with the continuity, so obviously they aren't necessarily beholden to a specific canon.

Ok, fair enough. But the problem is that this continuity is not good, the characters are unlikable, the stories are poorly executed, and much of the superficial elements of the "You know what" are still here.

And really, I don't want to follow just a single continuity where it's just Justice League and Batman, I want to see movies where more characters easily die, I don't want to see a colder or more grim justice league I don't want to see stories that are just ultra violent and moody for the sake of ultra violent and moody. I want variation, in both title characters and continuity; I want the characters to be more likable and not straight up strawmen. I want a DC animated movie that feels more like a traditional DC superhero story.

I mean, it's actually one of the things that this line of movies is following from the current comics.

Yeah it's borrowed from the comics... since the reboot, and it's not good all the same. When Kingdom Come explored this pairing, it was because Lois was already dead and the story delved into a more complex chemistry than this.


But whatever, Until this movie comes out, I'm just gonna put all that aside. I'm just gonna wait for this film with low expectations, then when it does come, I'll determine for sure whether it was worth my time or not.

I sincerely apologize for my outburst.

 

[Mostezli]

Though that begs the question...who were the original Titans alongside Robin and Starfire?

Opens the door for the original comic team. Aqualad, not so much since Aquaman recently discovered his calling and is the latest Leaguer, but who knows how time passes.

Also, my wary senses were tingling after I was just so excited from seeing the pic. This could end up like Bad Blood with the amount of characters this has on board to develop, yet they've made it clear the largest focus will be on Raven and Damien.

Though I just now realized Sam Liu is directing with screenplay by Alan Burnett .

...Crisis Averted...

Wow, this year might actually even be the best for the Tucker Era DTV's

 

[Frontier]

Probably the weirdest thing in the sneak peak to me was that storyboard of Nighwting greeting Starfire. Shaking hands seems a little too...platonic for lovers (as established in the Batman movies), though they might just be trying to maintain professionalism in front of Damian.

 

[RoyThomasConan]

Just watched the sneak peak, and knowing that Sam Lui is directing and Alan Burnett is writing have me believing that this may actually be good and not decent to weak. I also believe this means Warner Bros Animation is taking note that people haven't been taking well to the Jay Oliva & Ethan Spaulding direction. The sales for Batman and Justice League titles these days have been half that of Wonder Woman's and Green Lantern's sales if Wikipedia can be trusted. (@Yojimbo, I know you're the guy usually in the know and have your own sources, any chance we could get some confirmation on that? It's appreciated if you can ) That's really really bad.

I'm still a bit incensed that the film is called Justice League vs. Teen Titans and not the inverse if it's not really a Justice League film. Assault on Arkham being called a Batman film was a pretty bad in that respect too. That's like calling Iron Man 2 "Black Widow: The Movie". Anyway, hopefully we'll be able to put the Damien films and Justice League films pre Titans behind us after the 2017 slate, if these changes in staff are being made because the reaction to Gods and Monsters was positive while others films since 2014 have not enjoyed much success. It's a shame too, I don't want Warner Bros not to expirement with new talent and fall back on the sort of "old faithful" group that's always worked. It's just that the people making decisions now don't have the story telling maturity to, well, tell a decent story. I've really very much enjoyed all of James Tucker's work pre- JL: War; I don't really know who is to blame for the dry spell in creativity aside the new writers and directors. In the mean time, at least we can rest easy kneeing with those working on it JLvsTT will be fun.