Shots have been fired and it’s officially a fight. In one corner we have the heavy favorites and undisputed current champion of the world in Marvel Studios. In the other corner, we have Warner Bros/DC which contrary to popular belief, did in fact change the game with their Christopher Nolan Batman franchise. Since that time Marvel has been on a tear, knocking out Glass Joe false contenders left and right. They have found success by sticking to a colorful, yet pliable tone that stays relatively close to the concepts introduced in the comics. WB/DC on the other hand, has treated their characters as mythic legends. Yet have kept them grounded by placing them in hyper-realistic worlds, that are filled with darkness and consequences.

 

The wait is finally over and we get to see what director Zack Snyder has been in his garage working on for the past few years. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice appears to be grim, moody, and has a strong sense of foreboding, which signals a greater threat is coming. It is also interesting that Snyder and screenwriter Chris Terrio (Argo) have clearly positioned Kal-El, aka Superman, as the heavy to be feared. There are clear allusions in the short trailer to the Superman paranoia, usually instigated by Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg), which are found in such recent graphic novels as Birthright and Lex Luthor: Man of Steel. In fact the color scheme found on the fallen statue is clearly an allusion to the bloody ‘S’ on Luthor’s chest on the cover of the graphic novel.

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It is also surprising how familiar Gotham City feels as well. The shot of Batman on the tower is meant to spark memories of the Dark Knight trilogy, which is a little surprising considering this iteration of Caped Crusader will have many differences. However, it is probably WB simply hedging their bets in the early marketing, to pull in as many casual viewers as possible. It’s a little surprising that we didn’t get a glimpse of Wonder Woman, but considering that this film is still eleven months away from release, they have plenty of time to roll out the rest of the DC Comics’ supporting cast. Take a breath and get ready for the Dawn of Justice…

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is in theaters March 25, 2016.

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Source: WB