Review of Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (2010) by Christophe C — 14 Oct 2010

A great movie. Features the voice talent of Mark Harmon, James Woods, Gina Torres, and Chris Noth, among others. One of the better direct-to-DVD animated comic book movies. I have to say that DC generally has Marvel beat for quality in this arena (I was unimpressed with the direct-to-DVD release of 2007's "The Invincible Iron Man"). The movie pits the Justice League (Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern, Black Canary, and The Flash) and alternate universe Lex Luthor (good) against their evil alternate-universe (Earth 2) counterparts (Ultraman, Superwoman, Owlman, Power Ring, evil Jimmy Olsen, etc.). Slade Wilson (whose alternate self is good, of course) is President of the United States in Earth 2.

The plot revolves around a device that allows people to travel between alternate universes. At the beginning of the film, alternate Luthor and The Jester (alternate Joker) steal the device. The Jester dies while confronting an alternate version of Martian Manhunter and Hawkgirl (who are also killed by the Jester's "last gag"...a micro-nuke). Lex Luthor then encounters the Syndicate (the evil counterpart to the Justice League), but escapes to "our" Earth (Earth 1) using the universe-hopping device.

Alternate Luthor meets with the Justice League, who agree to go to Earth 2 to help him fight the Syndicate. Batman opposes the idea, believing the Justice League is spread too thin and that Earth 1 is their charge, not any alternate universes. Unbeknownst to the Justice League, alternate Luthor has stowed the device on the League's space station, the Watchtower.

Superwoman crosses over from her dimension to ours and steals the device, but Batman is able to follow her back to Earth 2. He is briefly taken prisoner there, but manages to escape from Superwoman.

We find out that the nihilistic Owlman wants to use the device as part of a weapon that would destroy all alternate universes save the one that it was deployed in. His theories on alternate realities and free will have lead him to the conclusion this is the "only choice that matters".

The JLA and the Syndicate briefly put their differences aside as they realize that ALL alternate universes, including Earth 2, would be destroyed if Owlman succeeds. The fight scene between Batman and Owlman and their back-and-forth banter is really good ("The difference between you and Iâ??we both looked in the abyss, and you blinked").

The final scene where the Earth 2 Marines take the Syndicate under arrest is kind of a non-sequitur. If it were so easy, you wonder why they didn't do it earlier.

The animation was really good. The character designs were really tight and Superman and Wonder Woman never looked better. There were only a couple of scenes where it could have been a bit better illustrated/rendered (some of the debris during the fight scenes). I also enjoyed the characterization of Owlman as a stone-cold psycho (he really steals the show). Superwoman and the Flash also have some good lines. A must-see for fans of the post-Crisis DC universe.