Welcome to the DC Weekly, where every week we cover the land of DC comics, TV, and movies. Be it random bits of news, TV show reactions, or miscellaneous reviews or speculation, you can be sure to get your DC fix here!

THIS WEEK we look at the tone of “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow,” and then I ask you to paint me a picture of your ideal “Batman v Superman.”

NEWS-LET

How “Legends of Tomorrow” Will Compare to “Arrow” and “Flash”

2016 is the year of the DC fan. In the span of one short year, we’ll be able to enjoy two huge blockbuster films based on our favorite DC characters, and in addition, we’ll be watching five DC television shows including “Gotham,” “Arrow,” “The Flash,” “Supergirl,” and finally, “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.”

The advent of “Legends of Tomorrow” comes on the heels of such successful shows as “Arrow” and “The Flash,” and is itself set in the same universe. That being said, we can’t exactly expect the show to fall in line with either of its predecessors in terms of tone and style. “The Flash” itself, when it spun off of “Arrow” boasts a completely different tone, one that’s a great deal more lighthearted and fun, so it’s natural that we can expect something a bit different from this new show.

So what can we expect out of “Legends of Tomorrow” in this regard?

At the recent panel at the TV Critics Association Winter Press Tour, members of the cast and crew had a chance to explain many of these things (via Collider).

The first to speak was actor Arthur Darvill, who plays the time-traveling Rip Hunter in the series. In his comment, he addresses the intentionally lighthearted tone the series is shooting for, as well as Rip’s perspective in the series.

“I think only through lightness does the darkness get highlighted. And I think Rip does have a sense of humor… Rip only expects this show to last for one episode. And when it starts to kind of fall apart, he’s really frustrated. But he doesn’t want to spend any time with these people. He hasn’t chosen it because he likes them, and there is a job to do, so I enjoy the balance.”

Producer Phil Klemmer goes on to explain how the dynamic of the show is also founded in the conflict, which makes sense. Ask most people their favorite moments in “The Avengers,” and it’s likely the scenes where the personalities of these big characters clash in entertaining ways. 

“I mean, Mick Rory (a.k.a. Heat Wave), for instance, not to single anyone out, is just like a bull in a china shop.  He couldn’t care about the future. And, you know, the fun comes from these people, you know, not just trying to pull together to, you know, save the world, but having to like exist on a spaceship together. And, to me, that’s like some of the most fun, is just them ?? because it’s like the most dysfunctional family you can imagine.”

“Characters like Mick Rory, and Leonard Snart (Wentworth Miller), to help Ray see the other side of life, and to kind of find some balance, because sometimes positivity needs to be grounded a little bit,” actor Brandon Routh (who plays Ray Palmer/The Atom) added. “But it’s a lot of fun to be able to bring that type of energy to the show.”

“I’ve definitely noticed a big difference,” actress Caity Lotz said (who plays Sara Lance/White Canary). 

“I mean, Arrow can be pretty dark. And Sara, out of all the characters, was pretty dark; [there was] a lot of weight and a lot of heaviness to her.  And with ‘Legends,’ there’s a levity that Sara never got to live in before. And I think after dying and coming back to life, and she’s kind of seen it all. And there’s like a new attitude that she gets to have where it’s like whatever goes… It’s been a nice exploration in finding that with Sara, kind of the levity and the lighter moments.”

So all in all, if the trailers weren’t enough evidence, I’d say this falls squarely in more “Flash” territory than in “Arrow” territory in terms of tone. More than anything, it looks to be a fun ride for all involved. But, of course, the eternal question is whether or not the aforementioned series will cross over with “Legends.” In one of my past columns, I mention some of executive producer Greg Berlanti’s comments, and how he seemed intent on keeping the series separated from the other two. Now, the EP seems a little less stringent on that ruling.

“Because they’re a band of time-traveling rogues, as it were, it’s harder for ‘Arrow’ and ‘Flash’ to be connected story-wise to it throughout the season. That being said, if you know the histories of ‘Arrow’ and ‘Flash,’ it should be, you know, extra fun in its own way as we delve deeper and deeper into the characters’ lives… I would say the same thing applies if you like comic books or don’t like comic books, in general, hopefully, the show in and of itself is interesting and dynamic for the people that just show up.”

What do you think of the comments on the new series and the overall intended tone? Let us know your thoughts below!

“DC’s Legends of Tomorrow” premieres on the CW on January 21, 2016.

MINI-TORIAL

Make Your Very Own “Batman v Superman”

With the impending release of “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” I, along with many fans, are over-the-moon excited for the first official film in the DC Cinematic Universe (or as WB is trying to coin it, the DC Extended Universe, which I hate). “Man of Steel” may have been the “first” movie, but it wasn’t until the creation of “Batman v Superman” that WB actually full-on committed to the idea of a shared universe. As it stood, they were very much of the old way of doing things — creating the movies one at a time.

Given that this film comes eight years after Marvel first committed to creating a shared universe (“Iron Man” and “The Incredible Hulk” both came out in 2008), they were facing an uphill battle with fans. No matter what “Batman v Superman” became, fans would find problems with it. Let’s face it, WB is following in Marvel’s footsteps, and it’s instinct that fans would look to find fault in what they consider to be a cheap strategy ripoff.

We’re a couple months from the release of the film, and we’ve seen a couple trailers, and a couple clips, and all in all the reaction seems…mixed. Now I’m not here to tell you you’re wrong. That’s not how film works. Like any piece of art, all film is subjective, so what works for me may ultimately fall flat for the rest of the world. I’m not even here to tell you you’re biased because DC is entering this game so late. While yes, some fans can’t look past the fact that WB and DC are trying to emulate Marvel’s success, I’d like to think that the general fanbase is able to base their opinions on what we’ve seen of “Batman v Superman” so far, and all the information we know about the film so far (as naïve as that may be).

Perhaps the biggest criticism of the upcoming movie is that it’s become too overstuffed. Yes, the concept of Batman taking on Superman is great, but now we know that Wonder Woman is in there, we’ve heard rumors of other superheroes making cameos, Lex Luthor looks to play a big role, and Doomsday seems to be the uniting force between our two supers (which is an element WB marketing was foolish to reveal, even if we knew it was coming). In addition to all this, the film looks to show the aftermath of Superman’s destruction of Metropolis in “Man of Steel,” which is more than enough to fill a single movie in and of itself. What’s more, we recently broke an extra secret element in the film that will push even more content into the movie. I’m not going to lie, that’s a LOT of stuff to happen in one two-and-a-half hour movie, and while I remain optimistic that they’ll managed to pull it off, I am a bit worried. And I know I’m not the only one.

Rather than speculate, argue, or ramble further, I thought I’d ask you, as readers and DC fans, to give me your ideal “Batman v Superman.” You can either pretend that we’ve seen nothing so far, and tell us everything you want the film to be, or you can take bits and pieces from what we know about the film, and add/subtract to your heart’s content. How do you want it structured? Give us any detail to sell people on the idea.

For me personally, I love a lot of what they have on the table already. I’d keep most everything the same, with the exception of the Justice League stuff. Let this film focus solely on the Batman and Superman fight, and of course, we’d have them team up against a baddie at the end. Heck, I’m okay with the whole Doomsday/Luthor thing. If we focus on this scuffle to the best of our abilities, then we can cover the Justice League stuff in a later film, as we have enough content to fill this movie as is.

So how would an ideal “Batman v Superman” film play out for you? Let us know in the comments down below!

SOURCE: Collider