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THIS WEEK is an all-film column! It was a big week in news regarding the DC Extended Universe. I’ll be talking about the DAWN OF THE JUSTICE LEAGUE special, and will cap it all off with my favorite parts about the new SUICIDE SQUAD trailer.

DAWN OF THE JUSTICE LEAGUE

DC and Warner Bros. came out swinging this week with their DAWN OF THE JUSTICE LEAGUE special that aired on the CW. Not only did we get to see a brand spankin’ new trailer for the upcoming all-baddies film SUICIDE SQUAD, but we also got some extra insight into BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE, as well as a first look at the WONDER WOMAN flick and the many other super heroes who will eventually make their way into the Justice League.

To be perfectly honest, while a lot of this stuff was great to see, there were only a few bits that stood out in terms of non SUICIDE SQUAD-related stuff. The BATMAN V SUPERMAN segment wasn’t really meant for those who have been following all the latest news, as it was a rehash of much of the information we know already. Sure, there were a few extra unseen clips, but at this point, I know many fans would much rather wait for the actual film.

It was great to see Aquaman, Flash, and Cyborg in there, but all the footage used was all just motion comic-esque animation — obviously, there was no way for them to show movie footage that didn’t exist. It was also well and good to see the respective actors talk about their characters, but the information was nothing new. Again, I recognize that the target audience wasn’t someone like me, but rather your average Joe Schmoe who had noidea Batman and Superman were coming up in a movie, but all the same, these didn’t do much to excite me.

What did excite me was the GREEN LANTERN CORPS movie reveal. Rumors have been rumbling for some time, and while we all knew something like this was coming, a part of me was always concerned that WB wouldn’t have the confidence to revisit the Green Lantern world after the bomb that was the GREEN LANTERN movie in 2011.

I’m glad to see that not only will we be seeing Green Lantern again, but that they’ll be approaching it in a different way from the original film.

More than anything, however, was the WONDER WOMAN stuff. This has been the biggest question mark on the DC front. Yes, Wonder Woman is a great character, but she’s a hard one to nail down. With the typical outfit she’s known for, how do you explain her existence in this world in a believable way? How would they tackle this material, and would we be able to take it seriously as an audience? We got to see very little footage of the film, but what very little we was promising and beautiful. In approach, it almost looks like some cross between THOR and CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER. Without a doubt, Gal Gadot looks the part physically, now all we have to do is hope she has the acting chops to bring it home.

What was your favorite part of the DAWN OF THE JUSTICE LEAGUE special? Let us know your thoughts down below!

4 Things We Loved About the SUICIDE SQUAD Trailer

Obviously one of the big things to drop during the DAWN OF THE JUSTICE LEAGUE special was the first official trailer for SUICIDE SQUAD, the second film we’ll be getting from DC and WB this year, and the unexpected follow-up to BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE. We had our first look at the film during last year’s San Diego Comic-Con, and while I adored that trailer as well, I think this one takes the cake.

This trailer was also a breath of fresh air after the disappointment that was the second BATMAN V SUPERMAN trailer earlier this year. Needless to say, there were a lot more than four things I loved about this trailer, for the sake of time, I’ll only highlight four.

1 – The Joker

Guess how many times I thought about Heath Ledger in the trailer?

Zero.

Say what you will about the photos we’ve seen so far, but I have nothing but great things to say about Jared Leto’s interpretation of the Clown Prince of Crime in this film (at least based on the trailer). First and foremost, he looks crazy. That shot of him laughing maniacally with the machine felt straight out of SCARFACE. That shot of him with all the knives surrounding him on the floor? Equally terrifying. In short I would NOT want to mess with this version of the Joker, which is exactly the right feeling for him.

Sure, a lot of people may complain about his flashy outfits, but this take on the character is so radically different from what we’ve seen before that I can’t help but get drawn to him.

2 – The Tone

Director David Ayer has been pretty vocal from the very beginning that the film would have a funny bone to it. But when the Comic-Con first look came around, “moody” and “sad” were the words most used to describe it. While I adored that trailer, I must admit, it felt far too serious considering the source material. This film is full of crazy, quirky, cool characters with big personalities. Why not let them be big? Why not let them be funny?

Well it turns out David Ayer was right. From what we saw, I can see why he thought the movie was funny. It’s not necessarily funny in a “haha” kind of way, but the contrast of these characters is far too entertaining for its own good. Plus, everyone is so big in their personalities, that I think on SOME level, I’ll really grow to appreciate and care about their characters.

Now this is important, because it leads into my next favorite thing:

3 – The Action

This is where my shallow side comes out. Sometimes I just like to see explosions and gunfights. But I don’t just like them willy-nilly. I’m sorry, but I can’t wrap my head around any TRANSFORMERS movie beyond the first one. It all just looks like a moving junkyard to me, but most importantly, I simply DO NOT CARE ABOUT THE CHARACTERS. However, with this trailer, for as brief of a moment we got to see these characters, I felt like I knew them on some primal level.

So when the action finally kicked in two-thirds of the way through, it was fun and gratifying!

Basically, based on the trailer, I’d characterize this movie as the perfect kind of dumb — and I don’t mean that in a bad way. It gives me just enough character for me to care about all the explosions happening on screen. And I’m content with that.

4 – The Comic Booky-ness

DC and WB really seem to have a grasp of what they’re going for visually in these films. While I loved THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY, I’ve grown to accept the fact that what I loved most about those movies were the parts that didn’t feel like comic books. That’s nothing against those movies, but that’s just how I feel about it.

With both BATMAN V SUPERMAN and SUICIDE SQUAD, I get a real sense that for better or worse, they are embracing the hell out of the fact that these films were based on comic books, and throwing that onto the screen. Will it work out in their favor? We’ll have to wait and see. But it’s an aspect that jumped out at me while watching the trailer, and one that won’t let me go.

What did you think of the trailer? Let us know in the comments down below!