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 Zack Snyder addresses Doomsday concerns. From there, I delve into a deep, dark confession regarding CW’s “Arrow.”

NEWS-LET

Zack Snyder on Doomsday and Lex Luthor Concerns

Several weeks back, audiences were blessed with the second trailer for DC and WB’s upcoming film, “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.” While the film is the second in their cinematic universe, it certainly has the anticipation and ambition of something on par with “The Avengers,” and considering just how far behind Marvel they are in this game, it makes sense to make this film your big move.

That being said, fans weren’t exactly smitten with this trailer, and as much as I’m sure the movie is going to be fantastic, I tend to agree with them. When all said and done, it was a rather poorly-made trailer. It was silly, sloppy, and worst of all, it gave away too much. The movie is called “Batman v Superman,” so why in the world would you show them teaming up in the trailer? Doesn’t that take away a good amount of tension?

Maybe not as much as we think. In a recent phone interview with MTV, Zack Snyder talked down about spoilers.

“You design the movie as a story that evolves as you watch it, so moment-to-moment [you’re thinking], ‘Oh my god, what’s going to happen next? Are they gonna live? Are they gonna die?’ So you want that experience for the audience, as much as you can. If you’re, as an audience member, exploring these articles, looking for answers to questions that you have, maybe you’re okay with knowing before you go. It’s like an individual taste. But like I said, I want people to see the movie without knowing.”

So what about the trailer, then? Is showing Doomsday going too far? While Snyder doesn’t directly address Doomsday, he seems to have confidence in what the film has to offer.

“I have the benefit of seeing the movie. It’s cool that [fans] think it’s too much and I appreciate people not wanting to know, but there’s plenty that they don’t know. There’s a lot of movie that’s not in the trailer.”

Another one of the big complaints came from Jesse Eisenberg’s portrayal of Lex Luthor. I was a defender of Eisenberg’s casting, and yet based on what we saw in that second trailer, he seemed more like the Riddler than Lex. Yet Snyder also seems to believe he’s on the right track with the character, despite what we’ve seen so far.

“In the movie, he’s like a million times more sophisticated than what you get in 30 seconds. But that’s also the fun of it. That’s why you go to the movies, so you can actually see the context and understand the depth.”

For the film’s sake, I sure hope Lex will have more nuance than what we’ve seen in the trailer thus far.

Does this give you confidence that there’s a lot more to “Batman v Superman” than meets the eye? Let us know in the comments down below!

DC TELEVISION

My Deep, Dark ‘Arrow’ Secret

I have a confession to make. Come closer, and I’ll tell you.

There was a time when I had no confidence in the CW’s ability to make a good comic book TV show. Back in 2012 when “Arrow” first aired, my only association with the network was with shirtless pretty boys, pandering content, and cheeseball acting. As such, I opted out of watching “Arrow” for its first season. While I liked Green Arrow well enough, I wouldn’t have called myself a huge fan of the character. Most of my exposure to him came whenever he popped up in other characters’ stories in the comic. I never really felt drawn to check out any standalone comics from him. As such, I didn’t feel a gaping hole in my gut for not seeing a series based on the hero.

When season one ended of the series, I heard nearly universal praise from friends and fans. Still, I waited. I didn’t think its quality could last.

And then came “The Flash.” Now this is a character I liked. As a comic book fan, I was attached to Flash’s mythology, and if they were going to bring this one to the small screen, I’d be there to see it. So I did, and I’m a better man for it. Since taking on “The Flash,” I’ve had this nagging sensation to finally take the trek back to “Arrow” and see what everyone’s been talking about. After all, it’s a series with undeniable ties to “Arrow,” and by not watching it, I was likely losing a great deal of payoff.

Yet still, I waited. 

It was only with the advent of “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow,” and the increasing number of crossovers between shows that I finally decided to bite the bullet and see what “Arrow” had to offer. 

This came somewhat in tandem with the forming of this column. I knew what I wanted to cover. DC news, comics, TV and film. The big gaping hole in my knowledge, however, came from “Arrow,” and in my TV recaps, you’ll notice that’s the one DC show so far that I’ve yet to talk about on any real level. I hadn’t yet seen it. However, when the fall season ended, I finally had the opportunity to remedy this problem.

So I did. In the past few weeks, I’ve taken to Netflix to catch up on “Arrow.” As of this writing, I am about halfway through season two. While I’m by no means an expert on the subject just yet, I can still curse myself for waiting so long to jump on the bandwagon.

“Arrow” is a fantastic show, and one that deserves all the praise it’s gotten over the years. 
Season one did an amazing job of setting up Oliver Queen’s motivations — which can be a bit difficult to take seriously when your character looks like an off-brand Robin Hood. And yet, it does it with finesse. The characters are wonderful — though I’d argue that “The Flash” has more likable ones — and the plot moves at a breakneck pace. I can’t express the excitement early on in the show when Oliver broke into his own building, pointed an arrow at his mother, and yelled out “Moira Queen, you have failed this city!”

Exiting moments like that permeated the initial season.

However, upon moving into season two, I’ve noticed a definite shift in tone. The series started out as dark and grounded one, but has since moved to a more light and comic booky tone, which is a double-edged sword.

Admittedly, as I make my way through the series, I find myself liking it a wee bit less. Stephen Amell’s Oliver Queen started out in season one as a more nuanced and complex character, and as time went on, his acting style seemed to leave less room for this nuance I’d grown to love. Yet ironically without this shift in tone, “The Flash” and “Legends of Tomorrow” would not be possible, so it’s a change I’m willing to accept. With the little bit of bad, there was plenty of good to make up for it.

Will the show hold up for me in the next season and a half? I don’t know. I’ve heard mixed things from fellow fans. Some continue to love the series, while others swore it off after season two. I’ll be sure to keep you updated in the coming weeks.

I bring this up as a long and roundabout way to clarify as to why I haven’t talked about the show yet in this column. Considering its impact in the DC world, my not watching does come across as a bit blasphemous, but it’s a blasphemy I hope to make up for in the future. Once I catch up, I’ll begin to write about it alongside shows like “The Flash,” “Legends of Tomorrow,” “Supergirl,” and “Gotham.” Until then, I hope you all remain patient with me! 

When did you first gain exposure to the show “Arrow”? How has your perception of the series changed over time? Let us know in the comments down below!

SOURCE: MTV