My reaction to the just announced Superman/Batman movie

Photo by Jeffrey Velasquez

San Diego Comic Con 2013 just came and brought shock waves to the public when Zack Snyder announced that there would be a new Superman movie and Batman would be joining him. My initial reaction was that of disbelief. I can't believe that DC is bringing in Batman too early in the game. True that I was initially excited at the prospect of having a Superman/Batman movie going up against the Avengers movie sequel but deep inside my heart, as a Superman fan, this is an insult to Superman. I really wanted to enjoy a stand alone Superman movie before any involvement from Batman or the Justice League. Superman deserves that. At least for respect as a character in the sense that Superman can carry his own movie without any help from other superheroes. But this move by Warner reeks of as a business decision more than anything else. And I hate them for not giving Superman his due. They shouldn't rush things at this point because so far they have been doing great with their Man of Steel movie. This move leaves a bad taste in my mouth. And using a quote from Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns elseworlds story does not help as I believe this will only excite Batman fans because that story was the reason why Superman as a comic book character lost it's appeal. That story killed Superman's popularity and standing as DC Comics' number one Superhero.  But looking on the flip side of things, Batman had always played an essential role in Superman's life. And John Byrne's Modern Age Superman origin story even included Batman in one of the issues of that mini-series. So it's safe to say that Snyder and company stayed true to the course.

That said, here's a couple of Superman/Batman stories that they can draw inspiration from.

Man of Steel no. 3

The Man of Steel Mini Series
In John Byrne's Modern Age Superman reboot, he devotes an issue where Superman first met Batman and both had a feeling of distrust towards each other. They were pitted against a petty criminal named Magpie. Though Superman disagrees with Batman's methods, he readily accepts Batman's intentions despite his reservations. This establishes the relationship dynamics between Superman and Batman. You can check out my entry for Byrne's Superman here.

Will this work for the proposed movie?
The Man of Steel Mini-series basically rewrote Superman's origin story. And what made this one of the best origin stories out there is how they were able to present brief but concise events in Superman's life as they prepared him for his modern adventures. In the 6 part mini-series, they were able to touch upon Krypton, Smallville, Batman, Metropolis, Luthor, Bizarro, and Superman's Kryptonian heritage. The Man of Steel movie had already basically covered Krypton, Smallville, and Superman's Kryptonian heritage. Bringing in Batman for the sequel treads faithfully with Byrne's origin story. And Batman's appearance wasn't that significant besides establishing an early encounter with Superman. Luthor still remained the main villain in this mini-series. DC should stick with this or if they can't, they should initially put Batman as Luthor's ally and give us a Superman/Batman showdown to whet the fanboys' appetite. Batman as a Villain and as an ally towards the end sounds exciting. But they should not forget that this still is a Superman movie.

Dark Knight over Metropolis trilogy

Dark Knight over Metropolis
Superman and Batman's friendship went on to the next level when Superman finally entrusted his life to Batman. In the Dark Knight over Metropolis story arc, Superman teams up with Batman to solve the mystery of who was out to discover Superman's secret identity. The story concludes with Superman entrusting Batman Luthor's Kryptonite ring, telling him that he is the only person he could trust. And knows that Batman would do the right thing when a situation calls for Batman to use the ring. You can read the rest of the story here.

Will this work for the proposed movie?
This story arc can fit perfectly well as a part of a whole. The producers can choose key elements in this story where they can use it for the movie's best interest. In the movie Man of Steel, we have seen Superman go out of control and snapped Zod's neck, killing him instantly. This scene is a very good tool for the sequel where Luthor can utilize to his advantage, by making the people fear the alien Superman's unstoppable powers. Naturally Wayne Enterprise and Lex Corp should do something about this alien invasion. So a Batman/Luthor team up to combat Superman should be an interesting story direction. And what better way to end it by having Superman and Batman start a friendship once they unmask Luthor's evil plans.

Superman Batman Public Enemies

Superman/Batman Public Enemies
This story arc gives us a Superman and Batman who have already been friends for years. They team up against Lex Luthor who frames Superman for an impending Kryptonite meteor shower that is headed towards Earth.  Superman and Batman also went up against an assortment of Superheroes that Luthor organized to bring Superman and Batman in. This story arc to this day is still considered as one of (if not) the best Superman/Batman team up stories out there. You can read the full story here.

Will this work for the proposed movie?
As a whole, no. Superman and Batman's friendship had already been established by the time this story was written. So a complete adaptation will look awkward. Besides there was already an animated movie based on this story line. However, they can very much adopt some elements in this mini-series, especially Luthor's ingenious plot of framing Superman. Superman's dangerous nature was already established in the first movie. So it's going to be so easy to substitute the Kryptonite Meteor with that of the footage where Superman snaps General Zod's neck.

Superman v.s. Batman all over again?

There are actually more stories to choose from, but those that I mentioned above can be written all in together in a way to come up with a new storyline. But there is only one direction moving forward. There is no way that this is going to be a Superman film with Batman on it. Because for sure the direction that they would be taking would be a team up movie. My only hope is that DC rectify things. They owe it to all the Superman fans that they had just screwed with this decision. And how do they do it? Personally DC should correct things once and for all by establishing a Superman v.s. Batman showdown where Superman wins. They can't do a Dark Knight Returns inspired movie and not risk of destroying Superman forever. They have to bring that respect back. And with this announced team up movie, they have the opportunity to do just that. As stated in the few posts above, they should establish Batman as a villain, as Luthor's partner in going up against Superman. Superman should beat Batman but refrains from killing him, showing the humans that he has complete control of his powers and has a moral code to live by. By not killing Batman, this gives the people hope that Superman is not to be feared upon. And Superman entrusting Batman a piece of Kryptonite should speak volumes about how Superman trusts the human race through Batman. But really, despite thinking about the opportunity for this to become a very good action packed movie (imagine the potential of seeing one of the greatest Superhero fights ever), I'm still saddened by the fact that Superman won't be having a stand alone movie as a sequel. And if Warner/DC does put it in a way that Superman or Batman is superior to the other, they are going to lose fans. They will certainly alienate the fan bases of both characters. By doing this, they are writing themselves to a corner. It is still too early in the game for Warner to release a team up movie. I'm still hoping that they change their mind and bring in Batman in a cameo role. Or else, this could probably spell the death of their planned DC Cinematic Universe