DC Fandome: The Good, the...good, and...the good?

Leading up to the exclusive online event, DC Fandome, DC faced what many may have thought was an impossible task: put out a high quality event or face a continued wrath from the community. As a Marvel fan through and through, I have to say, DC really impressed with their Fandome. Too bad Marvel didn't explore a Comic-Con replacement because DC just posted a big win with the comic community at a time when positive pop-culture news has been slim to come by. For the first time ever, I wish Marvel would pull a trick from the DC playbook.

I not only enjoyed the overall feel of the event but the presentation was very smooth and there were no video quality problems (looking at you Comic-Con At Home) . I was expecting DC to cop out here and there regarding the extent of the reveals, but they did not hold back and the news coming out of Fandome was the same quality of that which traditionally came out of Hall H. Actually, it was better because we could all participate without the money, travel, or time it would traditionally cost to take part in these panels. I know that this was a product of the COVID-19 pandemic and the cancelling of physical conventions, but I think that this type of event could be extremely successful as an annual experience.

Other than the main panels advertised, DC had a variety of other content used to fill in the blanks. I think the best of that was the sharing of different fan arts, tattoos, and cosplays, as well as the answering of fan questions. It helped keep that Con-spirit alive. There was also a small amount of celebrity involvement, such as Venus Williams and Jake from State Farm. Jim Lee participated in a number of these different panels, including one in which he spoke with an artist and offered constructive criticism on a few pieces. There was also some socially-relevant content, such as exploring women and people of color in the diversity of DC media and footage from CNN of heroes who stepped up to help their communities during the pandemic.

Before reviewing the heavy hitting panels, here's a quick snippet of other news that came out of DC Fandome:

- Titans Season 3 will have the team visiting Gotham, where they will encounter characters like Johnathan Crane/Scarecrow and Barbara Gordon. Also, we will see Jason Todd's Red Hood.

-During a panel about Milestone Comics and a discussion regarding Static Shock, a filmmaker revealed "...we’re in serious conversations about, as we’re launching the comic book series, developing the ‘Static Shock’ movie".

WW84 (Wonder Woman 1984) = B-

I enjoyed the first Wonder Woman, but not as much as others, and I had little enthusiasm for its sequel or this panel. Following the Q&A and Trailer #2 reveal, I can't say that I'm counting down the days until its release, but the sequel appears to have more promise than I had previously thought. The trailer gives us a number of different action sequences which seem to have promise and the first real look at Kristen Wiig's Cheetah, which was graphically questionable. I still don't care for the revisiting of the Diana/Steve relationship. From the trailers, especially the first one, it gives the film a bit too much of a rom-com feel. That's not necessarily a bad thing, nor should superhero movies stray from that sub-genre, but it doesn't feel like it fits here.

WB Games - Batman: Gotham Knights = A

Yes please. Fans of the "Arkham" video games, including myself, have been itching for a new installment in the critically acclaimed Batman-centered game series. Funny thing is, this upcoming game, slated to release sometime in 2021. will seemingly not have Batman. As you can see in the trailer linked below, the story follows Batman's death and the uniting of the Red Hood, Nightwing, Robin, and Batgirl to save Gotham from being overrun by the rogues. Towards the end, you have this ominous reveal of the Court of Owls operating from the shadows in a mysterious role (which is signature Court of Owls).

While the game looks cool and I'm instantly interested in the story, I do question some of the suit designs, which seems to be an ongoing theme with recent superhero game reveals. The gameplay mechanics looked pretty similar to Arkham Knight, which is not much of a surprise, but with a lot more variety with the ability to play all four of the main characters. Perhaps the most exciting part of the panel occurred at the very end, when one of the developers revealed that "the mystery in Gotham Knights is much bigger than just the Court of Owls". Ooooooo. Chills.

The Flash = C+

Not surprisingly, DC didn't offer much regarding the Summer 2022 slated "The Flash". The biggest news regarding this film dropped earlier in the week prior to DC Fandome when Ben Affleck was confirmed to return as Bruce Wayne/Batman in the movie. The reports have indicated that he will return in a mentor role towards Barry. What the panel did provide was a greater understanding of the movie's place within the DC's movie-verse, with writer Christina Hodson saying “The cinematic multiverse is going to be born out of this movie, born out of Barry’s story." They also shared concept art from the film for Barry's new suit. Regardless of my personal thoughts about the redesign, ANYTHING is better than that weird bungee cord-looking shit he wore in Justice League.

The Suicide Squad = B+

I needed the James Gunn-led panel to do only one thing and they delivered it flawlessly: they made no mentions of the hot pile of post-Taco Tuesday shit that was "Suicide Squad". The panel turned into a Suicide Squad trivia game between two teams made up of the ENTIRELY TOO LARGE CAST. During the cast reveal trailer, I attempted to write down all of the cast and characters in real time and that's when it hit me how many characters Gunn will juggle in this film:

1. Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) 10. Mongal (Mayling Ng)

2. Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman) 11. Thinker (Peter Capaldi

3. Savant (Michael Rooker) 12. Sulsoria (Alice Braga)

4. Javelin (Flula Borg) 13. Peacemaker (John Cena)

5. Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) 14. Blackguard (Pete Davidson)

6. Polka Dot Man (David Dastmalchian) 15. TDK (Nathan Fillion)

7. Rat Catcher 2 (Daniela Melchior) 16. Weasel (Sean Gunn)

8. Idris Elba (Bloodsport) 17. Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney)

9. King Shark (Steve Agee) 18. Peacemaker (John Cena)

The Snyder Cut = B

Probably the most anticipated panel of the day, with only "The Batman" panel competing for the top spot, Zack Snyder proudly discussed the fan-led mission to release the Snyder Cut. A part of his discussion was speaking with a couple of fans who served as leaders in the "Release the Snyder Cut" movement. Snyder also clarified the format of the cut, citing that it would be a 4-hour event released as a 4-part series. He also reported that they were looking at a way to bundle it altogether in the end, which is how I would prefer to watch it.

From the trailer below, the highlights for me were how much I still really hate Mamoa's Aquaman, Darkseid looking mightily ruthless, and a slightly different looking Steppenwolf (god he looked terrible in Justice League). Personally, I thought the best part of the trailer was the use of "Hallelujah" as the background song. I have a soft spot not only for that song, but for when beautiful, melancholic music is set to destructive and devastating visuals. Interestingly enough, DC appeared to pull a "Dark Phoenix" and spoiled a death in the trailer.

Am I excited for the Snyder Cut? Not really. I am very interested though and look forward to watching it. Will I praise Snyder for it? Absolutely not. He's going into this with the BIGGEST advantage any director has ever had: being able to re-do a movie knowing all the criticisms from the first cut.

Black Adam = A-

Going into this panel with no expectations and minimal knowledge of the character, I was quite surprised with how much I came out of this excited for the film. A large part of that was the hosting of Black Adam himself, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, and the enthusiasm he always brings to his projects. As seen in the teaser below, he provided an oral history of Black Adam with some storyboard-like graphics to lend a little more understanding of where this character is coming from. This was a great way of catching up the more casual fan to who this character is and why they should see the film. In addition to that, Dwayne cites how Black Adam is not only one of the most powerful characters, but that unlike the heroes, he does not practice any restraint with his powers.

For a lesser known character, I think it was important that DC provide some visuals and they didn't disappoint, because they gave us a 2nd teaser. This one was provided to introduce Black Adam's competition: the Justice Society. We see that Hawkman, Dr. Fate, Cyclone, and Atom Smasher will serve as the barriers to Black Adam. The Rock ended the panel by calling out all the DC heavy hitters and warned them that the "...hierarchy of power in the DC universe is gonna change".

Aquaman = F

I didn't care and, thus, paid little attention. But it didn't seem like anything important was revealed or addressed regarding the sequel. It was mostly a conversation between James Wan and Patrick Wilson. Wan said something about exploring "new worlds" in the sequel, but that's all you got to wet your whistle.

Shazam: Fury of the Gods = D

So we got the official title for Shazam 2, but little else. Zachary Levi opened with a semi-humorous skit about how the studio has handcuffed him with how much he can/can't say about the movie. He invited other cast members to the panel and they talked about how they can't talk about the secret cameo, or the new villains, or new powers. Sinbad joined in and they all made fun of the Mandela Effect regarding the Shazam movie that he starred in that never existed. He also demanded a role in Shazam 2, so it'll be interesting to see if they find a way to squeeze in a cameo for him (I doubt it).

WB Games - Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League = B-

Will Arnett introduced the teaser trailer for Rocksteady's Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, which is headed for a 2022 release. The teaser trailer shows a Braniac ship over Metropolis and four members of Task Force X: Deadshot, Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, and King Shark. You also hear Amanda Waller over a communicator. They show Superman being not so super, heat visioning a civilian to death, which indicates him as a target for Task Force X. What is also interesting is that this game is a continuation of the Arkham-verse and the same way that Gotham served as a sort of character in the Arkham games, Metropolis will be treated in a similar way.

The Batman = A

It's just my luck that the panel I was most interested in takes place at the very end. Matt Reeve's addressed a few interesting points about the film before giving a teaser trailer. The most interesting of his talking points was that they have only shot about 25% of the film thus far, so I wouldn't bother drawing too many story-based conclusions from the trailer. Reeves really honed in on the detective/mystery genre of the movie and described exploring the storied history of corruption in Gotham. This history will include an exploration of how the Wayne's were involved in where Gotham is today, and thus Bruce having to maybe face some unkind truths about his family's legacy. Reeve's also mentioned on multiple occasions how we will see iterations of many characters we have never seen before, like a newly emerging Riddler and an Oswald Cobblepot who hates being called "Penguin".

From the trailer, you can gather a decent sense of the rawness that this story will drag throughout. While I have my reservations about the emo-ish looking Bruce, I thought Pattinson's brief moment of "Batman voice" sounded appropriate for a young Batman in his 2nd year (which Reeves confirmed). The fighting looked like a strong mix of Nolan's realistic take and Snyder's raw brutality from BvS. It may just be due to the footage they had available, but this makes Riddler seem like he is the major antagonist of the film. I wrote an article around 5 years ago for another site where I discussed the best direction for the next Batman movie and the villains I'd like to see it focused on. This film appears to check all of my boxes, including a major role for The Riddler. For this, I am very excited. Can I buy my ticket now?

Of course, DC Fandome wasn't perfect. I did experience a few buffering issues, which was to be expected. The few times it happened a quick refresh fixed it instantly, so there was minimal impact on my experience. I thought that the event being limited to 24 hours was pretty inconsiderate to many fans who, for whatever reason, wouldn't be able to participate. I do hope they release all of the panels on Youtube or somewhere fans can catch up. While I enjoyed a decent amount of the fill-in content between the panels, a good deal of it felt repetitive and lacked entertainment value. I would have much preferred more of the animated Batman skits, like when old man Bruce and Terry McGinnis make fun of the eyebrows drawn on the Adam West Batman suit.

While I thought highly of the event, I'm sure DC will announce some level of statistics regarding fan participation and engagement to verify its success/failure. Should this event prove to be a success, then we will inevitably face the larger discussion of how this will impact comic conventions moving forward.

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Did you enjoy DC Fandome? Is this type of online event something you'd like to see more companies/studios host moving forward?