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[adamwatchesmovies]

Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (2020)

Justice League Dark: Apokolips War is sort of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies' answer to "Avengers: Endgame" but grittier, edgier and less impactful. If you've followed the series that began with Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox in 2012 it's probably worth checking out, though I wouldn't call it 100% satisfying.

After Superman (voiced by Jerry O'Connell) leads a disastrous attack against Darkseid (Tony Todd), most of the Justice League's members are crippled, killed, or forced to serve the galactic despot. Two years later, John Constantine (Matt Ryan), Raven (Taissa Farmiga), a de-powered Superman, Etrigan the Demon (Ray Chae) and Lois Lane (Rebecca Romijn) must scrape together what forces they can in a final, desperate gambit to free humanity and finish what they started.

This film wastes no time reminding you it's R-Rated. The heroes you love are dismembered, disemboweled, have their eyes gouged out, and die gruesomely minutes in. Yikes. I can understand wanting to show the attack on Apokolips went bad but you could've also left some carnage to the imagination. Trim the massacre and use the time to strengthen the story and characters. Although the film lasts 90 minutes, it moves so quickly there's hardly room to breathe as we go through a checklist of survivors. The Bat-family, Suicide Squad, Justice League," Dark" Justice League, Superman's supporting cast, and everyone in-between is confirmed dead or participating in this last-ditch effort as briefly as possible.

Several aspects of the story don't feel right. Superman suggests the Justice League attack Darkseid. Seems out of character. Just a few more lines could've cleared that up. Why's Harley Quinn (Hynden Walch) part of the main mission while Batgirl and Batwing are sent as distractions? She's just a loony with a gun! The few humourous reprieves don't land the way they should. It's nearly there consistently. The story isn't inherently bad but the execution leaves to be desired; like they just didn't have the time to hammer out all the kinks.

It's interesting to see a story that features a rag-tag team of heroes rather than the usual roster. Raven is particularly well utilized. Considering its home video destination, the animation is pretty good. If the objective is to shock and make it undoubtedly clear that this is it...JLD:AW certainly meets its objectives. Even the ending is well handled in the sense that it's all been foreshadowed and makes logical sense (even a little better than the way it was done in "Endgame") while still managing to surprise. If you've been enjoying the series, this is an appropriate conclusion to everything that's happened.

Justice League Dark: Apokolips War is accompanied by an Adam Strange short which is also excessively violent and morbid but is a nice bonus. Admit it. You're curious. Even though you're ready to be let down at least a bit, you want to see how it all ends. I'll say "sure, go ahead" but this isn't one you'll enthusiastically revisit. (On Blu-ray, June 21, 2020)

[psychodrive-in]

Today at http://psychodrivein.com Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (2020) Blu-ray Review Because they are actually wrapping up a continuity that had fifteen films overall, Apokolips War had a lot of heavy lifting to do storywise. --- Read more of Paul's review at the link in our profile! #justiceleague #justiceleaguedark #apokolipswar #justiceleaguedarkapokolipswar #mattryan #constantine #jerryoconnell #rosariodawson #tonytodd #taissafarmiga #johndimaggio #hyndenwalch #mairghreadscott #erniealtbacker #mattpeters #christinasotta #jmdematteis #butchlukic #adamstrange https://www.instagram.com/p/CAnzUiSHhwg/?igshid=1wsttgf81oiu