Injustice (2021) - Review

Zebediah Oke
Nov 10, 2021
4 min read

Updated: Dec 21, 2021

In recent years, we’ve become thirstier for complex villains and anti-heroes. With that in mind, it’s easy to understand why DC’s Injustice: Gods Among Us franchise has garnered such a fanbase. The Injustice video game (2013), it’s sequel Injustice: Gods Among Us and it’s comic book prequel have all paved the way, almost inevitably, for the animated iteration of this film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Co8529lF74Y

At the centre of Injustice’s premise is a simple rhetorical exercise: What if Superman lost the thing that mattered to him most? The film explodes outward from that question to surprising and unforeseen results. Over the course of the film, Superman begins to champion a reign of tyranny by preaching peace–one punch at a time, with Batman being forced (further) into the shadows as the leader of the resistance against the Man of Steel.

The most interesting thing about Injustice is (and this is neither a pro nor con) what this film reveals about the thought process of Superman (and those who write him). Clark Kent wasn’t dubbed “Boy Scout” by Lois Lane for nothing. Injustice reveals to us the puerile politics of Superman. As the Joker taunts Batman, the Dark Knight’s faith in Superman’s famous moral code never wavers: “He’ll continue to be the best man I’ll ever know”.

In his newfound quest for global peace (through intimidation and strong-arming), Superman’s first order of business is to depose the President of Bialya (a fictitious, Middle Eastern country). Next, he looms over a peace treaty between Israel and Palestine.

The cataclysmic event that pushes Superman over the edge, happens on American soil and is committed by an American citizen. It’s interesting (and perhaps telling) that his first course of action is to patrol countries of majority Brown citizens. America is the concubine of his pain–Not Bialya, Not Palestine, Not Apokolips–and is infamous for destabilising Black and Brown countries, enforcing dictators and generally disrupting the democratic process of country’s for their own gains. Yet Superman flies to Brown countries to flex his power.

Superman’s goodness depends on a basic grasp of morality–a childish: war bad, peace good mindset with very little systemic understanding of how these societal ills flourish.

This is addressed later somewhat, when Superman stops an American drone strike on a known terrorist. He’s met with the full callousness of the American government, who kidnap his father, but his understanding (or underestimation) of America’s brutal foreign policy and America’s domestic violence is his greatest failing. This Superman isn’t politically astute enough, which (to some) was part of his charm, but is quickly becoming his greatest weakness in an age where the world doesn’t need to see grand, complex, agents of chaos to recognise villainy, but instead are resisting the banality of evil, and have begun to see superheroes not solely as great men and women who save the world, but as upholders of a broken world.

Flows

Damien and Dick

The chemistry between these Bat protégés is something that I was very fond of in the DCAMU and their brotherly dynamic carries into Injustice well. Damian Wayne is such a complex figure and his constant clashing with his older adopted brother goes beyond just petty squabbles and is centered deep within the moral code of their upbringings. They still, however, love one another in a way that is palpable in this film, which is something

Batman

This current animated universe of The Tomorrowverse is showing Batman in a far more flawed light. In The Long Halloween, we saw a glimpse of a man who hasn’t yet become the great dark detective that we’re so accustomed to. Instead, we have a man with all the capable brawns trying to unravel an impossible mystery. Similarly, in Injustice, rather than an infallible hero who, with prep time, becomes thick with plot armour and popularity invulnerability—we see a Batman who, faced with the moral erosion of his best friend, is struggling to pull it together emotionally and strategically. Fear not, though. If the narratively invincible version of Batman is what you want—he still comes up with a gallery of genius-bordering-on-heinous plots that we’ve come to love from The Dark Knight.

Harley Quinn

Gillian Jacobs voice work for Harley, who is EXCEPTIONAL.

Ebbs

The Flash

Since Grant Gustin’s CW portrayal of The Flash in the Arrowverse, I have to admit, I’ve grown fond of seeing him on-screen. Couple this with the animated masterpiece of The Flashpoint Paradox and we can see why this character is such an integral part of the Justice League. This makes it all the more infuriating that he dies in the quickest (and also, most nonsensical) way possible. The Joker may be a criminal mastermind but having the world’s fastest man killed so suddenly and nonchalantly is one of the worst parts of this film.

Knuckles

I don’t know why everyone’s knuckles are black rhombuses but I don’t like it.

Conclusion

Following the duological release of Batman: The Long Halloween, you can’t help but wonder why an event as vast, morally complex and narratively rich as Injustice wouldn’t be adapted similarly into a two-part epic. Or even an animated series. Superman’s descent into tyranny (amongst other plot points) feels less like a fluid freefall and more like a jutting stagger, that is way too abrupt, far too often. Injustice will undoubtedly be compared to the infighting of Captain America: Civil War or the body horror of Invincible, however it seems more like it’s trying to reproduce the unique conditions which made Justice League: Flashpoint Paradox so popular. It mostly succeeds in that reproduction but with the social commentaries of both The Boys and Invincible already asking the questions that Injustice seeks to answer, I wonder if the depth Injustice tries to bring isn’t already being explored elsewhere, at greater length.