Summary
Smallvillehas givenDCfans the coming-of-age journey of Clark Kent before becoming Superman. It has also given a preview of his Justice League future. Season 6, episode 11 brought many of the founding Justice League members together to save Bart Allen from Lex Luthor.
It’s a unique adventure for its preview of a budding Justice League before most of the characters ever decided to don a suit and commit to fighting crime as a superhero, let alone as a team. The short-lived relationship dynamics unfolding onscreen leave viewers both wanting to see more of this ad-hoc team, and unsurprised by their reason to part ways. This is a common struggle among Justice League members that has not had a chance to be adapted in live-action projects. DC Studios should view thisSmallvilleepisode as a potential preview of what a live-action pre-Justice Leagueseries could be in the newDCU.
RELATED:Should DC Return To Smallville?
Smallville’s Justice Episode Teases Justice League
Smallville’s “Justice” episode is one of its most comical, fun, and illustrative of a potential pre-Justice Leagueseries. Arthur Curry/Aquaman and Victor Stone/Cyborg’s dynamics are reminiscent of an odd couple, buddy-cop film. Even Clark Kent and Bart Allen/Impulse, who acts like the little brother Clark never had, have their quips. It’s an overall fantastic live-action, youngJustice Leagueteaser that DC Studios should consider building on for their future television offerings. Afterall, as Chloe states:
“You have some pretty amazing friends, Clark Kent.”
Most ofSmallville’s Clark Kent’s"pretty amazing friends," as far as the founding members of the Justice League go, have either led a film or series. But they have yet to simultaneously lead a series that chronicles their journey to fight crime as a team. There’s potential in dramatizing these heroes' pre-Justice League days as acoming-of-agestory that details their relationships and motivations to fight crime, and how they decided to form a team. Victor Stone said it best:
“Not everybody flies solo, Kent.”
However, these heroes were mostly loners before this episode. They came together out of necessity to save a mutual friend. This kind of motivation to fight crime as a team doesn’t always last long because it’s usually not their preferred method. Crafting a compelling reason that challenges these lone heroes to band together by choice, as opposed to doing so out of necessity for the greater good, can be the catalyst for apotentialJustice Leagueseries. LikeSmallville, it could follow the story of a few high school teenagers trying to figure out how to use their gifts and skills for good, and, eventually, together as a team.
Why DC Studios Should Consider A Live-Action Pre-Justice League Series
Considering recent DC film history, there’s no guarantee that the upcoming DCU reboot will correct the poor handling of their live-action cinematic franchises. Their television offerings have often garnered more praise than many of their box office outings. A live-action Justice League series could mitigate these challenges while maintaining the trust of fans should the potential series go the distance, not unlikeSmallville.
DC Studios may, however, want to reserve their key franchise players for films to entice fans to go to the theaters. From a marketing perspective, it can be advantageous to demarcate the parameters of how superheroes, such as Superman or Batman, appear in films versus television. Aside from these more popular live-action film heroes not appearing in television projects, the next option for a series would be to go theSmallvilleroute and forgo the “cape and suit” to focus onthecoming-of-agestoryline.
Alternatively, DC Studios could also leverage some of DC’s many alternative characters. For instance, instead of Clark Kent as Superman, there could beTitan’s Conner Kent as Superboy. Naturally, this path would lead to the formation of a different Justice League than the conventional one fans are most familiar with. That, however, could also be an attractive television project as the series could focus on less-known members of the Justice League.DC’s Alternative Live-Action Pre-Justice League Series
After the success ofTitans, the door has opened for more opportunities to produce series based on younger heroic DC teams. If a teen drama featuring heroes who would become founding members of the Justice League is out of the question for DC Studios, then the next viable alternative could be a live-action adaptation ofYoung Justice. This team resembles their more mainstream counterpart but have a lot more to prove as potential candidates. Whether a potentiallive-actionYoung Justiceseriesshould focus on the pre-suitcoming-of-agestory or suited heroism is debatable. That said, the unique premise is still the most rare one: thecoming-of-agefantasy drama, sans super suit.
The Justice League consists of several members. Focusing on the founding members, however, for a live-action series would be redundant considering their popularity among fans and likely theatrical projects. DC Studios could, instead, use this opportunity to feature lesser-known members or the younger potential candidates in a live-action series. This would permit DC to continue building the fanbase for both the Justice League and less-mainstream characters, who could later crossover into DCU films. Knowing that James Gunn is taking inspiration from past DC Studios projects is reassuring. Hopefully, he’s also taking a look atSmallvillefor inspiration for a live-action pre-Justice Leagueseries in the newDCU.
DC
DC is a brand of superhero comics, television shows, movies, video games, merchandise, and more. The company owns the rights to popular characters like Batman, The Suicide Squad, Green Arrow, Wonder Woman, and many more.
MORE:Why DC Should Feature Different Versions Of Their Main Heroes In Films
