I Bought JUSTICE LEAGUE Tickets — But I’m Not Exactly Excited

Not buyer’s remorse as much as buyer’s concern…

The other day, I got the alert that Justice League tickets were on sale and I could snap them up if I were so inclined.

Now, ordinarily, you’d think I’d leap enthusiastically at the chance to see DC’s best and brightest together on the big screen for the first time. After all, I’ve been reading the adventures of the World’s Greatest Super-Heroes (sorry, Marvel) since I was in short pants, as the saying goes.

I’m pretty sure this was the first JLA comic I owned. Cover by Nick Cardy.

Except… except…

Except that I have virtually zero optimism that this is a movie I actually want to see. Hopeful, yes. Optimistic, no.

Last year, I wrote a piece about how I decided that I wasn’t going to see Suicide Squad because the critics were so savage. (Final Rotten Tomatoes score: 26 percent favorable.)

See, after the lamentable Man of Steel and the unpleasant Batman v. Superman, I no longer felt compelled to go to the multiplex to see DC’s blockbusters simply because they existed. I have no strong connection to Suicide Squad, so any compulsion to “see for myself” was absent. Hey, let the critics do their jobs, I figured, and listen to the advice, which is what reviews really are.

I still haven’t seen it, and I’m happier knowing that I’ve made good use of those 2 hours and 17 minutes, even if that time was spent, say, scrubbing the bathtub or sweeping the front stairs, two of the many chores I actively try to strong-arm my kid into doing.

But Justice League? How can I not go? Good or bad, I need to see this double-director Frankenstein’s monster with my own eyes. And how can I not see it Nov. 16, the first night — because if the damn thing turns about to be good, I don’t want to chance upon spoilers.

So I’m kind of over a barrel of my own making.

Not that I’m completely down on the whole thing. I liked Wonder Woman and I thought Gal Gadot was the best thing about Batman v. Superman, so any extra screen time with her is more than welcome. I also think Jason Momoa has a personality bigger than his pecs. But it’s Joss Whedon’s late-stage appearance, despite the tragic circumstances, that give me the best reason to think that maybe, just maybe, things will turn out OK.

Gotta say, though, that despite the noticeably upbeat tone of the trailers, this movie looks like it was CGI’d within an inch of its grimy life.

Nevertheless, I’ve already wagered $42.26 that the time spent watching Justice League will be worth it.

Because I really don’t want to spend 119 minutes wondering if I’d been better off mopping the kitchen floor.

Author: Dan Greenfield

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6 Comments

  1. JUSTICE LEAGUE has a lot going for it! Ezra Miller appears to be a hoot, Jason Momoa looks loaded for bear, J K Simmons is droller than Alfred at a Starbucks and Jeremy Irons appears to be well-positioned as the Voice Of Reason. With Ben Affleck gathering up all of the super friends and Gal Gadot leading the charge against parademons, the simple miracle of WONDER WOMAN to keep it real should pay forward for JUSTICE LEAGUE to make it really epic with heart and soul; as long as Joss remembers what drove him here and Patty remembers what got her here, those two titans alone are enough to deliver the goods 😀

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  2. The look for the Flash makes no sense and in my world Cyborg will always be a Teen Titian. But, I’m excited to see more WW and Bat-Man. The story itself holds little to no excitement for me. And, I fear Superman’s return will be rushed. I hope I am so wrong on this. But, DC has gotten so little right lately.

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  3. That $42 would have been better spent on the Blu Ray for SUPERMAN Extended Version (1978) and with the change get some Little Debbie cakes and a bag of hamburgers, at least they knew how to make a movie back then.

    I’ve not seen Wonder Woman or Suicide Squad, but I made the mistake of taking the whole studio to see Batman V Superman (even after it’d been out for a while and hearing the rotten reviews I had to see it for myself) and laughed out loud at several meant to be serious scenes. Utter piece of garbage, much like Man of Steel.

    If we all blindly keep going to these things, and this one looks particularly idiotic with the heroes all looking like they were dressed by the same tailor (Superman’s red matches Wonder Woman’s and Flash, etc) they will just keep making garbage. At least CIVIL WAR or Captain America 3 (or whatever it was called) had a story with LIKEABLE characters that actually made sense. I grew up a DC guy too but that doesn’t mean I’ll blindly follow them now that they can’t tell stories.

    But it’s good to be optimistic.
    The expectations for this thing are so low I can’t see how it won’t be better than expected.

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  4. I have high expectations this will turn out to be Wonder Women 2. And her supporting cast. Good thing

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