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The newest rendition ofSupermanis coming to the big screen soon enough. Directed byJames Gunnand starring actor David Corenswet as the iconic man of steel, this DC hero will hopefully usher in a new slate of superhero movies and television shows. Following this comic book name, others are already confirmed to have a place in theDCU, like Batman inThe Brave and the Boldand even Wonder Woman, when her birthplace nation materializes inParadise Lost. While those productions are still in the beginning phases of being made, comic book fans are probably scouring all across the internet looking for anything that relates to this new cinematic universe.
Remember the dark and gritty fan film based on the Power Rangers from many years ago? Adi Shankar, one of the producers on that short (also named by GQ in 2014 to be one of the Most Influential Global Indian Men), went on to become a showrunner and decided to make a live-action satire series based on one of the biggest comic book companies in the world. He would have his version of Superman (Marvelous Man) kill himself on live television, and then a washed-up, fed-up-with-the-world Batman (Knight Hawk) would investigate what really happened. While various other members of Shankar’s own Justice League would make appearances, this otherworldly take on DC’s strongest heroes was a tale full of secrets and hidden agendas inThe Guardians of Justice.
Merging Animation With Live Action in ‘The Guardians of Justice’
The Guardians of Justice (Will Save You!)
Originally calledGods and Secretsin 2015 and set for HBO (any correlation to the slate called Gods and Monsters?), this limited series then settled on the name ofThe Guardians of Justiceand told its twisted and tragic tale within only seven episodes. The first thing viewers will notice is the insanenumber of referencesthroughout the show. Not only do we have characters created off of the Trinity (Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman), but there are plenty of other revisionist names, like The Speed, King Tsunami, Awesome Man, Blue Scream, Black Bow, Little Wing, Red Talon (The Flash, Aquaman, Shazam, Black Canary, Green Arrow, Robin, Red Hood). The list goes on.
There are even characters modeled after Lex Luthor and The Joker! However, to be fair, the budget for the live-action scenes isn’t great — worse than the worst CW show (choose your least favorite). SinceThe Guardians of Justiceis by all means a parody, the lesser quality in those sequences doesn’t hurt so much. What lifts this show out of your typical comedic superhero spoof, though, isthe animation that is mixed intoevery episode.
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Whether the special effects were bringing in pop culture themes from the ’80s and ’90s or helping to add depth where the budget could not, this is whereThe Guardians of Justiceshined. A 16-bit design for fights, comic book panels to explain the origins of heroes, Sepia Spider (a take on the Blue Beetle) even gets a cartoon-brought-to-life version of the Scarab (think of Miss Minutes) while fighting enemies. Towards the end, this creative choice is used to its fullest potential when Knight Hawk has to face off with an enemy bigger than the Earth itself. Shankar’s attention to expanding this world by constructing a tether between live-action and animation shows a unique way of tellingthis dark story about heroeswith imperfections.
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Some of the most climactic moments areexpressed through digital artistry— like what drove Marvelous Man to madness and why Knight Hawk is really stepping up — but it all fits into the surreal feel of the show. As a whole, the show goes from being a Justice League murder mystery to a deceptive thriller with control of the earth hanging in the balance. The various and colorful transitions help to remind the audience that while the thematic ideas can be quite serious (drug use, queer representation, totalitarian governments), the essence of comic books will always be the inspirational basis behindThe Guardians of Justice.
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These great parodies of the now immensely popular superhero movies playfully ask, “Why so serious?”
Just as Gunn planned to have synchronicity between live-action and animated productions, Shankar had a unique goal when acquiring his cast. He wanted to give thosehe felt were typecasta chance at a different role. In an interview withPaste Magazine, this would convey “the feeling of various worlds coming together.” This not only meant bringing people in from different countries, like Australian actress Sharni Vinson as The Speed, Danish Brigitte Nielsen as Anubis Queen, and Kenyan-American actor Edi Gathegi as Mr. Smiles. The motto was also implemented on a deeper level as professional wrestlers Diamond Dallas Page and John Hennigan (playing Knight Hawk and Red Talon) have equal roles, such as RJ Mitte, who is an actor diagnosed with cerebral palsy (he plays Mind Master).
For Shankar to think about this while making such anoff-the-wall satire about DCis unprecedented.If you want to seeThe Guardians of Justicefor yourself, the seven-part look into an alternate DC is currently available to stream onNetflix.
