These are where DC truly shined. Even above the Marvel Animated Universe, the DC Animated Movies were a grand success and it is clear why. Not all of them were part of the same universe, such as this one, but there is an actual reason for this. Crisis on Two Earths is one of the movies, such as Doomed, that was originally going to be part of the DCAU, but was scrapped. It would bridge the gap between Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. So, instead, we are given a masterful iteration of the Justice League.The voice acting, the action and the dialogue, all of it rings true with a real story behind it.
While the idea of an evil Justice League dates way back to the early days of comics, this movie brings it to a real conflict of ideas having to do with existance itself. James Wood voices Owlman, Earth 2's version of Batman, and he deserves an award for this performance. He is serious, he is calculating, and he is a strategist bent on destroying existance itself. He is part of the Crime Syndicate, an evil version of the Justice League. Ultra Man, the evil Superman, leads them like a gang and has several different lieutenant on the field who also have super powers. The heroes of this universe are all but dead, wiped out by the Crime Syndicate, all down to their last man, Lex Luthor.
Luthor of Earth 2 is the only one who is in this movie, while Earth 1's Luthor is seen to be in prison, reading a book. He goes to Earth 1 to enlist the help of the Justice League, saying that his team is dead and Ultra Man is planning something that will make his ownership of the world all but a certainty. The only thing standing in their way is the American president threat of nuclear retaliation. To gain the advantage, the Crime Syndicate needs a device that will allow them to destroy the entire planet. Owlman, however, decides he wants to destroy Earth Prime, the first planet and the only one that truly matters in the grand scheme of things. If Earth Prime is destroyed, reality is destroyed.
The real fun of this movie starts when the Justice League come to Earth 2 and meet the Crime Syndicate's smaller gang members with lesser super powers. The fight between them is very charming and very large nods toward actual super villains and heroes of DC. There is even a lesser Wonder Woman besides Super Woman later in the film and Wonder Woman's conviction to defeat her is very telling of her character and shows that they understood her to a deeper level.
It is not just a slug fest of two super powered opposites, while there is a good bit of that. It is always fun to see Superman take on Ultra Man and the two of them show which one is stronger and how they get the upper hand. Lex Luthor shows that he is also quite resourceful for the fight, though, and he is seen as the ultimate good in Earth 2 with his genius being able to match the powers of his opponents. It is good to see that they understood that he needed to be the seen as the one who claimed victory, as it would call heroes to his aid and ensure its continued prosperity.
There are so many elements of DC represented in this movie, it's really hard to not just go straight into the entire plot beat by beat. The scenes with the Flash being hynotized, Martian Manhunter's rescue of the President's daughter, and Green Lantern's game of paper, rock, scissors, it all just added charm and little touches to this movie's entertainment value. However, there is one element that stands out above all else, and I only touched on the surface of it.
Owlman is the hidden ultimate evil in this film. While Ultra Man is the leader of the evil gang, Owlman is the one who is even undermining him with his efforts. Destroying the Earth was already an evil enough plan, destroying Earth Prime would erase literally everything, but that is what Owlman believes is the only thing that would matter. He is an empty shell of Batman, as he gave into the abyss and believed that nothing truly mattered. The big problem is, when Batman fights him, Owlman is superior in both technology and hand-to-hand combat. It's one of this movie's little faults that Batman didn't put up a better fight, but in the end, he proved to be the winning strategist.
When the Crime Syndicate invade the Justice League's base in order to gain the device for the bomb, this is when they decide to expand their roster. They call upon prospective members of the league and they fight the Crime Syndicate's strongest lieutenants and Super Woman. Batman is able to subdue her and bring her back to Earth 2, which is also another one of this film's greatest scenes.
Crisis on Two Earths is my favorite movie in the DC Universe, and that's up against Batman vs Robin and Justice League The New Frontier. This animated series of DC movies would prove to be far more popular and profitable for WB and it was clear that they let them write their own movies. It's just such a shame that the DCEU couldn't be a similar success. Which movies I review will be up in the air, because I plan to touch on both. There is a lot to say about the entire run, and even if I haven't watched all of them, they're not hard to find. There shall be plenty of animated DC, though, these movies are just too good to pass on. Get ready for some exploring of the quality spectrum, from Son of Batman to Joss Whedon's Justice League... Virtua Help Us...
