A recurring theme in the DC Universe is life and death. In this phase, we will look at this. In the comics, many major characters have
died and come back to life, and we have already done this with Superman. Now we will do it with other people in the DC
Cinematic Universe. We also have the
first time where ordinary people oppose the actions of the heroes because they
are unaware of how bad things would be without the actions of the heroes. In the end, we leave everything stable,
allowing for a new arc of movies to be developed following these.
Green Lantern: War of
the Rings
The Guardians are at odds over how to deal with the
appearances of the new corps, each wielding rings which allow them to tap into
the power of part of the emotional spectrum.
Some of them want to guide and nurture them, others want to destroy
them. The Guardians split over the
issue, with some choosing to stay and try to integrate the corps together, and
others leaving to forge a new police force to protect the universe … inhuman,
unfeeling machines called manhunters. It
is up to the Green lantern corps assisted by members of the other corps to put
aside their differences in order to stop the manhunters from destroying them
all.
In a post-credits scene, we see a manhunter, damaged and
failing invade the mind of Jean Loring, the wife of the Atom. Fade out on Jean’s eyes glowing with the glow
of the manhunter’s powers.
Superman: New Krypton
Braniac arrives on Earth with a message for Superman. He has “preserved” a Kryptonian city and has
found a suitable planet where they can rebuild a new Kryptonian society. Superman decides to visit new Krypton and is
attacked and imprisoned. He learns that
Braniac and a group of Kryptonian villains are conquering planets, and Earth is
next on their dance card. With the help
of a Kryptonian resistance, Superman escapes back to earth, where, aided by his
new friends, he defeats Braniac’s forces, who are taken back to New Krypton to
be imprisoned for their crimes.
In a post-credits scene we see three Kryptonians who died
rise wearing black rings. The leave New
Krypton and start flying towards Earth.
Batman: Identity
Crisis
Investigating the death of a close friend of the Flash,
Batman discovers that this is just the latest in a strong of murders involving
those close to super heroes. His
investigation takes him into the depths of the criminal mind, where he learns a
terrible secret: that none of the heroes’ secrets are safe. One of their own has chosen to hunt them
down, starting with their closest confidantes.
Jean Loring, the wife of Ray Palmer, known in the super hero community
as the Atom is working to kill as many heroes as she can in preparation for a
war that will threaten the very existence of life itself.
In a post credits scene, we see one of the loved ones killed
during the movie rise with a black ring on their hand.
Justice League:
Blackest Night
The Justice League joins an epic war between the forces of
Life and Death. The forces of Death,
wearing black rings seek to exterminate all life from the universe. To accomplish this, they are raising the dead
and sending them out to kill. To defeat
them, the Justice League must seek out the Force of Life, the white light of
creation itself, which had been split apart into the colors of the emotional
spectrum and created the color corps that are led by the Guardians. Some of that power must be reintegrated into
a new lantern corps to defeat death.
In a post-credits scene, we see the white light of life
casting about the universe for a new host and we hear a voice chanting life
must be served, life must be served.
Wonder Woman: Amazon
Queen
Wonder Woman must join her sisters as they are caught in the
middle of a schism between the gods. The
war on the eternal plane threatens to destroy the Amazons, along with all of
humankind unless Wonder Woman and the Amazons can find a way to stop the war of
the gods from spreading. They learn that
Hades is the one who started it all, but stopping him is not enough. They have to battle the gods themselves and
seal them in the eternal realm where they can’t threaten the mortal world any
more.
In the post-credits scene, we see the god Mercury looking at
the world and stretching his hand out at a red blur and he says speed is my
gift, it is mine to reclaim.
The Flash: The Need
for Speed
Battling with Professor Zoom, the Flash suddenly comes to a
stop. The speed force, which he and Zoom
tap into to achieve their super speed has disappeared. The Flash tries everything to regain his
powers and discovers that the seed force has been drawn together and given life
as the Speed Demon. Faster and stronger
than the Flash ever was, the Speed Demon is going to go back in time and stop
humans from ever evolving. The Flash
gets thrown back in time to battle the Speed Demon and reclaim his mantle as
the fastest man alive.
In a post-credits scene, we see as if through a fisheye lens
ringed with white light, Flash brings a murderer into the police station and we
hear a voice saying “this one will do fine.”
Green Arrow: Social
Justice
With the world at peace, Green Lantern has little to do
since the end of the Blackest Night.
When he helps put out an apartment building fire, he is stopped by an
older African American gentleman who asks him why he helps aliens but has done
nothing to better the situation of people on his own planet. Facing a crisis of conscience, he seeks out
the advice of his friend Green Arrow, who has made it his heroes’ business to
help those he believes to be oppressed.
The two collaborate on a case where GL learns that sometimes it is
better to follow the spirit of the law rather than the letter of the law.
In a post-credits scene, we see the murderer from the
post-credits scene at the end of Need for Speed being sentenced to death.
Justice League:
Brightest Day
A killer is put to death, but then is enveloped by a white
light and disappears. Later, long dead
people start to return to their lives as if they had never died. The White Light of Life has claimed the
killer as the White Lantern, which brings life from death. Realizing that the world will be thrown into
turmoil if this continues, the Justice League seeks to de-integrate the white
light of life and return balance to life and death, but they find themselves
opposed by not only the White Lanterns, but by everyday people as well, who
don’t want to lose their loved ones again.
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