Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths - Part Two

Now the first part of the movie is great. Kara, Psycho Pirate, Harbinger, Monitor were essential to the Crisis Saga. It is great to see them fleshed out in this reimagination. The new harbinger twist is great and connects the story better than the original version.

Then as the movie progresses it gets mired in the shadow demon arc in a bad way. Instead of focusing on telling a good story and trusting in it, you notice how DC falls back to it's safe space, pandering to its base by fanservicing popular characters like the Batfamily and Wonder Woman despite their irrelevance at the point in the story. An endless boring fightscene is only rarely interrupted for plot progression. Now strategically, DC probably know what they are doing. They know their fanbase well and if Batman is here they will come. But from a storytelling perspective and for the quality of the movie, it is a terrible decision.

Also, the animation quality needs to step into this millenia.

The premise of Crisis Part 1 was intriguing enough to wait for this sequel, but I was mislead. Part 2 is dry, convoluted, disjointed and just plain subpar for DC. Disposal characters come and go. Storylines are hinted at and then left unfinished. Overstuffed and bloated theatrics that leaves the viewer starving for real substance. Such a disappointment as there was so much material to work with and work from. I stopped caring about plot points and character development within the first 30 minutes. I suffered through the entirety to make sure it didn't uptick in the final waning moments. Trust me. It just didn't stick the landing.

What a disaster.... DC animation used to be the gold standard for superhero content but now it's a mere shadow of its former self. The storytelling is a convoluted mess that fails to respect its characters or the audience's time; it's unbelievable this concept got a 3 movie deal. Most of the Bat Family gets key jangled in front of you but they all come across as emotionally inept, constantly bickering during the most crucial moments of a multiversal crisis. Jensen Ackles himself delivers yet another lackluster performance. I honestly have no idea how he could sound so bored voicing Batman. Doesn't matter if it's a voice actor like Keven Conroy or a film actor like Christian Bale, they had different tones for different scenes. Ackles never diverts his pitch from sounding mildly annoyed. Unfortunately the animation itself also took a significant downgrade since their previous iteration with Jason O'Mara. It's difficult to see the characters and world you grew up loving look so bland and uninspired. Moreover when theoretically they could do absolutely anything with these characters within the multiverse concept. With everyone upping their animation game (Into the Spiderverse, TMNT, Arcane, X-Men97, Cyberpunk, etc), it's very concerning to see DC diving head first in the wrong direction.

Where to start.... the continuity and flow of movie/episode was all over the place. The first movie left no real impression and this followed on from. It places focus on characters individually and not as a collective. I don't know what to call this, it doesn't feel like a movie as such more so stints and pieces of different characters trying to achieve the same goal and fighting the same enemy. Hard to believe Flash is so fast he missed Charles. Really use to look forward to DC movies, they had so much good stock but it's just slowly got worse and worse as they've aged. I know DC has always had a serious tone to it, which is what I've enjoy from DC but this seemed more flat above anything else.

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two" falls short of expectations, straying far from its source material and struggling with pacing and coherence. While the animation quality is adequate, the film fails to capture the essence of the beloved comic storyline.

One of the few bright spots is the innovative reimagining of Supergirl as Harbinger, which adds an interesting twist to the narrative. However, this creative decision isn't enough to salvage the overall experience.

The movie's biggest flaw lies in its confusing narrative structure. Viewers are left disoriented, unable to discern which Earth the characters are on at any given moment. This lack of clarity is exacerbated by the apparent emptiness of these worlds, failing to convey any real sense of danger or urgency to the multiverse-spanning crisis.

Pacing issues plague the film, with an excessive focus on Psycho Pirate's backstory that feels unnecessary and detracts from the main plot. The editing does the story no favors, further muddling an already convoluted narrative.

For fans of the original comic, this adaptation may prove disappointing. The film's departure from the source material is so significant that it's difficult to recognize the beloved story within this interpretation.

Ultimately, "Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Two" feels like a missed opportunity. Perhaps a future edit combining all three parts of this series, significantly trimmed down, could result in a more cohesive and engaging experience. As it stands, however, this installment fails to do justice to its epic source material.

Rating: 3/10 stars.