Justice Society: World War 2 – DC Universe Movie (2021)

Justice Society: World War II – DC Universe Movie (2021) was nice, but… no animated feature by Jeff Wamester deserves more than three stars, in my opinion. Not even his latest, 2023!

It’s an old-fashioned cartoon made using 2020s techniques. Unfortunately, the story, dialogue and characters are seriously lacking in substance. The drawing style, reminiscent of an 80s anime – and I couldn’t decide whether this was to fit in with a “World War II” era or simply to look retro – scared me a little at first, not particularly wanting to watch a deliberately retro anime, but I ended up enjoying it. Admittedly, it’s not the best DC series, but it’s a pleasant one nonetheless.

Note that the “Justice Society” is to the “Justice League” what the League of Nations is to the UN.

I’ve found violent reviews that say:

1. A superb superhero turnip signed of course by DC comics.

And animated! I was expecting a film with a script, fights, a story, even a silly story. Well, nothing like that, despite the presence of some of my favorite superheroes: Wonder Woman, Flash, Aquaman, Superman, etc.: nothing at all.

DC comics is sinking into mediocrity.

The characters are bland, the dialogue flat.

2. Not great, it’s watchable like all DC anime, but it’s far from the best iterations.

The animation is pretty ugly, the story has been seen over and over again, and this movie is pretty much full of DC clichés: WARNING SPOILER: Hawkman dies like a turd, Wonder Woman‘s tragic love story (WW), Flash changes timeline/universe again by mistake.

3. … argh, the cup is full. We’ve reached creative zero. DC is falling asleep on its laurels and risks ruining one of the last things they did that wasn’t too bad!
4. Justice Society: World War II is an average cartoon.

To its credit, the film does have a relatively original plot: propelling the Flash character during World War II into a conflict that’s bigger than him. But beyond that, the subplots and characters aren’t necessarily memorable.

The animation is quite good, and the dubbing is top-notch. After that, the film doesn’t necessarily stay in your memory for long, because in the end, Flash‘s adventure isn’t really thrilling. It’s watchable, but nothing more.

5. After “Superman: Man Of Tomorrow“, DC Comics continues its new momentum with “Justice Society: World War II“. While I found the beginning of this new universe to be of rather good quality, this film, on the contrary, really left me indifferent, as it seems to repeat the same very basic formula of the old DC Animated Movie Universe. By this I mean an uninteresting storyline with unlovable and underdeveloped characters, plus a quickly forgettable ensemble. So yes, I don’t have much to say about the work, as I always feel like I’m repeating myself with DC Comics animated films. Going back to the Second World War could have been an interesting choice, but the film never manages to make the story credible or well-written. Flash magically and grotesquely arrives in this era, just to justify it in a hurry. The battle between Superman and Brainiac in our own time is, as a result, completely overshadowed while we’re talking about Brainiac! One of the most powerful enemies in the universe! And on the other hand, when it comes to this era, nothing really interesting is dealt with, and we’re left with all the basic clichés, seen and re-seen, about Nazis, Hitler and so on… It’s simply incredible to have an idea that can be really interesting and to treat it in this way! The only point where the feature does a little better than its predecessor is that it has fewer “blank” moments and the music is therefore better used. But apart from that, I really don’t recommend this film, which is yet another monstrous waste of time for such a forgettable result. In conclusion, another pointless film.

I found these reviews quite fair, even if quite different on some points of view.

But I think they give a good synthesis.