How the Flash movie can get the DC Extended Universe back on track
By Shah Shahid
The DC Extended Universe has been stumbling from its inception with some minor to outlandish missteps. But the Flash movie could get it all back on track, but not in the way that you would think.
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With the poor performance of Justice League at the box office, the movie that was supposed to be Warner Brothers version of the MCU Avengers, the DCEU is in a sort of disarray. While Wonder Woman exceeded expectations, the hit / miss record of the DCEU leaves a lot to be desired.
Their next release comes in December with the solo Aquman movie starring Jason Momoa, arguably one of the best things about Justice League, and is directed by James Wan. Aquaman was completed during the release of Justice League, so by all accounts, DC and WB were not able to interfere with Wan’s vision as an overreaction to Justice League. As they have done with every DCEU movie so far.
After losing multiple directors, the solo hero Flash movie has finally settled on John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein to tell the story of the Scarlet Speedster. Here’s hoping that with the coming months, the story and over all direction of the Flash movie is realized.
So let’s take a look at just how the Flash movie can redeem the DCEU.
No Reboot!
The most popular theory is that the Flash movie, tentatively titled Flashpoint, may reset the entire DCEU, wiping the slate clean and allowing for them to correct all their mistakes and start fresh. In the comics, Flashpoint is a storyline where Barry Allen goes to the past and saves his mother from being murdered, thereby creating an alternative reality in present day, that is much worse.
I say no! While the reboot method may be the easiest way to go, there are a lot of good things in the DCEU which will be sacrificed as a result of a reboot.
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If characters are recast, then we lose the embodiment of Wonder Woman that Gal Gadot is, and the physicality of Henry Cavill, who looks like he leaped off the pages of a Superman comic. Not to mention Jason Momoa and a (apparently) just as muscle bound J. K. Simmons.
So Flashpoint needs to more reset the approach with which WB and DC have created this universe. Stop interfering with the vision of directors they hire and have faith in their abilities to tell this story.
Okay. Maybe a Soft Reboot.
While a hard resetting of the entire DCEU negating all the awesome stories and origins that we’ve already gotten may not be the best way to go, a soft reboot would be more preferable. Similar to what Fox did with X-Men: Days Of Future Past.
Fox’s X-Men universe rebooted after Days Of Future Past, they were able to move on, and tell new stories with (mostly) new cast members, while still retaining the versions of characters that worked from its previous incarnation, along with the actors that portrayed them. They simply moved on.
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DC & WB need to similarly use Flashpoint to tell a story that serves as an introduction to the Flash and set up his world first, without worrying about a larger DCEU. Co-Director John Francis Daley already mentioned that the time travel and inception of a possible Flashpoint storyline could be as a result of an inexperienced Flash just testing his powers. The reality altering at the end of which, could be minor tweaks and changes to the more, unfavorable elements of the established DCEU, instead of wiping the slate clean altogether.
We could then move forward to tell solo-hero stories that are not beholden to the moments of the DCUE that didn’t resonate, and shift towards a better shared universe from that point onwards.
Not really a reset, but a modification of current events, an alteration in the time line that corrects elements of the DCEU that haven’t quite worked.
The Flash As A Character
Warner Brothers has attempted to ‘lighten’ the tone of their dark and gritty universe with humor, by having it be shoehorned into existing stories and films, after the fact.
But the Flash is the one character who is inherently light-hearted and funny. Barry Allen is a hopeful young man, despite tragedy in his past, who still remains optimistic and retains hope in the face of soul crushing life events. His entire life and career as a forensic analyst stemmed from wanting to prove his father’s innocence after being convicted of murdering his mother.
So the movie should accordingly reflect those attributes with a hero who sees the brighter side of things, has fun with his powers and isn’t weighed down by the baggage as the other DCEU heroes seem to be so far.
Whatever the story, the movie shouldn’t shy away from jokes or light-hearted moments, not to compensate for a dark tone, but because this is the movie to have that tone to being with! There should be plot lines involving Barry trying to juggle a personal life, relationships, crime fighting and his job; elements of the basic super hero secret identity which has gone ignored in the last few years of shared universes, with the exception of Spider-Man: Homecoming.
Coincidentally, the directors of Flashpoint are also the ones who were involved in writing the Spider-Man: Homecoming. And co-director Jonathan Goldstein even compared Flash as being the Spider-Man of the DCEU:
"“In much the same way that Peter Parker is sort of the entry level way into the Marvel Superhero Universe, they both share that quality that they’re still a little excited to have these powers and they’re newbies and all that,”"
Focusing on the Heart not the Spectacle
The makers behind the CW TV series The Flash have a motto in their writers’ room: heart, humour and spectacle. This mantra is applied to every episode. Flashpoint needs to focus on similar ideologies to tell a story that is moving from a character perspective, with a lot of heart. The humor and spectacle will be that much more effective if the audience connects to the characters immediately.
Bring back the themes of the father-son relationship that was focused on in Man Of Steel. Show us how Barry became the man he is, without a father-figure in his life, and how that affected them both.
The Flash is a superhero who was born out of Barry Allen’s love for his mom, and his need for closure, so the movie should be accordingly equally uplifting and heartbreaking, and not brutally depressing and joyless in tone and execution.
Not Shying Away From The Love Story
One of the reasons why Flash stands out is his love story with Iris West. Their relationship is always portrayed as her being his anchor, his lightning rod, during moments of crisis that other superheroes just have to punch their way through. For a hero that travels through time, dimensions and alternate worlds, Irish is always what brings him back.
The CW incarnation focuses on that heavily with great results as it makes the hero more than just his powers, villains or fight scenes.
With the casting of Kiersey Clemons, it seems Flashpoint will be following the new 52 version of their relationship, which is great. An all out romantic super hero love story is also something that’s sorely missing in the DCEU, and Flashpoint can definitely look to remedy that.
A Compelling Villain
The Flash’s origins and back story is all connected to his villains. So have a villain that is equally substantial in character development, and not a throwaway baddie who is there to do bad things.
If It’s Eobard Thawne, then give the character a back story that provides the motivation for his actions. Thawne shouldn’t just be portrayed as the cackling maniac out to destroy the Flash.
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If Black Panther’s Killmonger taught us anything, it’s that a great villain only serves to enhance the story and further the effectiveness of the conflict at hand.