Sfdebris.net

So I was re-watching Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Civil War and I thought of Chuck's comments on Superman and why he liked how Sups was written in those episodes, with him being so paranoid that he does some questionable things and acts a LOT more aggressive then usual. I, respectfully, disagree as I felt that Sups was way to aggressive and that a lot of his choices and actions seemed very out of character.

Yes, Luthor was winding him up, Yes a lot of things have happened to Sups in Universe and that would cause anyone to make some stupid choices based on past experience but for me I found it impossible to take Superman's side in all this. He's the hero of the story but he was acting so unlikable during the story and Luthor was being his usual Tool self so I didn't much care for either side and honestly I find JLU to be a bit overrated.

I felt that the ideas of what the DCAU was trying to accomplish was handled a lot better with Captain America's story in the MCU. Like Sups Cap makes a number of morally questionable choices, he fights the proper authorities, keeps vital information hidden from one of his closest friends, for that matter fights said friend instead of taking the time to try and talk this all out. And gets a number of his other friends thrown in Prison because he has been led to believe that a group of Super Soldiers like him could be unleashed at any moment.

And just like Sups you understand why he makes these choices as all of them are being driven by personal experience or his judgement is being compromised by a number of resent and Very personal tragedies.

But the reason I'm more willing to side with Cap, or at least hear his side of the story, is that he's still acting in character and is still acting likeable. Sups, as I said, in JLU makes it rather hard to either take his side or hear him out as he's acting like a complete twat.

I'm okay with a character doing things that are morally questionable so long as they're acting in character, that's one of the reasons I didn't like The Last Jedi as Luke wasn't acting like Luke even towards the end of the movie. Superman, Captain America and Luke Skywalker are characters who do have dark sides to them but are still overall nice people who seek to do the right thing and while they can act without thinking they're still going to do their best to be good people.

Superman screwing up and fighting another superhero after he is tricked by Luthor isn't a problem, it's the fact that he's a jerk who is rude even to his friends and loved ones. Steve Rogers makes mistakes and likewise fights another hero after being tricked by a supervillain but even as he disagrees with Tony on every single point he still does his best to be a good person. Willingly to hear Tony's side of the argument, even considers signing the Accords when Tony is being reasonable and only goes back on it when Tony, being Tony, opens his mouth and says the one thing that would get Steve to turn his back on the whole thing. That being that Wanda is under house arrest despite all the good she has done.

I get why JLU did what they did but I don't see it as good storytelling if you have to have the character break character for the story to work, especially when you Don't have to break the character for the story to work as shown in the MCU.

I think it was more effective because we spent years with this superman, many who watched the justice show had been watching the DCAU since the beginning with batman the animated series and later superman the animated series and could understand why he would react the way he does in justice League when to people like to Luther and Darkseid given the history.