Sure, it was nothing spectacular and ultra original, but the writing was charming, the animation was good and it felt like a breath of fresh air in a genre plagued with fatigue. Their most recent release, Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons (2022) fell into this criteria, being the first fully CGI animated film from the company.

The second is the more interesting one to me, where DC takes a more adventurous risk and mixes up animation styles, or places one of their heroes in a new context, like in one of my favourite DC animated films, Batman Ninja. Examples include The Death of Superman (2018), Batman: The Long Halloween (2021) and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (2013). The first, which Legion of Super-Heroes (2023) falls into, is an accurate retelling of a famous and acclaimed comic book story. Typically, they wind up falling into one of two categories.

They’re often made straight for VOD releases and so not having to worry about the financial pressure of being a major release allows these films to be a bit more creative than your average theatrical venture and take a few more risks. Jeff Wamester’s Legion of Super-Heroes is an enjoyable but ultimately safe and disappointing entry in the DC animated canon.ĭC’s animated lineup of films has, for a while now, been a highlight of the superhero genre.

Company of heroes movie reviews