JUSTICE LEAGUE: CRISIS ON TWO EARTHS (2010)

 

PHENOMENALITY: *marvelous*
MYTHICITY: *fair*
FRYEAN MYTHOS: *adventure*
CAMPBELLIAN FUNCTION: *metaphysical, psychological*

On a second viewing I found CRISIS ON TWO EARTHS to be a middle-range Justice League adventure, with a few impressive sequences but not compelling overall. 

Writer Dwayne McDuffie originally conceived the story to take place within the continuity of the two JUSTICE LEAGUE teleserials, back when he was a primary writer for that show, but that narrative was revised for this stand-alone DTV movie. The villains known as the Crime Syndicate originated in JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #29-30, wherein the Justice League voyaged to an alternate Earth, dubbed "Earth-3." The Crime Syndicate consisted of five criminal versions of core Justice Leaguers: Ultraman (Superman), Owlman (Batman), Johnny Quick (The Flash), Power Ring (Green Lantern), and Superwoman (Wonder Woman). These characters made assorted appearances over the years until Grant Morrison produced his own take on them in the 2000 graphic novel JLA: EARTH 2. 

The main thing McDuffie took from Morrison was the idea that the five super-criminals, instead of simply using their super-abilities to pull off assorted robberies, become leaders of criminal gangs powerful enough to challenge the government of their alternate Earth. In fact, McDuffie builds on this concept, eliding many of Morrison's more abstruse concepts in order to show the quintet of crooks operating like Mafia dons, each controlling separate territories and constantly quarreling over turf. The federal government, administered by President Slade Wilson, has been forced to broker an uneasy peace with the gangs, though the President does still control nuclear bombs to use as a fail-safe. To counter Wilson's advantage, leader Ultraman has Owlman build a retaliatory bomb for the Crime Syndicate. However, Owlman and his sometime lover Superwoman are actually planning to destroy the entire continuum of alternate worlds by detonating the super-explosive on "Earth-Prime," the original domain from which all other alternates descended.

Fortunately for "Crime-Earth," its version of Luthor, who's a good guy on his world, crosses into the earth of the Justice League and talks the heroes into playing interdimensional cops. Though McDuffie gives all five of the principal heroes-- Superman, Batman, Flash, Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter-- various bits of character-business, the writer unquestionably slants the new narrative toward Batman, in contrast to the Superman-centric focus of the Morrison story. The best scenes involve the Caped Crusader contending with the far more powerful alternate-world version of Wonder Woman, which is a clear shout-out to the romance-angle the TV show generated between Batman and the real amazon princess. And when Owlman speeds off to Earth-Prime to begin the destruction of all realities, it is of course Owlman's "good double" who's elected to stop him. This climax has the greatest psychological heft, since Batman's pessimistic outlook on life becomes distorted on "Crime-Earth" into Owlman's extreme nihilism and fundamental desire for death.

Some of the duller character-bits-- Martian Manhunter has a quickie love-affair with the President's daughter-- are at least executed without taking away from the video's main attraction, big splashy fight-scenes. Arguably Wonder Woman's battles with Superwoman are the most well-choreographed, aside from the aforementioned end-fight between Batman and his doppelganger. There are only a few fleeting moments of metaphysical awe at the very concept of alternate worlds, but there have certainly been far worse JLA adventures than this one.