LEGO DC SUPER HEROES: JUSTICE LEAGUE-- ATTACK OF THE LEGION OF DOOM (2015)

 

PHENOMENALITY: *marvelous*
MYTHICITY: *fair*
FRYEAN MYTHOS: *comedy*
CAMPBELLIAN FUNCTION: *psychological*

In marked contrast to the same year's BIZARRO LEAGUE Lego-flick, the Legoverse's first introduction of the Legion of Doom (as conceived by the SUPERFRIENDS cartoon of the 1970s) is a good parody of a "straight" Justice League story with several funny moments-- though at least one joke involving "the New 52" will only make sense to comics insiders.

I don't remember what if any status "Lego Cyborg" had in earlier installments, but here he's the new kid in the League, and eager to prove himself. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor, having suffered more humiliating defeats since the League came into existence, decides to forge his Legion of Doom. After a pretty funny "obstacle course" to determine which villains get to join, Luthor's lineup includes Gorilla Grodd, The Cheetah, Captain Cold, Sinestro, and Black Manta. Three Bat-foes are rejected for one reason or another-- The Joker, The Penguin and The Man-Bat. Also, a Flash-villain, The Trickster, has a separate encounter with the League, which is mainly worth mentioning because he's voiced by Mark Hamill, who portrayed a live-action version of the evildoer on the 1990 FLASH show. Trickster's main function in the script is to unleash a trick that Cyborg falls for, thus making him look bad in front of his buddies.

Luthor's first mission for the Legion is to raid a government facility, and despite their being forced to flee the League, the villains escape with an alien who was being held prisoner in the facility. (This prisoner is alluded to in BIZARRO's coda, though the actual continuity doesn't track.) Irritated by his internment, the alien decided to help the Legion, but only because Luthor claims that the Legion is devoted to justice. I don't know Luthor knew that this ET had powers that could help the Legion's next scheme-- getting the League exiled from Earth-- but I can give the writers a pass, given that this is a good intro for the Lego version of The Martian Manhunter.

There's a running gag in which Flash and Green Lantern keep trying to one-up each other, and a subplot showing that Darkseid has been funneling weapons to Luthor. After the Legion's defeat, Darkseid contacts a new potential ally, doubtlessly Brainiac, who then appears in COSMIC CLASH. To date CLASH is the last of the Lego-flicks to sport the "Justice League" banner, though technically two later movies, spotlighting the Flash and Aquaman, make considerable use of the League's presence. The fight-scenes combine a decent mix of comedy and adventure, and in the end, Cyborg gets to have his day in the sun. Thus DOOM stacks up as one of the more entertaining of the series.