Gunn’s DC Universe reboot is making some serious changes, and instead of focusing on Justice League, having a Young Justice team would be better.
James Gunn is now heading up an all-new era of the DC Universe, and while many may be excited to see his version of the Justice League, a better choice would be Young Justice. While the DCEU attempted the Justice League in the past, it was an immense failure, and scrambling to get all the pieces together again would be a bad idea. However, Young Justice perfectly fits the bill for the superhero team that Gunn’s DC Universe needs. Fortunately, the DCU is already setting the team up – in a way, at least.
DC’s shared universe efforts have been troubled since the very beginning, getting off to a rocky start with its first few films. The critical and box office failure of movies like 2017’s Justice League led to DC Studios shutting down Zack Snyder’s original DCEU plans, with the franchise going on to take another approach. Later movies like Shazam! and The Suicide Squad were more well-received, but they didn’t offer a vision of where the franchise was going. Now, James Gunn and Peter Safran have taken over DC Studios, with their new films attempting to build up to a big event movie – but it shouldn’t be a new Justice League.
Young Justice Works In The DCU’s Current State
The DC Universe is still in a state of flux right now, with major changes still happening. Some movies have been canceled, new films have been announced, and major actors have left the franchise. Henry Cavill has exited his Superman role, for example, and Black Adam will not appear in any future films despite Black Adam seeming like the crux of DC’s future plans. With the new DC Studios regime still in the early stages of implementing their new roadmap, a new Justice League is a bad idea so soon.
The Justice League is a fairly consistent superhero team, with the six League members from the 2017 film almost always being on the roster. Young Justice, on the other hand, is a constantly rotating panel of heroes, making the series perfect for the DC Universe’s current state. With Young Justice, the DCU could add in any heroes they want, but if they ever need to make a change, they can just pull them off the team. The Young Justice animated show has gotten fans of the team used to this, with characters getting added to the team or being 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ed off mid-season. The DC Universe needs an unstable team like Young Justice.
Young Justice Avoids The Biggest DCEU Comparisons
It’s going to be nearly impossible for the rebooted DC Universe to avoid comparisons to the previous DCEU, but having Young Justice as the main team would help that. If the DCU went ahead and made a new Justice League movie, it would constantly get compared and nitpicked, with each little change and difference being the subject of endless discussion online. Since a Young Justice team has never been seen in live action before, this would help the DC Universe avoid comparisons to Snyder’s team, with the franchise offering something completely different to its predecessor.
Young Justice has an incredibly diverse membership, meaning that the DC Universe can make the team as close to or as different from the Justice League as they want. The team could consist of basic Justice League-related characters like Robin, Wonder Girl, and Wally West, or it could feature wildly different characters like Zatanna, Beast Boy, and Artemis. Young Justice has also faced off with a wide variety of villains ranging from Deathstroke to Darkseid, meaning that a Young Justice movie could feature a main antagonist of any power level and not feel disappointing. This customizability makes Young Justice able to completely stand out from the DCEU’s Justice League.
Every Young Justice Hero Being Set Up In The DCU
Although nothing has yet been confirmed, a Young Justice movie could be possible in the near future, as the DC Universe has already set up several characters that could be part of the team. James Gunn’s new Superman movie will focus on a younger version of Clark Kent, meaning that the character could be the perfect age to join Young Justice. Superboy is frequently a Young Justice member, so replacing him with a young Superman wouldn’t be all that different. A Blue Beetle movie is also coming out in 2023, with the titular hero being another Young Justice member.
On top of that, The Flash will introduce Supergirl, who is also young enough to fit the bill. There are also plenty of characters from DC’s past that the rebooted DCU could pull from, continuing their story as part of a Young Justice team. Atom-Smasher and Cyclone were introduced in Black Adam, and since Martian Manhunter appeared in Zack Snyder’s Justice League, Miss Martian could exist in the DCU. Likewise, Batman: The Brave and the Bold will introduce one Robin (Damian Wayne), which also means more already exist. With all these characters, a DC Universe version of the Young Justice team would be better than doing Justice League again.
