Sunday, June 10, 2012

Justice League the New Frontier DVD

Justice League the New Frontier
2008
Warner Premiere DVD

This direct to DVD animated film is based on an early 2000s comic book limited series. Now I kept hearing how great this limited series was but never read it. Mainly cause when it came out I wasn't reading any comics. Well when the DVD came out I didn't buy it cause I wanted to read the comic first. Well about a year ago I still hadn't read the comic,but found the DVD for $5. So I said fuck it and bought the DVD.

Set in the mid 50s through 1960 this film is mainly focused on test pilot Hal Jordan. After serving in the Korean war Hal has a mental breakdown and place in the mental ward of a hospital for 6 months. Meanwhile thanks to a scientific accident the Martian J'onn J'onzz is teleported to Gotham city. He ends up stuck on Earth and uses his various powers to do his best to blend in.We end up getting introduced to a whole bunch of other heroes. All of whom by the last act of the film team up to take on an alien threat.

The animation in this film looks almost exactly like the artwork in the comic. And has the feel of the old Fleischer Studios cartoons. What I love about this film is all the cameos of various DC superheroes that either have never appeared outside the comics or rarely have. Plus this film has one of the best voice casts of any animated film based on a comic.

The DVD has two versions. One is a single disc and the other is a double disc. I got the single disc. And it has a nice selection of extras. We get a pretty well done documentary about the history of the Justice League. This documentary is well done in that if you have never read a Justice League comic it will explain lots of stuff. But if you are a Justice League fan it still is worth watching. Plus there is two commentaries. The first one has most of the production crew. But the second one is better and has Darwyn Cooke. Who wrote and drew the limited series the film is based on. Justice League The New Frontier gets a B+.