The Death of Superman (2018)

 

It might be hard to fathom nowadays, but the comic event of the death of Superman was a big deal. Heck, no one ever expected DC to have the balls to kill off one of their stalwarts. I mean sure, other companies have heroes die and return with reckless abandon, but not the big blue boyscout, right?

Yet they did and in doing so created one of the best runs ever. So naturally DC decided to make this one of their animated features and it is actually very good. Sure, if you read the comic, you know what's coming, but it works as a film as well with just some minor tweaks to the story. 

Things are going good for Superman: as Clark, he is in a relationship with Lois Lane, the Justice League manages threats just fine and Lex Luthor is under house arrest. Clark is just struggling to try and tell Lois that he is actually Superman, but a tiff when his parents come to town convinces him to finally let Lois in on the secret.

However, at this time, a meteorite crashes to Earth, releasing an unstoppable juggernaut with only death and destruction on its mind. The Justice League is unable to stop this brutal behemoth, so now Superman has the fight of his life to try and save the planet and especially the woman he loves.

That it. That's the story.

And in keeping things simple, this animated feature works. No extraneous exposition, no hastily introduced sideplots, just heading straight from point A to point B, and sometimes simplicity is exactly what the doctor ordered. The voice cast is spot on and the voices really suit the characters. You also get most of your favourites and even slightly more obscure characters pop by for a cameo. 

But the heart and soul is the action and for an animated feature, this one is pretty brutal. They didn't shy away from the visceral nature of the comic, so there's blood and mayhem all across the board, of course culminating in the demise of Superman, that is actually more poignant than one might expect. 

And handled a damn sight better than in the live action version of the same tale.

Okay, the ending does give away that Supes probably isn't dead for realsies, but that's just how comics and classic characters work. Check it out!